Smart Machines: IBM's Watson and the Era of Cognitive Computing
Steve Hamm and John Kelly
Abstract
We are crossing a new frontier in the evolution of computing and entering the era of cognitive systems. The victory of IBM's Watson on the television quiz show Jeopardy! revealed how scientists and engineers at IBM and elsewhere are pushing the boundaries of science and technology to create machines that sense, learn, reason, and interact with people in new ways to provide insight and advice. This book introduces the fascinating world of “cognitive systems” to general audiences and provides a window into the future of computing. Cognitive systems promise to penetrate complexity and assist peop ... More
We are crossing a new frontier in the evolution of computing and entering the era of cognitive systems. The victory of IBM's Watson on the television quiz show Jeopardy! revealed how scientists and engineers at IBM and elsewhere are pushing the boundaries of science and technology to create machines that sense, learn, reason, and interact with people in new ways to provide insight and advice. This book introduces the fascinating world of “cognitive systems” to general audiences and provides a window into the future of computing. Cognitive systems promise to penetrate complexity and assist people and organizations in better decision making. They can help doctors evaluate and treat patients, augment the ways we see, anticipate major weather events, and contribute to smarter urban planning. The book describes this technology inside and out and explains how it will help us conquer the harnessing and understanding of “big data,” one of the major computing challenges facing businesses and governments in the coming decades.
Keywords:
computing,
cognitive systems,
IBM,
decision making,
big data,
computing challenges,
computing evolution
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2013 |
Print ISBN-13: 9780231168564 |
| Published to Columbia Scholarship Online: November 2015 |
DOI:10.7312/columbia/9780231168564.001.0001 |
