DATA SCIENCE & ITS

APPLICATIONS
Prepared by: Muhammad Ahmed
 By definition, data science is a field focused on extracting knowledge and
insights from data by using scientific methods.

To understand it, lets look at a simple real life example.

At every moment, you’re taking in details from your surroundings (by
observing) and feeding it to your brain. Then you process these observations
into Data and use it to understand things around you by finding out meanings
and make predictions of what is likely to happen next.

For example: Lets say you’re walking down a road and you see some old lady
talking to a guy. But you look a little further and see that she’s scared of that
guy. The area is not crowded and the guy looks aggressive. You might think
DATA SCIENCE that the guy is a robber(by observing the situation) that’s why she looks
scared. You start to think he might have a weapon and the lady is actually
being robbed. Now, you have started feeding these observations and
hypotheses into your brain, understanding what this means and trying to come
up with a solution and possible outcomes. If you do these calculations and
predictions in your mind, without noting it down, you’re a normal human being.

On the other hand, if you go ahead and record these data points (in a machine-
readable format) and then try to devise an algorithm (or, procedures) and
computer programs to run the application. If the output of this “hypothetical”
system is that “the lady is being robbed”, then bingo! You’re a Data Scientist.
 A data scientist identifies important questions, collects relevant data from

DATA SCIENTIST various sources, stores and organizes data, decipher useful information, and
finally translates it into business solutions and communicate the findings to
affect the business positively.
 DATA SCIENCE TOOLS

There are numerous tools available for data science. Namely:

• data platforms and analytics engines, such as Spark, Hadoop and NoSQL databases;
• programming languages, such as Python, R, Julia, Scala and SQL;
• statistical analysis tools like SAS and IBM SPSS;
• machine learning platforms and libraries, including TensorFlow, Weka, Scikit-learn,
Keras and PyTorch;
• Jupyter Notebook, a web application for sharing documents with code, equations and
other information; and
• data visualization tools and libraries, such as Tableau, D3.js and Matplotlib.
DATA SCIENCE IS OSEMN
 T H E OSE MN FR AME WOR K

• Obtain Data: The first step in data science is to obtain data from disparate sources like databases(MySQL). You can also receive data in file formats
like MS EXCEL.
Skills: To perform the tasks above, you will need certain technical skills. For example, for Database management, you will need to know how to use
MySQL,

• Scrub Data: After obtaining data, the next immediate thing to do is scrubbing data. This process is for us to “clean” and to filter the data. In this
process you convert one format to another and consolidate everything into one standardized format across all data.
Skills: You will need scripting tools like Python or R to help you to scrub the data.

• Explore Data: Once your data is ready to be used, and right before you jump into AI and Machine Learning, you will have to examine the data i.e.
make sense of it. To achieve that, we will need to explore the data. Then, the next step is to compute descriptive statistics to extract features and test
significant variables. Testing significant variables often is done with correlation. Lastly, we will utilise data visualisation to help us to identify
significant patterns and trends in our data.
Skills: If you are using Python, you will need to know how to use Numpy, Matplotlib, Pandas or Scipy; if you are using R, you will need to use GGplot2
or the data exploration swiss knife Dplyr. On top of that, you need to have knowledge and skills in inferential statistics and data visualization.

• Modeling: If you want to explain the data or predict what will happen, you probably want to create a statistical model of your data. Techniques to
create a model include clustering, classification, regression, and dimensionality reduction.
Skills: SQL DBM, MySQL, Power BI, Tableau etc.

• Interpret: The final and perhaps most important step in the OSEMN model is interpreting data. This step involves drawing conclusions from your
data, evaluating what your results mean, and communicating your result.
Skill: Computer is of little use here. Once you’ve reached this step, it is up to you.
 DATA SCI E NCE AT WOR K

Did you know that media services provider Netflix uses data science extensively? The company measures user engagement
and retention, including:

• When you pause, rewind or fast-forward

• What day of the week and what time of day you watch content
• When and why you leave content
• Where in the world you’re watching from
• Your browsing and scrolling behavior
• What device you watch on

Netflix has over 120 million users worldwide! To process all of that information, Netflix uses advanced data science metrics.
This allows it to present a better movie and show recommendations to its users and also create better shows for them. The
Netflix hit series House of Cards was developed using data science and big data. Netflix collected user data from the show,
West Wing, another drama taking place in the White House. The company took into consideration where people stopped
when they fast-forwarded and where they stopped watching the show. Analyzing this data allowed Netflix to create what it
believed was a perfectly engrossing show.
 Data science has many applications and uses in different fields. Some of
them are:

1. Banking
2. Finance
DATA SCIENCE 3. Manufacturing
APPLICATIONS 4.
5.
Transport
Healthcare
6. E-commerce
7. Gaming
 BANKING

• Banking is one of the biggest applications of Data Science. Big Data and Data Science have
enabled banks to keep up with the competition. With Data Science, banks can manage their
resources efficiently, furthermore, banks can make smarter decisions through fraud
detection, management of customer data, risk modeling, real-time predictive analytics,
customer segmentation, etc.
• Banks also assess the customer lifetime value that allows them to monitor the number of
customers that they have. It provides them with several predictions that the business bank
will derive through their customers. In case of fraud detection, banks allow the companies to
detect frauds that involve a credit card, insurance, and accounting. Banks are also able to
analyze investment patterns and cycles of customers and suggest you several offers that suit
you accordingly.
 FINANCE

