Spark Discussion with Dr. Alex Liu, IBM's Chief Data Scientist

Hey Chicago Spark Users,

I'm excited to announce that we will be hosting a talk on January 17th with IBM's Chief Data Scientist, Dr. Alex Liu! This talk will be focused on Apache Spark, the experiences that Dr. Liu has had with the open source project, and insight into his new book,

"Apache Spark Machine Learning Blueprints: Develop a range of cutting edge machine learning projects using this actionable guide." (https://www.amazon.com/Apache-Spark-Machine-Learning-Blueprints/dp/178588039X)

We will also have a few free copies of his book available for those interested :) Pizza and beverages will also be provided!

Turn data into value with Apache Spark - January 17th - discussion points

~ building analytics operation system on Apache Spark

~ when do we need Apache Spark for better analytics

~ approaches and processes of delivering machine learning with Apache Spark

~ some successful cases

Related blog by Dr. Liu:

http://www.ibmbigdatahub.com/blog/8-ways-turn-data-value-apache-spark-machine-learning

A brief background on Dr. Liu...

Alex Liu

is an expert in research methods and data science. He is currently one of IBM's leading experts in Big Data analytics and also a lead data scientist, where he serves big corporations, develops Big Data analytics IPs, and speaks at industrial conferences such as STRATA, Insights, SMAC, and BigDataCamp. In the past, Alex served as chief or lead data scientist for a few companies, including Yapstone, RS, and TRG. Before this, he was a lead consultant and director at RMA, where he provided data analytics consultation and training to many well-known organizations, including the United Nations, Indymac, AOL, Ingram Micro, GEM, Farmers Insurance, Scripps Networks, Sears, and USAID. At the same time, he taught advanced research methods to PhD candidates at University of Southern California and University of California at Irvine. Before this, he worked as a managing director for CATE/GEC and as a research fellow for the Asia/Pacific Research Center at Stanford University. Alex has a Ph.D. in quantitative sociology and a master's degree of science in statistical computing from Stanford University.