To foresee the future, understand the data

Professor Xavier perhaps runs a giant datawarehouse with details about all the mutants in the world. The Cerebro - a machine which responds to queries from the professor's brain. While the possibility of such a machine is still a distant dream, an equivalent utilization of data is a milestone which is a near possibility. With storage technology evolving exponentially, and processing speeds competing, a warehouse of data today is capable of handling much more complex calculations. Predicting the future with a narrow margin for error is now no longer science fiction. Future prediction can effectively be handled by:

1. Data mining:
   

   Digging loads and loads of data, churning it and finding patterns is what effectively makes up Data Mining. Data mining tools have the capabilities to handle large amounts of data. Patterns churned out from the data can be utilized to come up with business intelligence solutions.
   

2. Predictive analysis:
   

   Predictive analysis has long been a domain for mathematicians and statisticians. Predictive analysis uses statistical models to come up with meaningful insights into the data. Predictive analysis has been popularly employed in the finance industry for fraud detection and customer behavior. However with the advent of technology and the internet, predictive analysis is also being employed for customer intelligence and stock market analysis.
   

Though the future does not come out as radically as predicted by the neighborhood astrologer, data mining and predictive analysis do seem to be the solution for devices supposed to be future ready.