MARIETTA — Search anonymously. Find instantly. That’s the slogan of DuckDuckGo, an online search engine founded by east Cobb native Gabriel Weinberg that doesn’t track its users or tailor results based on search history like major-market competitors Google, Yahoo and Bing. But is anonymity possible these days, in the wake of recent revelations about the sweeping data-gathering program of the federal government’s National Security Agency? Weinberg says yes, citing a 69 percent boom in his Pennsylvania-based company’s direct queries per day since June 6, the day former security analyst Edward Snowden told the world about his former employer’s seemingly unrestrained surveillance of Americans’ cellphone calls and Internet data. “We kind of always knew people were not into being tracked, but what they didn’t know was that there are private alternatives that can offer real privacy,” Weinberg said Wednesday, a day after he appeared on CNBC’s Closing Bell saying his search engine saw a 33 percent increase in Web traffic since the story broke. The search engine makes no bones about its opposition to competitor Google’s tracking practices. In one of the links on its homepage, it uses a search for “herpes” in its explanation for how the Internet giant tracks every move of users and allows other sites access to this personal information based on search terms. Basically, a search term used in many search engines is sent to whatever site the user clicks on, along with browser and computer information that can be used to identify the person. From there, third-party ads can gain access to this information to build profiles about specific users who then receive targeted ads that follow them all over the Internet. DuckDuckGo doesn’t store any of this information and therefore can’t send it off to other sites, Weinberg said. By not saving user information, it also avoids what’s called the “filter bubble,” wherein users have the results of their searches filtered based on their prior searches. Critics like Weinberg have argued other search engines limit exposure to opposing information by tailoring results to each user based on past searches. On DuckDuckGo, every user gets the same results for the same query. Weinberg, who graduated from the Walker School before heading to Massachusetts Institute of Technology, began his career in start-up tech companies right out of college. The 33-year-old’s former company was acquired in 2006. Moving forward, he decided he wanted to do something bigger. ‘No reason to track people’ “I saw a path to a better search engine,” he said. “Instant answers — our initial vision was around that and reducing spam.” After the search engine launched, he said he began getting questions about privacy. “I went to investigate myself and found out it was pretty creepy what the system could find out about you,” he said. If you click on the home page logo, which looks like a recording camera lens over the brand’s signature duck, it takes you to stopwatching us.us, a site that urges readers to contact Congress to end the NSA’s monitoring program. With no investors to answer to, Weinberg decided to not track any of the site’s user information beginning in 2009. And he doesn’t have plans to change. “A lot of these things we started years ago,” he said. “It’s totally infused in our product and culture.” The only similarity DuckDuckGo shares with other search engines is how it makes money — it shows ads based on key words. “It’s keyword-based, not people-based,” Weinberg said. “There’s no reason to track people based on Web search.” DuckDuckGo has about 10 full-time and 10 part-time employees, Weinberg said. Though his company presently only focuses on Web search, he sees the trend of Web users looking for more online tools that don’t harvest personal information as one that will continue. “I think if there was a viable private email alternative, I think people will be seeking it out now. That is certainly a big one,” he said.

A few simple ingredients come together for a tasty Arugula and Pear Salad in Christie Slay’s kitchen. The salad is a family favorite and boot-camp approved. Christie Slay, a homemaker, keeps things healthy in the Slay home since husband Scott Slay became a volunteer boot camp instructor. She joins Scott at Terrell Mill Park in east Cobb where they workout five days a week at 5:30 a.m. Scott is president of a company that designs and builds smokestacks and industrial pollution control equipment. I had to start tweaking things. I do enjoy trying to find ways to make things healthier. I’ve been trying to make a lot of recipes healthier,” said Christie of Marietta. Christie has two children: Mary Chanan, a sophomore at Kennesaw State University and Beau, an eighth-grader at the Walker School. Christie’s sister-in-law gave her the recipe for the salad. “It’s definitely boot-camp approved. It’s very healthy. I like it because it can be a side, and it can be a main dish if you add grilled chicken,” said the former schoolteacher. “(The salad) is healthy and tasty at the same time. It is hearty with the pears and the chicken if you add that,” she said. Sometimes Christie substitutes baby lettuce mix for the arugula for color. The greens are topped with toasted walnuts, cranberry and Gorgonzola cheese. She passes the homemade honey mustard dressing with poppy seeds in a decorative bottle so that each person can get as much or little as they want for their individual serving. The salad is a family favorite. “Even Beau likes it. A lot of times he’ll say ‘that’s an adult salad, mom.’ He likes the one with the ranch and the bacon,” she said, laughing. “(Beau) has dubbed this an adult salad but it’s one that he likes.” “It’s a family friendly salad that is very versatile,” Christie said. Arugula and Pear Salad 1/2 cup walnut pieces (toasted in olive oil and sea or kosher salt) 5-6 cups arugula, cleaned and dried (Or substitute baby lettuce mix for more color) 1 Bosc or Anjou pear, thinly sliced 8 ounces Gorgonzola crumbles 1/4-1/2 cup dried cranberries Sea or kosher salt, course ground black pepper to taste Celery salt DIRECTIONS: Roast nuts that have been lightly tossed in olive oil and sea salt in the oven at 375 on a baking sheet for 5-10 minutes. Cool. Combine arugula or spring mix and pear in a salad bowl (reserving a few pear slices to place on top). Add nuts and cranberries. Toss. Place greens mixture on individual serving plates. Top with Gorgonzola crumbles and reserved pear slices. Sprinkle reserved pears lightly with celery salt. Add salt and pepper to taste. Allow each person to dress his or her salad with dressing. If making ahead, after slicing pears, dip in lemon juice so they will not turn dark. Dressing: 1/4-cup extra virgin olive oil 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar 1-2 tablespoons honey 1 tablespoon lemon juice 3-4 teaspoons Dijon mustard 1 teaspoon poppy seeds DIRECTIONS: In a jar or bowl, mix the above ingredients together until well blended. Store, covered, in refrigerator. Serve at room temperature. This side dish can easily become a main dish by simply adding grilled chicken.