Google Goggles

Searching has advanced significantly over the years. First we were restricted by text, then we were able to search by sounds and now we have Google Goggles. It is an application available on android phones that allows you to do a Google search by taking a picture with your camera phone. I know searching by image isn't exactly new; I recall using an image search engine that worked off an algorithm based on colour which I thought was really cool.

But Google Goggles does so much more than that: it can identify text in an image, as well as paintings and landmarks. It sounds like an incredibly sophisticated and useful way to search, however, the comment section of the video brings up some interesting concerns about the social effect that Google Goggles might have.

this could get really out of hand. what if people start taking pictures of other people in order to trace them... they could easily get their facebook name just from a pic.

This comment was made by ekstacy11 and is one of the top rated comments for the video on YouTube. I feel that this is a valid concern, and admittedly not one I thought of immediately. With more ways to search we are granted more freedom, but what should always be kept in mind is how people will use/abuse this freedom. Obviously putting parts of yourself is always a risk, but now with this new search technique being available to the general public, finding this information will be a lot easier. Judging from the YouTube comment, it seems that while Google Goggles has some really cool advantages, it has the tendency to bring out the creepy side of human nature.