BD Hubs: NORTHEAST: The Northeast Big Data Innovation Hub

Columbia University, New York NY

Investigators

Abstract

The Northeast Big Data Innovation Hub will speed innovation and research by creating an ecosystem for a diverse group of researchers and practitioners to learn from each other. The Hub will encourage collaboration through workshops, visiting research positions, student ambassadors, virtual meetings, research projects and an online web presence, and facilitate sharing of data, tools, infrastructure, techniques, and insights to address challenges using big data. It will also facilitate the development, collection and organization of educational materials and learning opportunities for teachers in pre-K through high school. To communicate the importance of big data in everyday life, the Hub will work with museum educators and curators to develop materials and exhibits on this topic and share work already being done across the region. Finally, the Hub will develop programs for government and the general public on how to take advantage of data analytics. The scale of this project will allow the hub to make substantial intellectual gains. By identifying shared challenges and facilitating the deployment of human and financial resources, solutions will be developed that can be applied to a range of research questions, government and economic problems and that can be useful to society generally. The Northeast Hub will be organized in a "hub and spoke model" with common theme activities (connectors) that are centrally organized and spokes that reflect regional interests aligned with national priorities. Initial areas of focus, or spokes, will be: Health, Energy, Finance, Cities/Regions, Discovery Science and Data Science in Education. Cross-cutting connectors will be: Data Sharing, Privacy & Security, Ethics & Policy and Education. Topics of importance to the northeast will be added to the Hub during the first three years. For further information see the project web site: http://northeastbdhub.dsi.columbia.edu/