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US20080092162A1 - System, method, apparatus, and computer media for distributing targeted alerts - Google Patents
System, method, apparatus, and computer media for distributing targeted alerts Download PDF
Shane Lundy
Yossi Firstenberg
Earth Networks Inc
AWS Convergence Tech Inc
2007-08-24 Application filed by AWS Convergence Tech Inc filed Critical AWS Convergence Tech Inc
2013-05-16 Assigned to EARTH NETWORKS, INC. reassignment EARTH NETWORKS, INC. ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST (SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS). Assignors: LUNDY, SHANE, FIRSTENBERG, YOSSI
2020-01-21 Application status is Active - Reinstated legal-status Critical
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H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
H04N7/00—Television systems
H04N7/16—Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems
H04N7/162—Authorising the user terminal, e.g. by paying; Registering the use of a subscription channel, e.g. billing
H04N7/163—Authorising the user terminal, e.g. by paying; Registering the use of a subscription channel, e.g. billing by receiver means only
G06Q30/00—Commerce, e.g. shopping or e-commerce
G06Q30/02—Marketing, e.g. market research and analysis, surveying, promotions, advertising, buyer profiling, customer management or rewards; Price estimation or determination
G06Q30/0241—Advertisement
G06Q30/0251—Targeted advertisement
G06Q30/0264—Targeted advertisement based upon schedule
H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
H04N21/45—Management operations performed by the client for facilitating the reception of or the interaction with the content or administrating data related to the end-user or to the client device itself, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies, resolving scheduling conflicts
H04N21/4508—Management of client or end-user data
H04N21/4524—Management of client or end-user data involving the geographical location of the client
H04N21/47—End-user applications
H04N21/488—Data services, e.g. news ticker
H04N21/4882—Data services, e.g. news ticker for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders
H04N21/80—Generation or processing of content or additional data by content creator independently of the distribution process; Content per se
H04N21/81—Monomedia components thereof
H04N21/812—Monomedia components thereof involving advertisement data
H04N21/8126—Monomedia components thereof involving additional data, e.g. news, sports, stocks, weather forecasts
H04N21/814—Monomedia components thereof involving additional data, e.g. news, sports, stocks, weather forecasts comprising emergency warnings
H04N21/8146—Monomedia components thereof involving graphical data, e.g. 3D object, 2D graphics
H04N21/85—Assembly of content; Generation of multimedia applications
H04N21/858—Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot
H04N21/8586—Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot by using a URL
A method of presenting content, including steps of: determining a location associated with a user; receiving notice of a dynamic content alert (DCA); creating an advertisement that includes real-time information related to the dynamic content being within a predetermined range of the location associated with the user; and presenting the advertisement to the user.
This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) for U.S. Ser. Nos. 60/849,445, filed on Oct. 5, 2006 and 60/839,683, filed on Aug. 24, 2006, the entire contents of each of which are incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method, system, apparatus, and computer program product for distributing Dynamic Content Alerts (DCA) to end users that are consuming IP enabled content. Dynamic Content Alerts includes, but is not limited to, weather conditions, forecast, NWS Alerts, Amber Alerts, DHS Alerts, FEMA Alerts, Traffic Incidents, Traffic Conditions, Traffic Forecast, Sports Scores, Stock Information, News, etc. The DCA will be from 1 second to 15 minutes to get to the end user.
2. Description of the Related Art
Consumer behavior has changed extensively over the last 30+ years, as shown by the graph in FIG. 1. The graph in FIG. 1 shows information consumption patterns, by medium, as a percent of market share, for the period 1970-2005. In the 1970's, consumers obtained information from television, radio, and telephone. Furthermore, information consumption patters for these media have remained constant over the last 35 years, as shown in FIG. 1. However, technology has been rapidly expanding over the last 35 years, and new media have been consistently emerging. These new media include cable (1980's), cell phone (1990's), internet (1990's), and broadband (2005).
The Emergency Broadcast System (EBS) historically was used to relay information to consumers via radio and television. In 1994, EBS was replaced by the Emergency Alert System (EAS). EAS is the test script occasionally heard on broadcast stations or local cable systems.
Since Jan. 1, 1997, all AM, FM and TV broadcast stations have been using the EAS. Also, since Dec. 31, 1998, cable systems that have 10,000 or more subscribers are part of the EAS.
The EAS uses digital technology to distribute messages. This allows for many improvements in providing emergency information to the public. The EAS system provides state and local officials with a method to quickly send out important local emergency information targeted to a specific area. The information can be sent out through a broadcast station and cable system even if those facilities are unattended. Also, the EAS digital signal is the same signal that the National Weather Service (NWS) uses on NOAA Weather Radio (NWR). This allows NWR signals to be decoded by the EAS equipment at broadcast stations and cable systems. Broadcasters and cable operators can then retransmit NWS weather warning messages almost immediately to their audiences.
