> "How are stories ranked?"

> "The basic algorithm divides points by a power of the time since a story was submitted. Comments in threads are ranked the same way."

> "Other factors affecting rank include user flags, anti-abuse software, software which demotes overheated discussions, account or site weighting, and moderator action. "

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html

I would assume that some points are worth more than others. As I believe Orwell said, we're all equal here, but some of us are more equal than others.

I have a theory, without any knowledge one way or the other, that the admins have the ability to temporarily push an essay they find interesting to the middle of the 1st or 2nd page for a temporary period of time, and then let it naturally gather points from the users who see it.