The misapprehension of the data science use-case.

"We want to predict -X-." Fill in any desirable topic on the location of the X and you have the formulation of a use-case in the way many companies today think about analytics use-cases. In order of increasing probability of success of such use-cases: X equals the winning lottery number, the future price of crude oil, windows falling from high-rise buildings (not kidding; actual use-case) and finally, a customer buying a mortgage. The word'identification' here hints at the effort involved. Identifying a use-case resembles doing a reconstruction of your house: rather than dreaming up a random extension to your house, you will consider in great care its purpose, its sizing and its connection to the existing structure.