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(Created page with "{{short description|Knowledge base used by Google to enhance its search engine's results}} {{About|Google's implementation of a knowledge graph|the general concept in information science|Knowledge graph}} {{use mdy dates|date=May 2012}} right|thumb|Knowledge panel data about [[Thomas Jefferson displayed on Google Search, as of January 2015]] The '''Google Knowledge Graph''' is a knowledge base used by Google and its serv...") Tag: self-published-blog |
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{{short description|Knowledge base used by Google to enhance its search engine's results}} | {{short description|Knowledge base used by Google to enhance its search engine's results}} | ||
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{{Redirect|Knowledge Graph|the general concept in information science|Knowledge graph||Knowledge Graph (disambiguation)}} | |||
[[Image:Google Knowledge Panel.png|right|thumb|Knowledge panel data about [[Thomas Jefferson]] displayed on [[Google Search]], as of January 2015]] | [[Image:Google Knowledge Panel.png|right|thumb|Knowledge panel data about [[Thomas Jefferson]] displayed on [[Google Search]], as of January 2015]] | ||
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The '''Google Knowledge Graph''' is a [[knowledge base]] used by [[Google]] and its services to enhance its [[Google Search|search engine]]'s results with information gathered from a variety of sources. The information is presented to users in an [[infobox]] next to the [[Search engine results page|search results]]. These infoboxes were added to Google's search engine in May 2012, starting in the United States, with international expansion by the end of the year.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |url= http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2012/05/introducing-knowledge-graph-things-not.html |title=Introducing the Knowledge Graph: Things, Not Strings |work=Google Official Blog | The '''Google Knowledge Graph''' is a [[knowledge base]] used by [[Google]] and its services to enhance its [[Google Search|search engine]]'s results with information gathered from a variety of sources. The information is presented to users in an [[infobox]] next to the [[Search engine results page|search results]]. These infoboxes were added to Google's search engine in May 2012, starting in the United States, with international expansion by the end of the year.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |url= http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2012/05/introducing-knowledge-graph-things-not.html |title=Introducing the Knowledge Graph: Things, Not Strings |work=Google Official Blog | ||
|first=Amit |last=Singhal |date=May 16, 2012 |access-date=September 6, 2014}}</ref> | |first=Amit |last=Singhal |date=May 16, 2012 |access-date=September 6, 2014}}</ref> | ||
Google | Google refers to the infoboxes, which appear to the right (top on mobile) of search results, as "knowledge panels".<ref>{{cite web |title=Your business information in the Knowledge Panel |url=https://support.google.com/business/answer/6331288 |website=Google My Business Help |publisher=Google Inc. |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> | ||
The information covered by Google's Knowledge Graph grew quickly after launch, tripling its size within seven months (covering 570 million entities and 18 billion facts<ref>{{cite web |first=Casey |last=Newton |title=Google's Knowledge Graph tripled in size in seven months |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/googles-knowledge-graph-tripled-in-size-in-seven-months/ |website=[[CNET]] |publisher=[[CBS Interactive]] |date=December 4, 2012 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref>). By mid-2016, Google reported that it held 70 billion facts<ref>{{cite web |first=James |last=Vincent |title=Apple boasts about sales; Google boasts about how good its AI is |url=https://www.theverge.com/2016/10/4/13122406/google-phone-event-stats |website=[[The Verge]] |publisher=[[Vox Media]] |date=October 4, 2016 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> and answered "roughly one-third" of the 100 billion monthly searches they handled. By May 2020, this had grown to 500 billion facts on 5 billion entities.