Does Fluther correlate questions based on topics or on the words used in the question?

Probably key words.

Alchemy. They rent time on the philosophers’ stone that Google keeps locked up in Palo alto.

It appears to be based on the words in the question. Today I was checking to see if this question, Can racially tolerant whites help end racism? had already been asked. I got a warning that someone had asked a not-so-similar question about how to repair a White Rodgers thermostat.

@ETpro look into that thermostat, it could be was Jesse Jackson has been missing all along.

@drhat77 Google keeps it locked up in Mountain View, not Palo Alto. Guess you don’t have the key.

I would love to answer this, but sadly…I don’t know! </bad manager>

^^ spank, spank ; )