Month: November 2013

Once again, the highest levels of government are taking a strong interest in big data.

On Tuesday, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and Networking and Information Technology R&D program (NITRD) unveiled a series of new programs designed to connect federal data with private companies who are interested. The targeted fields vary widely, and comprise everything from medical research to linguistics. 

Some of the medical research being supported is particularly compelling. The National Institutes of Health has awarded a $2 million grant to IBM Research, Geisinger Health Systems and Sutter Health to help combat the risk of heart failure. By analyzing the provided data (which include patient demographics, medical histories and medications), the companies hope to build tools that can help doctors better predict which patients are in the most danger, and intervene earlier, an innovation which could save money and lives. 

Not only will this push create jobs, it can also help to develop new skills. An estimated 4.4 million jobs will be created in the next two years via these projects, and the government is working with educational institutions to help a generation of students deal with issues related to big data and managed it software. IBM has created a new tool to assess the efficacy of such programs and give students feedback on how prepared they are for careers in data management. Currently, eight universities will receive the tool: Fordham, George Washington, Illinois Institute of Technology, University of Massachusetts-Boston, Northwestern, Ohio State, Southern Methodist and the University of Virginia.

The government's wealth of data combined with the ingenuity of the private sector? Sounds like a winning combination. 

In many ways, big data is the future of business. The ability to sort, process and analyze the increasing amounts of information that companies now have at their disposal is an important asset. Really profiting from this opportunity, however, takes the right corporate environment. 

The whole company has to be on the same page. If management is unwilling to trust any information that doesn't confirm its "gut feeling", there is little value in compiling a database. Trusting in the collection process is a crucial part of using data well, and an unwilling executive could undermine the the entire process. Before a business agrees that it will adhere to Big Data principles, it has to make sure there is a wholesale commitment to it. 

Another important takeaway from database management is "actionability." What do you want to do with the information you've gathered? Setting concrete goals before looking at the numbers can help guide the discussion and suggest practical solutions. 

Say, for example, you're managing a clothing retailer, and you use FileMaker to determine that your most heavily trafficked hours are between 9 a.m. and noon. Are you able to devote the extra personnel and marketing hours to taking advantage of these findings? If not, the value of this knowledge is sharply curtailed. But if you are adaptable, you could reorganize your sales goals to take advantage of the increased traffic and add extra salespeople to increase conversions. 

If you're a company looking to make big profits with big data, it might take more than just talented FileMaker developers: a cultural change might be needed.

Stopping crime before it starts sounds like the domain of a science fiction movie. In fact, the implications of this exact ability were the basis of the plot behind the film Minority Report. 

Now, custom database software has turned the notion of preventative police work into a reality.

While this initiative doesn't involve psychics or Tom Cruise, it does allow police to use a greater range of information to deduce when and where crime is most likely to occur. While a particular instance of crime might be random, it, as a whole, tends to follow certain patterns. Combining analysis of variables (like weather patterns, concerts, sporting events) with historical crime data can let police departments know the best times and places to deploy officers.

Kenneth Cukier, the author of Big Data: A Revolution that Will Transform How We Live, Work and Think, noted that custom database software was able to sharply reduce crime in areas where it was utilized, even relative to nearby areas that don't use the same tactics. While he cautions against drawing too direct a link between the two (since there could be other underlying factors), he points out that the systemic thinking behind the databases is an important step.

"What's critical, however, is that this is the direction of the future — and the idea is not to just identify where a crime may be committed, but who might be the criminal, down to the specific individual," Cukier told Business Insider.

It might not make for an exciting action thriller, but this kind of data-driven police work can help keep the streets safe. 

At the highest levels of basketball, every player is fast. Every player is strong and talented. What sets the truly great ones apart is how well they use the information provided to them on a day to day basis.

Mike Procopio is the man who provides that information, and FileMaker is what lets him do it with ease.

Mike is the founder of The Hoop Consultants, a basketball strategy firm that has helped NBA players like Kevin Durant and Kobe Bryant hone their games throughout the year. A former scout, he watches hundreds of games a year, taking meticulous notes and gathering as much intel as he can possibly get on everything he sees. Typing and entering all that information to create a composite profile of  player would take up to six hours.

Until he got FileMaker support. 

By creating a custom database, he was able to streamline the entire process. Rather than having to build his profiles manually, he can capture and sort large amounts of data in a flash: everything from a player's age, statistics, height, weight and salary information is gathered for convenient analysis. This information is valuable not only to players themselves, but also to scouts looking to find the next big thing.

"As I'm watching college players, I can automatically pull in profiles of every player in the NBA at his position with the same height and overall profile," says Procopio. "In 10 or 15 minutes I have examples that tell a scout whether we've found a new Kobe clone or other great player that could be a tremendous asset at the professional level."

At the elite levels of basketball, every advantage counts. With FileMaker, Mike Procopio helps provide that edge. 

Paper, paper and more paper.

That was the admissions day process for international students and visiting scholars at Boston University's Center for English Language and Orientation Programs (CELOP), one of the leading intensive English as a Second Language (ESL) schools. In order to process all of those immigration documents, staff had to use huge copy machines borrowed from faculty. Not only were those machines then not available to the professors, the entire system was laborious and painstaking.

The admissions officers needed FileMaker help.

They used the software to create a custom database which allowed them to streamline their operations. Instead of relying on hard copies of all of the records, they automated the document management and saved a ton of time in the process. Scanning time for documents was halved, and once entered, they are now easily available for search. Audits that once took 20 minutes of digging through old records can now be finished in a matter of seconds. 

