Data mining is the process by which large-scale data sets are examined in order to find previously unknown links between different variables. It has developed as a research tool in response to the increasing power and capabilities of computers and technology over the last few decades, which allow far larger amounts of data to be simultaneously handled than was previously possible. Instead of formulating a hypothesis from observations and then collecting data to see if the hypothesis is true or not, as in conventional research, data mining uses data that has already been collected and analyses it to see if links between different variables can be found. Hypotheses about why these associations exist can then be formed.

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