Algorithms are a series of steps that, when combined, form the basis of a computer program. A flowchart is a visual representation of the algorithm.

Once you've used an algorithm to eliminate manual tasks and you start collecting data on an ongoing basis, you will be able to ask better questions based on the trends the computer spotted for you.

In his book The Master Algorithm, Pedro Domingos offers a masterfully simple definition: “An algorithm is,” Domingos writes, “a sequence of instructions telling a computer what to do.” ...