<ref>{{Cite web|title=A reintroduction to our Knowledge Graph and knowledge panels|url=https://blog.google/products/search/about-knowledge-graph-and-knowledge-panels/|date=2020-05-20|website=Google|language=en|access-date=2020-05-26}}</ref> | The information covered by Google's Knowledge Graph grew quickly after launch, tripling its size within seven months (covering 570 million entities and 18 billion facts<ref>{{cite web |first=Casey |last=Newton |title=Google's Knowledge Graph tripled in size in seven months |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/googles-knowledge-graph-tripled-in-size-in-seven-months/ |website=[[CNET]] |publisher=[[CBS Interactive]] |date=December 4, 2012 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref>). By mid-2016, Google reported that it held 70 billion facts<ref>{{cite web |first=James |last=Vincent |title=Apple boasts about sales; Google boasts about how good its AI is |url=https://www.theverge.com/2016/10/4/13122406/google-phone-event-stats |website=[[The Verge]] |publisher=[[Vox Media]] |date=October 4, 2016 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> and answered "roughly one-third" of the 100 billion monthly searches they handled. By May 2020, this had grown to 500 billion facts on 5 billion entities.<ref>{{Cite web|title=A reintroduction to our Knowledge Graph and knowledge panels|url=https://blog.google/products/search/about-knowledge-graph-and-knowledge-panels/|date=2020-05-20|website=Google|language=en|access-date=2020-05-26}}</ref> | ||
There is no official documentation of how the Google Knowledge Graph is implemented.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://ceur-ws.org/Vol-1695/paper4.pdf|title=Towards a Definition of Knowledge Graphs|last1=Ehrlinger|first1=Lisa|last2=Wöß|first2=Wolfram|date=2016}}</ref> | There is no official documentation of how the Google Knowledge Graph is implemented.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://ceur-ws.org/Vol-1695/paper4.pdf|title=Towards a Definition of Knowledge Graphs|last1=Ehrlinger|first1=Lisa|last2=Wöß|first2=Wolfram|date=2016}}</ref> | ||
According to Google, its information is retrieved from many sources, including the ''[[The World Factbook|CIA World Factbook]]'' | According to Google, its information is retrieved from many sources, including the ''[[The World Factbook|CIA World Factbook]]'' and [[Wikipedia]].<ref name=":0" /> | ||
It is used to answer direct spoken questions in [[Google Assistant]]<ref>{{cite web |first=Matthew |last=Lynley |title=Google unveils Google Assistant, a virtual assistant that's a big upgrade to Google Now |url=https://techcrunch.com/2016/05/18/google-unveils-google-assistant-a-big-upgrade-to-google-now/ |website=[[TechCrunch]] |publisher=[[Oath Inc.]] |date=May 18, 2016 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/why-google-assistant-will-win-the-ai-race-2016-10|title=Google is going to win the next major battle in computing|last=Kovach|first=Steve|date=October 4, 2016|website=[[Business Insider]]|publisher=[[Axel Springer SE]]|access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> and [[Google Home]] voice queries.<ref>{{cite web |first=Dieter |last=Bohn |title=Google Home: a speaker to finally take on the Amazon Echo |url=https://www.theverge.com/2016/5/18/11688376/google-home-speaker-announced-virtual-assistant-io-2016 |website=[[The Verge]] |publisher=[[Vox Media]] |date=May 18, 2016 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> | It is used to answer direct spoken questions in [[Google Assistant]]<ref>{{cite web |first=Matthew |last=Lynley |title=Google unveils Google Assistant, a virtual assistant that's a big upgrade to Google Now |url=https://techcrunch.com/2016/05/18/google-unveils-google-assistant-a-big-upgrade-to-google-now/ |website=[[TechCrunch]] |publisher=[[Oath Inc.]] |date=May 18, 2016 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/why-google-assistant-will-win-the-ai-race-2016-10|title=Google is going to win the next major battle in computing|last=Kovach|first=Steve|date=October 4, 2016|website=[[Business Insider]]|publisher=[[Axel Springer SE]]|access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> and [[Google Home]] voice queries.<ref>{{cite web |first=Dieter |last=Bohn |title=Google Home: a speaker to finally take on the Amazon Echo |url=https://www.theverge.com/2016/5/18/11688376/google-home-speaker-announced-virtual-assistant-io-2016 |website=[[The Verge]] |publisher=[[Vox Media]] |date=May 18, 2016 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> | ||
