On the morning of Friday, May 18, 2012, Facebook (FB) shares were list on the American NASDAQ stock exchange for the first time. The introduction of the share was follow with bat breath by millions of people. Everyone was curious about how much money the world’s largest social network was really worth. It soon became clear that things were not going well with the share. The share dropp four points in a short period of time, from 42 dollars to 38 dollars, the height of the official introduction price. At 11:49 something strange happen. The share price stall. For five minutes the share seem to stand still, only to shoot up again.
With the nak eye, nothing can be seen
A but when you zoom in on the stock price, differences can be observ. Large quantities of shares indonesia telegram data chang hands in milliseconds. On one side of the spectrum, intermiaries bought those large quantities so that the price of the share did not fall below the introduction price. And on the other side, high-frequency traders tri to sell the share en masse with a margin of a few dollar cents. No people were involv in this. It was the algorithms of computer programs that regulat the buying and selling process.
How Algorithms Shape Our World
In July 2011, Kevin Slevin stood on the T stage. In a captivating speech, he warn the audience that our world is increasingly controll by algorithms. Invisible mathematical formulas are taking over our work everywhere. For example, they control the traffic lights on the corner of the street, but also international monetary transactions. The problem, however, is that we no longer understand what we once develop lob directory ourselves. What is the logic behind these complex formulas? How do the various algorithms interact? And what happens when something goes wrong? Who solves what?
The most expensive book in the world
During his presentation, Slevin told the story of American biologist Michael Eisen who want lessons learned from a woman in data science to buy the book What exactly “The Making of a Fly: The Genetics of Animal Design” via Amazon . To Eisen’s great surprise, the book cost $1,730,045.91. An unheard-of high price for a book that deals with the genetic development of a fruit fly. Eisen thought he was dealing with a hiccup at Amazon and refresh the page.
