title: MurmurHash - what is it?
body: <p>I've been trying to get a high level understanding of what <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MurmurHash" rel="noreferrer">MurmurHash</a> does. </p>
  
  <p>I've read a basic description but have yet to find a good explanation of when to use it and why. I know its very fast but want to know a bit more.</p>
  
  <p>I asked a related <a href="https://stackoverflow.com/a/11690094/98978">question</a> about how I could fit a UUID into a Redis bitset, and someone suggested using MurmurHash. It works but I'd like to understand the risks/benefits.</p>