Author Archives: Sarah H

Googlers @ the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing: Rachel

Here at Google we’re excited to attend #GHC15 this week. To start the celebration early, we’re sharing stories about a few Googlers that represent some of the many faces in tech.

Meet Rachel. Rachel is a Product Manager at Google Seattle. She leads the Chrome Sync and Site Isolation efforts, working with her team to answer the questions, “How can Chrome help users get the most out of the web across multiple devices, and protect users against malicious websites?” She lives in Seattle with her wife, Jennifer, and little dog, Tesla -- both of whom she met on the internet. This will be her fourth time attending the Grace Hopper Conference (GHC).

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Rachel, you’ve attend GHC three times throughout your career -- how has each experience impacted you?

When I attended GHC in ‘07 and ‘08, I made connections with other students and early career PMs. My friends from GHC became a broad, diverse professional network that was with me right from the start, and they have helped me seize opportunities to do the work I want to do. For example, when I was applying to Google in 2012, my roommate from GHC ‘08 edited my resume and introduced me to Googlers so that I could get more perspectives on open positions that matched my skills and interests.

When I attended GHC last year as a mid-career PM, my favorite experience was talking to a college junior who was majoring in Psychology and Computer Science (like I did) and planned to become a PM (like I am). She exclaimed, “OMG you are me, but in the future!” and that was a powerful moment for me because in my career there haven’t always been people around who are like me.

So my advice is talk to strangers! Senior people of all genders attend GHC because they care about technical women. They want to support you, so introduce yourself, ask questions, and ask for a business card before you walk away.

That’s great advice. Do you have any other tips to share?

I’m a big proponent of the 50/50 strategy for GHC -- 50% talks that interest you, 50% meeting people, mentoring, networking. The opportunity to get to know other Googlers and peers across the industry who all care about gender diversity is one of the most valuable things I’ve gotten out of the conference.

Give generously of your knowledge, especially if you have some industry or post-graduate experience. Share your story with those who want to follow in your footsteps.

Read twitter, and participate if you feel like it. Follow people who say interesting GHC-related things -- they'll keep saying interesting things after GHC too, and you’ll get to hear from a more diverse group of thinkers on industry topics.

Lastly, scout out quiet spaces where you can recharge your phone and chat with your neighbors. And leave room in your bag for the swag!

It seems clear that one of the best parts about attending GHC has been the people you’ve gotten to meet. In your view, what’s the best part about being a Googler?

Having the opportunity to try new things -- and being part of a culture that knows good ideas can come from anywhere.

If you’re attending GHC next week, look out for Rachel and stop by Booth 221 to meet even more Googlers! #GoogleGHC15

Intern Spotlights – Jeanie Pearson

Jeanie is a Portland, OR, native, who’s currently a sophomore studying computer science at MIT. She’s been programming since her freshman year of high school, and has loved it ever since. She’s also involved in the Society of Women Engineers in both the MIT chapter and the regional leadership. In her spare time, she enjoys dancing, as well as doing outreach projects to introduce girls to STEM fields.
What inspired you to apply to this internship? What about Google made you want to be an intern here?
Last summer, I participated in the Google Computer Science Summer Institute (CSSI). I had always been interested in computer science at Google from hearing about all of the cool projects happening here, but after attending CSSI, I was sold. For three weeks, I learned about coding from Google engineers. I got to spend all of my time in the Google Cambridge office, and interact with interns and full-time employees. Everyone that I talked to was really friendly and passionate about what they were doing at Google, which made me really excited about the prospect of working here!
What was your path to Google like?
Before Google, I had two other internships. I worked at Rockwell Collins after my junior year of high school. I worked on Heads-Up Displays for pilots. This internship was a combination of engineering and CS, and it helped me decide that computer science was what I wanted to focus on, despite my interests in engineering. The summer after my senior year, I interned at Intel. I also attended CSSI.
What team are you on? What stands out to you about your co-workers?
I’m on the Search Actions team. We work on the Google Voice Search project. Anytime you say something like “OK Google, make a call” or “OK Google, play music,” you’re using a search action. All of my coworkers are extremely friendly and approachable! It is a fun and inviting team to work with. There are weekly team lunches, and we’re starting an “Actions Olympiad” where every two weeks, subsets of the team face off in a friendly competition. Aside from the fun, everyone is great about answering questions. You can tell that they all really care about the product and each of the team members.


