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| Google Futuristic Technologies |
Can you imagine the world a decade or so back? If we needed to retrieve information quickly, there was no easy way to do it. The only option was to check a physical library and hope that we find what we were looking out for! The process was naturally tedious, inefficient, time consuming and an effort guzzler. To top it all, there was no guarantee you would find the information you were searching for. It was even worse if you were unsure what exactly you wanted. Since that time, internet Search Engines have revolutionised the process of indexing and retrieving information. And then emerged the big boy of all Search Engines - Google! That single word means more to all of us today when we need information quickly and efficiently.
Now, all we need to do is 'ask Google' and relevant information piles up neatly for our review and usage. Google has made searching and retrieving information easy! So much so, we take Google for granted and do not always notice the great work it is doing. Imagine a world without Google! Apart from being a front-end Search Engine, Google is also the back-end for many applications, doing requested searches unobtrusively without us even knowing that it is doing so. In the world of Search Engines, Google stands apart and is more or less, numero uno. It has developed radical technologies that are making internet searches highly effective and intelligent. Google is also home to the popular Android OS that redrew the mobile operating system landscape in recent years.
However, most of us would be surprised to know that Google is not just about Search Engines and Android OS. It does many many more things that involve new sciences and path breaking technologies! True to its spirit of creativity, innovation and thinking out-of-the-box, it has been conquering humanity's heart in many fields, especially research in new sciences and technologies that greatly benefit mankind! Take a look at some of these technologies!
Self Driving Cars
At one point of time, autonomous or self-driving cars were simply science fiction. We enjoyed seeing these and several other concepts in Sci-Fi movies and TV shows. That has changed. Driver-less cars are fast becoming a reality. There are now various big names in this field such as Volkswagen, Mercedes, Tesla and General Motors. One of the pioneers in this area of autonomous cars is Google. The division of autonomous cars in Google is named WAYMO and defines its purpose as a new way forward in mobility. its mission is to make it safe and easy for people and things to move around.
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| Google Waymo Autonomous Cars |
Space Exploration
Space and Aviation have always captured the interest of humanity. Google's co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin are no exception. Their interest in Space and Aviation are well known to the world. Google has an ongoing project in the field of Space through Google Lunar X-Prize. The stated aim of the project is to get back to the moon, for good. The company plans to do this by setting up a cash reward of $20 Million for the winners and collaborating with privately funded organisations. The $30 Million Google Lunar XPRIZE is an unprecedented competition to challenge and inspire engineers, entrepreneurs and innovators from around the world to develop low-cost methods of robotic space exploration.
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| Google Lunar X-Prize |
Project Loon
This is one of the most ambitious and radical projects from Google. In a nutshell, Google is pitching Project Loon as Balloon Powered Internet for Everyone! As per current statistics, around 50% of the world's population is still without internet. Even for those who have internet, it is still anybody's guess on what percentile of population have fast internet! This is where Project Loon steps in. As per Google, it is a network of balloons traveling on the edge of space, designed to extend Internet connectivity to people in rural and remote areas worldwide where internet access is not easily available.
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| Google Project Loon |
Makani Airborne Energy Kite
Google's Makani are the creators of the Energy Kite, a unique concept. Unlike conventional windmills placed on land, the Makani Energy Kite is a wind turbine that takes to the air. It produces 50% more electricity by harnessing energy efficiently from the wind while using 90% less materials. It is essentially an aerodynamic wing tethered to a ground station. The kite’s flight path is controlled by onboard computers running custom flight controller software. Data from GPS and other sensors help the software steer the kite.
As the kite flies in loops, rotors on the wing spin as the wind moves through them. The kite flies autonomously in loops averaging 250 meters in diameter. The airflow acting on a moving kite is many times faster than the wind experienced by a stationary object. This powerful apparent wind spins the kite’s rotors, generating a large amount of electricity. The latest prototype transfers up to 600 kilowatts of electrical power generated onboard down the tether to the grid. It is perfect for areas not suitable for conventional turbines. A suite of simulation tools guide design and development. For example, computational models of kite aerodynamics, structural loads, and the g-forces of flight inform the design of the 26-meter carbon fiber wing and high-strength tether.
Calico & Immortality
Calico or California Life Company is a research and development company that was founded by Google and Arthur D Levinson on 18 September 2013. Its primary goal is to combat aging and associated diseases. As their webpage states, "We’re tackling aging, one of life’s greatest mysteries." In the words of Larry Page, co-founder of Google, Calico is focussed on "health, well-being, and longevity." Its mission is to harness advanced technologies to increase our understanding of the biology that controls lifespan.
Calico aims at using such knowledge to devise interventions that enable people to lead longer and healthier lives. Naturally, such a mission involves an unprecedented level of interdisciplinary effort and a long-term focus. Its scientists come from various fields such as medicine, drug development, molecular biology, genetics and computational biology. For understanding fundamental science of aging and finding treatments for associated and intractable diseases, a high level of creativity and innovation is required within a collaborative environment.
Of course, the above projects are only a few of Google's many initiatives. There are many other equally exciting projects that Google is working on simultaneously. Further, there are also other wonderful projects that Google has either withdrawn or shutdown such as Robotics (Boston Robotics), Project Aras (Modular Phones) and Project Tango (3D Mapping). One thing is certain - Google's innovation is here to stay and it is no longer just a Search company!
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