AI Assistant - Creating an exploration from an uploaded file 12 0
Education
Introduction
In the world of data analysis, uncovering hidden relationships and identifying patterns can transform raw data into actionable insights. IBM's Cognos Analytics 12 offers a dynamic platform for exploring data, with the help of its AI assistant. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at how to harness this tool using sample healthcare data.
Getting Started with Data Exploration
To begin, you need to load your dataset. In this case, we downloaded a healthcare sample data zip file from the IBM accelerator catalog. After unzipping the file, we uploaded the "Hospital Admissions" Excel file to Cognos Analytics.
From the home page of Cognos 12, you can initiate an exploration by typing "load data" and clicking on "ask question." A file selection window will appear, allowing you to navigate to your dataset and click "open." Once the data is loaded, two measure fields will be displayed, providing a gateway to deeper insights.
Creating a Data Module
Before diving into analysis, understanding the available columns in your dataset can be beneficial. This can be achieved by creating a data module which lists all descriptive attributes.
To utilize the AI assistant, find the assistant icon within the interface and click on it, transitioning into full-screen mode by selecting the expand icon.
Using the AI Assistant to Generate Questions
You can start using the assistant by requesting suggested questions. Among the suggestions, one intriguing inquiry might be, "Which city has the top home distance?" The assistant will create a map visual, and you can explore various chart options by selecting from the icons displayed at the top of the page.
After selecting a horizontal bar chart, you may discover that Sarasota has unusually high travel distances, with an average home distance of 13.53 miles. The insights generated by the assistant indicate that Orlando registers the highest admissions count.
If your environment supports collaboration, sharing insights is seamless through options such as email, Slack, or Microsoft Teams.
Further Exploration
Continuing with the exploration, you may ask to see admissions for the top five cities. The type-ahead functionality will assist in forming your question. Using a bar chart to visualize the data confirms that Orlando stands as the top city among the provided selections.
To dive deeper into the facilities in Orlando, you can request information on admission counts by facility name for the city. The resulting bubble chart reveals admissions by facility, and you can click on a table to view detailed values.
Since the dataset contains information for 2020 and 2021, asking to compare counts by quarter for those years reveals trends in admissions over time. The resulting column chart indicates potential predictions where admissions might reach 11,000 by the second quarter of 2022, marking a decrease from the fourth quarter of 2021.
Further inquiries could include showing counts by hospital code and city. The suggested visualization might be a heat map, which highlights that New Smyrna Beach holds the highest count for a specific code, MRI, while Orlando accounts for the greatest total number of codes—potentially driving further investigation into its higher admissions.
Creating a Dashboard
From the assistant pane, visualizations can be compiled into a dashboard by clicking "add to new dashboard." Additional visualizations can be incorporated by selecting and dragging them into the dashboard area. You also have the option of requesting the assistant to create a dashboard using relevant measures by typing "create dashboard." This results in an automatically generated dashboard, which serves as a starting point for customization.
This informative session has demonstrated how to effectively utilize the assistant in Cognos Analytics 12 for comprehensive data exploration and insight generation.
Keywords
- Cognos Analytics 12
- Data exploration
- AI Assistant
- Hospital admissions
- Visualization
- Insights
- Dashboard
- Data module
FAQ
Q1: What is Cognos Analytics 12?
A1: Cognos Analytics 12 is a data analysis platform developed by IBM that allows users to explore data, create visualizations, and generate insights using AI assistance.
Q2: How do I upload data in Cognos Analytics 12?
A2: You can upload data by selecting "load data" on the home page, browsing to your file, and clicking "open."
Q3: What can the AI assistant do?
A3: The AI assistant can suggest questions, provide visualizations, generate insights, and help create dashboards based on your dataset.
Q4: How do I create a dashboard in Cognos Analytics 12?
A4: You can create a dashboard by adding visualizations from the assistant pane or requesting the assistant to compile a dashboard using relevant measures.
Q5: Can insights be shared directly from Cognos Analytics?
A5: Yes, if configured for sharing, insights can be shared via email, Slack, or Microsoft Teams.
