dvduval - 12:20 am on Oct 28, 2010 (gmt 0)

To me "profiling" could prove to be a slippery slope with google, and recursiveness of profiling formulas could backfire. If you start to show a different set of data to a group, the group can start to exhibit different behavior. But you are also dealing sets and subsets of data. The different behaviors will then start to have a recursive effect on the overall algorithm.

It's hard to imagine there would not be some "polarization" of search results. For example, if someone lives in a more "Republican" area, might they get more "Republican" results? Or if someone lives in an area where one ethnicity or language is dominant, might they in essence receive information that makes assumptions about their race or national origin? (at least subtly?)

I can understand changing results for users based on them wanting to see something in their language, but beyond that I want to see results that are reflective of the overall, or at least have a choice in the matter. Otherwise I feel a sense of discrimination is a very strange sort of way. This could backfire on google.