Ya, figured they were corrupt a while back too...did you read any of those articles? You'll see what I mean... You know all the search engines typically use each other's algorithms, right? At least in part. Even the new ones I've checked out blatantly do this. Presearch comes to mind. Yes, you can shut stuff off... but most won't.

Mostly now it's just the smaller ones using Google's search results, which is why they're still so similar when you compare them. Also, most people still register with Google or its affiliates so that gives em a whack of power.

Probs still a random few specialized ones, if you look hard enough, but the way forward is to avoid SE's and lilly-pad-hop, using the recommended websites from your trusted sites, bookmarks and going direct to source whenever possible.