The Earth as Facebook Sees It

A program that visualizes various types of Facebook activities by its users around the globe was developed by Jack Lindamood, Kevin Der and Dan Weatherford during a Facebook Hackathon event last month. Facebook is considering making the app official. Hackathons are events where programmers get together to collaborate and share ideas.

Check out Project Palantir, as it is called, AFTER THE JUMP...

Towleroad [facebook]

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Google introduces Flu Tracking Map

Google has introduced an interactive flu map which tracks the spread of influenza across the U.S.:

"Tests of the new Web tool from Google.org, the company’s philanthropic unit, suggest that it may be able to detect regional outbreaks of the flu a week to 10 days before they are reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...Its new service at google.org/flutrends analyzes those searches as they come in, creating graphs and maps of the country that, ideally, will show where the flu is spreading...Google Flu Trends avoids privacy pitfalls by relying only on aggregated data that cannot be traced to individual searchers. To develop the service, Google’s engineers devised a basket of keywords and phrases related to the flu, including thermometer, flu symptoms, muscle aches, chest congestion and many others. Google then dug into its database, extracted five years of data on those queries and mapped it onto the C.D.C.’s reports of influenzalike illness. Google found a strong correlation between its data and the reports from the agency, which advised it on the development of the new service."

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Origin of AIDS Pandemic Pushed Back to Late 19th, Early 20th Century

Gene fragments from the wax-embedded lymph node of a woman in Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, formerly Zaire have helped scientists determine that the HIV virus was around much earlier than the mid-20th century, and began spreading among humans in sub-Saharan Africa around the turn of the centuries as modern cities began to form:

"Researchers think the growth of cities -- and high-risk behavior associated with urban life -- may have helped the virus to flourish. There is no cure for AIDS, which is most commonly transmitted through sexual contact.Prior estimates put the origin of HIV at 1930. But Michael Worobey of the University of Arizona in Tucson now believes HIV began infecting humans between 1884 and 1924."

What's that map at at the top?

It's something I discovered completely independently of the news about HIV/AIDS but it's related.

It's part of a fascinating new book called The Atlas of the Real World, which visualizes maps of the earth using software to depict the nations of the world, "not by their physical size, but by their demographic importance on a range of subjects."

The map above features information about AIDS: "The size of each territory shows the number of people aged 15 to 49 with HIV. The highest prevalence exists in Swaziland, where 38 per cent of 15 to 49-year-olds carry the virus. More than a fifth of people in Botswana, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Namibia, within this age range, carry HIV."

Here are a bunch of different maps on various topics.

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Drifting Above the Planet

You may have seen those scary maps of the United States that show thousands of aircraft over the country at any given time. Check out this page for a series of quicktime movies of flight pattern visualizations — a must for map lovers or stats addicts. They're part of a larger project called Celestial Mechanics. This was presented in 2006, so it's not new, but it's new to me.

This visualization, set to music, is particularly tranquil and hypnotic. If only that could be said for real air travel.

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In Honor of Dennis Kucinich, a Map of UFO Hotspots

From one of my favorite sites, Strange Maps, here's a map showing "the number of UFO reports per 100.000 people by county in the continental US."

They note that extraterrestrials seem to like it out west, except for a huge portion of northern Minnesota and small splotches in Florida's panhandle as well as Missouri and Illinois. Also, they don't seem to like the Bible Belt much.

Incidentally, the location of Shirley Maclaine's home, where Kucinich claims to have seen his UFO, was in Graham, Washington, just outside of Seattle.

Here's that video again, for those of you who missed it.

UFO Hotspots Map [strange maps]

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News: James Holsinger, Andy Baldwin, NYC Hurricane, Sopranos

Seattle man beaten by group after being taunted with a gay slur: "On Sunday, the couple was together about 2:40 a.m. in the 700 block of East Pike Street when they heard someone utter a slur toward gay men, according to a police report. The victim, a man in his 20s, turned and approached the man who made the comment. That man, who was with a group, punched the victim and threw him to the ground, at which point four to six others joined in the attack, according to a police report. The victim suffered a cut behind his left ear. Firefighters treated him at the scene, a police report said. The group ran to a nearby car and sped away."

Some gay fans call for a boycott of Hairspray because of John Travolta, Scientology, and the cult's position on gays.

Gay marriage bill likely to pass State Assembly in New York. Senate a tougher nut.

New Fest: The New York Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, & Transgender Film Festival award winners announced

Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell endorses Bush's anti-gay Surgeon General nominee James Holsinger: "Dr. Holsinger is a proven leader who has dedicated his career to improving health education and services in Kentucky and across the nation. He is an excellent choice for Surgeon General and I look forward to his quick confirmation."

Jake Gyllenhaal spends some time with his fans.

More on Armistead Maupin's new tome Michael Tolliver Lives: "Instead of randy hippies who smoke joints, as they did when the series began in 1976, the aging lefties of 'Michael Tolliver Lives' pop joint and arthritis pills. Instead of plotting nightly sexual conquests, as they did as 20-something singles, many profess shock at the level of promiscuousness practiced by today's youth."

Anti-gay Republican presidential hopeful Tom Tancredo's campaign webmaster Tyler Whitney is outed. Said Tancredo's senior advisor Bay Buchanan: "A person's sexual preference is a personal matter and has nothing to do with the campaign."

Sopranos creator David Chase on the show's uneventful finale: "I have no interest in explaining, defending, reinterpreting, or adding to what is there. No one was trying to be audacious, honest to God. We did what we thought we had to do. No one was trying to blow people's minds, or thinking, 'Wow, this'll (tick) them off.' People get the impression that you're trying to (mess) with them and it's not true. You're trying to entertain them."

Bachelor Andy Baldwin takes to the surf in Hawaii.

U.S. States renamed for countries with similar GDPs. (via kottke)

NYC due for major hurricane, experts say: "The last hurricane to hit New York was the so-called Long Island Express in 1938. It killed 50 people on the Island, more than 700 along the Eastern seaboard. In the years since, hurricanes with names like Bob, Floyd, and Gloria, have also made an impact, but we've been spared a direct hit. Experts say a major hurricane could pack 130 mph winds, and a 30-foot storm surge. There would be flooding in all five boroughs, the subways and much of lower Manhattan could be under water. Damage estimates would top $100 billion."

Ted Allen talks desert island cuisine: "First of all, I'm not eating Carson [Kressley]. He'd be all stringy. Carson is a little too lean. Tom Colicchio is a delicious-looking man, but I think I'd have to go with Rupert. Many of us in the community would find him the most delicious. If we're on a desert island, I'd dig a pit. Something spicy or sort of Caribbean would be good for Rupert Everett."

Kevin Spacey attended the Tony Awards after-party at the Hotel on Rivington's penthouse with his dog Minnie.

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