However, with the diversity in information consumption patterns that exists today, EAS is no longer an effective program.
Internet advertising, when compared to convention television and radio advertising, brings with it its own distinct advantages and set of rules for success. The Internet, as an advertising medium, scores over the conventional media on two counts:
In its ability to provide for interactive communication where the advertiser can establish, a two-way communication with the consumer.
In its ability to target communication to a specific target segment.
FIG. 13 shows an example of a background scheme of combining content with advertisements. In the example of FIG. 13, content provider A 1806: makes available two types of content over the Internet 1804. In particular, content provider A 1806 makes available content A programmed for advertisements X 1814 and content A2 programmed for advertisements Y 1816. Similarly, content provider B 1808 makes available content B programmed for advertisements X 1818 and content B programmed for advertisements Y 1820. Further in the example of FIG. 13, advertising aggregator 1810 provides plural types of advertising, for example advertisements X1 1822 and advertisements X2 1824. In addition, advertising aggregator Y 1812 provides advertisements Y1 1826 and advertisements Y2 1828.
Further, in this example, content is displayed on, or presented from a user interface 1802, after it is retrieved over the Internet 1804. For example, if a user requests content A from content provider A, content A programmed for advertisements X 1814 may be sent to a user interface available to the user. In addition, the content A is programmed to cause the user interface to also retrieve advertisements X from advertising aggregator X 1810. Thus, the user interface 1802 may also request advertisement A from advertising aggregator X. Upon receipt of a request for advertisements X, advertising aggregator X 1810 makes a decision to provide at least one of advertisements X1 1822 and advertisements X2 1824 to the user making that request. Thus, in the present example, content on user interface 1802 is displayed as content A plus the advertisement selected by advertisement aggregator X. Alternatively, upon receipt of request for content A by content provider A 1806, content provider A 1806 may choose to send content A programmed for advertisements Y 1816 and subsequently advertising aggregator Y 1812, upon receiving a request for advertisements from the user interface of the user may choose to send advertisements Y1 1820 or advertisements Y2 1828. Thus, in this background example, the user interface 1802 displays or presents a combination of the content requested by the user plus an advertisement selected by the content provider and/or an advertising aggregator.
Thus, in the background scheme of FIG. 13, the selection or advertisements to be displayed with content is made by parties other than the user and therefore the advertising is less effective and the user experience is diminished.
Other background schemes have attempted to address this problem by making an advertisement selection based on general selection information collected about or from the user.
These background schemes discussed above cannot provide dynamic real-time information to consumers. The system shown in FIG. 13 has pre-formatted advertisements Y1, Y2, X1, and X2. There is no mechanism in place to combine dynamic real-time information (i.e., an alert for a tornado warning) with an advertisement, so as to provide the dynamic real-time information to a large audience in a relevant area.
Furthermore, other conventional schemes have communicated information, such as school closures, via email to registered users. However, such a system may provide information to a small audience, and the information provided is not real-time information. Further, such systems require that users check their email to receive the information. The present inventors recognize that emailing emergency alert notices would not be as effective as providing real-time alerts.
The present invention is directed to address the above-identified and other limitations with conventional systems.
In one exemplary embodiment, a method of presenting content, includes: determining a location associated with a user; receiving notice of a dynamic content alert (DCA); creating an advertisement that includes real-time information related to the dynamic content being within a predetermined range of the location associated with the user; and presenting the advertisement to the user.
In another exemplary embodiment, a method presenting content, includes: obtaining dynamic real-time information when a predetermined condition is satisfied; including the dynamic real-time information in an advertisement; accessing a database that stores sponsor information in correspondence with a characteristic of the dynamic real-time information; determining, based on information stored in the database, which sponsor corresponds with the dynamic real-time information; including the sponsor in the advertisement; and presenting the advertisement to a user.
In another exemplary embodiment, a system for presenting content, includes: means for determining a location associated with a user; means for receiving notice of a dynamic content alert (DCA); means for creating an advertisement that includes real-time information related to the dynamic content being within a predetermined range of the location associated with the user; and means for presenting the advertisement to the user.
In another exemplary embodiment, a system for presenting content, includes: means for obtaining dynamic real-time information when a predetermined condition is satisfied; means for including the dynamic real-time information in an advertisement; means for accessing a database that stores sponsor information in correspondence with a characteristic of the dynamic real-time information; means for determining, based on information stored in the database, which sponsor corresponds with the dynamic real-time information; means for including the sponsor in the advertisement; and means for presenting the advertisement to a user.
In another exemplary embodiment, a computer readable storage medium encoded with instructions, which when executed by a computer, causes the computer to implement a method of presenting content, including: determining a location associated with a user; receiving notice of a dynamic content alert (DCA); creating an advertisement that includes real-time information related to the dynamic content being within a predetermined range of the location associated with the user; and presenting the advertisement to the user.
