BMS 301: Digital Transformation, Computing & Data Science

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering core concepts, technologies, data classifications, analytical types, and real-world healthcare applications from BMS 301 Lecture 1.

Digital Transformation

A business strategy initiative that incorporates digital technology across all areas of an organisation, modernising processes, products, operations, and the technology stack to enable continual, rapid, customer-driven innovation.

Business & Operating Models Domain

A digital transformation domain defined as a fundamental change in how an organisation delivers products, services, and value to customers, investors, or stakeholders.

Customer Experience (CX)

The sum of every interaction and perception a customer has with a brand across online, in-store, and day-to-day touchpoints.

Robotic Process Automation (RPA)

A digital transformation technology designed to handle repetitive, rule-based tasks.

DevOps & DevSecOps

An operational approach combining software development and IT operations, with security automated throughout the entire product lifecycle.

Digitisation

The process of converting paper-based information into digital data (e.g., electronic medical records).

Blockchain

A distributed, permanent, and immutable ledger that is transparent only to authorised parties.

Digital Twins

Digital facsimiles of products or environments used to test improvements risk-free.

Data

The raw form of information consisting of facts, figures, symbols, or observations about events, objects, or phenomena that can be processed and analysed to extract meaningful insights.

Quantitative Data

Measurable, numeric data that can be discrete or continuous (e.g., age, temperature, sales revenue).

Qualitative Data

Descriptive, non-numeric data that describes qualities or categories (e.g., customer feedback, product colours).

Structured Data

Data that is organised neatly in rows and columns and is easily searchable (e.g., bank transactions, employee records).

Unstructured Data

Data with no predefined format that accounts for $80\%+$ of all data generated (e.g., emails, images, videos).

Semi-Structured Data

Data where tags or markers provide loose organizational structure without a strict predefined format (e.g., JSON, XML, sensor logs).

Volume (Big Data)

The characteristic of Big Data describing massive amounts of data generated continuously.

Velocity (Big Data)

The characteristic of Big Data describing the speed at which data is generated and processed.

Variety (Big Data)

The characteristic of Big Data describing the coexistence and combination of structured, unstructured, and semi-structured formats.

Veracity (Big Data)

The characteristic of Big Data describing the accuracy and trustworthiness of data amid noise and errors.

Value (Big Data)

The characteristic of Big Data describing usefulness, highlighting that having data is not enough and that meaningful value must be extracted from it.

Data Science

A multidisciplinary field combining mathematics, statistics, artificial intelligence, and computer engineering to analyse large amounts of data to extract meaningful insights for business decisions.

Descriptive Analysis

A type of data analysis that answers 'What happened?' using charts, tables, and dashboards (e.g., daily flight booking trends).

Diagnostic Analysis

A type of data analysis that answers 'Why did it happen?' using drill-down techniques, data mining, and correlation (e.g., why bookings spiked in one month).

Predictive Analysis

A type of data analysis that answers 'What will happen?' using machine learning and forecasting (e.g., predicting next year's booking spikes).

Prescriptive Analysis

A type of data analysis that answers 'What should we do?' using simulation and recommendation engines to suggest the optimum response.

Exploratory Analysis

The phase in the data science life cycle where descriptive statistics and data visualisation are applied to discover trends, outliers, and relationships.

Precision Medicine

A healthcare application of data science that generates personalised treatment plans based on a patient's genetics, lifestyle, and medical history.

PACS (Picture Archiving and Communication System)

A dedicated healthcare computer application used for medical imaging storage, access, and diagnostics.

da Vinci

A robotic surgery system used in healthcare for treatment and surgical procedures.