Wolfram|Alpha what is it and why should you care? - GoFuckYourself.com

$5 submissions · 05-16-2009, 06:15 PM

Wolfram|Alpha is generating tons of buzz lately. From Readwrite Web:

Instead of searching the web for info, Alpha is built around a vast repository of curated data from public and licensed sources. Alpha then organizes and computes this knowledge with the help of sophisticated Natural Language Processing algorithms. Users can ask Alpha any kind of question, which can be constructed just like a Google search (think: "hurricane bob" or "carbon steel strength").

Where Alpha exceeds, is in the presentation of its "search" results. When asked for how many internet users there are in Europe, for example, Alpha returned not just the total number, but also various plots and data for every country (apparently Vatican City only has 93 Internet users).

Another query with a very sophisticated result was "uncle's uncle's brother's son." Now if you type that into Google, the result will be a useless list of sites that don't even answer this specific question, but Alpha actually returns an interactive genealogic tree with additional information, including data about the 'blood relationship fraction,' for example (3.125% in this case).

If anything, Wolfram's significance is that it brings back CURATED (authority) data sources instead of Informal and organic (and not always accurate) group authored sites like Wikipedia and, in a differing format, Twitter search. The problem with curated sources has always revolved around AVAILABILITY and REACH. Wikipedia and the Internet's mottly collection of self-authored and lifted content solve (imperfectly) this problem. Wolfram does a great job of presenting the data... but can it keep up with the exponential growth of all the search queries out there?

»Rob Content« · 05-16-2009, 06:17 PM

It's a site on a shared hosting account that every time I've tried to load it I get nothing until the site times out.

And trust me i've tried lots

$5 submissions · 05-16-2009, 06:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by »Rob Content«

It's a site on a shared hosting account that every time I've tried to load it I get nothing until the site times out.

And trust me i've tried lots

Alpha testing hiccups probably

brand0n · 05-16-2009, 06:20 PM

its a page that 404s for me.

pretty clever marketing concept.

wtfent · 05-16-2009, 06:44 PM

I just know that search engine is going to somehow be put into our brain someday and work along with it, can you imagine that. I mean it sounds impossible but so does a cell phone 50 years ago. What if we could just ask ourselves any question an it looks up some online database hooked up to our brain? Then it would be a matter of asking the right questions and following through with the information. The world is ending!!!

bausch · 05-16-2009, 06:48 PM

I just typed in my fave subject into it

eating alone restaurant

and it spat out "Wolfram|Alpha isn't sure what to do with your input."... lol

When I type it in google i get hundreds of articles and discussions on message boards about eating alone, tips on eating alone in public, experiences etc

RayBonga · 05-16-2009, 06:49 PM

Same as always. What I always get at that site:

Quote:

Computation timed out.

seems like a lot og hype to me

mynameisjim · 05-16-2009, 06:52 PM

Not saying this will be it, but it's the future of search engines in one way or the other. A search engine that actually delivers information and can assemble information together, not just a list of results it found. Google is just a giant index. At some point we will look back on that and laugh how we fooled it by buying a few links.

BTW, for those that don't know, the founder, Stephen Wolfram is not just some joker with some venture capital. He's a mathematical genius with very few peers and specializes in exactly this type of work.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Wolfram

StuartD · 05-16-2009, 06:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by »Rob Content«

It's a site on a shared hosting account that every time I've tried to load it I get nothing until the site times out.

And trust me i've tried lots

It's a site that launched 2 days earlier than planned thanks to a headline CNN news story that generated a ton of traffic that they were not anticipating.

You think they've built that much computing power into a site like that and put it on a shared hosting account? Seriously?

StuartD · 05-16-2009, 06:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bausch

I just typed in my fave subject into it

eating alone restaurant

and it spat out "Wolfram|Alpha isn't sure what to do with your input."... lol

When I type it in google i get hundreds of articles and discussions on message boards about eating alone, tips on eating alone in public, experiences etc

Google gives articles and sites, WolframAlpha gives statistical data, research, formulas... you can't ask a mathematician where restaurants are in your neighborhood and expect to get a list of websites.

NaughtyRob · 05-16-2009, 09:32 PM

I have seen the video and its fucking amazing.

