Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy
Author Cathy O'Neil in conversation with Kashmir Hill, Editor of Fusion's Real Future

Author Cathy O'Neil describes weapons of math destruction or WMDs as unregulated and uncontestable models that score teachers and students, sort résumés, grant (or deny) loans, evaluate workers, set parole and prison sentences, and monitor our health. O'Neil exposes ways that mathematical models are determining our futures, and offers ideas for making models more transparent and using them to promote positive social change. As she notes in her book, "Math deserves much better than WMDs, and democracy does too."

Cathy O'Neil received her Ph.D. in mathematics from Harvard University and, after a brief stint in academia, and on Wall Street, became the financial advisor to the Occupy Movement. She then became a data scientist for a New York start-up. O'Neil is uniquely suited to talk about the social and political implications of this kind of math, given her deep knowledge of modeling techniques and an insider's understanding of how companies are using them.

Kashmir Hill is the editor of Fusion's Real Future. She writes about privacy and technology.