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How Search Works

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Re: How Search Works

#41

Post by tmoertel »

Has anyone deciphered the fat-mustache diagram in the "Query Understanding" circle? It's in the Algorithms section.

At first I thought it was supposed to represent a Gaussian-like probability distribution. But when I clicked on it, the resulting animation showed a series of such distributions getting flattened by some kind of distribution-flattening hydraulic press. The accompanying caption: "Gets to the deeper meaning of the words you type."

If I was confused before, now I was completely lost.

How is deeper meaning represented by distribution flattening? I'd think it would be just the opposite, raising probability mass around the likely meanings, not spreading it out into a uniform distribution over all meanings.

Baffling.

If anyone has figured it out, please do share.

(Maybe I'm taking the diagrams too seriously.)

EDITED TO ADD: New option: If you don't have any clue what it means either, come up with an entertaining yet plausible story that fits the hydraulic-press-vs-mustaches animation and share that story instead.

EDITED TO ADD: Example: At Google’s new eco-friendly data centers, NLP computations are performed by genetically enhanced inchworms. Difficult queries, however, can cause the inchworms to get cricks in their backs. In such cases, Google’s innovative back-massager descends and restores the inchworms to their preferred position (prone), from which they can return to their computations with renewed vigor.

Re: How Search Works

#42

Post by arithma »

tmoertel wrote: post #41

Has anyone deciphered the fat-mustache diagram in the "Query Understanding" circle? It's in the Algorithms section. At first I thought it was supposed to represent a Gaussian-like probability distribution. But when I clicked on it, the resulting animation showed a series of such distributions getting flattened by some kind of distribution-flattening hydraulic press. The accompanying caption: "Gets to the deeper meani…

I was confused for a little bit by that. The way I took it was: "Google removes the wrinkles from your query as to make it processable."

Re: How Search Works

#43

Post by [deleted] »

tmoertel wrote: post #41

Has anyone deciphered the fat-mustache diagram in the "Query Understanding" circle? It's in the Algorithms section. At first I thought it was supposed to represent a Gaussian-like probability distribution. But when I clicked on it, the resulting animation showed a series of such distributions getting flattened by some kind of distribution-flattening hydraulic press. The accompanying caption: "Gets to the deeper meani…

[deleted]

Re: How Search Works

#44

Post by OGinparadise »

paranoiacblack wrote: post #36
OGinparadise wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Says... you, right? Based on which examples of Google pursuing quarterly profits at the expense of users?" Duh! Google local was a joke compared to better pages from Yelp. Google+ even worst. Pages are now filled with ads, because Google discovered that ads yield better results (how convenient!) Need I go on?

Yes, actually. And with real evidence other than your skewed opinions. Or you can keep being overly dramatic, your choice.

"And with real evidence"

what would qualify as "real" evidence to you? A hidden camera catching Googlers talking about this?

Re: How Search Works

#45

Post by MattSayar »

tmoertel wrote: post #41

Has anyone deciphered the fat-mustache diagram in the "Query Understanding" circle? It's in the Algorithms section. At first I thought it was supposed to represent a Gaussian-like probability distribution. But when I clicked on it, the resulting animation showed a series of such distributions getting flattened by some kind of distribution-flattening hydraulic press. The accompanying caption: "Gets to the deeper meani…

You're taking diagrams too seriously.

But the way I interpreted it was, before, the query was short, scrunched up, and slightly ambiguous. The algorithm them lengthened it, representing expanding it to find the deeper meaning.

Re: How Search Works

#46

Post by jroseattle »

manojlds wrote: post #18

> By the way, in the 47 seconds you've been on this page, approximately 1,813,260 searches were performed. Aren't these just some random numbers that they pull out of the air?

Here's the unminified JS on the site responsible for the numbers updates.

   var kd = function () {
    function a() {
        e = e || Q("number_of_seconds");
        d = d || Q("searches_count_num");
        f = f || Q("searches_count_unit");
        var a = ~~ (((new Date).getTime() - h) / 1E3 % 86400),
            k = a * b + "";
        f.innerHTML = " " + c[Math.ceil(k.length / 3)] || "";
        e.innerHTML = a;
        d.innerHTML = k.replace(/(\d)(?=(\d\d\d)+(?!\d))/g, "$1,")
    }
    var b = ~~ (1E11 / 2592E3),
        c = " hundred thousand million billion trillion quadrillion quintillion sextillion septillion octillion nonillion decillion undecillion duodecillion tredecillion quattuordecillion quindecillion sexdecillion septendecillion octodecillion novemdecillion vigintillion".split(" "),
        e, d, f, h = (new Date).getTime();
    return {
        hc: a,
        rb: function () {
            a();
            setInterval(a, 100)
        }
    }
   }();
It's just running on an interval and doing in-page calculations, so it's entirely estimated. The value of "b" in this function evaluates to a little over 38,000 (https://www.google.com/search?q=1E11+%2F+2592E3) which they're using as the basis for the calculation.

Re: How Search Works

#47

Post by plainOldText »

tmoertel wrote: post #41

Has anyone deciphered the fat-mustache diagram in the "Query Understanding" circle? It's in the Algorithms section. At first I thought it was supposed to represent a Gaussian-like probability distribution. But when I clicked on it, the resulting animation showed a series of such distributions getting flattened by some kind of distribution-flattening hydraulic press. The accompanying caption: "Gets to the deeper meani…

I think Query Understanding might trigger the weather, conversion and the other widgets to be displayed at the top of your search results. It's just a guess, since I don't work for Google. (:

Re: How Search Works

#50

Post by largesse »

aviswanathan wrote: post #10

Scrolling is really becoming the new thing in UX design. It's an interesting contrast to the 'movie-like' flash animations of a few years ago that required no interaction on behalf of the user.

Scrolling is really becoming the new thing in UX design.

Am I the only one who finds it irritating as hell to scroll when it renders slow? I don't think this is the end game. There has to be something better.

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