In this age of surveillance you can expect anything. Just as I had gotten used to seeing my home on Google, I learned about a project out of Florida State University that blew my mind. The project’s title is
“I Know Where Your Cat Lives.” According to their website, “I Know Where Your Cat Lives” is a data experiment that visualizes a sample of 1 million public pictures of cats on a world map. They are located by the latitude and longitude coordinates embedded in their metadata.
Who knew that the photo taken with your phone or camera had markers that could pinpoint where you live? Images of cats were procured by running a query for public photos tagged with cats from the APIs provided by Flickr, Twitpic, Instagram, and others. The photos were run through algorithms using a supercomputer at Florida State University, and like magic, the cat’s home is mapped.
The website doesn’t visualize all cats on the net, only the ones that allow you to track the owners. I think it’s amazing, interesting and creepy.
There is a world map on the website and it is impressive to see how many cats each country has. America has 236,040, Russia 88,036, and the UK 79,943. I did notice that many of the photos had been removed by the owners. I found the charts and data fascinating and really well done.
This is a website worth checking out, if only to view the adorable kitty and cat photos. You can add your feline to this project by sending a photo to the website.
The designers of this project stated: “We set out on this adventure with a mission in mind: to point out the ease of access to data and photos on the web. We sought to showcase how readily available social media users’ information and snapshots are to the general public.” With that in mind it might be a good idea to limit the number of personal pictures you put on the web.
You can check out the website at www.Iknowwhereyourcatlives.com.
Sitting at the Fallon dog park with all the dog friendly folks is a joy. We were all enjoying talking, watching the dogs play and basking in the sun. Suddenly, our attention was focused by a buzzing sound and the appearance of a small white drone flying back and forth. We all waved and tried to look engaged just in case we were on camera. So if I see a new data project titled “I Know Where Your Dog Park Is.” I already know the stars.
I am looking forward to the “I Know Where Your _____ Is” website. You can fill in the blank with keys, purse, glasses, grocery list, etc. Actually wouldn’t that be a great idea? Until that happens, I will still search in vain for my glasses which are resting on my head.
CAPS News and Events
CAPS will be at Walmart tomorrow, so don’t miss the return of “Ki, King of thePucker.” If you are a fan, come see him: if you haven’t met Ki, come by and join his fan club. Be ready to pucker up because Ki loves his job and looks forward to seeing you.
On Oct. 25 CAPS will present a Murder Mystery Dinner. Last year the story was masterful and the food really delicious. Save the date and come for fun. We’ll have more details as they become available. Be sure to check this column, our website (www.capsnv.org) and our Facebook page (Churchill Animal Protection Society). Be sure to “Like” us on Facebook because we are really likable.
CAPS is always in need of dog and cat food. You can drop it off at CAPS or send an email to me.
Do you have questions, comments or a great story? Please contact me at jkwmil@outlook.com.
This week’s article was contributed by Kathleen Williams-Miller, a CAPS volunteer