Sunday, March 30, 2008

Accuracy of Search Engines

I am sure that some of my answers aren't accurate, but the degree of accuracy must be high. In order to make my answers as accurate as possible, I have tried to limit myself to known websites. For statistical information, I have consulted newspaper websites and archives where factual information can be found. However for some definitions, each website has a different answer, therefore my answers can't be completly correct.

1. Who was the creator of the infamous "lovebug" computer virus?
24 year old Onel de Guzman, who was a computer school student in the Phillipines.
http://www.yahoo.com/ http://www.cnn.com/
http://au.search.yahoo.com/search?p=%22love+bug%22+computer+virus+creator&fr=yfp-t-601&ei=UTF-8
http://archives.cnn.com/2000/TECH/computing/06/29/philippines.lovebug.02/index.html

2. Who invented the paper clip?
William D. Middlebrook invented the paper clip and a machine to create the paper clip in 1899.
http://www.yahoo.com/ http://www.ideafinder.com/
http://au.search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=A0oGku8iVfBHyGYA6QQL5gt.?p=paper+clip+inventor&fr=yfp-t-601&ei=UTF-8&rd=r1
http://www.ideafinder.com/history/inventions/paperclip.htm
However, this depends on the definition of "paper clip" as different people invented different styles of the paper clip.

3. How did the Ebola virus get its name?
The Ebola river in Zaire, Africa is where this virus gets its name from because this is where it was first discovered.
http://www.ujiko.com/ http://www.suite101.com/
http://www.ujiko.com/v2a/flash.php?langue=uk
http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/microbiology/1348

4. What country had the largest recorded earthquake?
May 22nd 1960 Chile had the largest recorded earthquake measuring 9.5 on the richter scale.
http://www.hotbot.com/ http://earthquake.usgs.gov/
http://www.hotbot.com/?query=largest+recorded+earthquake&ps=&loc=searchbox&tab=web&mode=search&currProv=lygo
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/regional/world/events/1960_05_22.php

5. In computer memory/storage terms, how many kilobytes in a terabyte?
1 000 000 000 kilobytes (one billion kilobytes ) = 1 terabyte.
http://www.yahoo.com/ http://www.riverland.net.au/
http://au.search.yahoo.com/search?p=how+many+kilobytes+in+a+terabyte&fr=yfp-t-601&ei=UTF-8
http://www.riverland.net.au/text/look_first/gloss2.html

6. Who is the creator of email?
In 1971 Ray Tomlinson sent the first email through the program SNDMSG that he wrote and created.
http://www.yahoo.com/ http://www.livinginternet.com/
http://au.search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=A0oGkunUW_BHqSIAJh4L5gt.?p=who+created+internet+email&fr=yfp-t-601&ei=UTF-8&rd=r1
http://www.livinginternet.com/e/ei.htm

7. What is the storm worm, and how many computers are infected by it?
The storm worm is one of the largest botnets or viruses and is considered a "family of trojans". The storm worm email is able to spam millions of recipients and can disguise itself in many forms to fool people, for example greeting cards. Frequently used for fraud.
It is unknown how many computers have been infected by the storm worm, although many experts estimate numbers as high as a million.
http://www.alltheweb.com/ http://www.about.com/
http://www.alltheweb.com/search?cat=web&cs=utf8&q=what+is+storm+worm&rys=0&itag=crv&_sb_lang=pref
http://antivirus.about.com/b/2008/01/07/what-is-the-storm-worm.htm

8. If you wanted to contact the prime minister of australia directly, what is the most efficient way?
Either complete the form online, or send a meeting request etc. to the given address on the website.
http://www.yahoo.com/ http://www.pm.gov.au/
http://au.search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=A0oGk5o_X_BHJZkAexEL5gt.?p=contacting+australian+prime+minister&fr=yfp-t-601&ei=UTF-8&rd=r1
http://www.pm.gov.au/contact/index.cfm
However this depends on what the message is.

9. Which Brisbane-based punk band is Stephen Stockwell (Head of the School of Arts) a member of?
The Black Assassins.
http://www.alltheweb.com/ http://www.griffith.edu.au/
http://www.alltheweb.com/search?cat=web&cs=utf8&q=Stephen+Stockwell+brisbane+band&rys=0&itag=crv&_sb_lang=pref
http://www.griffith.edu.au/school/art/staff/stockwell.htm

10. What does the term "Web 2.0" mean in your own words?
Web 2.0 is the description of the more recent web. This describes the user-friendly characteristic of the web these days and how the ability to share information and create communities online with others is easier and quite popular.
http://www.yahoo.com/ http://www.webopedia.com/
http://au.search.yahoo.com/search?p=web+2.0+definition&fr=yfp-t-601-s&ei=UTF-8
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/W/Web_2_point_0.html

Search engines rank the stuff they find in the internet according to the keywords you have supplied in the box. The frequency and placing of the keywords you have entered also depends on the ranking of the answers the search engine gives you. For example, whether or not your keywords appear in the title, whether they are together or seperated, and how often they occur in the given text.
This is also how the search engines decide which page comes at the top of the search results.

I prefer to use google when searching on the internet as it supplies me with the most accurate and relevent information. It is also easy to use.

When googling my name some results of exams surface from my past schools. This is a little scary that anyone can research this information about me, including future employers. It is even scarier that I can't erase this information or stop people searching it.

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