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When Algorithms Control the World
MTCicero writes "The BBC has an interesting if not apocalyptic take on the spread of algorithms into everyday life. Perhaps the author should have spent a little more time discussing how algorithms in everyday life have improved things like communications, medical care, etc... I guess doom and gloom sells more ads. From the article: 'At last month's TEDGlobal conference, algorithm expert Kevin Slavin delivered one of the tech show's most "sit up and take notice" speeches where he warned that the "maths that computers use to decide stuff" was infiltrating every aspect of our lives. Among the examples he cited were a robo-cleaner that maps out the best way to do housework, and the online trading algorithms that are increasingly controlling Wall Street.'"
algorithm expert Kevin Slavin
Algorithm expert? Is he an official algorithm expert? Credentialed in all forms of algorithm?
I suspect it is as much a self-appointed moniker as 'Bill S Preston, Esquire.'
It would seem to me that physical principles govern the world in which we live. All of which can me shown mathematically.
Some goofy apes using maths to run their roomba or make money isn't exactly mind blowing of frightening.
But then again i'm not the target audience of this story.
Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter.
a robo-cleaner that maps out the best way to do housework
My Roomba is certainly not going to be taking over anytime soon. It drives around in a semi-autonomous pattern within a manually defined perimeter and has enough sense not to fall down a set of stairs. My house is big enough and the "virtual walls" are shitty enough that I close doors and throw couch cushions on the floor to regulate where Roomba gets to clean.
Roomba is a tool in very much the same way a vacuum, broom, or paper towel is a tool. I choose to use Roomba not because it is particularly good at cleaning (it isn't) but because I take 4-5 minutes clearing wires off the floor and setting up Roomba's boundaries and then it spend 90-100 minutes driving in circles, then I spend another few minutes cleaning it's brushes and dustbin. This is more desirable than having me spend 20-25 minutes operating an actual vacuum (which I don't actually own... so first I'd have to go buy one).
I've tried introducing him to girls, guns and even light pornography, but he just doesn't maintain interest.
What should I do?
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Concerned Mother!
The bikini - security through obscurity since 1943
"Algorithms" (the word the author uses to mean machine controlled decision making) are just an available tool, like all tools there are examples of positive influence and examples of negative influence (the 3 incidents the author's highlight.) Like all tools people with free will choose to use it if they see the benefit. They don't come out and state "we should stop technological advancement b/c there is some risk," but that would be the natural conclusion of this line of thinking, which frankly is ridiculous. not seeing the point of the whole article.
I really don't see what the problem is. Algorithms are all around controlling everything we do. Like any technology, it is how they are used by humans that determine if their use is good or bad.
Look at the list of the greatest algorithms in history, as selected by SIAM (Society of Industrial and Applied Math) in 2000. Our lives would be completely different and worse without them.
Since this paper was written in 2000, I would guess that the Google founders' PageRank should be included in there as well.
See what I did there?
Anyway, seriously, the article conflates automation with algorithm. Sure, when we have computers, we can create more automated schemes. But we've been doing algorithms from long before we had computers.
Algorithms, in general, were invented by Al Gore. Being a humble public servant, instead of naming his invention directly after himself, he instead spent his valuable time developing the very word "algorithms", a portmanteau of the words "Al Gore Rhythms".
Don't be misinformed.
The talk isn't about Skyne. It's about all those small, simple algorithms that slowly have taken important positions in our lives.
The algorithms running on Wall Street are just tools too - they aren't going to turn themselves into HAL and decide to kill humans. But they affect our lives immensely.
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Life is an algorithm that's not isolated from the rest of the universe I might add. The algorithms we employ often have layers of error correction to prevent mutation. Sometimes, a little chaos (bridging the outside) is necessary to improve on an algorithm. But being Human, we like to maintain control and not let nature meddle with the results we wish to achieve. Of course, that's not such a bad thing either depending on the objective.
Life is not for the lazy.
I'm not sure which is worse - sensationalism to create money through advertising, or for the sake of it.
World changing algorithms:
chocolate chip cookie by Toll House
potato salad by Betty Crocker
Quicksort
But I AM a troll you insensitive clod!
The first Ariane 5 exploded on launch because a feedback mechanism for guidance had a sign swapped, again creating positive feedback.
That's incorrect. The first ariane 5 exploded because of correct, reused ariane 4 code becoming incorrect in the new environment. More specifically steering code which results are used at the start of the flight and unused but left running afterwards. The code was still correct in start-of-flight conditions, but in the afterwards condition noticed speeds way over what it was supposed to see and triggered a security abort (ariane 5 is a tad faster than ariane 4).
So no sign errors, no feedback, just correct code running at a time it shouldn't have and untested there.
OG.
hmpf.... friggin side effects. Functional programming ftw!
Mine said "Signs point to Yes", but I still didn't.