{"id":3548,"date":"2020-10-28T19:45:20","date_gmt":"2020-10-29T00:45:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/104.131.56.60\/?p=3548"},"modified":"2020-10-28T19:45:20","modified_gmt":"2020-10-29T00:45:20","slug":"tik-tok-what-your-fyp-is-saying-about-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/students.bowdoin.edu\/bowdoin-review\/technology\/tik-tok-what-your-fyp-is-saying-about-you\/","title":{"rendered":"Tik Tok: What Your \u2018fyp\u2019 Is Saying About You"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I swipe up<\/em>. A pudgy boy\u2014 maybe 13\u2014 wearing a ball-cap, graphic tee, and athletic shorts, strolls into a Starbucks. \u201cDo you guys have cakes?\u201d he asks, outlining the shape of a cake with an exaggerated hand gesture. \u201cWell you do now!\u201d he exclaims before the employee has a chance to reply. In one rehearsed motion the boy rotates sideways, drops into a squat, lowers his hands to his knees, and gyrates his torso in a languid twerking motion\u2014 all while keeping his eyes fixated on the employee. A short succession of air bursts leave my nose. A gaping smile spans my face, followed by a rush of irrepressible laughter. In hysterics, my neck cranes backwards and my head drops over the backrest of my desk chair. <\/em>At this moment, I am \u201cdead.\u201d Or, as the comments section says, \u201cEVAPORATING.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My \u2018for you page\u2019 has, once again, done me right. Like Jordan and Pippen, the Tik Tok algorithm and I work in tandem\u2014 I swipe, like, and comment, and the algorithm does the rest, providing me with an unremitting flow of hilarious content. After six months of steady consumption, my \u2018fyp’ has become a collection of indecorous dances, Vine-esque comedy skits, and motivational videos, among other things. I watch the video a few more times, closing my eyes and letting laughter take over my body. I send it to all of my Tik Tok friends, as well as a few Snapchat groups. But, as I wait for their responses, a feeling of dissatisfaction pervades my mind. I need to share this bliss with someone. Hm, <\/em>I think, maybe my brother. No, he\u2019d call me an idiot. Maybe my sister? No, she\u2019d call me an idiot, too. My mom would think it\u2019s funny. Actually, no, she\u2019d call me an idiot. Damn, am I an idiot?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As most users are aware, the Tik Tok algorithm is a system of operations responsible for crafting your \u201cfor you page\u201d: the feed of videos you will experience while scrolling through the app. But what exactly is generating the sudden appearance of Addison Rae doing the \u2018WAP\u2019 on your <\/em>fyp? As Tik Tok recently publicized<\/a>, your fyp is based on three factors: user interactions<\/strong>, video information<\/strong>, <\/strong>and device and account settings<\/strong>. <\/strong>This means that any time you like, comment, or share a video, you should expect to see similar content on your \u2018fyp.\u2019As you use the app, Tik Tok will take into account the captions, sounds, and hashtags that you interact with, as well as your language preference, country and device type. Additionally, Tik Tok has developed an \u201cindicators of interest\u201d system which factors in the duration of viewing<\/strong>, as well as the proximity between consumers and creators<\/strong>, among other things. So, if you\u2019re looking for more Addison Rae videos, like, comment, and share Addison Rae videos. She has<\/em> been taking a lot of heat recently, so maybe I\u2019ll dish her a like on her next video. Then again, her transformation into a Kardashian is leaving me uncertain about her future. I digress<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes, though, the bizarre direction in which the algorithm behaves may leave you asking \u201chow the hell is this on my fyp?\u201d <\/em>For Bowdoin sophomore Ean Small, this was exactly the case. \u201cFrog Tik Tok was probably the epitome of my weird Tok phase\u2014 I would get tons of videos of frogs sitting up straight,\u201d says the bio-chem-loving weight-lifter. \u201cNot to say that I wasn\u2019t excited, because it definitely sparked some joy in my life,\u201d he adds, \u201cbut, nevertheless, definitely weird.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another sophomore and photography lover, Michy Martinez, found herself perplexed by the behavior of her \u2018fyp.\u2019 \u201cThere were these Tik Toks that said if you interact with these rare sounds something good will happen to you on August 27th, which I never did,\u201d she admits. \u201cAnd guess what,\u201d she continues, raising her voice, \u201cI got a notification back on August 27th that I tested positive for rona!\u201d she shouts, laughing in disbelief at the \u201ccoincidence.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If Tik Tok\u2019s algorithm is really as prophetic as it seems, Bowdoin Women\u2019s Lacrosse star Josephina Caico (and her boyfriend) are in for a dramatic change in lifestyle. \u201cI keep ending up on lesbian Tok,\u201d she says. \u201cFor like a month I was only on lesbian Tok, and now I\u2019m just on gay Tok.\u201d Despite the algorithm\u2019s inconsistent evaluation of her sexual orientation, she is seemingly satisfied with her experience on \u2018gay tok,\u2019 stating \u201chonestly, I love it.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether you understand the algorithm or not, one thing is for certain; it understands you. <\/em>As scary as it may seem, the system dictating your feed is incredibly powerful\u2014 powerful enough to captivate over 800 millions users<\/a> in the last few years. So, is Tik Tok\u2019s revered algorithm making mistakes, or do you rightfully belong to a strange enclave of frog-lovers? Is it a coincidence that your \u2018fyp\u2019 has prophesied your health? And, is your sexual orientation really as rigid as you think? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ruminating over these implications can be daunting, but, like my fellow addicts, my consumption of Tik Tok cannot be halted. Ultimately\u2014 and despite Tik Tok\u2019s ostensible access to our personal information\u2014 the solution might just be to continue forward in our blind, fervent, and unabashed indulgence of this magnificent app. 
A few minutes pass. I open Tik Tok. The video is still up. \u201cWell you do now!\u201d reverberates blissfully in my head. Maybe I am an idiot, <\/em>I think to myself, smiling.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I swipe up. A pudgy boy\u2014 maybe 13\u2014 wearing a ball-cap, graphic tee, and athletic shorts, strolls into a Starbucks. \u201cDo you guys have cakes?\u201d he asks, outlining the shape of a cake with an exaggerated hand gesture. \u201cWell you do now!\u201d he exclaims before the employee has a chance to reply. In one rehearsed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":627,"featured_media":3551,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[358],"class_list":{"0":"post-3548","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-technology","8":"tag-tik-tok","9":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/students.bowdoin.edu\/bowdoin-review\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3548","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/students.bowdoin.edu\/bowdoin-review\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/students.bowdoin.edu\/bowdoin-review\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/students.bowdoin.edu\/bowdoin-review\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/627"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/students.bowdoin.edu\/bowdoin-review\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3548"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/students.bowdoin.edu\/bowdoin-review\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3548\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/students.bowdoin.edu\/bowdoin-review\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3551"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/students.bowdoin.edu\/bowdoin-review\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3548"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/students.bowdoin.edu\/bowdoin-review\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3548"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/students.bowdoin.edu\/bowdoin-review\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3548"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}