Big Data, Is it Making My Life Easier?

My day recording everything in which I did which related to big data was check my bank account. I knew that I was going to be going to the mall with a couple of friends and I knew that when it comes to the stores we were planning on going to I find it hard not to spend money. After checking said bank account, I began to get on various social media platforms. Facebook, being my guilty pleasure in the mornings, is the first thing I’ll check to start my day off right. While on Facebook, I noticed a couple of ads for a book I had been looking at purchasing the night before. Ads such as these have become such a normal part of my Facebook experience I don’t think twice about them any longer. Before I would get off of Facebook, I would respond to various comments, like my grandma’s daily post, and reply to a message about my high school best friend’s upcoming wedding. Thus, making it known that I had been on Facebook for the day (mostly because this is how my grandmother checks and sees if I’m ok on the days I don’t call her).

Leaving the financial safety of my apartment, my friends and I went to Crabtree for a day of browsing and a little shopping. Sephora, being a weakness of mine because I adore makeup so much, was a stop that must be made. I don’t think twice when I’m getting checked out there about handing them my membership card, because most of the time I’m thinking about the points I’m receiving for making a purchase that I can use later. In other stores such as Yankee Candle and Bath and Body Works, I began to think a bit more about the information I gave out after shopping there. In those stores, the staff ask for your phone number and email address so you can receive coupons.

Once I returned home, I ended my day by looking at my email, where I had already began to receive special offers and information about similar purchases to the ones I made that day. I finished checking my emails and then began to look on Hulu and Netflix for recommendations on something to watch or start binge watching.

I don’t think we think enough about the amount of information we put out there, because we only see what we consider are benefits instead of negatives. I think my contribution to big data shows that I’m a bit of a shopper and I enjoy treating myself to little luxuries every now and then. At this point, I don’t think it would be at all feasible to opt-out of being included in big data. We rely on those recommendation and those coupons so greatly that it has just become a part of our daily lives. What are we going to become accustomed to doing tomorrow and what impact is it going to have on our lives?