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A picture of Earth through time
May 9, 2013
Today, we're making it possible for you to go back in time and get a stunning historical perspective on the changes to the Earth’s surface over time. Working with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), NASA and TIME, we're releasing more than a quarter-century of images of Earth taken from space, compiled for the first time into an interactive time-lapse experience. We believe this is the most comprehensive picture of our changing planet ever made available to the public.
Built from millions of satellite images and trillions of pixels, you can explore this global, zoomable time-lapse map as part of TIME's new
Timelapse
project. View stunning phenomena such as the sprouting of Dubai’s artificial Palm Islands, the retreat of Alaska’s Columbia Glacier, the deforestation of the Brazilian Amazon and urban growth in Las Vegas from 1984 to 2012:
Feel free to share these GIFs!
More examples can be found on Google+
.
The images were collected as part of an ongoing joint mission between the USGS and NASA called
Landsat
. Their satellites have been observing earth from space since the 1970s—with all of the images sent back to Earth and archived on USGS tape drives that look something like this
example
(courtesy of the USGS).
We started working with the USGS in 2009 to make this historic archive of earth imagery available online. Using
Google Earth Engine
technology, we sifted through 2,068,467 images—a total of 909 terabytes of data—to find the highest-quality pixels (e.g., those without clouds), for every year since 1984 and for every spot on Earth. We then compiled these into enormous planetary images, 1.78 terapixels each, one for each year.
As the final step, we worked with the CREATE Lab at Carnegie Mellon University, recipients of a
Google Focused Research Award
, to convert these annual Earth images into a seamless, browsable HTML5 animation. Check it out on Google’s
Timelapse
website.
Much like the
iconic image of Earth from the Apollo 17 mission
—which had a profound effect on many of us—this time-lapse map is not only fascinating to explore, but we also hope it can inform the global community’s thinking about how we live on our planet and the policies that will guide us in the future. A special thanks to all our partners who helped us to make this happen.
Posted by Rebecca Moore, Engineering Manager, Google Earth Engine & Earth Outreach
We’re going live from Google I/O
May 8, 2013
Developers today have the power to introduce powerful, breakthrough technologies to the world through their code. That’s why we look forward to bringing Google developers together year after year at
Google I/O
, our annual developer conference. In one week, we’ll welcome more than 6,000 developers to I/O through the doors of Moscone West Convention Center in San Francisco, Calif.—and many more via our event’s live streams. If you’re looking for inspiration and want to learn more about the future of our products, we hope you’ll tune in to our live keynote and technical sessions.
Starting on May 15 at 9 a.m. PT (16:00 UTC), join us as
Google Developers Live
(GDL) powers multiple channels of live streamed content from Google I/O on
developers.google.com/io
. On this page, you can:
Stream the keynote on your computer, tablet or phone.
Get in on the action, and listen to product and technology announcements straight from our teams. Live streaming will run on
developers.google.com/io
from 9 a.m. PT (16:00 UTC) to 7 p.m. PT (2:00 UTC) on May 15 and 16.
Watch exclusive interviews with the Googlers behind the latest product announcements.
This year,
GDL
will broadcast one-on-one product deep dives, executive interviews and Developer Sandbox walkthroughs from our onsite stage.
Get the latest news in real time.
We’ll post official announcements during I/O. You’ll be able to see the feed on the
Google I/O homepage
, in the I/O mobile app (coming soon), and on
+Google Developers
.
Never miss a session.
The keynote and all sessions will be recorded and made rapidly available on GDL and the
Google Developers YouTube channel
.
Whether you’re joining us from the comfort of home for
Google Developers Live at I/O
or at an
I/O Extended
event, tune into
developers.google.com/io
at 9 a.m. PT (16:00 UTC) on May 15 for the latest from Google product teams. Add
+Google Developers
to your circles and follow
#io13
to stay updated on official conference announcements and connect with the community.
Posted by Mike Winton, Director of Developer Relations
More than 70 of the world’s languages in the blink of an eye
May 8, 2013
If you took a quick snapshot of content available on the web, you might think that everyone around the world spoke English, Chinese, French or Spanish. But in fact, millions of people around the world speak an incredible array of languages that currently have a small presence across the web.
