Increasing Attention

There was an article this last weekend in the New York Times about algorithms tracking the location of smart phones, and giving that information to corporations, which can use it for all kinds of secretive purposes, like maybe displaying ads appropriate to your location, or where you have recently been. The suggestions from the article seemed to be that this is a step toward total takeover of our lives by the algorithms.

I don't know how much influence these algorithms have over my behavior. I do see messages on my phone asking me about my visit to places I've been. But I still see ads that do not interest me. They could be based on data an algorithm has picked up or bought, but the interpretation is off. I look up things about medication because I teach anatomy and physiology, and I like to know current treatments for conditions I talk about in my classes. I don't know why I get ads for colleges, except that I work at one, but that doesn't indicate interest in pursuing a degree at another institution.

What do the algorithms know about my travels? Can they tell what buildings I enter? Maybe they know I drive past Easton every weekday. Do they think I shop there? Do they no understand that I don't shop? Sometimes I buy things, but usually I have decided what I want to get, and I find the easiest way to make an order or purchase. I hate shopping. I hate going out wandering around aisles of a store, unless it is a book store. I love books. Do the algorithms disdain books as too old fashioned? There was another article in the New York Times about the value of both printed books and audiobooks. I have used both. For something serious, I prefer physical books, and doing my own reading. But I can listen to a light-hearted book  while I drive. Okay, it doesn't have to be happy, just relatively light reading, and not important for me to catch every detail. I can't do that with an audiobook. But I can catch much of a story, and enjoy the distraction as I drive. Can an algorithm make subtle connections?

Now that the war against the rising power of the algorithms has reached the New York Times, maybe it is serious. I am still not afraid.