The Unaccountability Machine
Why Big Systems Make Terrible Decisions - and How The World Lost its Mind
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The Unaccountability Machine
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Narrated by:
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Peter Dickson
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By:
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Dan Davies
About this listen
'A corporation, or a government department isn't a conscious being, but it is an artificial intelligence. It has the capability to take decisions which are completely distinct from the intentions of any of the people who compose it. And under stressful conditions, it can go stark raving mad.'
When we avoid taking a decision, what happens to it? In The Unaccountability Machine, Dan Davies examines why markets, institutions and even governments systematically generate outcomes that everyone involved claims not to want. He casts new light on the writing of Stafford Beer, a legendary economist who argued in the 1950s that we should regard organisations as artificial intelligences, capable of taking decisions that are distinct from the intentions of their members.
Management cybernetics was Beer's science of applying self-regulation in organisational settings, but it was largely ignored - with the result being the political and economic crises that that we see today. With his signature blend of cynicism and journalistic rigour, Davies looks at what's gone wrong, and what might have been, had the world listened to Stafford Beer when it had the chance.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Sinead Browne
- 30-10-24
food for thought
very well written and shaped arguements, enjoyed it a lot even though it's kinda a techy subject
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Tobias F Lloyd
- 16-05-24
Fascinating, thought provoking and fun.
Fascinating exploration of a topic that was entirely new to me, but also one of the best and most readable analyses of what’s gone wrong with the economy and with economics. And beautifully, wittily written.
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1 person found this helpful