Google Translate
helps bridge the divide between the content available online and people’s ability to access that information. Starting today, you can translate another five languages using Google, which combined are spoken by more than 183 million people around the globe:
Bosnian
is an official language in Bosnia and Herzegovina that’s also spoken in regions of neighboring countries and by diaspora communities around the world.
Cebuano
is one of the languages spoken in the Philippines, predominantly in the middle (Visayas) and southern (Mindanao) regions of the nation.
You can hear the
Hmong
language spoken in many countries across the world, including China, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and throughout the United States.
Javanese
is the second most-spoken language in Indonesia (behind Indonesian), with 83 million native speakers.
Marathi
is spoken in India and has 73 million native speakers. Google Translate already supports several other Indian languages: Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu.
With the exception of Bosnian, these new languages are “alpha,” meaning while the quality isn’t perfect, we will continue to test and improve them over time.
You can access Translate via the web at
https://translate.google.com
, on your
Android
or
iOS
device, or via Chrome and in Gmail. We're excited to reach the 70+ language milestone, and we look forward to continuing to add more languages.
Bosnian
: Google Prevodilac sada podržava više od 70 jezika!
Cebuano
: Google sa Translate misuporta na karon sa kapin sa 70 ka mga!
Hmong
: Google Translate nim no txhawb nqa tshaj li 70 hom lus!
Javanese
: Google Translate saiki ndhukung luwih saka 70 basa!
Marathi
: Google भाषांतर आता 70 पेक्षा जास्त भाषांचे समर्थन करते!
Posted by Sveta Kelman, Program Manager, Google Translate
Here's to the moms: Celebrate Mother's Day with Google
May 7, 2013
As both a daughter and a mom, Mother’s Day gives me the opportunity to tell my mom how much I appreciate, respect and admire her. It also reminds me to aspire to do my best for my own kids, just as my mom did for me. My best almost always begins with a hug.
As families search for new ways to make the most important women in their lives feel extra special, we have some suggestions to help you celebrate your mom, or another great mom in your life.
Visit our
special page for Mother’s Day
for gift ideas, to find local flower delivery options, and for tips on how to stay connected—and to just say “thank you.”
We also encourage you to share your favorite photo or video of mom (or a note to mom) and tag your post with
#HeresToTheMoms
.
Starting this week, you can also tune in to
Mother's Day Google+ Hangouts
from
+AskMen
, featuring editors from
+Parenting.com
that will provide you with creative ideas about how to make this a day your mom won’t forget. Join the
Mother’s Day Guide Google+ community
to ask questions and hear what others are planning.
From all of us at Google, we wish moms everywhere a happy Mother’s Day!
Posted by Sabrina Ellis, Director of Product Management, Google+, loving daughter, and proud mom of 11-year-old Vivian and 8-year-old Ryan
Marking a cultural shift in computing with EDSAC
May 6, 2013
Computing’s early days are
full
of
stories
about great technical leaps forward. But sometimes what matters most isn’t a shift in technology so much as a change in the way it is used. The “
Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator
” (EDSAC)—64 years old today—is a stellar example.
Entry from log book marking the first day that EDSAC was in operation: “May 6th 1949. Machine in operation for first time. Printed a table of squares (0-99), time for programme 2 mins, 35 sec. Four tanks of battery 1 in operation”. Reproduced with kind permission of Computer Laboratory, University of Cambridge
EDSAC is noteworthy for marking the transition from “
test to tool
” in civilian computing.
Maurice Wilkes
, EDSAC’s designer, sought to build a multi-purpose, reliable workhorse that would bring unrivalled calculating power to University of Cambridge researchers. His aim wasn’t to be at the cutting edge of engineering; rather to be at the forefront of delivering a computer-powered general calculation service. Above all else, Wilkes wanted EDSAC to be a
practical computer
, useful and accessible to a wide range of researchers.
Short film
celebrating the work of EDSAC’s team, led by Maurice Wilkes, produced by Google
In May 1949 EDSAC became the world’s first general purpose stored program computer to enter regular service, transforming scientific research at the University of Cambridge by making it possible to speedily tackle analyses of previously impractical scale, across disciplines as varied as astronomy, economics, biology and more.
