Google Doodles

[odeon]

It should have been an obvious one, methinks.

[Gopher Gary]

Yeah, especially since it's recognized by the entire commonwealth. 

[odeon]

And several other countries, too.

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is the 41st Anniversary of the discovery of Lucy.



On November 24th, 1974, as dusk settled upon the southern edge of the Afar Triangle near a village called Hadar, a team of scientists organized by Yves Coppens, Maurice Taieb and Donald Johanson toasted a tremendous discovery. They had been scouring this region for weeks--an area Taieb had brought to the forefront of anthropological research years earlier--and that morning their search paid enormous dividends with the find of Dr. Johanson and his student Tom Gray. The skeletal fragments unearthed in the Ethiopian landscape made up the most complete example of Australopithecus afarensis ever found.

While they celebrated, a small tape recorder blared ”Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds”, again and again. And then it struck someone--what finer name than Lucy for the incredible specimen pulled from the sand that day?

In the coming months and years, this find would upend our understanding of bipedalism, and rewrite a significant chapter in the story of human evolution. To recognize the 41st anniversary of this historic moment, Kevin Laughlin has brought Lucy and her upright gait to life on our homepage.

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is Thanksgiving 2015



This papercraft doodle, colorfully constructed by guest artist Julia Cone, brings to life the “Three Sisters” of North America’s native agriculture: corn, beans, and squash. While it’s common to see the Sisters at today’s Thanksgiving tables, these crops prospered through thousands of years of careful domestication.

This planting technique, combining the three crops, originated in Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) villages, and was commonly used at the time of the European settlements in the early 1600s. This indigenous practice revolutionized horticulture and helped stave off starvation in many areas, including the Old World — an incredible agricultural achievement for which we can all give thanks!

Creating our doodle harvest was no easy feast—err, feat. First, Julia put pencil to paper, sketching various arrangements for her patch of special veggies. Once a direction was set (the cornucopia sketch stood out the most), she tested tons of colors to come up with a rich, seasonal palette. “I started to play with how to move the color across the image, while still basing the shapes off the traditional google logo. It was a fun challenge!” said Julia. Then came the big finale: painting, cutting, and pasting it all together “In the end, I hope that viewers will enjoy the craft of cut paper as an art form in a digital space.”

The result is a festive reminder of what we have to be thankful for this holiday. Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Google!

[odeon]

Not here.

[renaeden]

Or here! It is just a regular day for us in Australia.

['andersom']

regular here too.

[Gopher Gary]

Yeah it's a US holiday where americans get paid to be off work to eat and get fatty fat. 

['andersom']

Does a gopher roll after a day like that?

[Gopher Gary]

I'm always ready to roll. 

[odeon]

I rock and you roll.

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is Lucy Maud Montgomery’s 141st Birthday






Lucy Maud Montgomery wrote her first novel in 1905. It was rejected by every single publishing house that received it. A few years later, Montgomery tried shopping it again and succeeded. Her story about the adventures of a red-headed girl in Prince Edward Island became a smash hit. That novel ultimately became one of Canada’s most all-time popular books, being translated into around 20 languages and selling more than 50 million copies to date. Anne of Green Gables and its many sequels made Montgomery a wildly successful author and turned PEI into a destination for the book’s thousands of fans.

One of Canada’s most celebrated writers, Montgomery also wrote hundreds of poems and short stories as well as a number of novels apart from the Anne series. She was the first Canadian woman to be made a member of the British Royal Society of Arts and was also appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire. Today, on what would have been her 141st birthday, we salute Lucy Maud Montgomery with a Doodle that pays tribute to her most iconic book.

Doodler Olivia Huynh, herself an Anne of Green Gables fan, wanted to honor Montgomery by illustrating several scenes from the beloved novel, including a particularly memorable one in which Anne mistakenly bakes a cake with liniment (a medicated oil) instead of vanilla. Here’s to Anne with an “e” Shirley and her revered creator, Lucy Maud Montgomery.

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is Celebrating Ludwig van Beethoven's 245th Year



Help Beethoven's unfortunate journey to the symphony hall by arranging his masterpieces in time for the big crescendo!

Even when you’re the preeminent musical genius of your generation, sometimes you just step in it. So begins Beethoven’s trip to the symphony hall in today’s musical puzzle, which Leon Hong created in collaboration with artist Nate Swinehart and engineers Jonathan Shneier and Jordan Thompson. It happens that our story isn’t much of a stretch in the broader context of Ludwig van Beethoven’s life, which saw more than its share of rotten luck.

Ludwig’s father, a middling singer in the Elector’s court and a man too often in his cups, pulled the precocious child out of school at the age of ten in hopes of earning some money on the shoulders of his talent (as a result, his handwriting was so bad that musicologists still struggle to authenticate his signature). He lost two siblings prematurely, had to assume full responsibility for his family as a teenager, fell madly for unrequiting lovers twice, and, most famously, began losing his hearing at the peak of his career.

Despite all of this, Beethoven’s music prevailed. As Mozart reputedly said, “one day, [that boy] will give the world something to talk about.” That he certainly did. Sure, he may have raised his voice a few times, but he could overwhelm his friends with excessive kindness and generosity just the same. And while his romances brought him more anguish than happiness, would we have Für Elise or Moonlight Sonata if they hadn’t?

It’s unclear when Beethoven was actually born, but December 17th marks the 245th anniversary of his baptism. Today provided us a rare opportunity to construct a game in step with beautiful music, whose evocative moods, drama, lightness, and depth made conjuring visuals to match it rollickingly fun. Here’s to one of history’s greatest artists, and to hoping that, wherever you happen to be traveling this holiday, your life’s work isn’t eaten by a horse.

 

Engineers: Jordan Thompson, Jonathan Shneier, Kris Hom, Charlie Gordon

Design Lead: Leon Hong

Animatics/Additional Art: Nate Swinehart

Piano Recordings: Tim Shneier

Production: Gregory Capuano

[Gopher Gary]

The holiday Google Doodles are Happy Holidays 2015, day 1, day 2, and day 3.

December 23, 2015
Holidays 2015 (Day 1)


December 24, 2015
Holidays 2015 (Day 2)


December 25, 2015
Holidays 2015 (Day 3)


Happy holidays from all of us at Google, to you!
On this day, Doodle artist Robinson Wood has created several festive characters and items that were inspired by papercraft models and cut outs.

Happy holidays from all of us at Google, to you!

Here’s the story behind this multi-day doodle from artist Robinson Wood:

The mouthwatering aromas of freshly prepared food, the warm glow of candles, the beautiful colors of festive decorations... whatever makes your season bright, we think getting together with family and friends to celebrate is one of the best parts of the holidays.

With these values in mind, the Doodle team and I wanted to honor as many different traditions, peoples, and celebrations as possible. Which — as you might guess — was quite the challenge! After a few false starts, we found our way back to the simple ideas of togetherness and home. As the scraps of paper settle, we hope that by focusing on bright colors, simplified forms, and warm lights, we’ve been able to create a fun and festive doodle.

Today’s doodle isn’t just for our homepage. Download this template https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/TqLGMqfF3UlvlzPJq8YLyuS_Qyag4hrE2uQHoDABuM-MlR0HtHYaA1euKU8AWXQ9Fe64QirOZxSsf5G1ccGVfPcw7wVmpsaMmhHmErr3=s0 of our papercraft homes, cut them out, apply glue to the tabs, and voilà: you’ve created your very own holiday village!