It has been criticized for providing answers without [[Citation|source attribution or citation]].<ref name="wapo">{{Cite web|date=May 11, 2016|title=You Probably Haven't Even Noticed Google's Sketchy Quest to Control the World's Knowledge|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2016/05/11/you-probably-havent-even-noticed-googles-sketchy-quest-to-control-the-worlds-knowledge/| | It has been criticized for providing answers without [[Citation|source attribution or citation]].<ref name="wapo">{{Cite web |last=Dewey |first=Caitlin |date=May 11, 2016 |title=You Probably Haven't Even Noticed Google's Sketchy Quest to Control the World's Knowledge |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2016/05/11/you-probably-havent-even-noticed-googles-sketchy-quest-to-control-the-worlds-knowledge/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160603201137/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2016/05/11/you-probably-havent-even-noticed-googles-sketchy-quest-to-control-the-worlds-knowledge/ |archive-date=June 3, 2016 |access-date=May 25, 2022 |work=Washington Post}}</ref> The data is updated automatically based on information available on the web and from various other sources.<ref>{{Cite web|title=About knowledge panels - Knowledge Panel Help|url=https://support.google.com/knowledgepanel/answer/9163198?hl=en|access-date=2021-03-15|website=support.google.com}}</ref> | ||
== History == | |||
Google announced its Knowledge Graph on May 16, 2012, as a way to significantly enhance the value of information returned by Google searches.<ref name=":0" /> Initially available only in English, it was expanded in December 2012 to [[Spanish language|Spanish]], [[French language|French]], [[German language|German]], [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]], [[Japanese language|Japanese]], [[Russian language|Russian]] and [[Italian language|Italian]].<ref>{{cite web |first=Casey |last=Newton |title=How Google is taking the Knowledge Graph global |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/how-google-is-taking-the-knowledge-graph-global/ |website=[[CNET]] |publisher=[[CBS Interactive]] |date=December 14, 2012 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> [[Bengali language|Bengali]] support was added in March 2017.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://india.googleblog.com/2017/03/making-it-easier-to-search-in-bengali.html|title=Making it easier to Search in Bengali|work=Official Google India Blog|access-date=2018-01-26|language=en-US}}</ref> | |||
The Knowledge Graph was powered in part by [[Freebase (database)|Freebase]].<ref name=":0" /> | |||
In August 2014, ''[[New Scientist]]'' reported that Google had launched a '''Knowledge Vault''' project.<ref>{{cite web |first=Hal |last=Hodson |title=Google's fact-checking bots build vast knowledge bank |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg22329832-700-googles-fact-checking-bots-build-vast-knowledge-bank/ |website=[[New Scientist]] |date=August 20, 2014 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> After publication, Google reached out to ''[[Search Engine Land]]'' to explain that Knowledge Vault was a research report, not an active Google service. ''Search Engine Land'' expressed indications that Google was experimenting with "numerous models" for gathering meaning from text.<ref name=":1">{{cite web |first=Greg |last=Sterling |title=Google "Knowledge Vault" To Power Future Of Search |url=https://searchengineland.com/google-builds-next-gen-knowledge-graph-future-201640 |website=[[Search Engine Land]] |date=August 25, 2014 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> | |||
Google's Knowledge Vault was meant to deal with facts, automatically gathering and merging information from across the Internet into a knowledge base capable of answering direct questions, such as "Where was [[Madonna (entertainer)|Madonna]] born?" In a 2014 report, the Vault was reported to have collected over 1.6 billion facts, 271 million of which were considered "confident facts" deemed to be more than 90% true. It was reported to be different from the Knowledge Graph in that it gathered information automatically instead of relying on crowd-sourced facts compiled by humans.<ref name=":1" /> | |||
== Criticism == | |||
=== Lack of source attribution === | |||
