by Angela Guess
A report by the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) has concluded that “every federal agency needs to have a ‘Big Data’ strategy.” According to the article, “The report, ‘Designing a Digital Future,’ adds that ‘the collection, management and analysis of data is a fast-growing concern of NIT research’ at a time when ‘data volumes are growing exponentially’ due to the ‘proliferation of sensors and new data sources.’”
The article continues, “The 119-page report was characterized by five broad themes, with the information explosion and big data addressed first — while also noting the rising importance of data mining, described as ‘the transformation of data into knowledge, and of knowledge into action.’ The report’s contributor community included the PCAST Federal Networking and Information Technology Research and Development (NITRD) Program Review Working Group.”
Stephen Brobst, one of the report’s writers and CTO of Teradata stated, “We are entering the Zettabyte Age, and it is not hyperbole to say ‘every Federal agency needs to have a big data strategy.’ My colleagues and I in the Federal NITRD working group agree that this is an imperative, and leading commercial organizations are already refining such strategies… However, it is vital that government agencies, in particular, act now — because the increasing Federal commitment to U.S. citizens is openness and transparency — which rely on more powerful data management systems that can handle many simultaneous complex queries, extensive dashboarding, and capacities of speed and workload optimization that together must analyze masses of data from a broadening variety of data sources.”
