New software from I.B.M. can suck up huge volumes of data from many sources and quickly identify correlations within it. [...]
Instead of creating separate large databases to track things like currency movements, stock trading patterns and housing data, the System S software can meld all of that information together. In addition, it could theoretically then layer on databases that tracked current events, like news headlines on the Internet or weather fluctuations, to try to gauge how such factors interplay with the financial data.[...]
The company suggests, for example, that a hospital could tap the System S technology to monitor not only individual patients but also entire patient databases, as well as medication and diagnostics systems. If all goes according to plan, the computing systems could alert nurses and doctors to emerging problems.[...]
Right, if all goes according to plan…
The most depressing and dystopian news article ever, is it not?
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We have to infer the dystopian aspects, do we not, or shall we say the J-Edgarish implications:
Instead of creating separate large databases to track things like currency movements, stock trading patterns and housing data, the System S software can meld all of that information together. In addition, it could theoretically then layer on databases that tracked current events, like news headlines on the Internet or weather fluctuations, to try to gauge how such factors interplay with the financial data.
Imagine some corporate exec or research using System S to monitors consumer purchases of various sorts, or to profile people online and so forth (Google and most search engines already do this). Or for that matter the Fed snitches could use it to monitor like blogs with subversive or anarchist themes, or non-PC messages of any type (you made a joke about Israelis! likelihood of terrorist activity). The men in black suits could arrive at any time Abby.