Can you give us a high-level overview of your project? What part of the project do you find most interesting and why?
My project is creating a tool to help developers on teams outside of Search Actions easily create actions without having to know in depth about how our code works. Instead, they just have to specify the things that are unique to their action. Since I’m an Engineering Practicum intern, my podmate and I are working on this together. I’m more interested in backend, and my podmate is more interested in frontend, so we were able to split the project so that we both got parts that we enjoy doing! I’m happy about my half because I get to work directly with the Actions team’s code and gain a deeper understanding of how it works.
What’s your typical day like?
In a typical day, I come in to work around 9 and grab breakfast. I start working at my desk, which is right across from my podmate’s. I’ll talk with my hosts and other co-workers who are helping with my project. Around noon, I’ll grab lunch at one of the many (42!) cafes. (I have a goal of eating at all of the cafes this summer). I’ll eat with other interns or with my team. After lunch, I’ll probably have a meeting with my whole team, or a 1:1 with one of my hosts or my mentor. At the end of the workday, I usually take a dance class on Google campus or at a nearby studio. One of my hosts teaches a jazz class that I take every Wednesday, and she sometimes attends other classes with me! After dance, I’ll grab dinner and head home.
Has there been anything that has surprised you about working at Google?
I was surprised by how many different things you can get done on campus! Last summer, I got a small taste of that at the Cambridge office, but at the Mountain View office, you can really do almost everything here. I especially love all of the fitness options -there is a yoga class happening here 24/7. You can really tell that Google cares about their employees and values a strong work-life balance.


You work in the Mountain View office. Is there a particular place or room on campus that you really like?
I really like the ball pit! I’ve had a couple of fun times splashing around in it during my lunch breaks.
What’s something you’ve accomplished during your internship that you’re most proud of? Or something you’re looking forward to working on?
I’m looking forward to seeing my tool being used by real developers! The first iteration is very close to complete, and I’m excited to see how it is received.
Do you have any words of advice to aspiring Google interns?
I think the most important thing is to have confidence! Don’t let yourself get discouraged if you think that others are smarter or more experienced than you. This can prevent you from taking the opportunities that come to you, because you may assume that you’ll fail. You don’t have to be the smartest person to be successful, and confidence will definitely help. You should go after every opportunity that you have because even if all of them aren’t successful, just having the experience is a success in and of itself.
What does “being Googley” mean to you?
Being Googley means always doing the right thing. This goes hand-in-hand with the “don’t be evil” motto.

Posted by Ariana Palombo, Online Hiring & Insights Team

Getting to Know a Ph.D.

At Google, there are many opportunities for Ph.D. students to gain industry experience. Check out the story of Alessandro Epasto, a former Google European Doctoral Fellowship recipient, who interned on three different teams at Google, working on impactful projects across Google+, AdWords and different engineering and research teams.

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Alessandro, tell us about yourself and your Ph.D. topic. 
I come from Italy where I completed my Ph.D. in Computer Science at the Ph.D. School of the Department of Computer Science at Sapienza University of Rome. The focus of my Ph.D. thesis and my main research interest is graph mining -- in particular the study of algorithmic problems arising when analysing large-scale graphs. Graphs, or networks, are increasingly becoming the lingua franca of data mining (and Big Data), as they can be used to represent and analyse arbitrary relationships between arbitrary entities (including social networks, mobile networks and the Web, for instance).

The focus of my thesis was designing and evaluating efficient algorithms for extracting meaningful information from very large-scale graphs (with billions of nodes and edges), in which data might dynamically evolve at high speed. In particular, I have been interested in the problems of graph clustering, similarity rankings and in the study of information diffusion on social networks. All of these problems have important practical applications ranging from recommendation system design to social network security as well as a theoretical interest for the understanding of social behaviour. In this context, my aim was to design methods that are both practical and able to provide theoretical guarantees on their correctness.

Why did you apply for an internship at Google and how supportive was your Ph.D. advisor?
Before my internship at Google, my experience was mostly in academia. I was very curious about the challenges that a company with such amounts of data deals with every day. Moreover, I was extremely interested in experiencing the stimulating environment and culture at Google. I was advised by professor Alessandro Panconesi who was very supportive and encouraged me to apply for an internship at Google. 

You interned three times at Google. What projects were you focused on?
Each of the three times I interned, I had the opportunity to work on a distinct research problem with different research groups.

