Right now, you and I are being watched. Google Analytics is recording every visit to this blog, including yours. Google has also read this posting, and all my other postings, adding them to the great big blog in the skyclouds. You and I, by our simple clicks, have generated a small trove of data that will need to be analyzed by algorithms processing millions and billions of similar interactions. The clever people designing these algorithms are the subject of Stephen Baker’s book “The Numerati”.

The world’s data is experiencing something of a gold rush, as prospectors seek out troves of data, mining it for nuggets of value. What is valuable, of course, depends on your perspective. Governments want to prevent terrorist attacks. Retailers want to know where and how to sell what to who. Companies want to know how to make their employees more productive. People want love and companionship.

These desires are met, half-way, by the promises of Big Data, Data Science, and the Numerati. There is an element of Big Brother in all of this that can come across as somewhat sinister. We don’t always know what data is being collected, or by whom. But even when we do, we may find ourselves without much choice in how that data is used. We don’t mind shopping with a customer loyalty card, giving our grocer insight into the habits of people who buy Pringles or Dr. Pepper. But we might be more concerned when employers develop algorithms that optimize bathroom breaks, vacations and promotions.

But maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing. How much do we really know about our own optimal performance? Can we collect our own data? People trying to lose weight measure themselves regularly. Sites like http://quantifiedself.com/ take this kind of feedback to another level. Our personal data is obviously valuable, why should we not be the first to benefit from it? Baker doesn’t cover this in his book, but I think it is a more logical, and less sinister, next step.

In a world where everything is counted, it must still be said that we are more than the sum of our parts. (See my review of You Are Not a Gadget.) Will computers and the mathematical wizards designing their algorithms be able to predict my behaviour, my intentions and desires? Possibly. No one likes to think of themselves as a number, but as the world becomes more quantified, we might take the opportunity to reflect on what makes us unique. There is, after all, only one you.