Google’s Doodles are one of my favorite features of the site.  I like it because it shows us that the mega-company, a powerhouse in its industry, can take a step back and show the world Skynet Google has a human side to it.

Google has partnered with the Whitney Museum of American Art and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art creating a competition called Doodle 4 Google.  In the competition kids in grade K-12 could submit their own designs.  The search originally had 107,000 entries.  The field has now been narrowed down to 40, ten from each age group.

The winner will receive a $15,000 college scholarship and $25,000 technology grant for their school along with other prizes.  The winner will be announced May 19th and the winning doodle will be featured on May 20th.

From Google’s website:

Whether students wanted to find a cure for cancer or take a trip to the moon, it all started with art supplies and some 8.5″ x 11″ paper.

As a kid, art was everything to me.  I grew up reading comic books, so I used to love drawing them.  I created my own cast of characters and dreamed of owning my own comic book company someday.  I remember my parents would complain about not being able to send me to my room as punishment, because I would just sit at my desk and draw for hours.  I love to see Google’s investment in children, particularly in the area of art.

You can place your votes at: http://www.google.com/doodle4google/vote.html