Futurity

How big data and unfair algorithms change our lives

The digital trails we leave behind and algorithms that use our data have major effects on our lives. This podcast episode digs into issues of fairness and privacy.
A person wearing a jean jacket and a short haircut in profile uses their laptop at a cafe table against a white wall

On a daily basis, we each leave behind a huge digital footprint in all sorts of ways, researchers say.

“Everything I do on the computer or smartphone is public to a certain extent,” says Hoda Heidari, a computer scientist at ETH Zurich. Algorithms can use that data to make real decisions about our lives, from bank loans to prison time.

In this podcast episode, Heidari and Elliott Ash, a professor of law, economics, and data science, talk about our digital trails. They also explain how big data is changing the world and our perceptions, why governments are still lagging behind this transformation, and how algorithms can learn and become fairer in the process.

Source: ETH Zurich

The post How big data and unfair algorithms change our lives appeared first on Futurity.

More from Futurity

Futurity3 min read
Brain Discovery Sheds Light On Addiction
New research sheds light on neural processing of diverse classes of rewards in mice, with potential implications for understanding substance use disorders in humans. Drugs like morphine and cocaine fundamentally warp the brain’s reward system—creatin
Futurity3 min read
Young Heavy Drinkers Cut Alcohol Use During Pandemic
A new study finds heavy-drinking young adults decreased alcohol intake during the pandemic. The researchers found alcohol use and alcohol-related problems substantially decreased in heavy-drinking young adults during the pandemic, and these decreases
Futurity2 min readRobotics
Stretchy ‘Skin’ Could Give Robots Sensitivity Of Human Touch
A first-ever stretchy electronic skin could equip robots and other devices with the same softness and touch sensitivity as human skin, researchers report. The e-skin opens up new possibilities to perform tasks that require a great deal of precision a

Related Books & Audiobooks