There's no such thing as an unbiased algorithm. Machines just amplify the biases of their users. Every choice reflects implicit values and assumptions. More

There's no such thing as an unbiased algorithm. Machines just amplify the biases of their users. Every choice reflects implicit values and assumptions. More so when you're trying to develop an objective function around the unknown preferences of future library users. What is popular today may not be tomorrow. And you should really be asking yourself whether circulation numbers are a good proxy for the real value that people derive from the collection. My mother used to borrow ten books at a time and barely read any of them. Building a rigorous utility-maximizing model here is impossible. Human judgement is required.