The Numerati by Stephen Baker
Every day, we produce loads of data about ourselves simply by living in the modern world: we click web pages, flip channels, drive through automatic toll booths, shop with credit cards, and make cell phone calls. Now, in one of the greatest undertakings of the twenty-first century, a savvy group of mathematicians and computer scientists is beginning to sift through this data to dissect us and map out our next steps. Their goal? To manipulate our behavior--what we buy, how we vote--without our even realizing it. In this tour de force of original reporting and analysis, journalist Stephen Baker provides us with a fascinating guide to the world we're all entering--and to the people controlling that world. The Numerati have infiltrated every realm of human affairs, profiling us as workers, shoppers, patients, voters, potential terrorists--even lovers. The implications are vast. Our privacy evaporates. Our bosses can monitor and measure our every move--then reward or punish us. Politicians can find the swing voters among us. It can sound scary. But the Numerati can also work on our behalf, diagnosing an illness before we're aware of the symptoms or even helping us find our soul mate. Surprising, enlightening, and deeply relevant, The Numerati shows how a powerful new endeavor--the mathematical modeling of humanity--will transform every aspect of our lives.
Baker, Stephen: - Stephen Baker was a senior technology writer for ten years at BusinessWeek, where he covered the data economy, the growth of wireless technology and cloud computing. His first nonfiction book, The Numerati, previewed the age of Big Data. He followed that with Final Jeopardy: Man vs. Machine and the Quest to Know Everything, the story of IBM's Jeopardy-playing computer, Watson. Here he delved into artificial intelligence and how machines would change the way humans think and interact. In his journalism career, Baker worked in New York, Paris, Mexico City, and along the U.S.-Mexico border. In addition to BusinessWeek, he has written for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Los Angeles Times. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin and earned a master's in science from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. He and his family live in Montclair, New Jersey.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780618784608 |
| ISBN 10 | 0618784608 |
| Title | The Numerati |
| Author | Stephen Baker |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Houghton Mifflin |
| Year published | 2008-08-12 |
| Number of pages | 244 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |