When we register on a social media platform for the first time, it’s almost an instinct now to follow a recommended list of celebrities, topics you’re interested in, and sync your phone contacts or Facebook for friends you may know. We take these recommendation algorithms for granted so much that we ignore the question: how are these lists generated? Of course, we agreed to grant them access to our personal data, who we are and how we are related to other people. While connecting us to our fr...

When we register on a social media platform for the first time, it’s almost an instinct now to follow a recommended list of celebrities, topics you’re interested in, and sync your phone contacts or Facebook for friends you may know. We take these recommendation algorithms for granted so much that we ignore the question: how are these lists generated? Of course, we agreed to grant them access to our personal data, who we are and how we are related to other people. While connecting us to our fr...