Ask HN: Help use Google Doodle to find Malaysia Airlines Flight 370

Posted by pitt1980 on Monday March 17, 2014 @07:32AM
from the ask-hn dept.

Finding Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 is a problem google could solve by crowdsourcing the search on the google doodle

They could use an algorithm to generate different satellite images through the possible search images as the google doodle, they could put a toggle button, 'anything look like a plane or wreckage here?' Yes/no. For every yes, show it to more people, see if they agree

I’m sure google has better algorithm experts to figure out what the best images to show are than I can figure out,

but google can find that plane

I've already submitted this to google via email at [email protected] as suggested on http://www.google.com/doodles/about

I suspect there are people on HN who are fewer degrees of seperation from who figures out the google doodle than I am though

If you happen to be one of those people, who might be able to send a personal email, or send a text, or make a phone call to someone who could advocate for that being the google doodle, I would appreciate that

needless to say, if google was able to help solve this mystery, I would imagine that would be pretty good publicity for the company

Thanks for your consideration

( 9 comments | 10 points | on HN )

Re:Ask HN: Help use Google Doodle to find Malaysia Airlines ... by err4nt on Monday March 17, 2014 @09:43AM (#7414927)

Google is a website commonly visited by people of all ages. Every doodle I have seen has been whimsical and also safe for children, but putting a doodle searching for wreckage like this would be asking children all over the world when they look at their computer one day, "Do you see 300 dead people in this photo, Yes or No?" I can't see Google finding this an acceptable use of their brand, even though their homepage does command a lot of eyeballs.

Perhaps Google CAN use their influence to help the search, but I don't think it will be with a doodle. Is there any more appropriate Google-owned venue where this would be more acceptable?

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Ask HN: Help use Google Doodle to find Malaysia Airlines ... by esdailycom on Monday March 17, 2014 @12:36PM (#7416117)

Another thing - a script to do this could take at least 2-3 days to code. Things could change pretty drastically by then. Of course, we might be able to reuse the code for another unfortunate time.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Ask HN: Help use Google Doodle to find Malaysia Airlines ... by AbhishekBiswal on Friday March 21, 2014 @02:30AM (#7440961)

"Search Plane Wreckage" as a Doodle? A link should work.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Ask HN: Help use Google Doodle to find Malaysia Airlines ... by pitt1980 on Monday March 17, 2014 @09:56AM (#7414985)

also a fair point, I appreciate your serious consideration

a link from the home page might drive considerable eyeballs

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Ask HN: Help use Google Doodle to find Malaysia Airlines ... by camillomiller on Monday March 17, 2014 @07:37AM (#7414439)

That's an interesting idea but I guess the problem here is about setting a precedent. Why is it ok for that plane and not many other uses (e.g. Amber alerts)? They just wouldn't want to go there

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Ask HN: Help use Google Doodle to find Malaysia Airlines ... by Houshalter on Wednesday March 19, 2014 @09:41AM (#7428521)

It's their website, they should be able to do what they want with it. Nothing about them would obligate them to assist in every instance. There is no slippery slope.

Also, maybe they should consider doing amber alerts and stuff like that. But it's independent of this question.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Ask HN: Help use Google Doodle to find Malaysia Airlines ... by pitt1980 on Monday March 17, 2014 @08:08AM (#7414551)

That's a fair point

I haven't worked out what the right counter to it is in my head,

google could solve this case though

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Ask HN: Help use Google Doodle to find Malaysia Airlines ... by pizza on Tuesday March 18, 2014 @05:55PM (#7425298)

It's a well-intentioned idea, but another thing I see wrong with it is that there are, what, 200 million square miles the plane could be in? Of which we'd only expect one to contain the plane (..hopefully..). You're just going to get too much noise/too many trolls to observe a 5.0e-9 event precisely (sure, you could weight the 'yes' pictures to show up more often, but wouldn't that just give more power to the trolls, and thereby obscure further the chance of seeing the actual plane picture?)

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Ask HN: Help use Google Doodle to find Malaysia Airlines ... by Houshalter on Wednesday March 19, 2014 @09:39AM (#7428513)

You'd just show people the pictures multiple times, and take the one with the most yeses. Discard the results (or weight them a lower amount) of people that just press the button over and over again, or stuff like that.

[ Parent | on HN ]