During my most recent internship I joined the Google+ group in the Mountain View, California headquarters working with Sunita Verma. We worked on the problem of friend suggestion, which deals with the challenging issue of suggesting to a given user the people he/she may be interested in adding as a friend. This is an important problem for online social networks, as receiving good friend suggestions significantly improves the user experience.

In one of my previous internships, I joined the AdWords team in New York City working with Jon Feldman where I worked on the problem of automatically identifying, for any given advertiser, who their main competitors in the AdWords system are. 

During my first internship in Mountain View working with Alon Altman I worked on defining algorithms for detecting potential attacks in the Google+ network. 

Could you share more details about the outcomes of your collaboration with teams at Google?
During all my internships I had the opportunity to closely collaborate with researchers in other teams at Google, in particular with the Graph Mining team in Google Research NY led by Vahab Mirrokni, who is also my Google Doctoral Fellowship mentor. A productive collaboration has continued even after the end of my internships. This joint collaboration with researchers at Google and at Sapienza University has also led to a publication awarded with the best paper award at the 2015 ACK SIGKDD Conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining (KDD).

While the three problems addressed in my internships have very different applications and independent interest, perhaps surprisingly, they can all be tackled by using related graph mining techniques. Both Google+ and AdWords datasets can, in fact, be modeled as a very large scale graph (or network).

In this context, one is interested in designing algorithms that can extract the information needed efficiently (the friends of a user, the competitors of a company, the potential spam users, etc.) while working at Google scale. In all of my internships I also had the opportunity to implement and test these algorithms in the powerful MapReduce infrastructure available at Google on extremely large datasets with billions of entities.

The approach at Google in evaluating the results of projects is very academic in the sense that rigorous empirical evaluations are conducted to show that the approach proposed actually improves over the state-of-the-art. I was also able to share some results of my work with the public through academic publications.

Did you publish at Google during your internship?
Yes, we successfully published a paper at the 2014 International World Wide Web Conference (WWW) as a result of my internship on the AdWords team in NYC. Moreover, we are currently working on a paper submission based on research done during my last summer internship. We also submitted two patents applications for the algorithms developed during my first two internships.

How closely connected was the work you did during your internships to your Ph.D. topic?
My Ph.D. topic, graph mining, is closely connected with all three of my internships at Google. During my Ph.D. studies, I improved my understanding of several topics in large-scale graph mining, which turned out to be very relevant for addressing important issues at Google, as evidenced by the internships projects I have completed. Among the various techniques that I learned during my Ph.D., graph clustering algorithms and random walks methods have been central to my internships, giving me the chance to use them in concrete scenarios at Google. Moreover, the fact that the paper published during my internship at Google is also part of my Ph.D. dissertation shows the relevance of such research projects to my Ph.D. studies.

What impact has this internship experience had on your Ph.D.?
Besides contributing to my Ph.D. thesis with a publication, the most important impact are the relationships I built with Google researchers. Even after the end of my Ph.D., I am still in close collaboration with various researchers at Google to complete publications stemming from my internships and other research projects. In addition, programming in a professional environment at Google has definitely improved my software engineering skills.

Has this internship experience impacted the way you think about your future career? 
Thanks to these internships, I have a clearer understanding of research outside of academia and of software engineering. Before joining Google, I had only experienced research at university and my career focus was limited to academic research. Now I know that conducting research at a company in the industry can be a very relevant career path to consider after obtaining a Ph.D.

Now that you just graduated, what’s next? 
I moved to the US to start a postdoc position at Brown University with supervisor Professor Eli Upfal. Our team is currently working in research areas closely related to my Ph.D. studies. I am focusing on algorithmic problems and machine learning methods in the analysis of large-scale datasets with potential applications ranging from social networks to computational biology.

Looking back on your experiences now, why should a Ph.D. student apply for an internship at Google? Do you have any advice to offer?
An internship at Google provides a great opportunity to apply your research skills to very challenging and concrete problems that can be tackled only with the scale of data and resources available at Google. Getting hands-on industry experience with a Google internship can be an inspiration for future academic research, as one gets a glimpse into which research problems are more likely to have a strong impact in practice. Furthermore, taking advantage of all the opportunities offered during a Google internship can boost your Ph.D. studies, by leading to new publications in top conferences. More importantly the internship provides valuable connections with high profile researchers and engineers working at Google, which can have a long-lasting positive impact on one’s career -- regardless of whether you pursue a career in the industry or in academia. 

