When you transition from being a noun to a verb, you've made it big. Congrats, Google.
Last night's discussion about Google and searching was supremely enlightening. I use Google consistently, constantly, and worst of all...unconsciously. Prior to the presentation last night, I had no idea how Google searches supplied returns. The realizations I discovered as a result of the class search activities left me dumbfounded and a bit embarrassed. I consider myself to be a somewhat educated and rational person. So, how could I blindly rely on on a search engine, naively rely on it's results, and never question how? I don't know, but that's where I found myself during and after last night's topic.
While the class discussed how Google worked, I actually googled Google. (The last part of that sentence makes me laugh...I verbed a noun.) I found this link detailing Google's PigeonRank to be a great supplement to the wikipedia entry on PageRank. So, I thought I would share.
I have a confession. I teach medical students how to search medical databases. I know how search results in PubMed are returned and how articles are indexed. I know how to effectively and efficiently search UpToDate, MDConsult, FirstConsult, and the Cochrane Library. The worst part of all...my class is called "Beyond Google" and I never had a good reason for why. I always approached the class with a "let's move beyond the familiar Google and use more complex search techniques to dig into reputable resources" and did so with a Star Trek theme, referencing the final frontier as being skilled in Evidence-Based Medicine and search techniques.
As I reflect on last night's discussion, particularly the part about the Deep Web, I may consider keeping the name of my class, but changing the theme. During next year's EBM class, the students may go on a deep sea diving adventure instead of a voyage to the final frontier. And, I may include a portion about exactly how Google searches work and how, as clinical practioners, they'll need to dive into the deep.
Who knows...maybe they'll be as surprised as I was to learn the actual mechanics of Google!
You now know more about Google than probably 90% of users. Strange, empowering,and scary all at once. Scary in that I htink about the implications of us just accepting Google to be as accepted as a Kleenex for what we see (and believe) its function to be.
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