In 2017, algorithms are everywhere.
They determine the news we see, the music we stream, the advertisements we're served and the very means through which we communicate and access information on a daily basis.
And it's not just our online experience that's underpinned by algorithms. E-commerce giant Amazon's recent foray into creating brick-and-mortar bookstores exemplifies how a physical storefront might privilege big data over curatorial authority — displaying stock by regional purchase trends and collective ratings rather than staff selections, for instance.