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From The Times
June 6, 2009

Microtrends

The Google killer

Murad Ahmed

Wolfram Alpha (www77.wolframalpha.com), a new search engine, has got the tech community very excited. Instead of pointing to websites, it computes answers: for example, ask the distance between London and Beijing, and maps, charts and stats come up instantly.

- It has been described as a “Google killer”. Some believe it is a big step forward for artificial intelligence. Others just have fun testing it with clever questions.

- For example, type in Bob Dylan’s lyric, “How many roads must a man walk down?”, and Wolfram Alpha responds, “The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind.” Ask, “What is the meaning of life?” and it answers, “42”, quoting The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

- Inquire “Is there a god?”, however, and the search engine starts to struggle: “Additional functionality for this topic is under development. Leave your e-mail address to be notified when it is ready.”

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