My suggestion is just to apply! Internships are a great way to experience research from a different and fascinating perspective. 

Posted by Ariana Palombo, Online Hiring & Insights Team

Supporting our young scientists through the Google Science Fair

Posted by Mariette DiChristina, Editor in Chief of Scientific American and Chief Judge of the Google Science Fair

(Cross-posted on the Official Google blog)

Editor's note: Mariette DiChristina is the Editor in Chief and senior vice president of Scientific American—the first woman to hold the role in the magazine's 170-year history. She has been a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science since 2011 and served as president of the National Association of Science Writers in 2009 and 2010. She joins us here today to share her perspective on the Google Science Fair, which is in its fifth edition this year.

This marks my fifth year with the Google Science Fair. In October 2010, when I had my first conversations with my friends at Google about their idea to create a global online science fair that any kid 13–18 could participate in, I thought it sounded pretty cool. But I couldn’t then imagine just how inspiring and powerful such a competition would turn out to be in reality.

At the time, I hadn’t even been editor in chief of Scientific American for a year, but I had real ambitions to try to do something to make a difference in educating our young people about science. You see, I believe that science is the engine of human prosperity—it’s the way we grapple with some of the world’s most challenging problems, from cures for diseases to living sustainably in a finite world. So I’ve always seen the idea of fostering evidence-based thinking in our next generation of global citizens as vital.

Now, five years later and working with partners LEGO Education, National Geographic and Virgin Galactic, the Google Science Fair has an impressive track record of enabling our world’s young scientists to shine. Over the years, they’ve tackled serious issues, like world hunger and the energy crisis. Their projects have worked on how to diagnose and treat diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s. They’ve engineered flashlights powered by their hands and plastics made of banana peels. And to date, the fair has provided almost $1 million in scholarships, and sent four grand prize winners on trips around the world to further their scientific passions.


Tonight we added some new winners to that list as we recognized and celebrated the 2015 top 20 finalist projects and the bright young scientists behind them:

  • The Grand Prize went to Olivia Hallisey for creating a novel way to detect Ebola.
  • Girish Kumar won the Google Technologist Award for helping improve learning through auto-generated study questions.
  • The National Geographic Explorer Award went to Deepika Kurup for her idea to use solar-powered silver to create clean drinking water.
  • Krtin Nithiyanadam’s project focused on improved diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease and won him the Scientific American Innovator Award.
  • Pranav Sivakumar's automated search for gravitationally lensed quasars earned him the Virgin Galactic Pioneer Award.
  • And Anurudh Ganesan took home The LEGO Education Builder Award for his unique twist on effectively transporting vaccines.

If you didn’t get to tune in, you can still watch the Awards Show live stream and check out the complete list of impressive finalists and winners, including our first ever Inspiring Educator, Aydan Meydan from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In all of these finalists and the thousands of submissions from students in 100+ countries, we see something common. These students are inventive, thoughtful, and determined to help make the world a better place. All they need is a chance and a platform to do so. And, unlike some of us adults, they are ready to try things that other people think are “impossible.” I find them inspiring.

It’s imperative for us to support and encourage our young people to explore and challenge the world around them through scientific discovery. So we’re especially glad that Ahmed Mohamed—the 14-year-old clock maker from Texas—took us up on our invite to attend this year’s event. Curious young scientists, inventors and builders like him should be encouraged and empowered.

The past decades have brought tremendous innovations and challenges, and none of us knows what the future of scientific discovery holds. But I can tell you one thing: it’s going to be better thanks to these kids. They will be part of building a brighter future for us all—and as they do, those of us at Scientific American, Google, LEGO Education, National Geographic and Virgin Galactic will be cheering them on.

So start thinking of your ideas for next year! We can’t wait to see what you’ll try next. 

2016 US and Canada scholarship opportunities for computer science students

We are excited to announce that applications are now open for 2016 Google scholarships. The application deadlines are in November and December, but don’t wait to get started on your application!

At Google, we believe information should be universally accessible. Our education and scholarship programs aim to inspire and help students become future leaders in computing and technology by breaking down the barriers that prevent them from entering these fields.  We are now accepting applications from current university students, undergraduate and graduate, for the following scholarship programs:


Scholarship recipients will receive $10,000 USD or $5,000 CAD for the 2016-17 academic year. Scholars will be invited to the annual Google Scholars' Retreat in Mountain View, CA next summer. At the retreat, scholars will participate in networking and development sessions, including sessions on how to lead outreach in their communities.
2015 scholarship recipients participating in a code retreat at the annual Google Scholars' Retreat.
For more information on all scholarship programs, please visit the Google Scholarships site.

