Pedro Domingos

Does math need to be regulated? Do algorithms?

Here’s an algorithm: If applicant belongs to a minority group then deny, else approve. Do you mean such algorithms don’t warrant regulation? Any unethical or illegal decision making can be expressed as an algorithm.

Find me an algorithm in a computer science textbook that needs regulated, and I'll make up some math that needs to be.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe you're pointing out that examples like mine wouldn't be in a textbook. But textbook algorithms could end up deriving an algorithm like my example. If I'm off, then what exactly is your thesis here?

1) If they do, it's not their fault. 2) Any piece of regulation that uses the word "algorithms" can be improved by rewriting it without it.

Agreed that "algorithm" means nothing since it means everything -- but, question: It's not *who's* fault? Do you mean the textbook? (You don't mean the algorithm, do you?)

Yes, the algorithm, of course! Do algorithms have racial biases? Does logistic regression? What's hard to understand about this?

Okay, so would it be fair to state your point in this way: "If an algorithm defies an ethical standard, it is the human deployers' of the algorithm's fault, not the algorithm's."