Ever wondered why you could just “Google It”?

The book I read is called Google It, by Anna Crowley Redding. It is about the history of how Google was made by two university students, who wanted to organize worldwide information on the internet. A theme in my book is creativity frequently empowers ideas that can lead to successful outcomes.

There are three reasons why you should read this book. The first reason is when Larry and Sergey were just starting off on their Google ‘project’, they made do with their limited supplies: “Placing the hard disks into the tower, their homemade server was complete” (Chapter 2, Beg, Borrow, Stalk). This shows that through creativity, they were able to overcome difficulties and use what they had (in this case Legos). It was the last thing to make a server before the original Google was made, and without creativity it wouldn’t have been possible. Secondly, the Google founders cared a lot about their workers’ environment, which they believed would help make creative ideas. “For Larry and Sergey, all of this—the building, the toys, the culture—was about empowering their employees to change the world” (Chapter 10, Google World Headquarters (for Real)). The energy they put into making Googleplex and having fun activities and competitions online for users, was essentially all for the spread of creative ideas that might possibly change our lives one day. Lastly, Google X was the company’s moonshot factory to create new technology, the place where “Impossible dreams, lofty goals, and seemingly unattainable ideas are what they work on every day” (Chapter 16, A Healthy Disregard for the Impossible). The people in Google X focused on worldwide issues, and make the impossible possible. It really reveals the effort Google put into creating new ideas that can impact our lives. It is the key to their success.

Something I learned in this unit is that I should pay attention to causes and effects, which might seem simple but can be very complex. Also, this can lead unexpected connections between parts that don’t seem connected. Furthermore, I also learned that descriptive passages in stories can often lead to many ideas. Before, I always read without paying much attention to anything beneath the surface in stories, I just thought the author wrote a story. Now, I know how to dig deep into books and understand them better, and what the author is trying to communicate.