6 ms·

I'm sure search results are not curated in the sense that a stock answer is provided for a given query, but I would expect that filtering and ranking of search

by bhk 7y ago

I'm sure search results are not curated in the sense that a stock answer is provided for a given query, but I would expect that filtering and ranking of search results involves lists that are curated -- for example, "offensive" words or "disparaging terms", etc.. Since you work on search at Google, maybe you could explain how typing "hillary clinton cri" stopped suggesting the common search term "hillary clinton crimes" and instead suggested "hillary clinton criminal reform". https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&geo=US&q=hillary%20clinton%20crimes,hillary%20clinton%20criminal%20reform https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&ge... Apparently "crimes" a disparaging term when associated with "hillary clinton", but not when associated with, say, "jared kushner"?

moultano 7y ago
Isn't it explained by the policy I just linked? "Jared kushner cr" yields [jared kushner credentials] as a suggestion for me.
- bhk 7y ago
  "cri", not "cr". I have two different devices that give different results; one lists "jared kushner crimes". Since it isn't a matter of a single word (crimes) being flagged as disparaging, this blacklist can apparently be finely tuned to specific prediction results. (Maybe it's not a simple blacklist, but an ML model. Even scarier.)
  - moultano 7y ago
    I see: [jared kushner criticism] [jared kushner cries in closet] [jared kushner's father crime] and so forth. Are you sure you aren't seeing your own search history as the suggestion? Another possibility is that you're seeing "... crimes" instead of the whole query? That can happen when the system isn't able to suggest a full query and starts suggesting individual word completions.
    - bhk 7y ago
      Do you really think that it simply excludes predictions with the word "crimes"? Yes, I was seeing "... crimes" when typing for "jared kushner cri". But with other names it shows a complete prediction: "julian assange cri" --> "julian assange crimes" "jeffrey epstein cr" --> "jeffrey epstein crimes"
      - moultano 7y ago
        I don't know all the details of how that system works, I don't work on it, but surely you'd agree that they're both more appropriate suggestions, as both of them have been indicted. I don't get "trump crimes" for "trump cri" either.
        bhk 7y ago
        I agree they are more appropriate. Surely you'd agree there's a lot of room for bias to manifest in a system like this.
        moultano 7y ago
        Yes, and I definitely understand the argument that Google shouldn't be doing this, but note that we aren't talking about evidence of bias anymore. When someone sees confusing behavior on a political query, the tendency is to assume that political bias is involved, when it's just a very ordinary failing that search engines have all the time. I don't know the basis of the decision to enact that policy around autocomplete, but I do know Google has been sued many times due to the queries in autocomplete associated with people's names. https://searchengineland.com/google-faces-autocomplete-lawsuit-in-germany-132517 https://searchengineland.com/google-faces-autocomplete-lawsu... https://www.pcmag.com/news/326136/google-could-face-lawsuit-over-autocomplete https://www.pcmag.com/news/326136/google-could-face-lawsuit-... http://www.dmlp.org/blog/2013/filing-lawsuits-united-states-over-google-autocomplete http://www.dmlp.org/blog/2013/filing-lawsuits-united-states-...

by bhk 7y ago

moultano 7y ago

Isn't it explained by the policy I just linked? "Jared kushner cr" yields [jared kushner credentials] as a suggestion for me.

bhk 7y ago
"cri", not "cr". I have two different devices that give different results; one lists "jared kushner crimes". Since it isn't a matter of a single word (crimes) being flagged as disparaging, this blacklist can apparently be finely tuned to specific prediction results. (Maybe it's not a simple blacklist, but an ML model. Even scarier.)
- moultano 7y ago
  I see: [jared kushner criticism] [jared kushner cries in closet] [jared kushner's father crime] and so forth. Are you sure you aren't seeing your own search history as the suggestion? Another possibility is that you're seeing "... crimes" instead of the whole query? That can happen when the system isn't able to suggest a full query and starts suggesting individual word completions.
  - bhk 7y ago
    Do you really think that it simply excludes predictions with the word "crimes"? Yes, I was seeing "... crimes" when typing for "jared kushner cri". But with other names it shows a complete prediction: "julian assange cri" --> "julian assange crimes" "jeffrey epstein cr" --> "jeffrey epstein crimes"
    - moultano 7y ago
      I don't know all the details of how that system works, I don't work on it, but surely you'd agree that they're both more appropriate suggestions, as both of them have been indicted. I don't get "trump crimes" for "trump cri" either.
      - bhk 7y ago
        I agree they are more appropriate. Surely you'd agree there's a lot of room for bias to manifest in a system like this.
        moultano 7y ago
        Yes, and I definitely understand the argument that Google shouldn't be doing this, but note that we aren't talking about evidence of bias anymore. When someone sees confusing behavior on a political query, the tendency is to assume that political bias is involved, when it's just a very ordinary failing that search engines have all the time. I don't know the basis of the decision to enact that policy around autocomplete, but I do know Google has been sued many times due to the queries in autocomplete associated with people's names. https://searchengineland.com/google-faces-autocomplete-lawsuit-in-germany-132517 https://searchengineland.com/google-faces-autocomplete-lawsu... https://www.pcmag.com/news/326136/google-could-face-lawsuit-over-autocomplete https://www.pcmag.com/news/326136/google-could-face-lawsuit-... http://www.dmlp.org/blog/2013/filing-lawsuits-united-states-over-google-autocomplete http://www.dmlp.org/blog/2013/filing-lawsuits-united-states-...