Posted by Sarah Safir, Tech Student Development Programs

Google Docs and Classroom: your school year sidekicks

School’s in! As you settle into your classes and start to juggle soccer practice, club meetings and homework, we’re here to help. We’ve been spending the summer “break” creating new tools to help you save time, collaborate with classmates and create your best work—all for free.



Schoolwork, minus the work 

Writing papers is now a lot easier with the Research tool in Docs for Android. You can search Google without leaving Docs, and once you find the quotes, facts or images you’re looking for, you can add them to your document with just a couple taps. That means less time switching between apps, and more time perfecting your thesis statement.
 
With Voice typing, you can record ideas or even compose an entire essay without touching your keyboard. To get started, activate Voice typing in the Tools menu when you're using Docs in Chrome. Then, when you’re on the go, just tap the microphone button on your phone’s keyboard and speak your mind. Voice typing is available in more than 40 languages, so we can help with your French homework, too. Voilà!

Do more, together

We’ve made it easier for you to tell what was added or deleted in Docs—and who made the changes. Now when you’ve left a document and you come back to it later, you can just click “See new changes” to pick up right where your classmates left off.

Forms helps you get a lot of information easily and in one place—so when you want to vote on your class field trip or collect T-shirt sizes for your team, you don’t have to sort through dozens of emails. With the new Forms, you can survey with style—choose one of the colorful new themes or customize your form with your own photo or logo, and we’ll choose the right color palette to match. Easily insert images, GIFs or videos and pick from a selection of question formats. Then send out your survey and watch as the responses roll in!


Your best work, your best you 

Creating presentations, crafting newsletters and managing your team’s budget is hard enough without having to worry about making everything look good. With the new collection of templates in Docs, Sheets and Slides, you can focus on your content while we make sure it gets the expert polish it deserves. Choose from a wide variety of reports, portfolios, resumes and other pre-made templates designed to make your work that much better, and your life that much easier.

With Explore in Sheets, you can now spend less time trying to decipher your data, and more time making a point. Explore creates charts and insights automatically, so you can visualize trends and understand your data in seconds on the web or on your Android. It’s like having an expert analyst right by your side.
 


Mission control, for teachers and students

A year ago, we launched Classroom to save teachers and students time and make it easier to keep classwork organized. Today we’re launching a Share to Classroom Chrome extension to make it easy for teachers to share a website with the entire class at the same time—no matter what kind of laptop students have. Now the whole class can head to a web page together, without losing precious minutes and focus to typos.
 

Rock this school year with Google Docs and Classroom. Your first assignment? Try these new features, which are rolling out today.



Posted by Ritcha Ranjan, Product Manager

Intern Spotlights – Daniel Wiskman

At Google, interns have the opportunity to work on some of the most cutting edge and innovative projects in the world. Interns also work across sales and other business functions, bringing a fresh perspective to the work done at Google. To show you just how much of an impact interns make and to highlight their unique experiences, we’re bringing you a special blog series: Google Intern Spotlights. This week, the spotlight is on Daniel Wiskman, a Business Intern in Google’s Dublin office. He was born in Gothenburg on the Swedish west coast but is currently living in Uppsala and attends a Master programme in Management, Communication and IT at Uppsala University.
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Give us one fun, outlandish fact about yourself.
I built my first computer when I was nine years old, and yes, sometimes I ask myself why I gave up my engineering career.

What inspired you to apply to this internship?
It is not for the free food and the other perks, even though those are really amazing. The answer is actually quite simple. I wanted to join Google for the opportunity to learn from a group of really smart people. Another thing that attracted me about Google was the opportunity to work on cool, cutting edge projects and to really make a difference.
What team are you on? What stands out to you about your co-workers?
I am on the Nordics Small and Medium Business (SMB) Sales team, delivering customer sales experience to Google's Swedish advertisers. In sales we work with all kinds of businesses, from small, family-owned advertisers to big digital marketing agencies. The most interesting thing about my peers is that they are all really well rounded with unique backgrounds and talents. That means there is always something inspiring you can learn from them over a cup of coffee.

