'Search Atlas' that visualizes 'invisible geopolitical information boundaries' created by Google search
Google search, which I use casually, adjusts the search results according to the language used by the user and the area where I live, so even if I search for the same word, the search results will change if the country or region is different. To visualize such geopolitical 'information boundaries,' researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Carnegie Mellon University have developed a new tool called 'Search Atlas.'
Search Atlas: Visualizing Divergent Search Results Across Geopolitical Borders | Designing Interactive Systems Conference 2021
Search Atlas: Visualizing Divergent Search Results Across Geopolitical Borders
https://searchatlas.org/
'The Internet is full of invisible geographic, linguistic, cultural and political boundaries. This limits the information that individual users can see. Search engines are regions and languages. By adjusting the search results according to other user profiles, we will shape the 'borderline of information'. '
That's why Google Search developed Search Atlas, a tool that visualizes the boundaries of invisible information created by Google Search. You can see what Search Atlas really is by watching the following movie posted on Twitter by Katherine Ye of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Excited to announce Search Atlas, a new project (w / Rodrigo Ochigame) in DIS '21!
— Katherine Ye (@hypotext) July 2, 2021
We built a search engine that lets you search across languages & locations.
Making searches worldwide, we discovered surprising 'borders' & 'regions' in Google's results. Https://t.co/7oPpm8pW42 pic.twitter.com/2wqed8HnUN
For example, if a person living in the United States does a Google search for the word 'god' ...
The search results will focus on those related to
Even if you look at the image search results, they are all related to Christianity.
However, if the search region or language is different, the results displayed in the search results will also vary. By using 'Search Atlas', it is possible to display the search results of three languages and regions in parallel with one search. From the left, set to display the search results for 'Japan (Japanese)', 'United Arab Emirates (Arabic)', and 'America (English)', and search again with the word 'god' ...
The search results are as follows. The search results in Japanese are mainly related to Shinto, but the search results in Arabic are related to the Islamic god Allah. By using Search Atlas to display search results from different countries in this way, you can realize that the information that you can easily access is limited. The search results displayed in the movie are all translated into English.
You can also search for images with Search Atlas. Shown below are the images displayed at the top of the 'god' image search results, arranged to correspond to the world map. The per of China, the social game
The following is a collection of areas that display the same or similar images. It seems that it is divided into Christian areas, Islamic areas, and others including Buddhism ...
It looks like this when color-coded by religion. By using Search Atlas, it is possible to create a world map from the perspective of 'geopolitical information boundaries.'
The result of searching with more conditions is introduced in the following movie.
In 2014, Russia added the Crimean Peninsula , which is considered to be the territory of Ukraine, to the territory of the Russian Federation ( Crimean merger ). So, when I searched for 'Crimean annexation' in different regions such as 'Russia (left)', 'Ukraine (middle)', and 'Netherlands (right)', Crimean said 'Russian Federation' in the search results of Russia. The result that it is part of '(Russian Federation)' is that Crimean is 'occupation' in Ukraine, and that it is 'sanction' to Russia regarding the merger of Crimean in the Netherlands. The result focused on 'is displayed.
Then, politically delicate it is known word is 'Tinanmen Square (
There were no images related to the Tiananmen Square incident in the search results in China, only images for tourists were displayed. In addition, although Google search is blocked in China, it is possible to use it by bypassing the regulation.
Also, this is a diagram in which the results of an image search using the word 'god' are arranged according to the world map. In Christian countries, images mainly related to Christianity are displayed.
It is characteristic that the image of God itself is not drawn in the Islamic world.
The movie explained that Japanese images are related to Shinto, but this is
When the image search is arranged according to the world map, the same image is displayed in a distant area ...
You can see that completely different images are displayed even in neighboring countries.
Also, this is the result of searching for the word 'how to combat climate change ', arranged by the degree of relevance of the words. In high-income European countries such as Germany and Luxembourg, the words 'protection' and 'sensible' tended to appear in search results ...
In island nations such as Mauritius and Trinidad and Tobago, 'vital,' 'signs,' 'harmful,' 'vulnerability,' 'enormity,' and 'daunting.' There are words that suggest a more imminent crisis, such as 'dispiriting'. In this way, 'Search Atlas' can also be useful in understanding the main perspectives on a particular topic by country or region.
At the time of writing the article, 'Search Atlas' is not open to the public, but in the future it is said that it is considering testing the private beta version of the service and expanding access.
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in Software, Web Service, Video, Posted by log1h_ik