Weapons of math destruction

Blind faith in big data must end. Open in your browser

This week on TED.com August 26, 2017

Cathy O'Neil: Weapons of math destruction  13:18 minutes · Filmed Apr 2017 · Posted Aug 2017 · TED2017 Algorithms decide who gets a loan, who gets a job interview, who gets insurance and much more -- but they don't automatically make things fair. Mathematician and data scientist Cathy O'Neil coined a term for algorithms that are secret, important and harmful: "weapons of math destruction." Learn more about the hidden agendas behind the formulas. Watch now »

Playlist of the week Secrets to understanding life From work and happiness, to love and success (and everything else in between), these 10 talks offer insights on some of life's biggest secrets. Watch » 10 TED Talks • Total run time 2:32:27

This week's new TED Talks (a few more than usual) "Music is everywhere, and it is in everything," says musician and college student Anika Paulson. Guitar in hand, she plays through the beats of her life in an exploration of how music connects us and makes us what we are. Watch » Imagine a computer that can emulate the human brain, in all its complex thoughts and processes. What might it want? Social scientist Robin Hanson plays out a future scenario starring the "ems" -- emulated brains that can think, feel and work like the human brains they're copied from. Enjoy this rapid-fire, mind-blowing glimpse at a hypothetical future. Watch » Your cells are coated with sugars that store information and speak a secret language. What are they trying to tell us? Your blood type, for one -- and, maybe, that you have cancer. Chemical biologist Carolyn Bertozzi researches how sugars on cancerous cells interact with (and sometimes trick) your immune system. Learn more about how your body detects cancer, and how the latest cancer-fighting medicines could help your immune system beat the disease. Watch » Should your driverless car kill you -- if it means sparing the lives of five pedestrians? In this useful primer on the moral dilemmas of driverless cars, Iyad Rahwan explores how new technology can challenge our own morality. In his lab, he asks real people to make the same moral judgments we're going to expect from our cars -- and his ongoing work reveals the ethical trade-offs we're willing (and not willing) to make. Watch » With charm and searching insight, poet David Whyte meditates on the frontiers of the past, present and future, sharing two long-form poems inspired by a hike along El Camino de Santiago. Make quiet time to watch and savor. Watch » Every artist has a name, and every artist has a story. Laolu Senbanjo's story started in Nigeria, where he was surrounded by the culture and mythology of the Yoruba. He shares what he calls the Sacred Art of the Ori, art that uses skin as canvas and connects artist and muse through mind, body and soul. Watch »

Read more on ideas.ted.com We humans: Understanding the mysteries of heartbreak » When love ends, why does it hurt so much?   Science: Should we use gene editing to produce disease-free babies? A scientist who helped discover CRISPR weighs in Quiz: Can you match the president to the eye chart? An unusual and revealing look at US history

Quote of the Week “ Everyone uses algorithms. They just don't write them in code. Let me give you an example. I use an algorithm every day to make a meal for my family. The data I use is the ingredients in my kitchen, the time I have, the ambition I have. My definition of success is: a meal is successful if my kids eat vegetables. It's very different from if my youngest son were in charge. He'd say success is if he gets to eat lots of Nutella. But I get to choose success. I am in charge. My opinion matters. That's the first rule of algorithms. Algorithms are opinions embedded in code." Cathy O'Neil The era of blind faith in big data must end

ted radio hour: Hardwired How much of who we are is biology? How much is learned? And how much can we change? This week on the TED Radio Hour, explore how genes and experience collaborate -- and compete -- to make us who we are. Listen now on Apple Podcasts, the TED Android app, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Sincerely, x: Rescued by ritual This week on TED's audio podcast Sincerely, X: How one woman found a way to heal the trauma of a violent marriage. Tune in to hear how she created a private ritual, which her doctor now recognizes and recommends as a tool for recovery from abuse. Available now on Apple Podcasts, the TED Android app, or wherever you get your podcasts.

 

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