A more complete appreciation of the invention and many of the attendant advantages thereof will be readily obtained as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1 shows a graph of information consumption patterns by medium;
FIG. 2A shows an exemplary embodiment of a system of the present invention;
FIG. 2B shows another exemplary embodiment of a system of the present invention;
FIG. 2C shows a flow chart for an embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 2D shows a flow chart for an embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 3 is a screen shot of a web page that includes an exemplary targeted alert of the present invention;
FIG. 4 is an exemplary targeted alert shown in the web page of FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is exemplary screen shot of web site of a sponsor;
FIG. 6 is a block diagram of an embodiment of multimedia content output in the present invention;
FIG. 7 is a block diagram of another embodiment of multimedia content output in the present invention;
FIG. 10 is a block diagram of another embodiment of multimedia content output in the present invention;
FIG. 11 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a content distribution system in the present invention;
FIG. 12 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a computer used to implement the present invention;
FIG. 13 is a block diagram of a conventional advertising system; and
FIG. 14 is an example of a design of an advertisement.
Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding parts throughout the several views, and more particularly to FIG. 2A thereof, which shows an example of a system for providing alerts to Internet users.
A user (not shown) uses browser 102 to connect to the Internet. Browser 102 sends a request to content provider 120. Content provider 120, in response to the request, constructs a web page including content 121 and ad tags. Ad server 108 uses the ad tags to insert ad 109 into content 121 by providing ad 109 to browser 102. However, if predetermined conditions are met (i.e., DCA server 150 detects the occurrence of an event through sensors 151) DCA server 150 sends an automatic insertion order to ad server 108. The automatic insertion order causes the ad server to add DCA message 152 to ad 109. Alternatively, DCA message may be added to a new custom advertisement.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the ad server 108 will dynamically create the advertisement as a result of the nature of the alert, rather than use an advertisement that was prefabricated. For example, in the context of a weather event, if sensors 151 detect a rain storm, ad server 108 will analyze the sensor data and dynamically construct an ad for rain tires.
Server 150 stores and generates dynamic content. Dynamic content includes, but is not limited to, weather information, traffic information, stock market information, sports information, news, DHS, Amber and FEMA alerts, etc. Dynamic content can be presented in any format including, but not limited to, text, graphics, audio, or video. The system shown in FIG. 2A matches dynamic content and creates an automatic insertion order. The automatic insertion order is a script, which when executed, determines if a DCA is displayed to a user via an advertisement. The automatic insertion order is sent through multiple ad serving application program interfaces.
A new ad will be generated and served when the user performs an action on the website that causes the page to refresh and serve new advertising.
Each ad call results in a call to the DCA server, which performs an IP check to determine a location of the user. A person of ordinary skill in the art knows how to determine a physical location from an IP address, and further explanation will not be provided. If the automatic insertion order previously stored on the real-time alert server 150 and the location are a match, dynamic content identified by the real-time alert server is passed into the advertisement and delivered to the user. For example, if the real-time information indicates there is a severe thunderstorm warning for zip code 20878, the automatic insertion order may include a script that performs the following logical operation: if the user is located in zip code 20878, then display an advertisement that includes the thunderstorm warning (including dynamic real-time information). Then, if the IP check determines that the user is in zip code 20878, an advertisement on a webpage the user is viewing includes the above-noted advertisement and alert regarding the thunderstorm.
Prior user registration is not always required. However, another embodiment of the present invention relates to dynamic alerting based on end user preferences. End user preference registration could be registered on any site that is delivering alerts that allow end user preferences for delivery such as email, sms, phone, and in the future DCA
An embodiment of the system includes a dynamic content targeting module, that interfaces with third party ad servers, such as OAS and DoubleClick. Then, if certain conditions are satisfied (i.e., if the weather conditions, forecast alerts, etc. are met and there is a user on one of these sites that there is a partnership with) then dynamic real-time content may be displayed to a user in an affected area through a webpage advertisement.
FIG. 3 is a screen shot of a web page that includes an alert message in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. In this example, web page 301 includes content 304 supplied by Lycos™ and advertisements 302 supplied by Monster.com™ 302. IFrame 300 includes dynamic real-time information and sponsor information, in accordance with the present invention. In this example, there is a severe weather alert in the geographic area of the user that retrieves the web page 300, as indicated by the inserted message "You have a severe weather alert in your area. This message is brought to you by State Farm." FIG. 4 is an example of the advertisement that includes alert message. As shown in FIG. 4, the alert message includes sponsor information by State Farm™ and information about the severe weather alert.
FIG. 2C shows a flow chart of the interactions between the components such as those shown in the embodiment of FIG. 2A.