What’s your typical day like?
Every morning I start the day in the Google gym or attending one of the swim classes in our lap pool. I am a triathlete and currently preparing for a full Iron Man. Hence, I really appreciate Google’s fitness facilities and great food that is available in our cafes, which allow me to improve my work-life balance and focus on the training. From 9:00am to lunch time, I usually work on my two personal projects. At lunch time, I like scheduling catch ups with fellow interns or other interesting Googlers. If the weather is good, we have lunch on the rooftop terrace with a stunning view of Dublin. After lunch to around 6:00pm, I continue to work on my projects and ensure they are moving forward. I regularly schedule catch ups and meetings with my sponsors to keep them in the loop.  
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An iconic graduation photo of my Noogler group when throwing up our caps
Has there been anything that has surprised you about working at Google?
One thing that has surprised me is how enthusiastic and helpful people are. They really try to grow the company as a team and everyone I have met during my internship has been really positive and supportive when I ask for help. Also, after being here for a couple weeks I found that interns at Google aren’t treated like interns, but rather as full-time employees. In fact, employees actually like that you have fresher ideas and want to listen and learn from you.

Do you have any words of advice to aspiring Google interns?
My best advice to students interested in Google is to do your research. Before you send in your resume, be curious and try to familiarize yourself with the company. For example, the company's values and current market trends. Try to understand, at least at a basic level, how the products, services and business model works. Start from the internship or role you are applying for and work outward. Doing your research can definitely be a great way to buff up your resume and answer interview questions more insightfully. That said, make sure that your resume and interview answers reflect your research.
You can learn more about student internship and full-time opportunities at Google here.

Posted by Ariana Palombo, Online Hiring and Insights Team

The results are in for the 2015 Google Online Marketing Challenge!



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Digital marketing is a growth machine for many businesses, and the Google Online Marketing Challenge (GOMC) enables us to share knowledge through hands-on experience with the e-marketers of tomorrow. By participating in the GOMC, students and academics get to work with real businesses and real budgets, and provide them with an opportunity to deliver tangible results.
Every year, as part of the annual Google Online Marketing Challenge, Google gives hundreds of student teams across the world an AdWords online advertising budget of US$250 and three weeks to help a local business improve their marketing campaigns. Over 18,000 students from more than 80 countries and territories participated in this year’s Challenge and the results are in!

I. AdWords Business Awards

The AdWords Business Awards recognize the GOMC teams that made an outstanding difference to their business partners via online marketing campaigns.

Global Winner

The global winning team comes from the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies in India, under Professor Shilpa Sawant. The team of Saumil Tripathi, Shreeyash Dharmadhikari, Jainam Talsania, Jelam Bhatt and Agastya Sanjai worked with Devgad Alphonso Mango, a cooperative society of 700 farmers of the Devgad Taluka who sell the Devgad Alphonso Mango.

Regional Winners

The Asia and Pacific winner comes from the Foundation for Liberal And Management Education, under Professor Sajith Narayanan in India. The team of Aashima Praveen, Rohit Tiwari, Vyom Shah, Drishti Hingorani, Khushbu Patel and Manan Gala worked with Vega Auto Accessories Private Limited, one of the leading manufacturers of helmets and biking accessories in India.
The Americas winner comes from James Madison University in the United States, under Professor Theresa B. Clarke. The team of Morgan Mackenzie Moore, Lauren Crain, Dan Froehlich and Brea Zeise worked with the Calvert Marine Museum, a museum dedicated to the collection, preservation, research, and interpretation of the natural and maritime history of Southern Maryland.
The Europe winner comes from the University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt in Germany, under Professor Mario Fischer. The team of Thomas Kraus, Dimitri Schneider, Ramil Schweizer and Kristoff Gras worked with LEDMarkt24.de, a retailer specializing in LED lighting and accessories.
The Middle East and Africa winner comes from the Bilkent University in Turkey, under Professor Timothy Kiessling. The team of Akif Karaismailoglu, Nur Betül Ozdemir, Hansa Kaya, Arda Akat and Nihal Tokluoglu worked with Very Cupcake, a family-owned, local bakery that is bringing cupcake culture to Turkey.

