The What3Words Addressing System

On this episode of Through the Human Geography Lens, hosts Gwyneth Holt and Eric Rasmussen talk with Clare Jones, Chief Commercial Officer at What3Words. What3Words is an alternative geospatial coordinate system based on a remarkable bit of computational wizardry. Using a supercomputer and a clever algorithm, W3W has divided the entire surface of the planet into 3 meter x 3 meter squares and named each square using 3 common words. For example, atomic.chairs.talent identifies the walk-in door into the Emergency Department at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. The app is free for personal use. More information is available at https://what3words.com/ 00:50 What is What3Words and why is a new coordinate system important? 03:00 How can ordinary people use W3W? 04:15 The appearance of physical signs displaying W3W addresses on walls. 04:30 How does W3W handle languages? 06:05 How is W3W used by emergency services? Hotel Ebeye on Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands: http://w3w.co/echo.concerts.golden El Manantial village in the Yucatan rainforest: https://w3w.co/trotters.befitting.attic 1. https://w3w.co/trotters.befitting.attic 08:45 Many words sound similar (e.g. copy and coffee), and a plural "s" is easy to miss. How does W3W handle that potential confusion? 09:35 Mongolia, with a nomadic population, chose to use W3W as their national addressing system. How has that gone? 11:15 Discussing the human security aspect of W3W coordinate simplification, including saving lives in Afghanistan during the evacuation. 14:15 The use of W3W in slums, in rural medical care, in refugee camps, and in disaster response. 15:25 The use of W3W on a small island within Kwajalein Atoll in the remote Pacific. 17:15 What are the objections to W3W? 19:30 What do you see for the future of W3W? 20:05 W3W wants to solve describing coordinates in the vertical dimension: How can W3W describe height? 22:00 W3W business model: Free for individuals and NGOs, and fee-for-service or a subscription model for businesses. Disclaimer: Opinions expressed on this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of the WWHGD sponsors and should not be construed as an endorsement.