Understanding the causes, effects, and prevalence of algorithmic bias

AI tools are trained on human-created data containing implicit and explicit biases

Because AI tools reflect patterns in their training data, their outputs may reinforce existing societal biases—especially racial ones—rather than offering neutral or fair ones. Adequate training is necessary to undermine these biases whenever new data is incorporated.

An overview of 12 fundamental types of algorithms and the uses for each

These include search algorithms to quickly process and find important information, cryptographic algorithms to secure communications, randomized algorithms—such as Monte Carlo simulations for estimating probabilities of outcomes—and greedy algorithms, which make optimal choices based on available data in a step-by-step fashion, as seen in navigation apps.

Watch how algorithms can be designed to train themselves and self-improve without human input, to the point where the optimized code is too complex for programmers to understand.

Watch how algorithms can be designed to train themselves and self-improve without human input, to the point where the optimized code is too complex for programmers to understand.

Smart pricing algorithms can unintentionally work together to raise prices

Researchers have found that, through trial and error, algorithms designed to adjust prices based on market data can learn to mimic price-fixing tactics, even without explicit programming to do so. Over time, they "learn" that it is more profitable to avoid price wars and keep prices high when competitors lower prices.

Visualizing 11 cognitive biases that influence how you think

Humans are hardwired to make mental mistakes called cognitive biases, affecting the way we view our world. Among the most common are confirmation bias (seeking only evidence that affirms your views), authority bias (overweighting things said by authority figures), groupthink (assimilating ideas to avoid conflict), and more. This quick chart gives an overview of some of the most notable ways we mislead ourselves.

When you complete a CAPTCHA on a website to prove you are human, you may be unknowingly training algorithms for self-driving cars, whose systems require training data to help identify crosswalks, bicycles, and other outdoor objects.

Unlike the models made by large AI companies, open-weight models can have their safeguards removed or weakened, a process that has become increasingly easy and may expose users to harmful information.

This removal is made possible by developers making the parameters behind their models publicly known. By adjusting these parameters, users can modify how the model processes and provides information. Many of these models can be downloaded locally, preventing developers from seeing how people are using them.

Social media algorithms are shaping real-life language through memes

The evolution of the internet in the early 2000s supercharged the creation and spread of memetic content. Now, highly tuned algorithms on platforms like TikTok and YouTube influence the language, phrasing, and content of creators, which shapes how we use language in the real world.

Google Search trends reveal truths about society that traditional surveys miss

Studies of human behavior show that survey respondents may lie to present themselves more favorably. By studying anonymous search data, researchers have uncovered hidden racism, mental health struggles, and interest in taboo or stigmatized topics.

Facebook's algorithm chooses content to display on the News Feed based on user data

It employs machine learning to prioritize posts and ads based on user interactions, content type, and post timeliness, creating a personalized, engaging experience for each user.

Learn how the algorithms behind Tinger, Bumble, Hinge, and other dating apps work

Formerly based on the Elo rating system, which ranks chess players, the Tinder algorithm is built on user data, with more time spent on the app providing more data on user preferences from which to customize potential matches. OkCupid's match percentage algorithm relies on overlaps in users' search preferences and responses to a subset of over 4,000 questions.

Generative AI is reinventing Internet search

How algorithmic redistricting works

Computational methods are convincing a number of judges that some state district maps are drawn illegally. Here's a simple overview of how it works.

Machine learning lets computers learn from data instead of relying on programming

ML is a core part of artificial intelligence and is foundational to applications like chatbots, fraud detection, and self-driving cars. Businesses are also adopting it to improve efficiency and identify patterns in data, though the latter may be inaccurate.

Computational and biological systems share fundamental principles, like randomness

Proposed by Alan Turing and John von Neumann, the concept originates from how DNA and computers run by executing encoded instructions in parallel. The advent of AI and the temperature parameter has seen neural networks mimic the randomness of protein encoding.

Understanding why graduate fellowships from the NSF have exacerbated funding inequities

In 2017, 86% of Graduate Research Fellowship Program awardees came from institutions with high research activity, while just 0.3% were from HBCUs. Although the National Science Foundation mandates that all grant proposal reviewers undergo bias training, anecdotal data suggests that well-resourced schools take significant steps to prepare applicants, and they submit proposals at a higher-than-average rate. (Some readers may experience a paywall.)

The lack of diversity in DNA databases limits their applications

European ancestry dominates genetic research, hindering the usage of genetic databases for precision medicine for other groups, including African Americans, who face higher health risks due to genetic variants. Many Indigenous communities have also resisted genetic research due to past exploitation. (Some readers may experience a paywall.)

Google’s CEO has warned that today’s AI boom shows ‘elements of irrationality’

An interview with Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai warns that the trillion-dollar surge in AI valuations may contain clear signs of irrationality, echoing past tech bubbles. He says no firm—including Google—would be immune if the boom cools or bursts.

Emergency room evaluations may be improved with AI algorithms

Emergency room care teams must make fast and crucial decisions. They must determine if patients need to be admitted or discharged and when to order more tests or not. Researchers have been exploring how often patients died in the week after they were sent home and evaluating how this and other aspects of emergency care decision-making could be improved with AI algorithms to assist decision-makers.