By May 2016, knowledge boxes were appearing for "roughly one-third" of the 100 billion monthly searches the company processed.<ref name="wapo" /> Dario Taraborelli, head of research at the [[Wikimedia Foundation]], told ''[[The Washington Post]]'' that Google's omission of sources in its knowledge boxes "undermines people’s ability to verify information and, ultimately, to develop well-informed opinions". The publication also reported that the boxes are "frequently unattributed", such as a knowledge box on the age of actress [[Betty White]], which is "as unsourced and absolute as if handed down by God".<ref name="wapo" /> | |||
=== Declining Wikipedia article readership === | |||
According to ''[[The Register]]'' in 2014 the display of direct answers in knowledge panels alongside Google search results caused significant readership declines for [[Wikipedia]], from which the panels obtained some of their information.<ref>{{cite web |first=Andrew |last=Orlowski |title=Google stabs Wikipedia in the front |url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/01/13/google_stabs_wikipedia_in_the_front |website=[[The Register]] |date=January 13, 2014 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> Also in 2014, ''[[The Daily Dot]]'' noted that "Wikipedia still has no real competitor as far as actual content is concerned. All that's up for grabs are traffic stats. And as a nonprofit, traffic numbers don't equate into revenue in the same way they do for a commercial media site". After the article's publication, a spokesperson for the [[Wikimedia Foundation]], which operates Wikipedia, stated that it "welcomes" the knowledge panel functionality, that it was "looking into" the traffic drops, and that "We've also not noticed a significant drop in search engine referrals. We also have a continuing dialog with staff from Google working on the Knowledge Panel".<ref>{{cite web |first=Joe |last=Kloc |title=Is Google accidentally killing Wikipedia? |url=https://www.dailydot.com/news/wikipedia-falling-traffic-meaning/ |website=[[The Daily Dot]] |date=January 8, 2014 |access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> | |||
In his 2020 book, [[Dariusz Jemielniak]] noted that as most Google users do not realize that many answers to their questions that appear in the Knowledge Graph come from Wikipedia, this reduces Wikipedia's popularity, and in turn limited the site's ability to raise new funds and attract new volunteers.<ref name="JemielniakPrzegalinska2020">{{cite book|first1=Dariusz|last1=Jemielniak|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yLDMDwAAQBAJ|title=Collaborative Society|first2=Aleksandra|last2=Przegalinska|date=18 February 2020|publisher=MIT Press|isbn=978-0-262-35645-9}}</ref> | |||
===Bias=== | |||
The algorithm has been criticized for presenting biased or inacccurate information, usually because of sourcing information from websites with high [[search engine optimization]]. On June 3, 2021, a knowledge box identified [[Kannada]] as the ugliest language in India, prompting outrage from the Kannada-language community; the state of [[Karnataka]], where most Kannada speakers live, also threatened to sue Google for damaging the public image of the langauge. Google promptly changed the featured snippet for the search query and issued a formal apology.<ref>{{cite news |title=Why Google showed Kannada as 'ugliest language of India': Explained |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/why-google-showed-kannada-as-ugliest-language-of-india-explained-101622784047314.html |work=Hindustan Times |date=4 June 2021 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Ives |first1=Mike |last2=Mozur |first2=Paul |title=India’s ‘Ugliest’ Language? Google Had an Answer (and Drew a Backlash). |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/04/world/asia/google-india-language-kannada.html |work=The New York Times |date=4 June 2021}}</ref> | |||
== See also == | |||
{{Portal|Internet}} | |||
* [[DBpedia]] | |||
* [[Google Assistant]] | |||
* [[Linked data]] | |||
* [[Knowledge graph]] | |||
* [[Semantic integration]] | |||
* [[Semantic network]] | |||
* [[Wikidata]] | |||
{{clear}} | |||
==References== | |||
{{reflist|30em}} | |||
{{Computable knowledge}} | |||
{{Google Inc.|corporate=yes|products=yes}} | |||
[[Category:Google Search]] | |||
[[Category:Internet search engines]] | |||
[[Category:Knowledge bases]] | |||
[[Category:Products introduced in 2012]] | |||