Smart Software: More Time to Drive Around
October 16, 2015
I walk my dogs, Tess and Max, each morning. Here in Harrod’s Creek, Kentucky, the traffic flows 24×7. We have the normal assortment of retired people, squirrel hunters, and soccer moms. I am not sure who works in the Commonwealth, where the economy has been slowing down. Tobacco production is in the dumper. Coal is (no pun intended) under fire. Manufacturing whimpering for sustenance.
I read “System That Replaces Human Intuition with Algorithms Outperforms Human Teams” suggested that the few professionals with “real” jobs may be joining the millions out of work. The bright side is that these folks will have more time to drive around aimlessly, hang out at the local general store, and fiddle with their mobile devices. The future seems to offer plenty of leisure time.
The write up reports with authority, of course:
MIT researchers aim to take the human element out of big-data analysis, with a new system that not only searches for patterns but designs the feature set, too. To test the first prototype of their system, they enrolled it in three data science competitions, in which it competed against human teams to find predictive patterns in unfamiliar data sets. Of the 906 teams participating in the three competitions, the researchers’ “Data Science Machine” finished ahead of 615.
Lawyers, investment gurus, even enterprise search consultants may face the squeeze as accountants try to reduce costs. Software does not require vacations, benefits, or snacks.
The write up points out:
“The Data Science Machine is one of those unbelievable projects where applying cutting-edge research to solve practical problems opens an entirely new way of looking at the problem,” says Margo Seltzer, a professor of computer science at Harvard University who was not involved in the work. “I think what they’ve done is going to become the standard quickly—very quickly.”
Imagine. An organization can select, configure, and procure an enterprise search system without dealing with the human wizards. Will search improve? Probably not. Smart software will know what it needs; humans often do not.
The upside is that humans will have more time for binge watching and being social. And there is more time for aimless driving around.
Stephen E Arnold, October 16, 2015
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One Response to “Smart Software: More Time to Drive Around”
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Aw, this was a very good post. Spending some time and actual effort
to make a really good article… but what can I say… I put things off a whole lot and don’t seem to get anything done.