andrewdoak

Google, there you are

Like many (at least those that I have conversations with over toxins) I have come to question the “do no evil” montra of our new overlords, er, Google. I mean, come-on, they’re a search engine… they collect data from all over the entire world from user submitted content to dynamically generated to records to video to images to audio… what could be so bad about that? Holy shit, and they’re making a ridiculous profit at the same time? This has a really bad Skynet feel to it (that wasn’t my joke, I just really like it).

So Goolge is huge. So they index and archive our entire lives. They “do no evil” so we must be safe, right? They said so… they did. Anyway, let me remove my tinfoil hat and sheepishly feel that an organization as dominant as them can actually spark some kind of global helping. I can almost see the human in it:

Google Employee 1: I have an idea
Google Employee 2: And it is?
GE 1: I want to help as many people as possible
GE 2: How?
GE 1: We’re fucking Google, give me the power to reach out to the masses
GE 2: Ok. How much are we talking?
GE 1: We’re Fucking Google, what does it matter?
GE 2: Come-on now, we need to be able to measure success
GE 1: $100M?
GE 2: I’ll give you $10M
GE 1: Awesome. Thanks *I would have taken $3M

Project 10 to the 100th is born. From the site:

“Project 10¹⁰⁰ (pronounced “Project 10 to the 100th”) is a call for ideas to change the world by helping as many people as possible… Our goal is to set as few rules as possible. However, we ask that you put your idea into one of the following categories and consider the evaluation criteria:

Categories:

1. Community: How can we help connect people, build communities and protect unique cultures?
2. Opportunity: How can we help people better provide for themselves and their families?
3. Energy: How can we help move the world toward safe, clean, inexpensive energy?
4. Environment: How can we help promote a cleaner and more sustainable global ecosystem?
5. Health: How can we help individuals lead longer, healthier lives?
6. Education: How can we help more people get more access to better education?
7. Shelter: How can we help ensure that everyone has a safe place to live?
8. Everything else: Sometimes the best ideas don’t fit into any category at all.

Criteria:

1. Reach: How many people would this idea affect?
2. Depth: How deeply are people impacted? How urgent is the need?
3. Attainability: Can this idea be implemented within a year or two?
4. Efficiency: How simple and cost-effective is your idea?
5. Longevity: How long will the idea’s impact last?”

Good to see you guys helping me through my doubts about you. If you are lying to me, or this is some kind of self-serving-money-making-Wall Street-style deal I will so switch to Ask.com (please don’t make me).