Using FileMaker made the entire change easy. In just three business days, the university's IT team created and tested a new digital file management platform, just in time for an influx of new students. Hakan Rudy Seber, systems support specialist for Boston University Global Programs, raved about the program's efficacy.

"The speed with which we built this entire document management solution is a testament to the FileMaker Platform's ease of use and the helpfulness of the FileMaker community," he said.

Even if you're not dealing with thousands of international students every year, you might be able to benefit from cutting down on paper clutter. Can Filemaker help? For Boston University and a lot of other users, they answer was a resounding yes.  

Are you a Connecticut FileMaker developer with a shiny new copy of the software and no ideas of what to with it? Here are nine awesome suggestions that can help you get the most of the program:

1. Keep track of plant growth and health for your patio herb garden. Bon appetit!

2. Manage requests for all of the guests of your bread and breakfast.

3. Track and monitor student success between different classes. You can figure out which students need help and in what subject, all in real time.

4. Keep your artistic portfolio on hand at all times. Search it easily, and show the exact digital painting you want to find with just a few clicks.

5. Record and analyze lab results. Dealing with a ton of samples? No problem! FileMaker offers ways to easily organize huge amounts of data. 

6. Oversee your university's library. With the inventory at your fingertips, finding even a rarely used book is easy. 

7. Ensure your pets are happy and healthy. With FileMaker, it's a cinch to keep detailed information on illnesses, eating patterns and treatment history, especially since your dog is unlikely to be able to do it all himself. 

8. Conduct an employee survey. Once you've compiled all the data, you can sort by department, level, hiring data or any other criteria that might pique your interest. 

9. Get a better night's sleep. Recording and investigating your snoozing patterns might yield info that will keep you more energetic and happier throughout the day.

These were just suggestions: clearly, the possibilities are wide and varied. In the end, how you use choose to use your copy of Filemaker is up to your heart's desires. 

One of the major challenges in caring for any animal is that they can't communicate in the same way as a human might, and horses are no different. While a person might have their own health records (or at least a strong memory of recent illnesses and treatments), it falls onto an horse's owner to store all of that information and deploy it in a conscientious way. Especially over long periods of time, or if multiple horses are involved, memories can be inaccurate. That's where the FileMaker service can be vital.

While keeping important health records for a horse can be as low-fi as using a notebook, creating a custom database in FileMaker offers several crucial advantages. First, horse care can be complicated and deeply involved. Not only will you need to store information about routine health and oral exams, you will also want to have a log of farrier procedures (those related to hoof care), workout and competition notes, results of lab tests and any illnesses or abnormalities that might arise. Being able to store all of that information digitally can save time and space.

Additionally, FileMaker pro allows to analyze patterns in data over time. While a paper log might tell you when one thing happened, using database software allows you to look at a lot of data at once and organize it to reveal any underlying causality. Additionally, you can sync it to wireless devices, so you can actually thumb through the information while you interact with your horse — something that isn't easy to do with dozens of sheets of paper. The more you know about your horse, the better care you'll be able to provide for it, and a healthy horse is a happy one. 

Just one FileMaker developer. That's all it took for a Kansas school district to revolutionize the way it administered and reviewed student assessments. 

That district, the Dodge City Public Schools, had struggled with student evaluation. When it began handing out iPads to teachers and students last year, Ray Wipf, executive director of information management, surmised that the devices could be used for more than mobile apps and note taking. Soon, he came up with a solution using Filemaker.

Initially only used on desktops and laptops, the program is now on all 1,200 of the districts iPads — a number that's expected to increase more than fivefold. Students can use the tablets to answer multiple choice and short answer questions, and teachers can track scores and progress, all in real time. Teachers can then quickly identify trends and areas of need, by using custom database filters to sort by subject and areas of weakness. They can view this information in chart, graph or list form, and readily identify students who need extra help. 

Wipf has long recognized the value of being a FileMaker developer.

"I know how to program and I've used FileMaker a number of times in the past. When the district approved the budget to purchase a license for the product, FileMaker was installed on all desktops and laptops," he told education publication The Journal. "We decided the value of doing that would be justified."

Now, with this iPad expansion, the schools in the district are realizing even more benefits from the versatile program. Now that teachers can analyze student results more quickly and thoroughly than before, they can make sure that every student is put in the best possible position to succeed. 

Big data has already helped doctors to diagnose and treat patients. Now, it can help to create the very drugs that will be prescribed.

Two researchers at Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, have created custom database software able to match cancer-linked genes to drugs, whether they be approved by the Food and Drug Administration or just entering the development pipeline. 

Obi Griffith, PhD, and Malachi Griffith, PhD, the identical twin brothers who developed the project, are experts in a field of science known as bioinformatics, which combines biology and computing. The discipline often involves analyzing large quantities of data, and after being repeatedly being asked whether lists of genes identified through cancer genome sequencing could be targeted with existing drugs, the brothers got their idea.

"It shouldn't take a computer wizard to answer that question," said Obi in an interview with the school's paper. "But in reality, we often had to write special software to find out. Now, researchers can quickly and easily search for themselves."

The custom database, which took years to develop, is freely available for all to use. It features more than 14,000 interactions involving 2,600 genes and 6,300 drugs that target those genes, along with another 6,700 genes that could eventually be the target of future drugs. The search function is easy and intuitive: users can enter the name of a single gene or lists of many genes to retrieve drugs targeting those genes. This data can inform researchers of how best to target genetic errors.

While it is informative, the database does not recommend treatment and is most valuable as an in-depth resource to further clinical research. Nonetheless, this is an exciting development in data management that will support life-saving experimentation.