On Algorithms

Just recently I've been directed down, or shown some interesting rabbit holes conspiracy-wise. On the internet, that is. Literally in the last couple of days, things have gone a bit bonkers with the links and stuff that Facebook, YouTube and the like have started showing me. 

Now, of course some of the shit I look at and say online might bring one to conclude that's the sort of thing that might push me over the edge and radicalise me. But I'm a bit more complex than that. 

But I can see how, if you're not savvy to this sort of attempt at manipulation, you could be going down some very dark paths. 

The thing is: Is it algorithms guiding your path and it's all a result of zeros and ones doing their thing, or is it human manipulation?

And why all of a sudden? Literally, this week. 

I know I've been up North over the weekend and scarily for some people I've been in the exact area where a hotly contested by-election is to be held. 

But this week, most of my usual favourite watch list stuff has been replaced. 

Makes you wonder if my phone was close to another phone and someone put two and two together and got five. 

But it does show you there is a huge element of manipulation going on when it comes to the content the algorithms offer up to you and the information that's collected in the background doesn't always produce a benign result like showing you more of the content you like.

There seems to be a hint at manipulation with this latest tranche of content. Obviously so. Someone or something is using hobnail boots and isn't at all subtle. 

UPDATE: 

It's become apparent that the University of Zurich used A.I. to infiltrate groups online and manipulate human behaviour.  

Whether what I detected was part of that experiment, or a similar experiment by a different group, I don't know.

But it's interesting it's still detectable. I'm not going to go into detail how or why I detected it, but it's not quite as good a conversationalist as people think it is.

As someone outside of standard human behaviour, who has had to learn to understand and mimic the nuances of standard human behaviour and conversation, I can detect someone who is doing the same. 

Just like how I've met other sociopaths and understood instantly who they are. I've only ever met probably a couple who are instantly recognisable.