The value of data in fostering amazing advancements over the past decades is described. One element that explains at least in part the phenomenal advancement of biomedical science is the value that members of the biomedical research community have traditionally put on the original data. Beyond an appreciation of data, scientists use data to obtain publications, presentations, promotion, prominence, and power. Although the personal satisfaction of attaining understanding motivates the serious investigator and is essential for the highest quality of data, it does not sustain a career. The survival of the investigator is an ever-present concern that cannot be ignored. More tangible incentives are needed for investigators and for the community of investigators to persist. The exchange of original data for personal success supplies the force that has powered investigator survival and at the same time terrific success for biomedical science over the past decades. The data produced by the investigator have been the key to success. Data have unlocked publication, presentation, power, prestige, and pre-eminence for the investigator, demonstrating profound value and exceptional worth. This relationship between original data and personal success has been essential, but the arcane analytical paradigms and big data have the potential for significant disruption.