Big and Small Data

We talk and we talk about the need for more information to solve some of the problems and general questions that we have as a collective community within Soccer Analytics. Today I ran across a general post about Big Data, and the revolution of really small data. It led me back to thinking about some of the discussions that Matthias (apparently he has a real name), Keith (the missing guy in the podcasts), and I have had outside of the podcasting realms. It's not always about waiting to develop thoughts or theories until you have data, but making do with what you have at your current disposal and developing theories that later--with further advances--you can prove or disprove.

Just as we now find it ludicrous to talk of "big software" – as if size in itself were a measure of value – we should, and will one day, find it equally odd to talk of "big data". Size in itself doesn't matter – what matters is having the data, of whatever size, that helps us solve a problem or address the question we have.  - Rufus Pollock

I'm not saying that anyone is or is not doing this... it just seemed really profound after a cup a coffee and two shots of espresso, so I thought I'd mention it.