The Meanings and Implications of Convergence

Grok Headline matches for The Meanings and Implications of Convergence

Search for Words with Multiple Meanings

Search for Words with Multiple Meanings 04/15/2005 06:25 PM
A search engine claims to create lists of context-based homonyms, which sounds like a darn good idea to me. But then I got started thinking about the nature of spelling and language, especially in English which stems from so many sources (including Norse, who would guess?). The classic IR example of how a search term can be ambiguous is "bank" -- does that mean "financial institution", "to store something", "side of a river", "airplane maneuver" or what? How should the search engine handle this situation? It gets even more complex to cope with when there are names, slang, acronyms and abbreviations added to the mix. Does a person searching for "coke" want to find the cola, the drug, the form of coal? How about "freddy mac" or "jones" or "ARIA"? There have been several different approaches to address this problem.Research-oriented information retrieval often take a cluster approach, trying to group like elements by concept. Visualization tools use various graphical displays to help researchers see the relationships among these ideas.Some search engines show other words frequently found in the same locations, to encourage searchers to choose one of the meanings.Another approach is to highlight the matched words with surrounding text from the found documents. This is like the librarian's "Key Word In Context (KWIC) listings, and was pioneered on web search interfaces by Google.Oddly enough, there seems to be no accepted linguistic term for words which are spelled the same, may or may not sound the same, but mean different things. Homonyms sound the same or are spelled these same but mean different things (e.g. bore vs. boar).Homophones sound the same but are different in meaning or spelling or bothHomographs are spelled the same and may or may not sound the same, but mean different things (e.g. bow, card, swallow). Note: many linguists use this term only for words that are spelled the same but do not sound the same. Polysemeshave same etymological word source but multiple meanings (according to some)Heteronyms are spelled the same but have different pronunciations (according to some)For text search purposes, we only care about homographs, because the spelling is what matters.Definitionshttp://www.sil.org/linguistics/GlossaryOfLinguistic Terms/WhatIsAHomograph.htmhttp://www2.hawaii.edu/~fredr/homonymy.htmht tp://www.johnsesl.com/templates/vocab/homographs.phphttp://rec-puzzles .org/new/sol.pl/language/english/meaning/synonyms/contranymLists of English homophones (change pronunciation)http://www.marlodge.supanet.com/wordlist/homogrph.htmlht tp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Homographs http://www.marlodge.supanet.com/wordlist/homogrph.html (claims to be homographs, but only includes changed pronunciation)http://www.opundo.com/homographs.htm (ditto)http://markandkatiecraven.home.att.net/homograph.htmhttp://www- personal.umich.edu/~cellis/heteronym.html (heteronyms only)

Usability Implications for 1-to-1
Marketing

Usability Implications for 1-to-1
Marketing 06/11/2002 11:58 AM
"In order for companies to maximize the value they receive from their Internet marketing campaigns, it is critical for human factors practitioners to participate."

WMD in Iraq - Evidence and Implications

WMD in Iraq - Evidence and Implications 01/09/2004 10:10 PM
read the full report here .. report

ceip.org/files/Publications/IraqReport3.asp?from=pubdate
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"WMD in Iraq - Evidence and
Implications"

"WMD in Iraq - Evidence and
Implications" 01/10/2004 03:53 AM

Political implications of report

Political implications of report 01/28/2004 12:29 PM
What are the political implications of the Hutton Report. BBC News Online political correspondent Nick Assinder reports.

The Moral Implications of GMOs

The Moral Implications of GMOs 11/12/2003 01:23 PM
A two-day conference on genetically modified organisms ends at the Vatican, with both supporters and critics hoping they've convinced the Catholic hierarchy to support their views.

The Developer Implications of Windows XP
SP2

The Developer Implications of Windows XP
SP2 11/12/2003 01:14 PM
Michael Howard (Nov 12 2003)

The Implications Of Software Commodity?

