In your opinion, is Matlab the most powerful/flexible data analysis and algorithm development tool?
I'm just starting out in algorithm development, I want to start w/ a platform that is powerful/flexible enough to meet any needs that I'm likely to have in the future, even if I get very advanced. This way I don't waste time by learning one system, then having to start from scratch learning an entirely different system when I outgrow the first system.
One key feature that I'm hoping to find is the ability to stream realtime data into the analysis algorithm, to automatically modify the algorithm in real time. An algorithm that learns, like a neural network.