> Google Search should list the websites that best match the user's search terms
Ok, but define "best match".
> ordered by a fair Pagerank score that doesn't emphasise Google's own properties
Even ignoring link farming (which already ruined a lot of the web the first time around), inbound links to content is a proxy for quality of content, not an actual measure of quality of content.
It's just offloading the subjective part of search quality to the wisdom of the crowd, which often does not work out.
I have the perfect formula. Just ignore how unrealistic it is.
We divide the knowledge and information into disciplines. We create awards in each discipline. If you accumulate enough awards you are offered the option to dedicate your life to the topic without exit strategy. (Quitting would cost 100 million) unless the topic is no longer of public interest.
You get: a house that you must live in, access to research facilities if (applicable), travel is pre-paid for if (applicable), a personal assistant who has to sign off on all of your expenses.
You yourself are not allowed to have cash or a bank account, no vacation and contact with friends and relatives is forbidden unless they can prove they have relevant expertise or are also in such committee.
Picture it, high priest of pokemon go. In charge of ordering search results and designing the portal widget.
No discrimination for artificial humans, we do full robotmancipation.
Ok, but define "best match".
> ordered by a fair Pagerank score that doesn't emphasise Google's own properties
Even ignoring link farming (which already ruined a lot of the web the first time around), inbound links to content is a proxy for quality of content, not an actual measure of quality of content.
It's just offloading the subjective part of search quality to the wisdom of the crowd, which often does not work out.