OrangeContent · 05-17-2009, 02:46 AM

Damn site won't load. Why on earth show it off with crappy hosting?

who · 05-17-2009, 02:52 AM

It's a pile of shit.

kmanrox · 05-17-2009, 02:55 AM

some ppl here don't get it.. they're on the front page of CNN.com for almost 24 hours now, I bet that'd kill even some load balanced chains...

but i feel you, surely CNN notifies them of impending listings as it reflects badly on them if they're featuring stories on sites that won't load.

seeandsee · 05-17-2009, 04:08 AM

nothing to be happy about

voa · 05-17-2009, 04:13 AM

Looking good

$5 submissions · 05-17-2009, 08:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mynameisjim

Not saying this will be it, but it's the future of search engines in one way or the other. A search engine that actually delivers information and can assemble information together, not just a list of results it found. Google is just a giant index. At some point we will look back on that and laugh how we fooled it by buying a few links.

BTW, for those that don't know, the founder, Stephen Wolfram is not just some joker with some venture capital. He's a mathematical genius with very few peers and specializes in exactly this type of work.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Wolfram

It has quite a bit of code from the Mathematica project.

TeenCat · 05-17-2009, 08:42 AM

the site is made by old programmers, do not wait anything fresh or new, just some stupid blah blah and mathematics and shit how it is great ... but it was a big waste of time ...

kmanrox · 05-17-2009, 09:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TeenCat

the site is made by old programmers, do not wait anything fresh or new, just some stupid blah blah and mathematics and shit how it is great ... but it was a big waste of time ...

so you looked at his wikipedia and came up with this conclusion, eh? you're going places.

u-Bob · 05-17-2009, 09:10 AM

Nothing spectacular...

TeenCat · 05-17-2009, 09:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kmanrox

so you looked at his wikipedia and came up with this conclusion, eh? you're going places.

no man i never saw wiki i saw some promo movie about it and with all respect to everyone working hard, this was a wasting of time ... but time will tell ...

05-16-2009, 06:15 PM	#1
$5 submissions I help you SUCCEED Industry Role: Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: The Pearl of the Orient Seas Posts: 32,195	Wolfram\|Alpha what is it and why should you care? Wolfram\|Alpha is generating tons of buzz lately. From Readwrite Web: Instead of searching the web for info, Alpha is built around a vast repository of curated data from public and licensed sources. Alpha then organizes and computes this knowledge with the help of sophisticated Natural Language Processing algorithms. Users can ask Alpha any kind of question, which can be constructed just like a Google search (think: "hurricane bob" or "carbon steel strength"). Where Alpha exceeds, is in the presentation of its "search" results. When asked for how many internet users there are in Europe, for example, Alpha returned not just the total number, but also various plots and data for every country (apparently Vatican City only has 93 Internet users). Another query with a very sophisticated result was "uncle's uncle's brother's son." Now if you type that into Google, the result will be a useless list of sites that don't even answer this specific question, but Alpha actually returns an interactive genealogic tree with additional information, including data about the 'blood relationship fraction,' for example (3.125% in this case). If anything, Wolfram's significance is that it brings back CURATED (authority) data sources instead of Informal and organic (and not always accurate) group authored sites like Wikipedia and, in a differing format, Twitter search. The problem with curated sources has always revolved around AVAILABILITY and REACH. Wikipedia and the Internet's mottly collection of self-authored and lifted content solve (imperfectly) this problem. Wolfram does a great job of presenting the data... but can it keep up with the exponential growth of all the search queries out there? __________________ Need a NON-ADULT income stream? We build your YOUTUBE CHANNEL for only $20 per video! For Hire: $3/hour or $400 per month Marketing Specialist Virtual Assistants

05-16-2009, 06:17 PM	#2
»Rob Content« Confirmed User Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 4,348	It's a site on a shared hosting account that every time I've tried to load it I get nothing until the site times out. And trust me i've tried lots __________________ 80% Revshare or 30$ PPS on $1 trials: 200 Niches = Vidz.com Galleries / FLVs / Embeds 3 & 5mins FLVs \| RSS & Tube Feeds \| Matching Thumbs \| FLV Browser & Exporter \| No Prechecked Xsales >> Mobile Redirection Script: mobile.vidz.com also paying 80% net Lifetime << ICQ: 198-394-557 ICQ - 436 795 438 E-mail rob /@/ cool-content dotcom

05-16-2009, 06:20 PM	#4
brand0n been very busy Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: the queen city Posts: 26,983	its a page that 404s for me. pretty clever marketing concept. __________________ want to buy this spot for cheap? it is of course for sale. long term deals are always the best bet. brand0n/ at/ a o l dot commies.

