I started to look at WolframAlpha (WA) a while ago, when I saw some pretty whimsical questions posited to it, and thought the answers were pretty funny. I dabbled and have found myself using more and more for common and legitimate informational queries. I started to use it enough that I now have it as a Chrome search engine, so to intantiate a search, all I need to do is type "WA <my search string>" in the address line of chrome and it performs my search for me. Sweet. (For you Firefox users, you can do the same thing. Sorry IE, I've got no love for you.
I also shelled out the money for the iPad version. It's like having some really smart math guy, who also happens to know EVERYTHING hanging out with you. And he's cool. And he's not a hipster. Unless you want him to be - then he is. The help examples are awesome, and indicate the power of what it can do, even to the extent of comparing apples and oranges.
Some other really cool things it does:
It's truly amazing the information this app/website brings to the fore. Peruse the help page for many more examples and examples that might be more specifically of interest to you: Finance, Statistics, Demographics, Life Sciences, Geology, Music, Words & Linguistics, Weather... It even supplies the whimsical. Give it a whirl. Siri does.
Oh and if you always wondered about the number of calories in a cubic yard of fried chicken, it's 1,730,000, of which 807,559 come from fat. I'll let you follow the link to find out how many in a cubic light year.
I also shelled out the money for the iPad version. It's like having some really smart math guy, who also happens to know EVERYTHING hanging out with you. And he's cool. And he's not a hipster. Unless you want him to be - then he is. The help examples are awesome, and indicate the power of what it can do, even to the extent of comparing apples and oranges.
Some other really cool things it does:
- Ever wondered about what airplanes are visible right now above you? Yep. Got it.
- Satellites too. It's shocking to me to realize there are >1700 satellites in my line of sight at the moment.
- Ever thought just how similar the Mississippi River is to the Ob River? Damn similar.
- Say you have a recipe that you created and you wonder exactly what kind of nutritional balance it has. Put in the info and see what you get.
- Want to check your kid's math homework and you haven't done algebra in a long time? WA's got you covered.
It's truly amazing the information this app/website brings to the fore. Peruse the help page for many more examples and examples that might be more specifically of interest to you: Finance, Statistics, Demographics, Life Sciences, Geology, Music, Words & Linguistics, Weather... It even supplies the whimsical. Give it a whirl. Siri does.
Oh and if you always wondered about the number of calories in a cubic yard of fried chicken, it's 1,730,000, of which 807,559 come from fat. I'll let you follow the link to find out how many in a cubic light year.
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