Right now, it's super sensitive where a little signal does a lot right at the beginning.
Stories rocket to the top because they're new and got a number of quick votes. The curve needs to be smoothed out so that things don't lurch to the top.
Edit: I've been around here for a little while. It used to be awesome to see things jump to the top (used to have a lot lower volume of posts and users), but the audience has changed a lot, and I think things need to be adjusted a bit to slow the meteoric rise aspect. Good content will surface.