The Implications Of Software Commodity? 03/08/2004 11:06 PM

"the domestic political implications"

"the domestic political implications" 04/16/2004 03:38 AM

Implications for Power Architecture

Implications for Power Architecture 12/22/2004 01:12 AM
Major electronics companies have come together to form a new standards body focused on Power Architecture technology. Power.org will create and promote a family of standards, reference designs, and...

[[ Visit http://www.macmegasite.com for full article ]]

MGM-Mandalay deal has major implications

MGM-Mandalay deal has major implications 06/17/2004 12:08 AM
Seattletimes.nwsource.com - Thu Jun 17, 01:28 am GMT

The organisational implications of
offshore outsourcing

The organisational implications of
offshore outsourcing 11/04/2003 10:34 PM
Computer Weekly Nov 4 2003 9:59PM ET

FTC to explore RFID consumer
implications

FTC to explore RFID consumer
implications 04/12/2004 03:23 PM
The Federal Trade Commission will host a workshop on June 21 that will include privacy and security issues around consumer uses of radio frequency identification technology that have riled privacy advocates.

Implications Of The Recent Hash Function
Attacks

Implications Of The Recent Hash Function
Attacks 09/01/2004 01:39 PM

"Belmont Club has already considered the
implications at length."

"Belmont Club has already considered the
implications at length." 05/22/2004 03:34 PM

IM's Broader Social Implications for
Libraries

IM's Broader Social Implications for
Libraries 09/22/2004 02:47 AM

IMing Revolution Suggests Broader Social Implications 

"This generation is one of multitaskers who believe they can and are getting more things done simultaneously. It's hard to believe that multitaskers can do all those tasks well, as anybody who has driven behind someone on a cell phone will tell you. But that issue aside, maybe we are slowly wiring future generations in a new way. Maybe 40 years from now, we'll drive and yak as easily as we walk and chew gum today. Maybe we're turning ourselves into what our newest cell phones are: portable units capable of communicating in multiple formats.

Parents are seeing their high school teens rewiring their brains now. When the kids aren't talking on the phone, they're texting on it, and when they get home, they're IMing on the computer. Wary of this form of communication, many schools restrict cell phone use to prevent in-class chatting -- and cheating. But if the use of instant messaging is an indication, there are signs that these communication habits will stick with teens even beyond their college years....

So if this isn't a group of successful multitaskers, they think they are, and their skills will evolve along with the cell phones that already can surf the Web, play games, text-message, show television and download and play music.

But that evolution also means a whole group of children is being left behind because there's still no bridge across the digital divide. Chances are most of the respondents in the Pew studies were neither minorities nor from lower economic backgrounds. Low-income families are less likely to have a computer at home, and minorities are less likely to start using a computer at an early age, according to recent findings of the Kaiser Family Foundation.

The foundation's study of Internet access and use by children ages 8 to 18 found that because of this class-race gap, technological literacy -- understanding the language of icons and knowing how to find information online -- was lacking among many minority children from lower-income homes, which were unlikely to have a computer or Internet connection." [Chicago Tribune, via textuall y.org]

Which, of course, is where libraries come in. Back in the 1990s, libraries debated whether email was a valid use of public computers, and now we're having that same discussion about instant messaging.

And you know what? The answer is the same - patrons using the internet to communicate, connect, exchange information, or just plain chat is indeed a valid use of public terminals. We have to get over this issue now because when we don't let them IM in the library, we're telling them that we don't value their preferred method of communication, whether it's with their friends or with librarians. We're telling them that the library is not a place for instant messaging, so go somewhere else to do it.

Except that they are going to go somewhere else and do it (at least, those that can), and they're not going to come back and they're not going to think of the library when they think of instant messaging. Would your library find that attitude acceptable if we replace "IM" with "email?" How about if we replace "IM" with "telephone?"

