Google and Apple, two of Silicon Valley’s biggest tech companies, are increasingly becoming part of everyday life, ever since revolutionizing the search algorithm and the operating system, respectively. They’ve saturated our desktops, pockets, cameras and phones with applications, toolbars and widgets. But for every excited investor gushing about their every move, there’s a wary outspoken blogger predicting the fall of humanity at the hands of these companies. What could these companies do with this power, and whom are we supposed to believe? Here’s a side-by-side analysis of Google and Apple and their plans for the world:

So why are they such a big deal again?

Google: You never really know that you’re available until you’ve checked your Google Calendar, and you never really know where you’re going unless Google Maps is involved. And besides, admit it, you’ve Googled yourself. Everyone Googles themselves. Your friends, your advisors and your future employers will all Google you at some point.

Apple: The next time you’re in a particularly dull lecture, look around: over half of the notebooks on people’s laps will be MacBooks. Or go to Arrillaga gym and count the iPods. Apple products are appealing for their simple and pretty interfaces, though their ubiquity has gotten absurd.

Exactly how much do they know about us?

Google: Few other companies have your credit card information, contact information, personal documents and search history all under one roof. If you’ve ever uploaded anything to YouTube, they know what you look like and what crazy stunts you do in your free time, as well.

Apple: Apple integrates more and more products onto its operating system every day. Your MacBook and iPhone know who your contacts are, what music you like, and what events you have on your software calendar. While this data isn’t on a centralized server like Google, it still seems pretty creepy when every new program you install automatically knows everything from your pets’ names to the date of your next doctor’s appointment.

What’s so scary about them getting bigger and more powerful?

Google: Google Street View’s camera-mounted vehicles snapped a picture of sunbathers in front on Escondido Road this past spring, which is now publicly accessible on Google Maps. If you think that’s going too far, Google’s probably mapping out a worldwide road trip for those vehicles. In a few years, no indigenous village or coral reef will be safe from their cameras.

Apple: Apple’s had no problem dominating the personal computer and music player markets. Soon, its iProducts will monopolize every consumer market: socks, candy, light bulbs, dentures — they’ll make it all. Our children will grow up thinking Iraq and Iran are yet another of Apple’s creations.

What are they planning right now to take over the world?

Google: Google will continue collecting data on people across the globe and will measure mountains down to the inch for Google Earth. Google knows what you buy, where you live, and how you pay for things, so at a snap of the fingers they could be paying your bills and planning your vacations. If that goes over well, they’ll reach beyond Earth and start sending people to Google Moon.

Apple: You’ll wake up to your iAlarm, which is coordinated by your iHome to be ready when your iKitchen is done with your toast and eggs. Your iCar, a sleek white frame with a grand total of five buttons, will intelligently pilot you to your 9 to 5 iJob to bring home the iBacon to your family.

So what should we do about this?

Google: Google has a lot of good potential; we all get excited at the idea of a search that knows what you’re looking for before your fingers touch the keyboard. Let’s just make sure Larry and Sergey, the old Stanford computer science department dropouts, stay focused on the search product, instead of chasing after us with cameras and credit card readers.

Apple: Honestly, I don’t think we’ll ever stop liking iPods and iPhones in our years at Stanford. They’re affordable, easy to use, and just so cute (except, of course, for the hideous new line of Nanos). But we don’t need Apple products trying to plan every part of our lives. When iChat starts picking apart our instant messages with our boyfriends and girlfriends and suggesting we buy them some iRoses or an iSexToy, it’s a good time to draw the line.