Wolfram Alpha
Encyclopedia
Wolfram Alpha is an answer-engine developed by Wolfram Research. It is an online service that answers factual queries directly by computing the answer from structured data, rather than providing a list of documents or web pages that might contain the answer as a search engine
might. It was announced in March 2009 by British scientist Stephen Wolfram
, and was released to the public on May 15, 2009.
of curated
, structured data. Alpha thus differs from semantic search
engines, which index a large number of answers and then try to match the question to one.
Wolfram|Alpha is built on Wolfram's earlier flagship product, Mathematica
, which encompasses computer algebra, symbolic and elementary numerical computation, visualization, and limited statistics capabilities. The answer usually presents a human-readable solution.
However, Wolfram|Alpha is also capable of responding to particularly phrased natural-language fact-based questions such as "Where was Mary Robinson
born?" or more complex questions such as "How old was Queen Elizabeth II in 1974?" It displays its "Input interpretation" of such a question, using standardized phrases, e.g. "Mary Robinson | place of birth" or "age | of Queen Elizabeth II (royalty) | in 1974". (The answer for Robinson includes "Ballina, Mayo, Ireland", a variety of contextual information regarding Ballina, County Mayo
, and a link to an on-line biography of Robinson. The answer for Elizabeth is "Age at start of 1974: 47 years", and a biography link.)
It is also capable of performing calculations on data using more than one source:
Wolfram|Alpha makes inferences from a smaller set of core information. In this way it has many parallels with Cyc
, a project aimed since the 1980s at developing a common-sense inference engine.
The database currently includes hundreds of datasets, such as 'All Current and Historical Weather'. The datasets have been accumulated over approximately two years, and will continue to grow. The range of questions that can be answered will grow with the expansion of the datasets.
and DuckDuckGo search engines.
Wolfram Alpha supports Apple's Siri
for factual question answering
. Apple's Siri is integrated on the Apple iPhone 4S
which launched in October 2011, and functions as a speech recognizing digital assistant on the device.. In 2011 Wolfram Alpha was voted Best Reference App for the iPhone on Btoe, the popular rating site founded by Colin Larkin
.
) code and runs on 10,000 CPUs (though the number was upgraded for the launch).
. The plan was to publicly launch the service a few hours later, with expected issues due to extreme load. The service was officially launched on May 18, 2009.
Wolfram Alpha has received mixed reviews. Wolfram Alpha advocates point to its potential, some even stating that how it determines results is more important than current usefulness.
Search engine
A search engine is an information retrieval system designed to help find information stored on a computer system. The search results are usually presented in a list and are commonly called hits. Search engines help to minimize the time required to find information and the amount of information...
might. It was announced in March 2009 by British scientist Stephen Wolfram
Stephen Wolfram
Stephen Wolfram is a British scientist and the chief designer of the Mathematica software application and the Wolfram Alpha computational knowledge engine.- Biography :...
, and was released to the public on May 15, 2009.
Overview
Users submit queries and computation requests via a text field. Wolfram|Alpha then computes answers and relevant visualizations from a knowledge baseKnowledge base
A knowledge base is a special kind of database for knowledge management. A Knowledge Base provides a means for information to be collected, organised, shared, searched and utilised.-Types:...
of curated
Curator
A curator is a manager or overseer. Traditionally, a curator or keeper of a cultural heritage institution is a content specialist responsible for an institution's collections and involved with the interpretation of heritage material...
, structured data. Alpha thus differs from semantic search
Semantic search
Semantic search seeks to improve search accuracy by understanding searcher intent and the contextual meaning of terms as they appear in the searchable dataspace, whether on the Web or within a closed system, to generate more relevant results. Author Seth Grimes lists "11 approaches that join...
engines, which index a large number of answers and then try to match the question to one.
Wolfram|Alpha is built on Wolfram's earlier flagship product, Mathematica
Mathematica
Mathematica is a computational software program used in scientific, engineering, and mathematical fields and other areas of technical computing...
, which encompasses computer algebra, symbolic and elementary numerical computation, visualization, and limited statistics capabilities. The answer usually presents a human-readable solution.
- Example: "lim(x->0) x/sin x" yields the expected result, 1, as well as a possible derivation using L'Hôpital's ruleL'Hôpital's ruleIn calculus, l'Hôpital's rule uses derivatives to help evaluate limits involving indeterminate forms. Application of the rule often converts an indeterminate form to a determinate form, allowing easy evaluation of the limit...
, a plot, and the series expansion.
However, Wolfram|Alpha is also capable of responding to particularly phrased natural-language fact-based questions such as "Where was Mary Robinson
Mary Robinson
Mary Therese Winifred Robinson served as the seventh, and first female, President of Ireland from 1990 to 1997, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, from 1997 to 2002. She first rose to prominence as an academic, barrister, campaigner and member of the Irish Senate...
born?" or more complex questions such as "How old was Queen Elizabeth II in 1974?" It displays its "Input interpretation" of such a question, using standardized phrases, e.g. "Mary Robinson | place of birth" or "age | of Queen Elizabeth II (royalty) | in 1974". (The answer for Robinson includes "Ballina, Mayo, Ireland", a variety of contextual information regarding Ballina, County Mayo
Ballina, County Mayo
Ballina is a large town in north County Mayo in Ireland. It lies at the mouth of the River Moy near Killala Bay, in the Moy valley and Parish of Kilmoremoy, with the Ox Mountain range to the east and the Nephin Beg mountains to the west...