Implications of Visual's LAN-side
analysis move

Implications of Visual's LAN-side
analysis move 04/16/2005 05:07 AM
In the past newsletter, we discussed Visual Networks' introduction of its Ethernet Analysis Services Element (ASE). Longtime readers of this column will remember that several years ago we even ran a series of newsletters where proponents of LAN-side and WAN-side traffic monitoring products presented their view as to why their product was "better."  Now, as often is the case with technology advancement, this argument is becoming a moot point.

Short Film Has Tall Implications (Los
Angeles Times)

Short Film Has Tall Implications (Los
Angeles Times) 02/19/2004 06:41 AM
Los Angeles Times - As Hollywood's most celebrated night draws near, a small Oscar-nominated animated film is assuming big symbolism in the feud between Walt Disney Co. Chairman Michael Eisner and former board member Roy E. Disney.

IMing revolution suggests broader social
implications

IMing revolution suggests broader social
implications 09/21/2004 06:35 AM
Chicago Tribune Sep 21 2004 11:19AM GMT

Anti-counterfeit software: implications
for Open Source

Anti-counterfeit software: implications
for Open Source 01/16/2004 01:00 PM
"The anti-counterfeit software in Photoshop CS was developed by the Central Bank Counterfeit Deterrence Group, an organization established by the governors of the G-10 central banks to promote the use of anti-counterfeit devices in the computer industry....The inner workings of the counterfeit deterrence system are so secret that not even Adobe is privy to them. The Central Bank Counterfeit Deterrence Group provides the software as a black box without revealing its precise inner workings, Connor said."

What happens when the CBCDG wants to target Open Source?

Vatican ponders moral implications of
biotech tinkering

Vatican ponders moral implications of
biotech tinkering 11/11/2003 06:52 PM
SiliconValley.com Nov 11 2003 4:33PM ET

European Commission’s Decision in the
Microsoft Case and its Implications for
Other Companies and Industries (PDF)

European Commission’s Decision in the
Microsoft Case and its Implications for
Other Companies and Industries (PDF) 04/22/2004 01:20 AM
Microsoft reaction: The European Commission is seeking to make new law that will have an adverse impact on consumers, the technology industry and many other sectors by stifling innovation.

Ruling in scanning technology patent
case could hold wide implications

Ruling in scanning technology patent
case could hold wide implications 01/27/2004 12:10 AM
San Francisco Chronicle Jan 27 2004 3:42AM GMT

"The Serious Implications Of President
Bush's Hiring A Personal Outside Counsel
For The Valerie Plame Investigation"

"The Serious Implications Of President
Bush's Hiring A Personal Outside Counsel
For The Valerie Plame Investigation" 06/07/2004 03:00 AM

RAND: Mapping the Risks: Assessing the
Homeland Security Implications of
Publicly Available Geospatial
Information

RAND: Mapping the Risks: Assessing the
Homeland Security Implications of
Publicly Available Geospatial
Information 05/12/2004 02:48 AM
Mapping the Risks: Assessing the Homeland Security Implications of Publicly Available Geospatial Information .. Here's The Report .. Click .. study

rand.org/publications/MG/MG142
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Convergence? Who Needs It?

Convergence? Who Needs It? 12/17/2003 07:17 PM
When it comes to the convergence of PDAs and mobile phones most people are saying they're perfect ly fine with two devices for now. They say people are just willing to carry multiple devices. I'm not sure that's true. I'd say it has a lot more to do with the fact that most converged devices make you sacrifice important things that lessen the value of having a converged device. People buy the device for very specific things (as the article points out), and if the device can't do those things well, then it's not worth getting. As converged devices get better, then, it's likely that people will be more willing to adopt them. That is, it appears that functionality trumps carry-ability at this point - but if you can do both, people would be thrilled. That's part of the reason why the new Treo 600 has been so hot lately. It's the first device that comes close to still being a good converged device. I'm sure the next generation devices will go even further.

Convergence, not so bad sometimes

Convergence, not so bad sometimes 01/04/2005 06:14 PM

My 5 year old cordless vtech phone has been cutting out my wifi lately, so I've been shopping around for 5.8 Ghz phones. I've also been considering giving Vonage another try, since I gave up on them in Fall of 2003 (due to unreliability).

