A couple months back, I got an e-mail from someone I knew back in college. For whatever reason, they’d gone onto Google and started looking up people they’d known “way back when.” I hadn’t seen this person in nearly two decades (Wow…18 years since college…. Damn, I’m old!) but I was one of the people they looked up.
I’ve known for several years that anyone who wanted to could find me through Google. In fact, sometimes it comes in handy like last fall when my brother was on a business trip, needed my e-mail address, and found me via a Google search for Terry Dactyl. The difference is that this is the first time a stranger (or someone from my distant past anyhow) tracked me down this way.
Having someone find me that way doesn’t bother me too much, but I can’t help thinking that the Google results give a somewhat skewed view of my interests.
A simple search for the name “Blair Learn” doesn’t immediately show anything about me. Instead, you get a bunch of stuff about Tony Blair and ads for someone named Preston Blair who offers drawing lessons.
Digging down a bit, you’ll find a number of pages where I’m mentioned for my participation in the Science Fiction fan community (mostly stuff from several years ago), but there’s very little about things I do with the Jaycees, Oktoberfest and other community groups.
Much of what we know about ancient civilizations (or even the early years of own nation) is based on what few records have survived the centuries. A lot of what we know about anything where no records exist comes from digging up trash. (As a child, I recall a tour guide at a house in Philadelphia where Benjamin Franklin once lived explaining that many historic artifacts were found by excavating privies. Evidently kids have always been kids and if, for instance, you broke a plate, what better way to conceal the evidence than to toss it in the privy?)
I sometimes wonder how accurate our historical knowledge is. Interpretations of trash just don’t seem likely to give you the full story, just some broad generalities.
Likewise, how much can a Google search tell you about me? Sure, you’ll find places where other people have mentioned me, but that tells you more about their interests than mine.
Even if you slog through and find this site, you’re still only getting a partial view.
Though after reading the blog, you’ll probably agree with the comparison to Benjamin Franklin’s trash heap.