I.O.T, Data Science, And Smart Cities

Sokwoo Rhee is an Associate Director of Cyber-Physical Systems Program at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Recently, he spoke at ODSC's Washington D.C meetup about how the Internet of Things (I.O.T) will play a vital role in the development of smart cities. Cyber-Physical systems and the I.O.T are almost indistinguishable, but there are some key differences. In general, the former puts emphasis on concepts like robust implementation while the latter is more concerned with the hardware itself.

Learn more about this topic and others like it at the Data Science Workshops and Talks at ODSC UK 2016 in London.

It is because of this that the I.O.T is often thought of as just connecting devices. This trivializes the fields potential impact as there are far more interesting areas, one of which is applying work to the public sector in constructing smart cities. Although the technology to bring about this revolution has existed for decades, certain limiting factors are behind the snail-like cruise control. One of the major one comes from community efforts which lack a clear sense of direction when it comes to scaling products and setting the framework for large scale adoption.

No improvements spring up from this perspective when city organizations come into the picture. Companies are hired to design solutions in isolation for each city, and thus work must always begin anew. Therefore, the goal is to develop a solution framework that is replicable, scalable, and sustainable.

This is the goal of the Global City Teams Challenge which Mr Rhee leads. Through the program, multiple cities and companies are instructed in abstract templates of how to design smart cities, rather than being shown city-specific ideas. Such initiatives act as a catalyst and the results - whether direct or indirect - are springing up across the nation. In New York City for example, a program called LinkNYC is replacing old phone booths by structures which provide free, fast WiFi and contain noise and air pollution sensors.

Why this drive to push the IOT? Adoption of the technology in cities will be a catalyst for job creation, a boost for the economy, and a framework to save lives through the stronger intertwining of services. It's a smart decision on multiple levels.