Weapons of Math Destruction

Brought to you by Penguin.In this New York Times bestseller, Cathy O'Neil, one of the first champions of algorithmic accountability, sounds an alarm on the mathematical models that pervade modern life -- and threaten to rip apart our social fabric.We live in the age of the algorithm. Increasingly, the decisions that affect our lives - where we go to school, whether we get a loan, how much we pay for insurance - are being made not by humans, but by mathematical models. In theory, this should lead to greater fairness: everyone is judged according to the same rules, and bias is eliminated.And yet, as Cathy O'Neil reveals in this urgent and necessary book, the opposite is true. The models being used today are opaque, unregulated, and incontestable, even when they're wrong. Most troubling, they reinforce discrimination. Tracing the arc of a person's life, O'Neil exposes the black box models that shape our future, both as individuals and as a society. These 'weapons of math destruction' score teachers and students, sort CVs, grant or deny loans, evaluate workers, target voters, and monitor our health.O'Neil calls on modellers to take more responsibility for their algorithms and on policy makers to regulate their use. But in the end, it's up to us to become more savvy about the models that govern our lives. This important book empowers us to ask the tough questions, uncover the truth, and demand change.'A manual for the 21st-century citizen... accessible, refreshingly critical, relevant and urgent' - Financial Times'Fascinating and deeply disturbing' - Yuval Noah Harari, Guardian Books of the Year(c) Cathy O'Neil 2016 (P) Penguin Audio 2022

Brought to you by Penguin.In this New York Times bestseller, Cathy O'Neil, one of the first champions of algorithmic accountability, sounds an alarm on the mathematical models that pervade modern life -- and threaten to rip apart our social fabric.We live in the age of the algorithm. Increasingly, the decisions that affect our lives - where we go to school, whether we get a loan, how much we pay for insurance - are being made not by humans, but by mathematical models. In theory, this should lead to greater fairness: everyone is judged according to the same rules, and bias is eliminated.And yet, as Cathy O'Neil reveals in this urgent and necessary book, the opposite is true. The models being used today are opaque, unregulated, and incontestable, even when they're wrong. Most troubling, they reinforce discrimination. Tracing the arc of a person's life, O'Neil exposes the black box models that shape our future, both as individuals and as a society. These 'weapons of math destruction' score teachers and students, sort CVs, grant or deny loans, evaluate workers, target voters, and monitor our health.O'Neil calls on modellers to take more responsibility for their algorithms and on policy makers to regulate their use. But in the end, it's up to us to become more savvy about the models that govern our lives. This important book empowers us to ask the tough questions, uncover the truth, and demand change.'A manual for the 21st-century citizen... accessible, refreshingly critical, relevant and urgent' - Financial Times'Fascinating and deeply disturbing' - Yuval Noah Harari, Guardian Books of the Year(c) Cathy O'Neil 2016 (P) Penguin Audio 2022

Longlisted for the National Book Award New York Times Bestseller A former Wall Street quant sounds an alarm on the mathematical models that pervade modern life - and threaten to rip apart our social fabric We live in the age of the algorithm. Increasingly, the decisions that affect our lives-where we go to school, whether we get a car loan, how much we pay for health insurance-are being made not by humans, but by mathematical models. In theory, this should lead to greater fairness: Everyone is judged according to the same rules, and bias is eliminated. But as Cathy O'Neil reveals in this urgent and necessary book, the opposite is true. The models being used today are opaque, unregulated, and uncontestable, even when they're wrong. Most troubling, they reinforce discrimination: If a poor student can't get a loan because a lending model deems him too risky (by virtue of his zip code), he's then cut off from the kind of education that could pull him out of poverty, and a vicious spiral ensues. Models are propping up the lucky and punishing the downtrodden, creating a "toxic cocktail for democracy." Welcome to the dark side of Big Data. Tracing the arc of a person's life, O'Neil exposes the black box models that shape our future, both as individuals and as a society. These "weapons of math destruction" score teachers and students, sort résumés, grant (or deny) loans, evaluate workers, target voters, set parole, and monitor our health. O'Neil calls on modelers to take more responsibility for their algorithms and on policy makers to regulate their use. But in the end, it's up to us to become more savvy about the models that govern our lives. This important book empowers us to ask the tough questions, uncover the truth, and demand change. - Longlist for National Book Award (Non-Fiction) - Goodreads, semi-finalist for the 2016 Goodreads Choice Awards (Science and Technology) - Kirkus, Best Books of 2016 - New York Times, 100 Notable Books of 2016 (Non-Fiction) - The Guardian, Best Books of 2016 - WBUR's "On Point," Best Books of 2016: Staff Picks - Boston Globe, Best Books of 2016, Non-Fiction

