They've Got Your Number...: Data, Digits and Destiny - how the Numerati are changing our Lives

Description

Comparable to The Long Tail and Freakonomics, this is a book of complex ideas written for the general reader. In a world teeming with data, we ourselves become the maths gurus' most prized specimens.In They've Got Your Number..., Stephen Baker takes us on a guided tour (no maths required) through an unprecedented new era. Much in the same way as neuroscientists are mapping our brains, mathematicians are mapping our behaviour - what we do, who we are, how we work, chat, play and shop - everything that makes us individuals. In doing so, they will change every aspect of our lives.They've Got Your Number... examines one of the great undertakings of the twenty-first century - the mathematical modelling of humanity. It's a world that otherwise might seem remote or disconnected, but one which is absolutely relevant to our everyday lives.

Stephen Baker began covering technology for BusinessWeek as Paris-based European correspondent 1998. He moved to New York in 2002 as acting senior editor for info tech, and is now a senior writer. He is a leader in new media at BusinessWeek and coauthor of Blogspotting.net, a blog featured as one of the 50 blogs to watch by The New York Times.

Baker puts his finger on perhaps the most important cultural trend today: the explosion of data about every aspect of our world and the rise of applied math gurus who know how to use it. Baker's smart, readable style makes this a pleasure... it's a must read for anyone who wants to understand life and business in the Google Age -- Chris Anderson, author of The Long Tail Baker knows his stuff and he knows his subjects * Sunday Times * Strikingly well-argued * Daily Telegraph * Baker is telling us about a phenomenon that is important and often overlooked... urgent and exciting...This book won't make you an expert on how the mathematicians do their tricks, but it will make you more aware of the implications -- Marcus du Sautoy * Observer * A creepy and revelatory examination of the secret pressures on our lives and psyches, and how we are unwitting accomplices to this process -- Colin Waters * Sunday Herald *