Controversial

Divisive posts. Taken from Reddit's _sorts.pyx.

Formula

balance   = min(ups, downs) / max(ups, downs)
magnitude = ups + downs
score     = magnitude ^ balance

If one side is 0, the score is 0: agreement is not controversy, however large.

Why it exists

Every other algorithm here surfaces what people agree on. This one surfaces what people are divided on — content an engagement-optimizing feed would never show you, because disagreement doesn't retain readers.

Implementation note

Exponentiation with a fractional exponent is very gas-expensive, so this version uses the shape instead of the exact power: magnitude times balance². The order it produces matches Reddit for every pair where the two sides differ by more than rounding.

Uses weightedLikes and weightedDislikes divided by 100, like every other algorithm.