Book Review – Super Crunchers
**Originally published on www.proqc.com (12/3/07)
Super Crunchers. Ian Ayres. New York: Bantam Books, 2007. 260 pp.
Ian Ayres, a Professor at Yale Law School and established economist, targets the business community with a wake-up call on the usefulness of data mining. And, somewhere in between, there is a review on statistics that makes regressions and randomized trials seem more exciting than the dull lecture hall format you may recall.
Ironically, Amazon.com was the originating source of this book recommendation. Based on my buying and browsing history, along with a little algorithm finesse, it was determined that Crunchers was something I would like.
Sure, I had considered the usefulness of data mining in the past when I got my Amazon or Netflix order in and felt like I had discovered something worthwhile that I might not have even considered without a computer-generated recommendation. But, the important thing that Ayres does is make you realize how inundated life has become with data and that “quantitative prediction is reshaping business and government”. More importantly, Ayres brings home the idea that “super crunching” is a practical tool that anyone can tap into.
A misconception I had about this book before it arrived was that it would be instructional and complete with complicated mathematical demonstrations. But, to my surprise, reading Super Crunchers does not require an advanced math degree. It also will not provide a step-by-step outline of how to incorporate the benefits of data mining in your company. Even better, it will open your mind to new possibilities and thinking about applications you probably had not considered.
When all is said and done you will likely see the world in a much different light, while no doubt acknowledging that everything around you is a randomized test waiting to happen. At the very least you will appreciate the seemingly endless amount of interesting tidbits and case studies that are referenced.
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