Let’s say that in this definition of data being a unit of information, data is the tangible past. This is quite profound when you think about it. Data is the past, and the past is data. The record of things to which data contributes is called a database. And data scientists can use it to better understand our present and future operations. They’re applying the very same principle that historians have been telling us about for ages: we can learn from history. We can learn from our successes – and our mistakes – in order to improve the present and future.
