Pervasiveness of algorithms

The Guardian features an article on the pervasiveness of algorithms and 'how mathematical recipes dictate how we lead our lives':

In fact, large bits of modern lives are secretly underpinned by complex algorithms - the mathematical equivalent of cookery recipes, which take a piece of information and turn it into an action or decision. Algorithms are like computer programs or flowcharts - a sequence of steps that examines what is happening and comes to a conclusion. Take traffic lights: the computer controlling them asks a series of related questions. What time of day is it? When did the lights last go red? Has a pedestrian pushed the button at the crossing? The algorithm guides the computer, step by step, to change the lights.

Algorithms are pervasive, even controlling, in our lives. Book a low-cost flight and an algorithm will determine how much the tickets will cost, depending on supply and demand; arrive at the airport and air-traffic algorithms will determine which place in the queue your plane gets. Watch the weather forecast on TV and the predictions will have been fine-tuned by an algorithm; listen to the radio and the playlist may have been generated by one. Supermarkets, in particular, are a hotbed of algorithms. Almost every aspect of their operation - from deciding the order that products are stacked on the shelves to picking which special offers to run - is determined by a computer.

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