There's A Lot You Can Do With Siri And Wolfram Alpha

Siri and Wolfram Alpha really are the perfect combination. There's nothing I love more than asking my iPhone random, impossibly-difficult mathematical questions and having the software present me with an answer. However, if you thought Wolfram Alpha was all about math, think again - because the service can provide users with more than just square roots, multiplications and currency conversions. TUAW's Erica Sadun has recently put together an article outlining 10 interesting things you can ask Wolfram Alpha using Siri. Surprisingly, it's a diverse list:

Roll a Random Number. Say "Wolfram, random integer." Wolfram returns a random value between 0 and 1000. "Wolfram, random number" provides a 0 to 1 floating point value.

Look up nature facts. Say, "Wolfram, what is the scientific name of a mountain lion?" It's Puma concolor. Rabbits are Leporidae, and Peacocks, Galliformes.

Check upcoming holidays. Say, "How many days until Thanksgiving?" This returns both the number of days as well as a helpful calendar so you can chart out the time until then.

Create a secure password. Say "Wolfram, password." Wolfram generates a difficult-to-crack 8-character password. Scroll down for alternates. If you need a longer password, you can append these together.

Convert text to Morse code. Say, "What is Morse code for horsefeathers?" You'll see the entire sequence laid out for your tapping pleasure.

Check your diet. Say, "How many calories in a small apple?" Wolfram will tell you that there are 75.

Ask out about time zones. Say, "Wolfram, what is the local time in Jakarta?"

Query about your chances. Say, "Wolfram, what is the probability of a full house?" For a random five-card hand, it's apparently 1 in 694.

Have fun with pop culture. Say, "What is the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow?" or "Wolfram, who shot the sheriff?"

Visualize colors. Okay, I've saved the best for last. If you work with colors, this can save you a lot of time. Say, "Wolfram pound sign E 9 7 4 5 1" (for Burnt Sienna / Tangerine) or "Wolfram pound sign 2 9 A B 8 7" (for Jungle Green). This will also convert the colors to RGB values and look up closely-matching brand colors from Benjamin Moore. Make sure to scroll down to catch all the helpful information.

Interestingly, the "ask Wolfram" style of questioning Siri doesn't seem to be built-in to the British version of the software. You can ask Siri questions and it'll source them from Wolfram Alpha, but saying "ask Wolfram" really doesn't work, as you can see in the below screenshot. If you've got an iPhone 4S handset, take Wolfram Alpha for a spin now and ask it some of the above questions. And if you discover any funny, new questions of your own be sure to share them in the comments!

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