I'm usually not a big fan of convergence devices -- it usually means you get a so-so product A squished into a so-so version of product B, and the sum of the parts is often worse than either device alone, but this new VTech/Vonage combo phone system is exactly what I was looking for. I doubt very many people share my position, in that they need both a new phone system and something for Vonage, but I can't wait to see this show up in stores.

FindLaw's Writ - Dean: The Serious
Implications Of President Bush's Hiring
A Personal Outside Counsel For The
Valerie Plame Investigation

FindLaw's Writ - Dean: The Serious
Implications Of President Bush's Hiring
A Personal Outside Counsel For The
Valerie Plame Investigation 06/04/2004 11:33 PM
John Dean: The Serious Implications Of President Bush's Hiring A Personal Outside Counsel For The Valerie Plame Investigation

writ.news.findlaw.com/dean/20040604.html
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Convergence -- where is it taking the
CIO?

Convergence -- where is it taking the
CIO? 04/14/2005 01:20 PM
However it's defined, convergence is an important trend to CIOs who attended a recent UCLA conference.

Convergence Bridge

Convergence Bridge 04/01/2005 08:53 AM

(posted from Montreal) As many of you know, I have recently become enamoured of complexity theory, and this has caused me to re-think many of the ideas presented here on How to Save the World. I am blogging today from Montreal, where I have been attending the First Annual Global Colloquium on Complexity and Chaos. The event has catalyzed or emerged some new conceptions about the nature of communications, and specifically blogging, and I have decided, starting tomorrow, to incorporate these thoughts into this online journal. So get ready for some big changes here. Beginning tomorrow: The red, blue, and green system charts and process charts you have become accustomed to on this blog will be discontinued. In their place you will see graphics such as the one above. The lack of borders on these charts indicates the omnipresence of intellectual miasma, and the lack of connections on these charts represents universal uncertainty. All that we can presume to know is that ideas and conceptions have the apparent quality of co-existence and that understanding of their relationship will, with time and contemplative study, gradually emerge. No arrows will appear in any graphics from now on. Such presumptions of causality are, at best, oversimplifications and, at worst, dangerous misinformation. The words question, answer, problem and solution will be scrubbed from posts on this blog. In our world, as a complex system, these concepts are meaningless. There are no answers or solutions, just learnings about ideation, being and nothingness, consciousness and unconsciousness. You will no longer read the words 'how' or 'why' on this blog. In the absence of causality on the edge of chaos such terms are pretentious. Effective tomorrow the name of this weblog will be Convergence Bridge. The categories feature of this weblog will be discontinued. Since everything is related and the true relationship between the conceptions discussed uncertain, it no longer 'makes sense' to have artificial categories. And instead of arguing, as I have in past, in favour of personal taxonomies and ontologies, I will argue, in the first article tomorrow, that there are no taxonomies or ontologies, and that such arbitrary categorizations are fraudulent. I will also eschew the use of the question mark in all posts, since questions imply the existence with reasonable certainty of answers. Instead, I will begin using the 'degree' symbol (º), the circle representing the endless pursuit of perfect understanding at points in my discourse where a 'pause' for considered thought is called for. Likewise, periods, with their naive implication of order and finality, will be replaced by commas, the perfect symbol of tentativeness and uncertainty, And finally, the absurd words 'know', 'knowledge' and 'information' will no longer appear in my posts. Again, a symbol, the colon, with its gentle suggestion of possible relationship, will be used in place of such anachronisms,º It is my sincere belief that these changes will allow a higher level of intellectual discourse on these pages: I look forward to our continued journey together:º

Information Convergence?

Information Convergence? 02/05/2005 09:21 PM
A few thoughts in response to the response on my response from yesterday. On convergence of content, and RSS in particular.

