Big data is everywhere and it’s involved in more than you think.
Do you believe the selection of Christmas music that you hear on the radio–or even that you buy–is just a random, traditional playlist composed of old favorites that are mixed and matched?
Not quite.
The number-crunching wizards at fivethirtyeight.com looked a little deeper into the music of the Holidays and what they discovered is simultaneously surprising and not surprising.
First–the Christmas music you hear on the radio? It’s all programmed, and more tightly programmed than ever before. Big data drives the playlist. Theoretically, it’s what you want to hear (by the numbers, not the notes).
It’s well beyond an inspired mix of traditional holiday music and more like an index of the best of the season.
And your personal Christmas playlist? That list is also not quite as personal as you might think.
The Bottom Line: Every element of our life is subject to increasingly detailed data observation and analysis.
Even the one time of the year–the Holiday season–that is (theoretically) the most traditional and emotion packed.
It’s all about the numbers.