Can big data cure cancer?

You've heard the story before. A couple of whiz kids meet at an elite college, bond over their love of computers, and after a few late-night hacking sessions, build a website or an app. Before you know it, their little side project has turned into a startup, and the fresh-faced youngsters raise piles of cash from investors, decamp for SoMa or SoHo, and form a company that turns them into overnight millionaires, at least on paper.