Longlisted for the National Book Award New York Times Bestseller A former Wall Street quant sounds an alarm on the mathematical models that pervade modern life - and threaten to rip apart our social fabric We live in the age of the algorithm. Increasingly, the decisions that affect our lives-where we go to school, whether we get a car loan, how much we pay for health insurance-are being made not by humans, but by mathematical models. In theory, this should lead to greater fairness: Everyone is judged according to the same rules, and bias is eliminated. But as Cathy O'Neil reveals in this urgent and necessary book, the opposite is true. The models being used today are opaque, unregulated, and uncontestable, even when they're wrong. Most troubling, they reinforce discrimination: If a poor student can't get a loan because a lending model deems him too risky (by virtue of his zip code), he's then cut off from the kind of education that could pull him out of poverty, and a vicious spiral ensues. Models are propping up the lucky and punishing the downtrodden, creating a "toxic cocktail for democracy." Welcome to the dark side of Big Data. Tracing the arc of a person's life, O'Neil exposes the black box models that shape our future, both as individuals and as a society. These "weapons of math destruction" score teachers and students, sort résumés, grant (or deny) loans, evaluate workers, target voters, set parole, and monitor our health. O'Neil calls on modelers to take more responsibility for their algorithms and on policy makers to regulate their use. But in the end, it's up to us to become more savvy about the models that govern our lives. This important book empowers us to ask the tough questions, uncover the truth, and demand change. - Longlist for National Book Award (Non-Fiction) - Goodreads, semi-finalist for the 2016 Goodreads Choice Awards (Science and Technology) - Kirkus, Best Books of 2016 - New York Times, 100 Notable Books of 2016 (Non-Fiction) - The Guardian, Best Books of 2016 - WBUR's "On Point," Best Books of 2016: Staff Picks - Boston Globe, Best Books of 2016, Non-Fiction

Vi lever i algoritmens tidsalder. I stigende grad, er de beslutninger, der påvirker vores liv - hvor vi går i skole henne, om vi er berettigede til et lån, hvor meget vi betaler i forsikring - truffet af matematiske modeller snarere end af mennesker. Teoretisk set burde dette være mere retfærdigt, eftersom alle bliver dømt efter de samme regler og personlige bias fjernes fra ligningen. Men som den tidligere Wall Street-analytiker Cathy O'Neil afslører i "Weapons of Math Destruction" er det modsatte sandt. De matematiske modeller, der anvendes nutildags er vage, uregulerede og urørlige - selv når de er forkerte. Værst af alt er dog, at modellerne styrker diskrimination. I "Weapons of Math Destruction" opfordrer O'Neil designerne bag de matematiske modeller til at tage større ansvar for deres algoritmer og de politiske beslutningstagere til at regulere modellernes brug.

Vi lever i algoritmens tidsalder. I stigende grad, er de beslutninger, der påvirker vores liv - hvor vi går i skole henne, om vi er berettigede til et lån, hvor meget vi betaler i forsikring - truffet af matematiske modeller snarere end af mennesker. Teoretisk set burde dette være mere retfærdigt, eftersom alle bliver dømt efter de samme regler og personlige bias fjernes fra ligningen. Men som den tidligere Wall Street-analytiker Cathy O'Neil afslører i "Weapons of Math Destruction" er det modsatte sandt. De matematiske modeller, der anvendes nutildags er vage, uregulerede og urørlige - selv når de er forkerte. Værst af alt er dog, at modellerne styrker diskrimination. I "Weapons of Math Destruction" opfordrer O'Neil designerne bag de matematiske modeller til at tage større ansvar for deres algoritmer og de politiske beslutningstagere til at regulere modellernes brug.