The SunBreak » google

Op-Ed: Who Will Own the Driverless Car?

Michael van Baker — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 18:55:43 +0000

What's most disruptive about the technology of driverless cars might be the economics of scale they offer, making their use more of a mandate than any legal requirement. It seems rational to spend $30,000 on a car, until it doesn't.

Watching Seattle Grow on Google’s Earth Engine

Michael van Baker — Fri, 10 May 2013 18:01:36 +0000

Google's new Earth Engine uses an archive of Landsat satellite images to create time-lapse videos of regions of the earth from space: cities, rain forests, glaciers, deserts, whatever you'd like to zoom in on. There's no embedding capability yet, so here's the link to Seattle's growth since 1984.

Hey Google, Why is Seattle So…?

Michael van Baker — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 23:41:48 +0000

Okay, sure, rainy and cold, Google. Maybe get with the times. The National Weather Service just issued an Excessive Heat Watch for this Thursday and Friday, forecasting temperatures in the low-to-mid-90s. In fairness, Seattle is still pretty white, with some 70 percent of residents plunking for Caucasian.

Kids! The “Doodle 4 Google” Window is Closing!

Michael van Baker — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 17:27:59 +0000

So here's how the winning part works: All doodles need to be submitted by March 23. Then "a team of Googlers" and guest judges (Katy Perry, Phineas and Ferb creator and executive producer Jeff “Swampy” Marsh, recording artist Jordin Sparks) choose finalists. On May 2, a public vote will determine one winner from each grade group. First prize will be awarded on May 17th, with the winning Google doodler's art showcased on google.com on May 18th.

The Food Inspection Map is Not the Territory

Michael van Baker — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 17:37:54 +0000

While it's much easier to look for little red flags than pore over actual food inspection results, it's overstating the case significantly to say that these are "the nastiest restaurants in Seattle" or that the map "finds the spit in your food." That's simply not what's being mapped out.

Microsoft’s Mobile OS Took the Summer Off From Selling

Michael van Baker — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 23:27:30 +0000

Geekwire has the news that the Windows Phone 7 operating system's share of the smart phone market declined one percent for the three months ending July. That's while the smart phone market increased in size, up ten percent from the previous three months. Google's Android system led the way with almost 42 percent, followed by Apple's iOS with 27. RIM fell to 21.7 percent, while Microsoft dipped to 5.7.