Cardon D.
What algorithms dream of. Our lives in the age of big data
Co-published by Seuil-La République des idées, 2015, 112 p.
Google, Facebook, Amazon, but also banks and insurers: the creation of enormous databases (known as "big data") is giving algorithms an increasingly central role. This book aims to show how these new computing techniques are transforming our society. Through information ranking, personalized advertising, product recommendations, behavior targeting, and travel guidance, mega-computers are becoming increasingly involved in people's lives. However, far from being simple technical tools, algorithms convey a political agenda. Understanding their logic, the values and the type of society they promote, means giving internet users the means to regain power in the computational society.