← The Arithmetic of a Feed · Lesson 3 of 3
Trending is not normal
"Trending" means unusual: a post rises because it is far above the usual level. A feed built from the most-shared things shows the extremes, not the middle.
That is why a feed of other people’s best moments is a poor picture of anyone’s ordinary day. The arithmetic chose the extremes before anyone looked.
A feed shows only the top 1% most-shared posts. What kind of picture does it give of everyone’s posts?
A lesson is kept once you've answered the question and written at least 8 words. Nobody grades it; it stays on this device.