II. Google+ Social Media Marketing Awards

The Google+ Social Media Marketing Awards recognize the GOMC teams that made an outstanding difference to their non-profit partners by creating online marketing campaigns using AdWords and Google+.
Global Winner
This year's global winner comes from Kaunas University of Technology in Lithuania under Professor Elena Vitkauskaitė. The team of Egle Zalnerauskaite, Aiste Stanislaviciute, Giedre Labanauskaite, Vydmante Rastokaite and Ignas Radzius worked with Sveiko Stuburo Mokykla, a company that organizes specialized spinal exercise classes in small groups under the supervision of a physiotherapist, and also arranges seminars and exercises for companies.
Regional Winners
The Americas winner comes from Fanshawe College in Canada, under Professor Liz Gray. The team of Shannon Cross, Emily Matlovich, Tess Bobbie and Nick Broadley worked with the London’s Children Museum, which aims to educate children ages 1 to 8 about the world through interactive play.
The Europe winner comes from Institut Polytechnique LaSalle Beauvais in France, under Professor Corinna Stocky. The team of Sidonie Vermont, Pascale Eigho, Laurie Marjolet and Vincent Bellido worked with La Chambreaux Confitures, a jam shop which invites lovers of taste and culture to discover the magic of its delicious jams.
The Asia and Pacific winner comes from PEC University of Technology - Chandigarh in India, under Professor Anju Singla. The team of Kirti Khade, Neha Gupta, Vaibahv Gupta, Jeevesh Sharma, Agam Kansal and Tanu Singla worked with Holidify, an online travel portal specializing in travel recommendations for India.
The Middle East and Africa winner comes from the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology in Nigeria, under Professor Olatunde Michael Oni. The team of Obitade Ayobami Samuel, Ajeigbe Solomon, Oluwaseun Majolagbe, Stephen Odesola, Kunle Akinlabi Akinkuade and Iyanuoluwa James Adegbaju worked with Jandus Radio, a company with a mobile app that allows you to listen to Nigerian radio and other African radio stations on your mobile device anywhere in the world.
III. AdWords Social Impact Awards
The AdWords Social Impact Awards recognize the GOMC teams that made an outstanding difference to their non-profit partners via online marketing campaigns.
1st Place is awarded to Shannon Cross, Emily Matlovich, Tess Bobbie and Nick Broadley, who were taught by Professor Liz Gray at Fanshawe College in Canada. The team partnered with London’s Children Museum, which aims to educate children ages 1 to 8 about the world through interactive play.
2nd Place is awarded to Morgan Mackenzie Moore, Lauren Crain, Dan Froehlich and Brea Zeise, who were taught by Professor Theresa B. Clarke at James Madison University in The United States.  The team partnered with the Calvert Marine Museum, a museum dedicated to the collection, preservation, research, and interpretation of the natural and maritime history of Southern Maryland.
3rd Place is awarded to R Jason Griffin, Aigul Aubakirova, Neil Gustafson and Matt Avery, who were taught by Professor Steven Koch at The University of Houston in The United States. The team partnered with the River Oaks Chamber Orchestra, a forty-piece professional, nonprofit chamber orchestra in Houston, Texas.
2015 Team Results have been posted to the GOMC Past Challenges page.


A big congratulations to 2015 winners and a big thank you to all teams for participating in this year's Challenge.


To learn more about the Google Online Marketing Challenge and to pre-register for next year’s competition, please watch the GOMC video and visit our website: www.google.com/onlinechallenge




Young people who are changing the world through science

Posted by Andrea Cohan, Google Science Fair Program Manager

(Cross-posted from the Google for Education Blog)

 Sometimes the biggest discoveries are made by the youngest scientists. They’re curious and not afraid to ask, and it’s this spirit of exploration that leads them to try, and then try again. Thousands of these inquisitive young minds from around the world submitted projects for this year’s Google Science Fair, and today we’re thrilled to announce the 20 Global Finalists whose bright ideas could change the world.

From purifying water with corn cobs to transporting Ebola antibodies through silk; extracting water from air or quickly transporting vaccines to areas in need, these students have all tried inventive, unconventional things to help solve challenges they see around them. And did we mention that they’re all 18 or younger?

We’ll be highlighting each of the impressive 20 finalist projects over the next 20 days in the Spotlight on a Young Scientist series on the Google for Education blog to share more about these inspirational young people and what inspires them.
Then on September 21st, these students will join us in Mountain View to present their projects to a panel of notable international scientists and scholars, eligible for a $50,000 scholarship and other incredible prizes from our partners at LEGO Education, National Geographic, Scientific American and Virgin Galactic.

