From CNN Money:

Math is racist: How data is driving inequality

by Aimee Rawlins @aimeerawlins

September 6, 2016: 5:24 PM ET

It’s no surprise that inequality in the U.S. is on the rise. But what you might not know is that math is partly to blame.

In a new book, “Weapons of Math Destruction,” Cathy O’Neil details all the ways that math is essentially being used for evil (my word, not hers).

From targeted advertising and insurance to education and policing, O’Neil looks at how algorithms and big data are targeting the poor, reinforcing racism and amplifying inequality.

These “WMDs,” as she calls them, have three key features: They are opaque, scalable and unfair. …

The models O’Neil writes about all use proxies for what they’re actually trying to measure. The police analyze zip codes to deploy officers, employers use credit scores to gauge responsibility, payday lenders assess grammar to determine credit worthiness. But zip codes are also a stand-in for race, credit scores for wealth, and poor grammar for immigrants.