Robert_Charlton - 7:05 am on Feb 7, 2012 (gmt 0)

I've felt that there's been an ongoing correspondence between the capabilities of the search interface and the capabilities of the algorithm, as they both pull from improvements in the underlying index. As I read this list, it jumps out at me that the algorithm is most likely becoming more granular, as an AI algorithm would become over time, and also faster in making subtle distinctions.

And assuming (as I do) that Google is triangulating everything ;) , almost all of 17 announced quality highlights suggest increased granularity... but here are some I'd single out...

Faster autocomplete. ...improvements to our autocomplete system to deliver your predicted queries much faster.

Autocomplete spelling corrections. ...This launch targets corrections where the spelling change is very small.

Better spelling corrections for rare queries. ...improves one of the models that we use to make spelling corrections... for a number of rare queries.

Improve detection of recurrent event pages. ...improvements to how we determine the date of a document.... particularly for pages discussing recurring events.

High-quality sites algorithm improvements. ...improved how Panda interacts with our indexing and ranking systems, making it more integrated into our pipelines.

More relevant related searches. ...we’ve updated the model for generating related searches, resulting in more useful query refinements.