How can “big data” be used to benefit us? How can it be abused to threaten our privacy? What is it going to change about the ways we work, play, and live? In many ways, these were the questions put before an audience of more than 200 when Bentley University hosted a research colloquium last semester under the title “Big Data: Applications, Infrastructures, and Implications.” The colloquium focused on big data and other sociotechnical innovations, and brought together Bentley faculty, staff, and students with key members of external stakeholder groups to highlight Bentley’s research within this important topic area.
Big data has captured the interest of academic researchers as well as industry practitioners and users of new technologies in business, science, government, and non-profits. New technological solutions and applications appear to emerge every day. At the same time, scholarly research has started to ask questions about the implications of big data technology infrastructures and their applications. This video summary of the day illustrates some of the highlights of the colloquium, which demonstrated the breadth and the depth of the scholarly work on Big Data that is currently ongoing at Bentley University.
In addition to multiple sessions featuring Bentley faculty and PhD student speakers, the event brought to the campus two prominent keynote speakers: Mr. Christopher Lynch, MBA ’91, Partner at Atlas Venture and Dr. Theresa Pardo, Director of Center for Technology in Government, University at Albany, SUNY.
Building on the success of the Colloquium, Bentley faculty and graduate students have produced an ongoing series of essays examining the topics raised by their research. Read the series below.