Hello World: Being Human in the Age of AlgorithmsHello World: Being Human in the Age of Algorithms
Score Modern
What it's about
Mathematician Hannah Fry takes us on a tour of the algorithms that shape our lives, in medicine, policing, justice, cars, art and shopping. She shows how they work, how human bias can be written into code, and how to decide when to trust them.
Why it's worth reading
It was a Baillie Gifford Prize finalist. It's lively, clear and balanced about technology.
You'll love it if you liked
The Age of Surveillance Capitalism
The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood
Thinking, Fast and SlowGood to know
No math background is needed. It was written before the latest AI boom, but its questions still apply.
By the numbers
- Readers71 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics24 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller19 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz7 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
- #75 of the 119 science and ideas books we rank
- #698 of the 1,573 modern books we rank
- #1320 of the 2,816 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
True story, Thought-provoking
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Is Hello World: Being Human in the Age of Algorithms worth reading?
Yes. It was a Baillie Gifford Prize finalist. It ranks #1,320 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 69.8 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is Hello World: Being Human in the Age of Algorithms about?
Mathematician Hannah Fry takes us on a tour of the algorithms that shape our lives, in medicine, policing, justice, cars, art and shopping. She shows how they work, how human bias can be written into code, and how to decide when to trust them.
How long does it take to read Hello World: Being Human in the Age of Algorithms?
About 6 hours (246 pages), or about 2 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after Hello World: Being Human in the Age of Algorithms?
If you liked it, try The Age of Surveillance Capitalism by Shoshana Zuboff, The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood by James Gleick or Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman.