A new digital ecology is evolving, and humans are being left behind — from io9.com by George Dvorsky
Excerpt (emphasis DSC):
Incomprehensible computer behaviors (<– Can we use the word behavior here? It seems an odd word to describe computer-related actions…) have evolved out of high-frequency stock trading, and humans aren’t sure why. Eventually, it could start affecting high-tech warfare, too. We spoke with a researcher at University of Miami who thinks humans will be outpaced by a new “machine ecology.”
For all intents and purposes, this genesis of this new world began in 2006 with the introduction of legislation which made high frequency stock trading a viable option. This form of rapid-fire trading involves algorithms, or bots, that can make decisions on the order of milliseconds (ms). By contrast, it takes a human at least one full second to both recognize and react to potential danger. Consequently, humans are progressively being left out of the trading loop.
…
“What we see with the new ultrafast computer algorithms is predatory trading,” he says. “In this case, the predator acts before the prey even knows it’s there.”
Johnson describes this new ecology as one consisting of mobs of ultrafast bots that frequently overwhelm the system. When events last less than a second, the financial world transitions to a new one inhabited by packs of aggressively trading algorithms.
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From DSC:
I’m getting concerned about the power of emerging technologies and who is using these technologies — and how they are using them. It took humans to program these algorithms. It still takes humans to oversee these issues/trends (at least at this point in time!). Therefore, values — and hearts — come into play here — with very real effects. Quoting from the article:
“There is real money being gained and lost here — even a few thousand dollars every millisecond, which is a tiny amount on the market, is a million dollars per second,” he told us. “This money could be pension fund money, and so on. So somebody needs to understand what is going on, and if it is ‘fair’.”
Who’s involved here? Who’s making sure things are “fair?” Also…what are MBA programs teaching along these lines? Computer Science teachers/professors? What values are we instilling in the people who will be programming the algorithms that overlook such processes? That are/will be creating this new “machine ecology?”