Big Bang of Convergence

Big Bang of Convergence 06/15/2004 03:01 PM

BT Dances Around Convergence

BT Dances Around Convergence 02/01/2005 09:13 PM
Peter Judge at TechWorld reports that BT may be introducing a combined Wi-Fi/cellular service, but it's not what you think: When customers make calls in their homes using a combined GSM/Wi-Fi phone, the call is carried over Wi-Fi between the phone and the access point. But the access point is backhauled over the GSM network. Instead of realizing the cost savings of carrying a call over IP over a broadband fixed connection, BT chooses to use the more expensive GSM network. The service becomes, in essence, a method for improving cell phone coverage in the home. The idea doesn't make sense in any context, but you might understand it if the offering was being made by a cell phone operator that stands to benefit by keeping calls on its network. But this is BT, which doesn't have a cell phone network and will supply the cellular link via resale agreements with a mobile operator. It would make so much more sense for BT to backhaul the access points using its own wired network, using voice over IP and charging customers slightly reduced rates than the cell phone networks for the calls that use the system. That sounds like it could be a profitable service and would allow BT to beat out cellular operators that don't own their own landline networks. This service is basically an update to the previously announced Bluephone initiative and shouldn't be available until 2006. Given the track record of the Bluephone plan, which was initially set to be introduced using Bluetooth instead of Wi-Fi in 2003, it might not be surprising if the whole plan changes again....

Convergence Kills

Convergence Kills 08/02/2004 07:06 PM
By DrunkenBlog (via MyAppleMenu)

When TVs Crash: Convergence Gone Bad

When TVs Crash: Convergence Gone Bad 01/04/2005 10:51 PM
PC World's Editor in Chief arrived in Las Vegas for CES and tried to check his email. When he found out he had to first get authorization via his TV (convergence!) he went through the process only to get an Internet Explorer error message on his TV. So, while we've been hearing plenty of stories about convergence leading up to CES, it pays to remember that it doesn't always work that well.

The Resurgence Of Convergence

The Resurgence Of Convergence 01/03/2005 02:58 PM
For a while, it seemed like the idea of "convergence" was going out of style. It would come and go as people talk about various devices and services picking up more features. However, convergence means more than adding a camera to your phone or an internet connection to your TV -- but in figuring out what entirely new opportunities these combinations open up. Om Malik is pointing to a piece by Ramesh Jain suggesting that the future of convergence is about combining content, communication and computing -- but that too many are only focusing on two of the three aspects (or really just understand one of the three). True convergence occurs when a company clearly understands all three, and what the implications are of that convergence beyond feature creep. We've already mentioned that one of the "unexpected" side effects of convergence is that it's also convergi ng business models -- leaving some companies out in the cold when they discover their business model no longer makes sense. Witness Cablevision's ability to give away phone service. Of course, telcos are looking at convergence on their own, and this can be seen in SBC's announcement today that they're workin g on a set-top box that goes beyond what most current set-top boxes do. Basically, they're yet another company trying to create the ultimate "digital entertainment hub" with a DVR, internet access, photo/video/music storage and more. Of course, it's likely they're attacking this from a broadcast (content) perspective, rather than a communication one, but it's pretty clear that these battles are heating up, and companies who aren't figuring out the interplay between content, communication and computing aren't going to be around very long.

Avalon isn't about Web/GUI convergence

Avalon isn't about Web/GUI convergence 10/28/2003 11:06 PM
Edwin Khodabakchian echoes what seems to be a common -- but I think incorrect -- perception that XAML, the XUL-like layout language revealed this week to be a building block of Longhorn's Avalon presentation subsystem, heralds some kind of Web/GUI convergence: ...

Convergence: nntp//rss

Convergence: nntp//rss 03/19/2003 10:25 PM
Having had a presence on Usenet for 2998 days leaves it's marks. One of them is that I prefer reading...

Illegal convergence

Illegal convergence 12/15/2003 10:29 AM
Blah, blah, blah, by now we're totally bored with this whole convergence thing -- we get it, you can stream movies and MP3s from your...
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The Meanings and Implications of Convergence

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