The world went crazy over Google’s “Do a Barrel Roll” stunt yesterday. Crazy. In case you missed it, go to Google and search for “do a barrel roll” without the quotes. Ta-da. Cool, eh? Maybe you’re even a little nauseous.
But the old barrel roll trick—as it’ll one day be called when it’s actually old—isn’t the only Easter egg Google has up its sleeve. Here are several others:
(MORE: 50 Best iPhone Apps of 2011)
Tilt/Askew
Similar to the barrel roll, but not quite as cool. Search for “tilt” without the quotes (or just click here). We actually wrote about this back in April. It works on your smartphone, too. Searching for “askew” accomplishes the same end-result (click here to try it out).
Big Answers to Mind-Bending Questions
Search for “answer to life, the universe, and everything” (or just click here) and you’ll get your answer: 42. Perhaps unsurprisingly, if you’re an iPhone 4S owner and you ask Siri about the meaning of life, she’ll give you the same answer: 42. My number when I played basketball in high school was 42 as well—long before this meaning of life stuff. I have no answers for you.
(MORE: The Five Weirdest Pieces from MoMA’s New Tech Exhibit)
See also: “the loneliest number”, “once in a blue moon” and “number of horns on a unicorn” for a few other cool calculations.
Nessie Sighting
Set your iGoogle homepage to use the Beach theme and you’ll get a glimpse of the Loch Ness Monster at 3:14 AM every day. I know, right? That’s a lot of hustle for a Nessie sighting, but it might be worth checking out if you’re up at that hour with a newborn. Or responding angrily to e-mails. Or responding drunkenly to e-mails from former lovers. Or sending drunken e-mails to former lovers you haven’t spoken with in a decade. Or reading this drunkenly and shouting “QUIT SAYING LOVERS!” at the screen.
Just about every other iGoogle theme has something cool going on at 3:14 AM, too.
article continues on next page…