Mathematician Clara Grima champions algorithms in new popular‑science book

Clara Grima, a professor of Applied Mathematics at the University of Seville, has been awarded a student prize for her latest book, *Con algoritmos y a lo loco* (Ariel, 2025). The illustrated work, created with artist Raquel Gu, explains how algorithms shape everyday life and argues that they are neutral tools, likening them to knives that can be used for good or ill. Grima highlights the Fast Fourier Transform as a key algorithm behind digital imaging, music, video and medical diagnostics. She also criticises social‑media recommendation engines, calling them echo‑chamber generators that are hard to escape. In the interview she stresses that anyone can help the world, whether as a doctor, teacher or by designing algorithms on a computer.