1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites
Live TV
Latest audioLatest videos
In focus
Israel-Hamas warUkraineBrandenburg

The End of Chance

June 10, 2015

Who will win the next World Cup? When will the next financial crisis happen? Where will the next revolution take place? Scientists want to use data analysis to predict the future more easily.

https://p.dw.com/p/1FXtg

Computer experts say it’s becoming increasingly more possible for them to calculate events. Even today, Google can predict the peak of a flu epidemic by analyzing search requests in combination with weather data. Amazon gets products ready for delivery before they’ve even been ordered. And predictive police work means officers can patrol areas where they expect crimes to occur. Nearly all data is recorded and stored.


We’re constantly producing data about ourselves through our smartphones

Sensors and cameras in mobile phones, cars and computers detect where we are and what we’re doing. There are scientists who analyze this mass of data with the sole purpose of predicting the future from the past; they call their field of work Predictive Analytics. There are now programs which predict how we are likely to behave and what preferences we have. This information is extremely valuable to a lot of people, because the more precise the algorithms are, the easier it becomes to maximize profits, minimize risks and predict conflicts.

08.06.2015 DW Doku Das Ende de Zufalls Google Zentrale
Google has saved all its search requests since the company was founded in 1998. The algorithms and analysis methods used there in California are considered the best in the world.


The Power of Algorithms: Blessing or Curse?

How will life proceed in a world where algorithms assess how well a child will do in school? How suitable they are for a particular job? Or how likely they are to become a criminal? This documentary investigates whether the dream of a fully predictable future with no catastrophes, wars or epidemics could easily become a nightmarish, all-knowing Big Brother state.

08.06.2015 DW Doku Das Ende de Zufalls Polizeiarbeit
In Santa Cruz, USA, the police are hoping to fight crimes before they’ve even happened.




Broadcasting Hours:

DW

SUN 21.06.2015 – 22:15 UTC
MON 22.06.2015 – 15:15 UTC
WED 24.06.2015 – 05:15 UTC
THU 02.07.2015 – 03:15 UTC
SUN 05.07.2015 – 09:15 UTC

Lagos UTC +1 | Cape Town UTC +2 | Nairobi UTC +3
Delhi UTC +5,5 | Bangkok UTC +7 | Hong Kong UTC +8
London UTC +1 | Berlin UTC +2 | Moscow UTC +3
San Francisco UTC -7 | Edmonton UTC -6 | New York UTC -4

DW (Europe)

MON 22.06.2015 – 04 :15 UTC

London UTC +1 | Berlin UTC +2 | Moskau UTC +3

DW (Amerika)

MON 22.06.2015 – 06:15 UTC

Vancouver UTC -7 | New York UTC -4 | Sao Paulo UTC -3

DW (Arabia)

MON 22.06.2015 – 04:15 UTC

Tunis UTC +1 | Cairo UTC + 2 | Dubai UTC +4