Origins of data analysis

Data is as old as civilization itself, maybe even older. The 17,000-year-old paintings in the Lascaux caves in France could well have been attempts by those primitive dwellers to record their greatest hunting triumphs. Those records provide us with data about humanity in the Paleolithic era. That data was not analyzed, in the modern sense, to obtain new knowledge. But its existence does attest to the need humans have to preserve their ideas in data.

Five thousand years ago, the Sumerians of ancient Mesopotamia recorded far more important data on clay tablets. That cuneiform writing included substantial accounting data about daily business transactions. To apply that data, the Sumerians invented not only text writing, but also the first number system.

In 1086, King William the Conqueror ordered a massive collection of data to determine the extent of the lands and properties of the crown and of his subjects. This was called the Domesday Book, because it was a final tallying of people's (material) lives. That data was analyzed to determine ownership and tax obligations for centuries to follow.