Presentations 22-S3-P1: We Guess Your Algorithm · 22/Oct/2014: 4:00pm-5:30pm · Location: 5F(A) We Guess Your Algorithm Christian Sandvig1, Kevin Hamilton2, Karrie Karahalios2 1University of Michigan, United States of America; 2University of Illinois, United States of America Algorithms – computational procedures or recipes enacted in software – have transformed contemporary life. The normative problems of the algorithm gained prominence with credit scores and mortgage formulae, but have moved on to search engine results, news feeds, media recommendations, and advertising delivery. Algorithms are now omnipresent drivers of personalized online experiences, including e-health care, route selection and navigation, and scholarly journal article rankings. Yet personalized algorithmic systems can produce different results for each user, and the algorithm itself cannot be known by the user in most cases. In history, algorithms typically disadvantage some groups over others, either intentionally or unintentionally – consider “redlining” as a mortgage loan algorithm or the potential consequences of the “filter bubble” on public discourse. This situation implies a critical need for algorithmic reverse engineering and deconstruction. If the algorithm’s calculations themselves cannot be discovered, one can at least know algorithms through their results. This panel seeks to build a tactical repertoire to investigate algorithms from below. This repertoire will combine elements of the social scientific audit study, investigation of the user experience to understand how algorithmic processes are perceived and visualized, and technical knowledge about how algorithms are built. The panel brings together an artist, social scientist, and engineer with expertise in each area. Emphasizing social media and search results, this workshop-style panel will invite members of the audience to subject their online algorithmic experiences to reverse engineering. The panel and the audience will then work together to develop research tactics and discuss the algorithm’s potential consequences.
Posted on: Wed, 22 Oct 2014 08:11:37 +0000