Google's more than 10, 000 networked computers crawl through an index to those 3 billion pages, rank them using an equation that includes 500 million variables and spit out up to a few thousand listings.

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You see, the credit crunch had almost nothing at all to do with those derivatives, the options and futures, that we value using the Black-Scholes equation.

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We feed the factors into the equation, measuring them using forecasts for 2005 where possible (in four cases) and latest data for slower-changing indicators, such as family life and political freedom.

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There's still one weak link in the equation: What if you're using a different e-mail address in five, ten or 20 years?

FORBES: E-Mail Time Capsule

Meanwhile, Facebook also stays in the equation, since players will connect to FarmVille on MSN Games using Facebook Connect.

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If we were instead using assessments in a competency-based learning system, however, then the equation would change.

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The actual men and women who built their families using donor gametes and then their spend their lives raising their children have been taken out of the equation.

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And gaming is a part of the equation, especially as new tablets and smartphones are offering more console quality experiences to consumers who are using multiple screens to access virtual worlds.

FORBES: Connect