Google has released an interactive website that shows users what happens after they ask a question, which leads to them receiving an answer. ‘How Search Works‘ helps them visualize the process and follow the life of a search query, “from the web, to crawling and indexing, to algorithmic ranking and serving, to fighting webspam.”

The graphical explanation of Google Search offers a view into major search algorithms and features, a 43-page document explaining how the company evaluates their results, and a live slideshow of spam as they remove it. There are also graphs that illustrate the spam problem and how they fight it, and a list of policies that explain when they’ll remove content.

The site takes users through common terms like “crawling”, explaining them with helpful definitions and images. At the bottom, it shows visitors how many searches have been performed during the time they’ve been on the page (over 24 million in the 630 seconds I was there).

How Search Works