• Data Science has played a key role in automating various financial tasks. Just like how banks
have automated risk analytics, finance industries have also used data science for this task.
Financial industries need to automate risk analytics in order to carry out strategic decisions
for the company. Using machine learning, they identify, monitor and prioritize the risks.
These machine learning algorithms enhance cost efficiency and model sustainability through
training on the massively available customer data. Similarly, financial institutions use
machine learning for predictive analytics. It allows the companies to predict customer
lifetime value and their stock market moves.
• Data Science also plays a key role in algorithmic trading. Through rigorous analysis of data,
financial institutions are able to make data-driven decisions. It is also playing an important
role in making the customer experiences better for the users. Through extensive analysis of
client experience and modification of preferences, financial institutions are able to create a
personalized relationship with their customers.
 MANUFACTURING

• The main objective of any business is to cater to the needs of the customers and also make
profits. Similar is the case of manufacturing industries. But, what has served to be a game-
changer for them is the advent of data science. Firms are making use of data science to
optimize their production, reducing costs and boosting profits. It also allows them to predict
potential problems, monitor systems and also analyze data.
• Data science uses at manufacturers include optimization of supply chain management and
distribution, plus predictive maintenance to detect potential equipment failures in plants
before they occur.
 TRANSPORT

• Transport data analysis and modelling are being transformed with the help from machine
learning techniques and the Big Data platform. Machine learning techniques make it
possible to derive patterns and models from large volume, high dimensional data. The Big
Data platform leverages distributed file system and parallel computing to enable fast
processing of data. With the two being combined for transport analysis, it is capable of
making sense of large real-time traffic data streams as well as supporting large-scale traffic
simulation.
• Delivery companies, freight carriers and logistics services providers use data science to
optimize delivery routes and schedules, as well as the best modes of transport for
shipments.
 HEALTHCARE

Data analytics can have far-reaching effects on the health care industry. Here are some examples to
consider:
• Data gathered from patients regarding their experiences with medical practitioners can be
analyzed to reveal areas for improvement.
• Another way to leverage data analytics in health care is with machine-learning algorithms. When
used correctly, algorithms can analyze data more quickly and efficiently than humans. When
paired with your critical thinking and knowledge as a medical practitioner, machine-learning
algorithms could potentially save both time and lives.
• Data analytics can also predict trends in the spread of illness, allowing doctors’ offices, hospitals,
schools, and individuals to adequately prepare. A great example is the coronavirus (COVID-19)
pandemic. Analyzing data to predict future spikes in cases can help hospitals ensure staff have
enough personal protective equipment and patient beds. It can also enable school administrators
to decide whether in-person learning is a safe option, and individuals to make sound choices
regarding personal safety and hygiene, social distancing, and travel.
 E-COMMERCE

In E-Commerce, big data analytics not only helps business owners understand customers well, but also it predicts market trends and assists in
boosting revenue. Some of the advantages are:
• Track shopper’s buying journey: Big data analytics tools can track the buying journey of customers. They capture the interactions a user
previously had with a brand, including products viewed, clicks, past purchases, etc.
• Personalized experience: After a business gets the shoppers’ info, they can create personalized experiences that cater to their
needs. Personalized experience strategies include sending customized emails to users providing special discounts and offers, showing
targeted ads to different groups of people, implementing up-selling and/or cross-selling strategies to individuals, etc. The world’s largest e-
commerce giant Amazon is a great example of using big data analytics and cross-selling strategy to generate high revenue.
• Improved buyer sentiment analysis: There’s an emerging trend of using e-commerce customer service: collecting and mining the data from
customer reviews. Through mining texts and analyzing the underlying sentiments using the Natural Language Processing technology,
companies are able to know exactly how the buyers think of their product. For example, marketers of Huawei get to know whether
consumers have positive, neutral, or negative sentiments towards the design, battery life, button size, camera, overall functionality, and
many other features of the phone.
• Optimized pricing: With big data analytics tools, business owners are enabled to look at the greater picture and monitor the pricing of
competitors in real-time. This requires a large data set with all the prices of competitors, which needs to be updated from time to time since
the market price is always changing.
• Demand forecasting: Big data can help companies estimate future stocking based on past experience, and plan marketing campaigns
ahead of time. Based on historical sales data, online retailers can predict future sales, and prepare a proper number of goods in the
warehouse. Using social listening, they can discover new buzzwords and react promptly to catch golden opportunities to make more sales.
 GAMING

• Gaming analytics is the process of applying user behavior data to guide marketing, product, and
business decisions. For a gaming company, the users are gamers. The insights that Indicative
generates can help teams make decisions to enhance game design, monetization, and business
impact.
• EA Sports, Sony, Nintendo, Zynga, and other giants in this domain have taken it upon
themselves to take your gaming experience to an altogether new level. Games are now
developed and improved using Machine Learning algorithms so that they can upgrade as you
move up to higher levels. Machine learning can also be applied in fraud detection models in
gaming that identify bots and other hacks. Hence improve the quality for players in-game.

Here’s how one analyst eloquently explains what the importance of data in gaming is:
“As compelling as the storylines are, as realistic as the graphics are, and as atmospheric
as the music is, it is the data – the unsung hero – that is making waves in the gaming industry,”
writes Dan Robinson.
THANK YOU