Fri 05 December 2014

'The Formula' makes us aware of the reality of how algorithms are increasingly driving our lives. We see them in the form of filtered posts on Facebook, customised results displayed by search engines, speeding tickets, who gets frisked or questioned at airports etc. It showcases their effect on health - as part of the quantified self movement, on choosing our life partners, law enforcement and creativity (making art!) - as an example.

We are often led to believe that how a machine or an automated system behaves based on some rules is more objective than how a human might act in the same situation. The author drives home the point that these formulae are neither good nor bad or even neutral - in the true sense - but reflect the peculiarities and beliefs of the humans who have created them.

Relying on them without understanding some basic truths can have unintended consequences - some we can forecast, others we cannot. Sometimes we don’t even realise that we are just data points in a huge data set.

Does it mean that we have to stop depending on them? At the pace at which we are evolving as a civilisation, it is not a choice we have. We cannot be the luddites of the 21st century.

We need to be aware that the logic behind machines is written by humans and therefore, they can be just as fallible as humans can be. The formulae can discriminate against people who look unlike us or who have different religious or political beliefs than us. This understanding helps us question the objectivity of automated systems when companies or governments over-sell them. It aids in living our lives less precariously and lets us act with a little more empathy towards the outliers - people who are adversely affected by these with no fault of their own.

This book is really worth your time if you want to be cognizant of how automated systems taking over critical decisions affects you - now and in the future.