But EDSAC’s legacy stretches far further.
Subroutines
—a central tenet of programming today—were invented by
David Wheeler
to make it easier to program EDSAC by re-using lines of existing code. The
world’s first computer science diploma
had EDSAC as its foundation. The
world’s first business computer
was built with EDSAC as a prototype.
Sadly, little remains physically of EDSAC today. That’s why a team of U.K. volunteers have embarked on
an ambitious project
to construct a working replica of the original EDSAC, in partnership with
The National Museum of Computing
. We’re
delighted to support
the EDSAC Rebuild Project, and we look forward to welcoming it back to regular service—as a reminder of the U.K.’s illustrious computing past.
Posted by Lynette Webb, Senior Manager, External Relations
Bridging the gaps with Street View
May 3, 2013
Recently we sent our
Street View cars
driving through the historic seaport town of
Kaliningrad
(the modern name for Koenigsberg) in Russia as part of our quest to keep Google Maps comprehensive, accurate and useful. While there, we were reminded of a classic mathematical problem:
the Seven Bridges of Koenigsberg
.
The mathematical problem posed an interesting challenge: find a route through Kaliningrad—which was once separated by the Pregel River—by crossing each of the seven bridges in town. The catch? One could only cross each bridge exactly once.
This sketch shows the town’s original seven bridges in green (
Source: Wikipedia
)
In 1735,
Leonhard Euler
, one of the most prolific mathematicians of all time and
our recent Doodle subject
, concluded that there was no solution to the problem because it was impossible to find a route that would cross each bridge only once. This famous problem and Leonhard Euler’s non-resolution paved the way for important discoveries in the field of mathematics including
graph theory
and
topology
.
Fast forward 278 years to today where we still rely on Euler’s findings to calculate optimal driving routes for our Street View cars. We use sophisticated algorithms, based on graph theory, to determine the best route through a city or town—helping us capture all the images we need in the shortest amount of time. Though these algorithms are complex, in simple terms, it's equivalent to solving the problem of drawing a house without lifting your pen and never going over the same segment twice. Like this:
(Source: Vincent Furnon, Google Operations Research Team)
While the bridges of Koeningsberg may be one of Kaliningrad’s most famous landmarks, you can also explore other parts of this historic town with Street View—including the oldest building in the city, the
Juditten Church
, which was built before 1288, and
King’s Gate
, one of the city’s original six gates built during the 19th century.
View Larger Map
Today, it’s traditional for newly married couples to hang engraved padlocks on one of the original seven bridges of Koenigsberg
In other words, leave the mathematics to the mathematicians and just enjoy the scenery with Street View!
Posted by Daniele Rizzetto, Operations Manager, Street View
The 2013 Doodle 4 Google state winners are in and it’s time for you to vote!
May 1, 2013
Students from across the country sent in more than 130,000 doodles for our 2013 U.S. Doodle 4 Google competition. Today, we’re proud to share with you our 50 amazingly talented state winners. Exploring their “Best Day Ever...” from life down under to flying from planet to planet in outer space, we were wowed by the imaginations and talent of young aspiring artists from coast to coast.
To reveal the local winners in all 50 states, we’ve sent Googlers to their schools, where they’re celebrating the winning artists along with their parents, classmates, teachers and friends.
Now it’s time to make your voice heard. Starting today and through May 10,
we’re inviting the public to vote
for their favorite doodle from each of the five different grade groups. Your votes will determine the five national finalists, from which the national winner will be selected and announced at our May 22 awards ceremony in New York City.
We’ll display the winning doodle on the Google homepage on May 23 for millions to see. In addition, you’ll be able to see all 50 doodles created by our state winners in person at a special exhibition at the
American Museum of Natural History
in New York City from May 22 to July 14.
We’d like to send a special thank you to the parents, teachers and administrators who supported young artists and helped students across the country bring their “Best Day Ever” to life. We’ve loved looking at each and every entry that came in this year, and we hope you all enjoy the talent and creativity these 50 students have shared with us.
Posted by Ryan Germick, Doodle Team Lead
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