Google to bring more ‘fresh’ results with new search algorithm

Google announced a major adjustment to its search algorithm, which will impact 35% of web searches. The adjustment is designed to give current information a higher ranking.

The internet-giant states that the nature of search can be compared to freshly baked cookies and is best when consumed fresh.

“Given the incredibly fast pace at which information moves in today’s world, the most recent information can be from the last week, day or even minute, and depending on the search terms, the algorithm needs to be able to figure out if a result from a week ago about a TV show is recent, or if a result from a week ago about breaking news is too old,” Google fellow Amit Singhal said in a blog post.

“Even if you don’t specify it in your search, you probably want search results that are relevant and recent.”

This new update comes on the heels of Google’s completion of its Caffeine web indexing system last year, which allows the company to crawl and index the web for fresh content instantly on an enormous scale.

Types of searches affected included hunts for hot news topics such as the Occupy Wall Street movement and topics along the lines of frequently updated consumer gadget reviews.

“Different searches have different freshness needs,” Singhal said. “This algorithmic improvement is designed to better understand how to differentiate between these kinds of searches and the level of freshness you need, and make sure you get the most up to the minute answers.”

“This algorithmic improvement is designed to better understand how to differentiate between these kinds of searches and the level of freshness you need, and make sure you get the most up-to-the-minute answers.”