, and a link to an on-line biography of Robinson. The answer for Elizabeth is "Age at start of 1974: 47 years", and a biography link.)
It is also capable of performing calculations on data using more than one source:
- Example: "What is the fifty-second smallest country by GDP per capita?" yields NicaraguaNicaraguaNicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, $1160 per year.
Wolfram|Alpha makes inferences from a smaller set of core information. In this way it has many parallels with Cyc
Cyc
Cyc is an artificial intelligence project that attempts to assemble a comprehensive ontology and knowledge base of everyday common sense knowledge, with the goal of enabling AI applications to perform human-like reasoning....
, a project aimed since the 1980s at developing a common-sense inference engine.
The database currently includes hundreds of datasets, such as 'All Current and Historical Weather'. The datasets have been accumulated over approximately two years, and will continue to grow. The range of questions that can be answered will grow with the expansion of the datasets.
Licensing partners
Wolfram Alpha is used to power some searches in the Microsoft BingBing
Bing is a web search engine from Microsoft.Bing may also refer to:* An onomatopœia of a bell sound* Bing cherry, a variety of cherry* Bing , Chinese flatbread* Bing , a German company that manufactured toys and kitchen utensils...
and DuckDuckGo search engines.
Wolfram Alpha supports Apple's Siri
Siri (software)
Siri is an intelligent software assistant and knowledge navigator functioning as a personal assistant application for iOS. The application uses a natural language user interface to answer questions, make recommendations, and perform actions by delegating requests to a set of web services...
for factual question answering
Question answering
In information retrieval and natural language processing , question answering is the task of automatically answering a question posed in natural language...
. Apple's Siri is integrated on the Apple iPhone 4S
IPhone 4S
The iPhone 4S is a touchscreen slate smartphone developed by Apple Inc. It is the fifth generation of the iPhone, a device that combines a widescreen iPod with a touchscreen, mobile phone, and internet communicator. It retains the exterior design of its predecessor, iPhone 4, but is host to a range...
which launched in October 2011, and functions as a speech recognizing digital assistant on the device.. In 2011 Wolfram Alpha was voted Best Reference App for the iPhone on Btoe, the popular rating site founded by Colin Larkin
Colin Larkin
Colin Larkin is an Irish professional footballer, who plays primarily as a forward. He currently plays for Hartlepool United.-Playing career:...
.
Technology
Wolfram|Alpha is written in 15 million lines of Mathematica (using webMathematica and gridMathematicaGridMathematica
gridMathematica is a software product sold by Wolfram Research which extends the parallel processing capabilities of its main product Mathematica.- Features :...
) code and runs on 10,000 CPUs (though the number was upgraded for the launch).
Launch
Launch preparations began on May 15, 2009 at 7 PM CDT (May 16, 2009 0:00 UTC) and were broadcast live on Justin.tvJustin.tv
Justin.tv is a website created by Justin Kan, Emmett Shear, Michael Seibel and Kyle Vogt in 2007 that allows anyone to broadcast video online. Justin.tv user accounts are called "channels", and users are encouraged to broadcast a wide variety of user-generated live video content, called...
. The plan was to publicly launch the service a few hours later, with expected issues due to extreme load. The service was officially launched on May 18, 2009.
Wolfram Alpha has received mixed reviews. Wolfram Alpha advocates point to its potential, some even stating that how it determines results is more important than current usefulness.
Further reading
- Wolfram Alpha: A New Way To Search?, Stephen Wildstrom, BusinessWeek, March 9.
- Stephen Wolfram's Answer To Google: If Wolfram/Alpha works as advertised, it will be able to do something Google can't: provide answers that don't already exist in indexed documents. by Thomas Claburn, InformationWeek, March 10, 2009.
- Better Search Doesn’t Mean Beating Google by Saul Hansell, The New York Times, March 9, 2009.
- Wolfram Alpha will Take Your Questions -- Any Questions, Ian Paul, PC World, Mar 9, 2009.
- Wolfram Alpha: Searching for Truth: Stephen Wolfram talks with Rudy Rucker about his Upcoming Release by Rudy RuckerRudy RuckerRudolf von Bitter Rucker is an American mathematician, computer scientist, science fiction author, and philosopher, and is one of the founders of the cyberpunk literary movement. The author of both fiction and non-fiction, he is best known for the novels in the Ware Tetralogy, the first two of...
, H+ Magazine. - "A hungry little number cruncher: Wolfram Alpha search tool mines databases to yield math-based replies" by Hiawatha BrayHiawatha BrayHiawatha Bray is a technology columnist for The Boston Globe. Born in Chicago, he started as a reporter and managing editor for Computerpeople Weekly....
, Boston Globe, May 5, 2009
External links
- Official site.
- Wolfram Alpha is coming, Stephen Wolfram's blog.
- Recorded launch video.