Click through rate in the algo?

[skitzzo]

Guys, while reading through G's patent application (exciting I know), I came across a bit that made me pause for a minute.

Originally Posted by Google Patent App.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more types of history data includes information relating to how often the document is selected when the document is included in a set of search results; and wherein the generating a score includes: determining an extent to which the document is selected over time when the document is included in a set of search results, and scoring the document based, at least in part, on the extent to which the document is selected over time when the document is included in the set of search results.

Now I emphasized the part that jumped out at me. Is this something that they were doing years ago but no longer applies? This might be something that was popular before I even knew what SEO was and is probably old news to you guys, but I was under the impression that CTR never improved your SERPs. If this is old stuff, which I am pretty sure it is, this illustrates a need for an SEO history document of sorts. Maybe someone can walk those of us who are relatively new to the scene through how SEO has progressed. I know that kw stuffing used to be the answer but apparently I have a lot to learn about SEO history.