Thanks for the link. The author is an editor of the Princeton Companion to Applied Mathematics, which also contains very high quality writing and a book I recommend to anyone interested in mathematics and engineering.
I agree that this is a flawed article: the ads are irritating, the grammar is flawed, and calling boolean algebra an algorithm is inaccurate.
But looking past the flaws, I wouldn't describe it as vapid. I see it as more of a very high level survey of some truly important algorithms targeted at general population and students. This kind of writing can be an incredibly important source of inspiration for young people.
For a more modern and nuanced list, check out the "top 10 algorithms with the greatest influence on applied mathematics in the 20th century"
http://blog.press.princeton.edu/2016/04/27/nicholas-j-higham...