What is Big Data?

Many of us may have heard the usage of the term ‘Big Data’. Before we look at what it is, let us define what data is. Data refers to characters, numbers that carry information, on which the computer can perform operations. They are stored and transmitted as bytes of information as we have seen before. Big Data refers to collections of data or large data sets that are so huge that they cannot be processed in the traditional sense using simple data processing tools. Big Data in major businesses can grow exponentially. Examples of Big Data are trading information for stocks, social media platforms, flight data etc.

Big Data can be of many types namely structured, unstructured or semi structured. Data that has a fixed format is called structured data. The format allows for easier processing of information compared to unstructured data. Relational Databases where data is stored in the form of tables, are examples of structured data. Unstructured data on the other hand has no structure or format. Unstructured data could be images, videos, mixed data composed of different types of data etc. Semi structured data can be viewed as a combination of both structured and unstructured data. It can have some format, which allows for sorting or arranging in hierarchies. XML, NoSQL databases are examples of semi structured data. Big Data has many characteristics such as volume, velocity, variety, veracity etc.