Deepfake pornography poses significant challenges in combating sexual abuse

In 2017, 96% of deepfake videos involved image-based sexual abuse, which has disproportionately targeted minority women, LGBTQ individuals, adolescents and celebrities. Cultural norms, misogyny and AI advancements have contributed to the proliferation of explicit deepfake content.

Can animals understand fairness?

Academics have long wondered if fairness is solely a concern of humans. In the largest meta-analysis to date, UC Berkeley researchers tested whether monkeys felt jealousy after receiving unequal rewards. The patterns showed low evidence for inequity aversion and instead frustration due to their expectations not being met by humans. These findings suggest that pursuing fairness and equality is uniquely human.

English mathematician Ada Lovelace wrote the first computer algorithm a century before computers existed and hypothesized that computing devices would one day be able to compose music—foreseeing the generative AI systems of today.

The unavailability bias says what we don't see must not exist

Before social media, information was more scarce, and it was the norm not to know much about some controversy or episode. This led to a common prejudice: the availability bias, that what is at hand must be true (in business, the courts, finance, and many fields). With information overload today, the inverse occurs: when something is missing (like the photo of a suspect), it makes us think the suspect does not exist.

English mathematician Ada Lovelace wrote the first computer algorithm a century before computers existed and hypothesized that computing devices would one day be able to compose music—foreseeing the generative AI systems of today.

Some argue that credit reporting promotes economic inequality in the US

Although today's credit scoring system is much more objective than, say, the credit assessment system of the 1700s, some argue there's still room for improvement, with critics saying the current system is still discriminatory. For example, while mortgage payments have long been automatically reported to credit bureaus, rent payments (the primary housing expense for most lower-income Americans) historically haven't been reported unless a payment was missed.

Explore the components of autonomous vehicles controls

A suite of cutting-edge hardware and computation-intensive software creates the potential for self-driving cars to be safer, more fuel-efficient, and more accessible to a broader range of drivers. However, automation also introduces potential cybersecurity threats.

A 15-year bibliographic analysis identified systematic gender bias across Wikipedia

A 2024 study by the University of Barcelona found that 71.4% of all English biographies that appear on the front page are about men, and approximately one in five editors are women. Researchers suggest systemic imbalances in society further diminish women's contributions to the site by leaving them with less time to defend edits during editorial disputes.

The term 'algorithm' originated from the Latinized name of al-Khwārizmī, a 9th-century mathematician whose works introduced Arabic numerals and the decimal-based numeral system to Europe and whose treatise 'Al-Jabr' gave algebra its name.

Radioactive elements can introduce software errors because the ionizing radiation they produce can detach electrons from atoms, and computer code relies on the distribution of electrons.

Visualize how CRISPR-Cas9—a type of immune system used by single-celled organisms to attack invasive viruses—targets and makes precise changes to a gene's DNA.

In 2025, four executives from large tech companies were given positions in the US Army Reserves—including Palantir Chief Technology Officer Shyam Sankar, which reinforced Palantir's ties with the US military and its role as a leading defense partner.

As of 2025, the most cited papers in science include a review of graphene, methods to improve image recognition, streamlining electron density calculations, and optimizing protein studies.

A vending machine run with Anthropic's AI went out of business after it was convinced to give away items for free and sell a video game console.

A Yale student wrote a profound essay about the consulting industry's influence on elite college students that was published in a book of her writing after she died in a post-graduation car accident.

Chaos theory—informally known as the butterfly effect—is the reason why weather forecasts are presented with probabilities rather than certainties.

Alzheimer's can lead to brain shrinkage, with an average of around 2% of volume reduction per year

Gerrymandering works through two techniques: cracking opposing voters across districts to dilute their power, and packing them into a few to waste their votes in lopsided majorities.

Browse a detailed visual analysis of over 200,000 similes—comparisons that often use 'like' or 'as'—from popular fiction to see how frequently writers the same idiomatic expressions.

The hormonal disorder PCOS was renamed PMOS in 2026, a move designed to improve care and research by shifting the focus to the hormonal causes of this condition that affects 1 in 8 women.

According to the physics of black holes, our 4D reality may be a hologram—a projection of information coded on a 2D surface on the edge of the universe.

About 2,000 US babies are born annually without some portion of their limbs, potentially leading to a lifetime of pricey prosthetics.

The Brothers Grimm were lawyers before they were storytellers, and became interested in fairy tales as they began investigating how rules and customs had been passed down through cultures.

The story of Dollree Mapp, whose legal challenge over her 1957 conviction for possessing "obscene material" led to a major strengthening of the Fourth Amendment

The Nasdaq's 'Magnificent 7' companies are responsible for roughly 40% of the Nasdaq 100 index's gains, while the remaining 93 companies account for the other 60%.

Art theft is the third-largest source of criminal revenues worldwide, thanks in part to the subjective nature of valuing a work of art.

Animal phobias are likely the most common type of phobias, followed by an extreme fear of heights.

Search a massive database of over 4 decades of clues from the TV quiz show 'Jeopardy!'

The United States is one of only around two dozen countries with a fully federal system of government, in which power is divided between national and state governments.

The first steps to rebuilding your credit score include getting to know exactly what's on your credit report and figuring out how far you are from the '700 club,' or 'good score' range.