ABSTRACT
The fast Fourier transform had a far-reaching impact on society. But it could be argued that it was too successful. "Because the FFT is very effective, people have used it in problems where it is not useful-the way Americans use cars to go half a block," says Yves Meyer of the University of Paris-Dauphine. "Cars are very useful, but that's a misuse of the car. So the FFT has been misused, because it's so practical." Fourier analysis does not work equally well for all kinds of signals or for all kinds of problems. In some cases, scientists using it are like the man looking for a coin under a lamppost, not because that is where he dropped it, but because that's where the light is.
