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A review by sarahweyand
Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy by Cathy O'Neil
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.75
It's simultaneously interesting and difficult to read a book about technology that could potentially be considered "out-of-date". This book was published in 2016, which is recent in normal-people-years but ages ago in terms of technology, especially as a pre-pandemic publication. Nevertheless, I found this book interesting and applicable to today.
I loved the framing of this book as a walk through everyday life and how malicious models and dangerous algorithms can affect the average (or primarily disadvantaged) person. Even as someone who is familiar with most of these unfair models and how they hurt people, this was an informative read that helped explain some lesser-known history and impacts.
The pacing of this book was a little slow for me, and I found myself thinking that the writing was pretty dry, even for nonfiction. I don't think this book provided me with enough new information where I would recommend it to colleagues, but I do think it would be a good read for a person who isn't familiar with data science and its potentially discriminatory effects.
I loved the framing of this book as a walk through everyday life and how malicious models and dangerous algorithms can affect the average (or primarily disadvantaged) person. Even as someone who is familiar with most of these unfair models and how they hurt people, this was an informative read that helped explain some lesser-known history and impacts.
The pacing of this book was a little slow for me, and I found myself thinking that the writing was pretty dry, even for nonfiction. I don't think this book provided me with enough new information where I would recommend it to colleagues, but I do think it would be a good read for a person who isn't familiar with data science and its potentially discriminatory effects.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism and Racism