Contemporary Applications of Big Data in Science

Another way in which Big Data is having an impact on the world is through science. Big Data is ideal in the field of scientific research changing how researchers gather, analyse, and interpret information. This allows better predictions and insights into research data and speeds up the process as well leading to improvements in many different areas of research such as:

Healthcare – Big Data analysis is leading top breakthroughs in personalised medicine and treatments for patients making them more effective. It helps healthcare professionals with tracking, predicting, and reacting to disease outbreaks with greater efficiency and accuracy leading to a reduced impact. Big Data is also speeding up the process of drug discovery over traditional methods shortening the time between discovery and bringing the drug to the market.

Environmental Science – Researchers are using Big Data to improve climate models, track biodiversity, and better understand and protect ecosystems. This is helping researchers and politicians to develop policies in regards to climate change and how to manage finite resources more sustainably.

Physics and Astronomy – Large scale experiments and instruments such as the Large Hadron Collider and the James Webb Space Telescope generate huge amounts of data that would be impossible to study using traditional methods. Big Data technologies allow this data to be captured and processed allowing researchers to make breakthroughs such as the founding of the Higgs Boson particle and the confirmation of gravitational waves. These physical phenomena were predicted in theory years ago, but the modern world of Big Data analysis has allowed researchers to prove their existence.

Social Sciences – Social sciences and behavioural research has been impacted Big Data through the proliferation of social media. Analysing data from social media platforms using Big Data technologies allows researchers to gain insight into human behaviour and societal trends at large. This data can help with tracking economic patterns, studying human interactions and influence policymaking.

 

1. https://lpsonline.sas.upenn.edu/features/impact-big-data-scientific-research#:~:text=Applications%20of%20big%20data%20in%20scientific%20research,-Perhaps%20unsurprisingly%2C%20insights&text=Drug%20discovery%20has%20become%20more,much%20faster%20than%20traditional%20methods.


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