05-16-2009, 06:44 PM	#5
wtfent Confirmed User Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: San Diego, Cali. baby!!! Posts: 3,790	I just know that search engine is going to somehow be put into our brain someday and work along with it, can you imagine that. I mean it sounds impossible but so does a cell phone 50 years ago. What if we could just ask ourselves any question an it looks up some online database hooked up to our brain? Then it would be a matter of asking the right questions and following through with the information. The world is ending!!! __________________ ThisWillShockYou.com DVD Store - TWSY UNCENSORED ICQ# 194020367 E-mail: shockingbucks(AT)gmail.com Promote something different!! Shocking Bucks

05-16-2009, 06:52 PM	#8
mynameisjim Confirmed User Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 2,985	Not saying this will be it, but it's the future of search engines in one way or the other. A search engine that actually delivers information and can assemble information together, not just a list of results it found. Google is just a giant index. At some point we will look back on that and laugh how we fooled it by buying a few links. BTW, for those that don't know, the founder, Stephen Wolfram is not just some joker with some venture capital. He's a mathematical genius with very few peers and specializes in exactly this type of work. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Wolfram __________________ jim (at) amateursconvert . com Amateurs Convert

05-16-2009, 06:48 PM	#6
bausch Confirmed User Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 3,017	I just typed in my fave subject into it eating alone restaurant and it spat out "Wolfram\|Alpha isn't sure what to do with your input."... lol When I type it in google i get hundreds of articles and discussions on message boards about eating alone, tips on eating alone in public, experiences etc

05-16-2009, 09:32 PM	#11
NaughtyRob Two fresh affiliate progs Industry Role: Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Inside teen pussy Posts: 29,602	I have seen the video and its fucking amazing. __________________ [email protected] Skype: 17026955414 Vacares Web Hosting - Protect Your Ass with Included Daily Backups

05-17-2009, 02:46 AM	#12
OrangeContent Confirmed User Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: US / Canada Posts: 381	Damn site won't load. Why on earth show it off with crappy hosting? __________________ START A REVIEW SITE GOOD PRICES ON WRITTEN REVIEWS CLICK HERE quote (at) orangecontent.com \| ICQ: 564-113-756

05-17-2009, 02:52 AM	#13
who So Fucking Banned Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: ICQ #23642053 Posts: 19,593	It's a pile of shit.

05-17-2009, 02:55 AM	#14
kmanrox aka K-Man Industry Role: Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: The Gutter Posts: 29,290	some ppl here don't get it.. they're on the front page of CNN.com for almost 24 hours now, I bet that'd kill even some load balanced chains... but i feel you, surely CNN notifies them of impending listings as it reflects badly on them if they're featuring stories on sites that won't load. __________________ Crypto HODLr Crypto mining Angel investor

05-17-2009, 04:08 AM	#15
seeandsee Check SIG! Industry Role: Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Europe (Skype: gojkoas) Posts: 50,945	nothing to be happy about __________________ BUY MY SIG - 50$/Year Contact here

05-17-2009, 04:13 AM	#16
voa Too lazy to set a custom title Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 16,532	Looking good

05-17-2009, 08:42 AM	#18
TeenCat Too lazy to set a koala Industry Role: Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: CZ/EU forever! Posts: 16,139	the site is made by old programmers, do not wait anything fresh or new, just some stupid blah blah and mathematics and shit how it is great ... but it was a big waste of time ... __________________ 6bot / Coming again very soon! Svit Zlin Radio 24/7!

05-17-2009, 09:10 AM	#20
u-Bob there's no $$$ in porn Industry Role: Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: icq: 195./568.-230 (btw: not getting offline msgs) Posts: 33,063	Nothing spectacular...