Are you experiencing the world? Or are you experiencing your world? With the increasing importance of the Web and Internet Search in our daily lives, it surprises me how many people still don't know...
...that the whole of the world is really not at their fingertips. Not usually.
If you're using Google search, Yahoo News, Facebook, or a variety of other portals, the facts about the world around you are increasingly just a reflection of your prior preferences. Algorithms analyze what you have viewed in the past, and serve up what a computer thinks is of interest to you rather than what is most empirically relevant. Your perception is trapped within its own "preference bubble" which curves back in on itself.
Discussions with colleagues made me aware of this fairly early in the game. I better understood the ramifications when my research turned up this TED Talk regarding algorithms and their influence over us. My eyes completely opened when I saw another TED Talk by Eli Pariser on The Filter Bubble.
I've taken intentional steps to avoid this. I began using less preference-driven portals such as https://duckduckgo.com/ as a "second source" on searches.
If you are interested in seeing the world more as it is, rather than viewing a sycophantic "yes man" version of it... I encourage you to investigate the links in this article and share them with friends.
Awareness is the first step in making an informed choice. What you do from there, of course, is up to you.
No comments:
Post a Comment