Code of all things in a changing world can be a nuisance

I am not complaining, but as a matter of fact I do not use Facebook to gain access to or find information about my friends, nor Twitter to understand public opinion, or Tinder to find a suitable date. But I do use apps like WeChat, Whatsapp, LinkedIn and my trusted e-mail service as part of my daily routine as a business journalist in China.

Surfing through the tons of e-mail on a daily basis, I have often wondered how companies seem to know exactly what I want to see. I am amazed when I get mails suggesting various cheap flying options to my hometown Bengaluru, India, or links to new and old property, places of interest in Beijing.

Of course, like everybody else, I believed that search engines used to monitor my surfing and send me related information. Imagine my surprise when I learnt that everything was related to algorithms, that there is no escape from them and that they are inalienably linked to our daily lives.