Prompt Cast
The History of Data: From Quantification to Ethical Consequences
TLDR "How Data Happened" explores the historical development of data, from quantifying the world to the rise of targeted advertising. It emphasizes the importance of skepticism, rigor, and ethical practices in analyzing and using data, as well as the potential for data to reproduce systemic inequalities and produce non-neutral outcomes.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
The guests on the podcast, Chris Wiggins and Matthew Jones, have written a book called "How Data Happened" that explores the history of data and its increasing importance in our lives.
05:02
The book explores the process behind quantifying the world in quantitative terms and the historical development of norms that allow us to do so, as well as the different communities and fields that have contributed to the development of terms like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and mathematical statistics.
10:12
The book explores the relationship between algorithms and data, the rhetorical power of data, the agency given to algorithms, and the importance of being critical of data and understanding its limitations.
14:45
The history of data is not just about understanding its limitations, but also about the technological advancements that allowed for the collection and analysis of massive amounts of data, such as the development of digital hardware during World War II and the subsequent investment in technology to capture data.
19:27
The history of data is characterized by unintended consequences and contingency, with concrete decisions made at various points in time that shaped the development of data collection, analysis, and regulation, leading to the commercialization of the internet and the rise of targeted advertising.
24:54
The history of data shows that good arguments based on good data are often disregarded, while bad arguments built on bad data can become viewed as common sense, highlighting the importance of skepticism and rigor in analyzing data.
29:58
The 19th century marked a turning point in the way data was collected and used, with debates arising about the role of data in governance and the legitimacy of certain types of statistics.
35:05
The 19th century changed the relationship between data and society in three ways: the interchangeability of statistics and numbers, the use of data for understanding moral topics, and the importation of mathematical sophistication; ethics and data have converged in the last decade, with a focus on defining and implementing ethical practices in the use of data.
39:42
Algorithmic systems reproduce the systemic inequalities of society at an unprecedented rate and scale, even if explicit categories like race and gender are stripped out, because the historical sedimentation captured in the data will still be reproduced.
44:52
The introduction of automated systems may remove certain biases, but it can also reproduce historical inequalities and produce non-neutral outcomes, as seen in the example of zip codes and their correlation with race and socioeconomic status.
49:44
Data, like technology, can be both good and bad, and its ethical consequences depend on the frameworks and structures in which it is used, highlighting the importance of critical thinking and decision-making at all levels of governance.
54:47
The use of data and technology doesn't have to lead to negative consequences, but rather depends on the frameworks and structures in which it is used, just like the printing press and the commercial attitudes of printers like Lucas Cronach during the Reformation.
01:00:00
The law often takes much longer to respond to changes in technology and markets, as seen in the recent Supreme Court decision regarding the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which has implications for the internet today, similar to how liability laws affected publishing in early modern Europe.
Categories:
History
Society & Culture
