Note
Musings may contain typos, grammatical errors, rough ideas and weak arguments
It’s interesting how the interpretation of the word “Algorithm” has evolved to have a social meaning.
In 2015, it probably still had a single definition i.e. A set of instructions for a computer or system.
Right now it has an additional social meaning i.e. The thing that dictates your media feed. The “thing” is still an algorithm, but the the meaning is an abstraction for recommender system
I think this sort of thing happens when any technology becomes strongly enmeshed with human life.
Other examples I can think of:
| Technical | Social | |
|---|---|---|
| Plastic | Polymer | Synthetic, fake |