Congratulations to our finalists and everyone who submitted projects for this year’s Science Fair. Thank you for being curious and brave enough to try to change the world through science.

Q&A with Dave Vos, Head of Google’s Unmanned Delivery Vehicle Program

Dave Vos heads up Project Wing, Google's unmanned delivery vehicle program. Originally from Capetown, South Africa, he came to the United States at age 26 in order to do graduate work at MIT. While there, he earned his master's and PhD degrees. He has been involved in creating automated flying machines for over 20 years.


Q: It seems like everybody’s talking about developing delivery drones lately. Why the big fuss all of a sudden?
A: Many of the same technologies that have put smartphones in our pockets—smart software and small, inexpensive sensors like GPS and accelerometers—can be used to fly small vehicles on pre-planned routes. It’s become a lot easier for companies around the world to develop relatively inexpensive platforms for amateur and commercial users alike.
Q: Why is Google working on them?
A: Think about the congestion, pollution, and noise created by delivery trucks double-parked all over our cities, or the fact that we send a two-ton vehicle across town to deliver a two-pound package. On the other hand, a self-flying vehicle that can cover about a mile a minute would guarantee speed, accuracy, and on-time delivery. They could open up entirely new approaches to transporting and delivering goods—they’d be cheaper, faster, less wasteful, and more environmentally friendly than ground transportation. They also have the potential to help in crisis situations, like delivering medicine and batteries to cut-off areas after a natural disaster, or helping firefighters improve communication and visibility near a wildfire.  
Initially, we thought that defibrillator delivery would be a natural way to implement our vehicles—when a person needs a defibrillator, every second counts, and drones don’t have to deal with traffic. Ultimately, we had to put that ambition on hold because we realized there are many challenges with integrating into the emergency medical system that are outside our control. But we certainly hope we can try again someday.


Q: Where is Project Wing right now?
A: Last August, we successfully tested real-world deliveries in Australia using our prototype vehicles. But our goals require more than us building our own operational aircraft—we aren’t going to be the only game in town, and we need to ensure that everyone can operate their own unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) safely. Today, no system currently exists to manage the layer of airspace under 500 feet. So we’re also working on a traffic management system that could support a scalable, safe, and reliable commercial aerial delivery service, alongside others. As with any such project, we need to gather feedback, so we’ve been talking to regulators and aviation experts to develop a common approach from the very beginning.

Q: How’s your relationship with the FAA [national aviation authority for the US]?
A: It’s positive and collaborative—we often meet with them and other regulators to explain how our technology works. We recently held a seminar where we invited the FAA, members of the Small UAV Coalition, and other members of the aviation community to gather feedback on what sorts of technologies might enable safe flights at low altitude. Meetings like this help inform our own product development.


Q: How do you feel about the FAA’s proposed regulations, which allow for limited, low-risk operations, but effectively rule out an aerial delivery service like Project Wing?
A: While we don’t necessarily agree with everything in these proposed regulations, we’re supportive of the FAA’s goals of integrating UAS into the national airspace. We recently submitted comments to say that the FAA should be able to approve more advanced operations as operators demonstrate greater safety and reliability.
More generally, we’re committed to working with governments around the world, as well as the broader aviation industry, to safely integrate small UAVs into the airspace.
Q: How do UAVs know where to go—is there someone sitting behind a screen controlling them?
A: We’re still working this out—but the short answer is, while we’ll need to have an operator overseeing the vehicles, we’re designing our systems to be highly automated.
Q: How big are they?
A: The vehicle we’ve been testing is about one-and-a-half meters from wing tip to wing tip, and about one meter long (from nose to tail). But we’re looking at lots of different design options because different vehicles are good for different things. It’s too early to know what our final design, or designs, will look like.


Q: When will I see a self-flying vehicle delivering packages to my door?
A: There are a lot of technical and practical issues that still need to be resolved—for example, people’s concerns about safety, privacy, noise, or air congestion. Should self-flying vehicles be allowed to operate at all times of day? What’s the best way to let people know who’s flying vehicles above their property? We’d need to have answers to these kinds of questions before starting a full cargo delivery service. But we’re getting there—we’ve been testing people's responses to the design of the vehicle, its noise, and the drop-delivery experience—and will be listening carefully as we develop our technology further. We expect we’ll hit our safety and reliability targets in a matter of years, not decades.

Posted by Steven Claunch, Online Hiring and Insights Team