Google’s Universe Is the Schrodinger Cat’s Meow
August 8, 2008
After a delightful flight delay, I sat down and scanned my email. A helpful reader send me a link to “Schrodinger-Like PageRank Equation and Localization in the WWW.” (I am getting weird results when I try to insert the correct character in Schrodinger. The spelling is a quick zig zag around this problem.) You can read the essay in Archiv.org here. The research involves a number of experts, including some nuclear physicists and a Yahoo researcher. The assertion is:
PageRank can be expressed in terms of a wave function obeying a Schrodinger-like equation.
If true, Google’s PageRank can be calculated using the type of math that a garden variety physics student uses to pass a third year physics course. You can read more about this assertion at:
- http://www.p2pnet.net/story/16653. This post includes a diagram that depicts state changes.
- http://arxivblog.com/?p=558 This post is a brief summary
- http://online.redwoods.cc.ca.us/DEPTS/science/chem/storage/Schrod/ A refresher with an animation to explain the perturbation that occurs in the dynamic system.
Several thoughts crossed my mind as I worked through these materials:
First, the assertion requires verification. The implication of the Web documents is that Google’s PageRank can be replicated with less computation. The implications of this for a company like Yahoo are significant. Adding a lightweight PageRank value to Yahoo’s index could–note the could–improve its query matching.
Second, if true, Google may have to become more open about the many factors it uses to make the PageRank method more useful than a method based on the maths referenced by the European researchers.
Third, Google’s image of the unassailable leader in Web search gets a scorch mark.
I will revisit this subject when I am not sated with the luxury of air travel. More later.
Stephen Arnold, August 9, 2008
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8 Responses to “Google’s Universe Is the Schrodinger Cat’s Meow”
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I keep thinking about how the wave equation works. It seems to me that Google’s enhancements to PageRank (described in my first Google study in 2005, “The Google Legacy” at http://www.infonortics.com imposes a computational burden for Google. The trade off is that Google’s relevance method is more sophisticated that generating probable link scores. I think that wave method, therefore, can improve relevancy for some vendors on certain queries. Will that be sufficient to narrow the gap between these systems and Google. My working hypothesis is that it will not. The benefit is some PageRank type scoring at a lesser computational cost. Short cuts are good, but the short cut must do more than deliver on a single factor.
Stephen Arnold, August 10, 2008
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I think this comment means that Pandia has referenced my Web log post. Too cryptic for my aging brain, however.
Stephen Arnold, August 10, 2008
Woah! I really like the layout of this site. It’s simple, yet effective. Good balance between user friendliness and visual appearance. What’s the name of the theme you’re using? Is it free? Thanks.