For the last 97 years, Time magazine has been anointing a "person of the year" every year-end. As a child who grew up on a staple of Time and Newsweek, I would eagerly look forward to the year's last editions simply to see if I could guess who it would be. I succeeded only half the time. Nevertheless, thinking of all the persons I could list as possibilities and then weeding most of them out was a fun exercise. It gave me a kick.
It wasn't always called person of the year. In a less gender-sensitized era, it was called man of the year and, in some cases, woman of the year. It became the person of the year in the noughties. What started in 1927 with the coveted space given to aviator Charles Lindbergh, was given to Donald Trump for 2024. Time features a person, group, idea or object that, "for better or worse," has done the most to influence the events of the year.
I go back to the ways of my school days. I sit down and list my own person of the year for 2024. And it is not Donald Trump. It is not human at all. For me, it is the algorithm. Call it a he, she, them or it, the algorithm is the one biggest influencer of 2024. The algorithm has shaped the lives of billions, and continues to influence the future of everything.
Let me introduce you to this being. It is a lifeless form with a life all its own. The algorithm to me is a recipe. It is not a dish. It is a clever recipe that results in a good and tasty dish. It has many ingredients. It has many steps as well. It has a flow. It has both consistency and inconsistency loaded into it. It is what makes the world run today. All of life and living is governed by the algorithm.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 24, 2024 من The New Indian Express Hubballi.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 24, 2024 من The New Indian Express Hubballi.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
'I don't Like Most of the Scripts'
Nana Patekar speaks to Shama Bhagat on his latest film Vanvaas and life beyond the city hustle
Future Forward Home Truths
Interior designer Minnie Bhatt picks out the five design trends that will shape home décor this year
The Tale of an Unsung Queen
The author relies on a plethora of Urdu texts to provide a holistic view of the creation of a city
The Constancy of God's Love
In a world where everything is in constant flux, we find peace and assurance in the unchanging, eternal love for the divine
River Sutra of Hidden Hierarchies
English philosopher Herbert Spencer's theory of evolution, popularised by Charles Darwin, argues survival of the fittest, thereby leading to a natural process of selection and extinction.
Stepping Up for the Punjab
Dancer Divya Goswami's performance focusing on an eternal love story of the region is a testament to her authenticity and the relevance of Kathak as a means of storytelling
The Us that Refuses to Acknowledge Them
HABITS MATTER
All that Remains is Pure Cinema
Yahi Sach Hai was the short story by Mannu Bhandari on which director Basu Chatterji based his new film.
Mohammedan beat Bengaluru
MIRJALOL Kasimov's stunning 88th-minute free-kick secured Mohammedan SC's 1-0 victory over former champions Bengaluru FC, marking their second win of the Indian Super League, here on Saturday.
Certificates from WFI not valid for recruitment: Rlys
SINCE December 24, 2023 when the sports ministry suspended newly-elected executive council of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), certificates issued by the federation have not been considered for recruitment purposes by the Indian Railways, one of the biggest employers of the athletes in the country.