data

People use wearable gadgets and phone apps to monitor their health — everything from calories consumed to medication taken. But all that data doesn't necessarily translate into better health care.

We're way beyond instant replays. Last year, the NBA began tracking the movements of players in every single game, and this season, new tech gadgetry is popping up on some arena's big screens.

For the first time in nearly 20 years, federal money is flowing into gun violence research. There's also growing momentum behind creating a reliable national database for firearm injuries and deaths.

Preservationists are worried about troves of records stored on what was once considered a durable medium: the compact disc. Many discs can last for centuries — but most won't.

Even retailers that invest heavily in sophisticated security systems are seeing new vulnerabilities from rogue hackers who are buying software tools on the black market.

Law enforcement agencies across the country subpoena cellphone location data regularly. But civil liberties groups hope a series of state-level legal victories will usher in stronger protections for that often-revealing digital information.

Tech companies that field National Security Agency data requests are currently barred from sharing those requests publicly. But Google, Microsoft and Facebook all have a financial interest in showing their users that the NSA does not enjoy unfettered access to their data.

Those of us trying to get in shape after overindulging this holiday season can get help from a slew of new devices that monitor steps climbed, calories burned and heart rate. But companies and venture capitalists in new startups hope to make money in a new way: by selling the data right back to the people tracking their activity — and to their employers.