Product Details

• • Hardcover: 272 pages
  • Publisher: Crown (September 6, 2016)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0553418815
  • ISBN-13: 978-0553418811
  • Product Dimensions: 5.8 x 1 x 8.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds

Editorial Reviews Review “_Weapons of Math Destruction_ is the Big Data story Silicon Valley proponentswon’t tell [It] pithily exposes flaws in how information is used to assesseverything from creditworthiness to policing tactics A thought-provoking readfor anyone inclined to believe that data doesn’t lie.” –_Reuters _”If you’ve ever suspected there was something baleful about our deep trust in data, but lacked the mathematical skills to figure out exactly what it was, this is the book for you.” _–Salon _”O’Neil is an ideal person to write this book. She is an academic mathematician turned Wall Street quant turned data scientist who has been involved in Occupy Wall Street and recently started an algorithmic auditing company. She is one of the strongest voices speaking out for limiting the ways we allow algorithms to influence our lives While _Weapons of Math Destruction_ is full of hard truths and grim statistics, it is also accessible and even entertaining. O’Neil’s writing is direct and easy to read–I devoured it in an afternoon.” –_Scientific American_ “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 exploitpeople and distort the truth while posing as neutral mathematical tools. Thisbook is wise, fierce, and desperately necessary.” –Jordan Ellenberg, University of Wisconsin-Madison, author of _How Not To Be Wrong _”O’Neil has become [a whistle-blower] for the world of Big Data [in] herimportant new book Her work makes particularly disturbing points about howbeing on the wrong side of an algorithmic decision can snowball in incrediblydestructive ways.”_ –TIME _”O’Neil’s work is so important [her] book is a vital crash-course in the specialized kind of statistical knowledge we all need to interrogate the systems around us and demand better.”_ –_Boing Boing __ “O’Neil is passionate about exposing the harmful effects of Big Data-drivenmathematical models (what she calls WMDs), and she’s uniquely qualified forthe task [She] makes a convincing case that many mathematical models todayare engineered to benefit the powerful at the expense of the powerless [and]has written an entertaining and timely book that gives readers the tools tocut through the ideological fog obscuring the dangers of the Big Datarevolution.”__ __–In These Times_ _”In this simultaneously illuminating and disturbing account, [O’Neil]describes the many ways in which widely used mathematic models–based on’prejudice, misunderstanding, and bias’–tend to punish the poor and rewardthe rich She convincingly argues for both more responsible modeling andfederal regulation. An unusually lucid and readable look at the dauntingalgorithms that govern so many aspects of our lives.”_ _–_Kirkus Reviews _(starred) “Even as a professional mathematician, I had no idea how insidious Big Datacould be until I read _Weapons of Math Destruction_. Though terrifying, it’s asurprisingly fun read: O’Neil’s vision of a world run by algorithms is lacedwith 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_ “This taut and accessible volume, the stuff of technophobes’ nightmares,explores the myriad ways in which largescale data modeling has made the worlda less just and equal place. O’Neil speaks from a place of authority on thesubject Unlike some other recent books on data collection, hers is nothysterical; she offers more of a chilly wake-up call as she walks readersthrough the ways the ‘big data’ industry has facilitated social ills such asskyrocketing college tuitions, policing based on racial profiling, and highunemployment rates in vulnerable communities eerily prescient.” –_Publishers Weekly_ “Through harrowing real-world examples and lively story-telling, _Weapons ofMath Destruction_ shines invaluable light on the invisible algorithms andcomplex mathematical models used by government and big business to undermineequality and increase private power. Combating secrecy with clarity andconfusion with understanding, this book can help us change course before it’stoo 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. Itacknowledges that models aren’t going away: As a tool for identifying peoplein difficulty, they are amazing. But as a tool for punishing anddisenfranchising, they’re a nightmare.” –Cory Doctorow, author of _Little Brother_ and co-editor of Boing Boing “Many algorithms are slaves to the inequalities of power and prejudice. If youdon’t want these algorithms to become your masters, read _Weapons of MathDestruction_ by Cathy O’Neil to deconstruct the latest growing tyranny of anarrogant establishment.” –Ralph Nader, author of _Unsafe at Any Speed_ “In this fascinating account, Cathy O’Neil leverages her expertise inmathematics and her passion for social justice to poke holes in the triumphantnarrative of Big Data. She makes a compelling case that math is being used tosqueeze marginalized segments of society and magnify inequities. Her analysisis 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 silentlyshaping and controlling our destinies. Cathy O’Neil takes us on a journey ofoutrage and wonder, with prose that makes you feel like it’s just aconversation. 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 BigData, show them _Weapons of Math Destruction_. It’ll be salutary.” –Felix Salmon, Fusion About the Author Cathy O’Neil is a data scientist and author of the blog mathbabe.org. She earned a Ph.D. in mathematics from Harvard and taught at Barnard College before moving to the private sector, where she worked for the hedge fund D. E. Shaw. She then worked as a data scientist at various start-ups, building models that predict people’s purchases and clicks. O’Neil started the Lede Program in Data Journalism at Columbia and is the author of _Doing Data Science_. She appears weekly on the _Slate Money_ podcast. See all Editorial Reviews