The Huge, Unseen Operation Behind the Accuracy of Google Maps

The Huge, Unseen Operation Behind the Accuracy of Google Maps

Students often speculate about how Google makes various products, including its maps.  Always good to see what's happening behind the scenes.

The Three Breakthroughs That Have Finally Unleashed AI on the World

The Three Breakthroughs That Have Finally Unleashed AI on the World

A well-written article at the right level for intro students.  Anecdotes about Watson, Google search, a nice overview for early in the semester.

Google searches mined to uncover our true opinions

Google searches mined to uncover our true opinions 

Interesting discussion possibilities about the methodology and the conclusions drawn.

Google's n-grams

Digitized book project unveils a quantitative "cultural genome"

While I don't usually like to use press releases, this one is better than the other articles I found about the project.

Why I like this article:

• a concrete article of something a CS1 student could write (processing text file, counting the number of words, using lists/dictionaries) on a small scale
• a surprising application of computer science
• discussion question: does adding computing take the "art" out of humanities?

Internet Search and Politics

Santorum asks Google to change its search results

Why I Like This Article:

• very relevant to students' lives
• questions about how Google's search algorithm works
• discussion of the power/impact of a search engine