Results stay hidden until you vote, which makes it harder to simply follow the majority. There are no public follower counts competing with the take itself.
Accounts keep the community safer and let you post, vote, and keep score. In the public experience, generated profiles are used instead of putting your Google identity beside your opinions.
Your score reflects how often your votes align with—or challenge—the crowd. It is a playful signal, not a measure of whether an opinion is right.