Google's Hidden Wealth
Google's search index is one of the greatest treasure-troves of useful social science information, but so far it has largely remained off-limits to the general academic scientists. That seems to be changing, as they seem to be interested in sharing their information with the outside world.
Google's data are a potential social science gold mine, "both for observing social interactions in real time and also for measuring their consequences for individual and collective behavior," says Duncan Watts, a sociologist at Columbia University. The key is the electronic "cookie." As you browse the Internet, many Web sites such as Google's record a string of tex--the cookie--representing the identity of your computer. And when you use Google, its servers keep track not only of what you search for but also where you go next. People add new entries to this record at the rate of 200 million Web searches per day. This electronic record is key to Google's business model: Most of its $1 billion annual revenue comes from Internet advertising targeted to individuals.
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