Description: About this productProduct InformationLonglisted 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.Product IdentifiersPublisherCrown/ArchetypeISBN-100553418815ISBN-139780553418811eBay Product ID (ePID)219304268Product Key FeaturesAuthorCathy O'NeilPublication NameWeapons of Math Destruction : How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens DemocracyFormatHardcoverLanguageEnglishPublication Year2016TypeTextbookNumber of Pages272 PagesDimensionsItem Length8.5in.Item Height1.1in.Item Width5.8in.Item Weight13.5 OzAdditional Product FeaturesLc Classification NumberQa76.9.B45o64 2016Reviews"Cathy O'Neil has seen Big Data from the inside, and the picture isn't pretty. Weapons of Math Destruction opens the curtain on algorithms that exploit people and distort the truth while posing as neutral mathematical tools. This book is wise, fierce, and desperately necessary." -- Jordan Ellenberg , University of Wisconsin-Madison, and author of How Not To Be Wrong "Even as a professional mathematician, I had no idea how insidious Big Data could be until I read Weapons of Math Destruction . Though terrifying, it's a surprisingly fun read: O'Neil's vision of a world run by algorithms is laced with dark humor and exasperation--like a modern-day Dr. Strangelove or Catch-22 . It is eye-opening, disturbing, and deeply important." -- Steven Strogatz , Cornell University, and author of The Joy of x "Through harrowing real-world examples and lively story-telling, Weapons of Math Destruction shines invaluable light on the invisible algorithms and complex mathematical models used by government and big business to undermine equality and increase private power. Combating secrecy with clarity and confusion with understanding, this book can help us change course before it's too late." -- Astra Taylor , author of The People's Platform: Taking Back Power and Culture in the Digital Age " Weapons of Math Destruction is a fantastic, plainspoken call to arms. It acknowledges that models aren't going away: As a tool for identifying people in difficulty, they are amazing. But as a tool for punishing and disenfranchising, they're a nightmare. Cathy O'Neil's book is important precisely because she believes in data science. It's a vital crash course in why we must interrogate the systems around us and demand better." -- Cory Doctorow , author of Little Brother and co-editor of Boing Boing "Many algorithms are slaves to the inequalities of power and prejudice. If you don't want these algorithms to become your masters, read Weapons of Math Destruction by Cathy O'Neil to deconstruct the latest growing tyranny of an arrogant establishment." -- Ralph Nader , author of Unsafe at Any Speed "In this fascinating account, Cathy O'Neil leverages her expertise in mathematics and her passion for social justice to poke holes in the triumphant narrative of Big Data. She makes a compelling case that math is being used to squeeze marginalized segments of society and magnify inequities. Her analysis is superb, her writing is enticing, and her findings are unsettling." -- danah boyd , founder of Data & Society and author of It's Complicated, "Cathy O'Neil has seen Big Data from the inside, and the picture isn't pretty. Weapons of Math Destruction opens the curtain on algorithms that exploit people and distort the truth while posing as neutral mathematical tools. This book is wise, fierce, and desperately necessary." -- Jordan Ellenberg , University of Wisconsin-Madison, author of How Not To Be Wrong "Even as a professional mathematician, I had no idea how insidious Big Data could be until I read Weapons of Math Destruction . Though terrifying, it's a surprisingly fun read: O'Neil's vision of a world run by algorithms is laced with dark humor and exasperation--like a modern-day Dr. Strangelove or Catch-22 . It is eye-opening, disturbing, and deeply important." -- Steven Strogatz , Cornell University, author of The Joy of x "Through harrowing real-world examples and lively story-telling, Weapons of Math Destruction shines invaluable light on the invisible algorithms and complex mathematical models used by government and big business to undermine equality and increase private power. Combating secrecy with clarity and confusion with understanding, this book can help us change course before it's too late." -- Astra Taylor , author of The People's Platform: Taking Back Power and Culture in the Digital Age " Weapons of Math Destruction is a fantastic, plainspoken call to arms. It acknowledges that models aren't going away: As a tool for identifying people in difficulty, they are amazing. But as a tool for punishing and disenfranchising, they're a nightmare. Cathy O'Neil's book is important precisely because she believes in data science. It's a vital crash course in why we must interrogate the systems around us and demand better." -- Cory Doctorow , author of Little Brother and co-editor of Boing Boing "Many algorithms are slaves to the inequalities of power and prejudice. If you don't want these algorithms to become your masters, read Weapons of Math Destruction by Cathy O'Neil to deconstruct the latest growing tyranny of an arrogant establishment." -- Ralph Nader , author of Unsafe at Any Speed "In this fascinating account, Cathy O'Neil leverages her expertise in mathematics and her passion for social justice to poke holes in the triumphant narrative of Big Data. She makes a compelling case that math is being used to squeeze marginalized segments of society and magnify inequities. Her analysis is superb, her writing is enticing, and her findings are unsettling." -- danah boyd , founder of Data & Society and author of It's Complicated "From getting a job to finding a spouse, predictive algorithms are silently shaping and controlling our destinies. Cathy O'Neil takes us on a journey of outrage and wonder, with prose that makes you feel like it's just a conversation. But it's an important one. We need to reckon with technology." -- Linda Tirado , author of Hand to Mouth: Living in Bootstrap America "Next time you hear someone gushing uncritically about the wonders of Big Data, show them Weapons of Math Destruction . It'll be salutary." -- Felix Salmon , FusionCopyright Date2016Target AudienceTradeTopicPrivacy & Surveillance (See Also Political Science / Privacy & Surveillance), Programming / Algorithms, Public Policy / General, Social Aspects / General, General, Research, Statistics, Political Ideologies / DemocracyLccn2016-003900Dewey Decimal005.7Dewey Edition23GenreComputers, Psychology, Business & Economics, Social Science, Political Science
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Number of Pages: 272 Pages
Publication Name: Weapons of Math Destruction : How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy
Language: English
Publisher: Crown/Archetype
Subject: Programming / Algorithms, Public Policy / General, Privacy & Surveillance (See Also Political Science / Privacy & Surveillance), Social Aspects / General, General, Research, Statistics, Political Ideologies / Democracy
Item Height: 1.1 in
Publication Year: 2016
Type: Textbook
Item Weight: 13.5 Oz
Item Length: 8.5 in
Author: Cathy O'Neil
Subject Area: Computers, Political Science, Social Science, Business & Economics, Psychology
Item Width: 5.8 in
Format: Hardcover
