We hear it every day: the explosion of data, the promise of data analytics, the rise of artificially intelligent systems that will take everyone’s job away. In the middle of this hype cycle, stands the field of Data Science and the Data Scientist. But what exactly is data science? How does one become a Data Scientist?
Data Scientist has been labelled by the Harvard Business Review, as “the sexiest job of the 21st century.” A quick search of job search sites reveal that this field is in high demand. However, no one can agree on a common definition of data scientist or the curriculum to create one.
The field of data science mashes up the worlds of statistics, database architecture and software engineering. What this means in practical terms is that no one really has a clear definition of where the field’s boundaries are? Are statisticians data scientists? Maybe, if they can write code. Are DBA’s data scientists?
In this talk, Frank explains how software engineers can prepare for the new age of data.