In another exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 2B, a user (not shown) uses browser 102 to access Internet 106. Browser 102 may be any browser, such as Internet Explorer, Mozilla, Netscape Navigator, etc. Furthermore, the browser may run on any processor, such as an Intel Pentium Processor, an Apple processor, AMD, etc. Furthermore, the client device running the browser may be a desktop computer, a laptop, a PDA, a cell phone, watch, TV or any other device capable of connecting to the Internet. Internet 106, in this example, provides the user access to content provider A 112 or content provider B 118. Content provider A provides a user with content A 114 and content provider B provides the user with content B 120.
After connecting to Internet 106, a desired web page (content A 114) is downloaded to browser 102 from content provider A 112. Web pages can include iFrames, or a floating frame inserted into a web page, which is associated with a tag used in web page design. Using an iFrame, a second HTML document can be embedded in a first HTML document. An example of the use of an iFrame is an advertisement that is seen on a side area of a web page.
When the user uses web browser 102 to download a web page that includes advertisements, the web browser is making a request for content and a request for an advertisement. For example, if the browser is receiving content A 114, the content includes a script, when accessed by the server causes the server to retrieve an advertisement from a remote ad server 108. In alternative embodiments, the ad server does not need to be remote. The ad server may be included in content provider A, or the information stored in the ad server 108 may be stored locally on the client device.
Server 108 is connected to DCA server 122, which accesses real time information that is useful for the user. This information may include stock quotes, sports scores, traffic information, weather information, emergency alerts (including natural disasters, terrorist attacks, and Amber alerts). Using the example of weather information, the information can be dynamic real-time information. By real-time, the information may be current as of one second and up to 15 minutes old. In the case of weather information data such as wind speed, pressure, temperature, wind direction, rate of rain fall, plus/minus one second is made possible by 8,000 WeatherBug™ Tracking Stations and more than 1,000 cameras primarily based at neighborhood schools and public safety facilities across the U.S. WeatherBug™ (a brand of AWS Convergence Technologies Inc.) maintains the largest exclusive weather network in the world.
For example if temperature for zip code 20878 is provide as the dynamic real-time information, the information is accurate as of one second to 15 minutes from when it is retrieved. In other embodiments, the temperature data is continuously refreshed on the browser so as to display dynamic real-time information to the user. However, the refresh rate can be modified so as to not interfere with the user's access to content 114.
In the example of weather alerts, server 108 retrieves dynamic real-time information from a variety of sources; the WeatherBug network, NWS and other 3rd party content providers. The weather information can include temperature, wind speed, wind direction, humidity, pressure, rate of rain fall, amount of rain fall, severe weather alerts, pollen alerts, lightening, etc.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the dynamic real-time information is displayed in a 300×250 rich media advertising unit. However, any size advertising unit can be used. In another embodiment of the present invention, there is a sponsor for the dynamic real-time information. For example, a severe weather warning for zip code 20878 is displayed along with a message stating "brought to you by Company D."
The name of Company D shown in the advertisement may be a hyperlink. If the user clicks the hyperlink, the user's browser would retrieve information from the website of Company D. In another embodiment of the present invention, the website of Company D may provide the user with additional information regarding the dynamic real-time information included in the advertisement. Furthermore, this additional information is may be included in an iFrame, or on a fully hosted web site by either party, so as to have the ability to not obscure the information provided in Company D's website.
FIG. 5 shows an example of a webpage served by Company D's website (in this example Company D is State Farm™). As shown in FIG. 5, the State Farm website provides the user with additional information about the severe weather alert included in the advertisement shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.
Whether the user clicks on the hyperlink in the advertisement, Company D, by sponsoring the advertisement, has created awareness of the event (the dynamic real-time information, which may be a severe weather alert). Furthermore, the user can now associate Company D as a provider of valuable information.
In the example using weather information, weather information for the geographical location of the user may be the most useful and valuable to the user. However, the user may also be interested in the weather for another locale (such as a work location, an alternate residence, a residence of a family member, vacation spot, etc. . . . ).
In an alternate embodiment of the present invention, the user may be registered with the system shown in FIG. 2B, and the system may store or retrieve a characteristic of the user, such as the user's name, zip code, location, a direct request for specific information, etc. Using the characteristic of the user, database 130 can be accessed by real-time alert server 122, so as to retrieve an alert location, type, or other alert parameters based on user preferences stored in database 130.
In addition, database 130 can include the type of information the user wants to see (i.e., weather, sports, stock information, etc.). The type of information the user wants to see can be stored in correspondence with the characteristic of the user. For example, if the characteristic is a zip code, the data base 130 can store instructions to provide all users in that particular zip code with real-time dynamic weather alerts and/or scores for the local sporting teams.
In another embodiment, server 108 combines dynamic real-time information obtained from DCA server 122 and advertisement sponsor database 110. In one embodiment, one sponsor is the exclusive sponsor of all alerts used in conjunction with content provider A or with the type of alerts (i.e., sponsor X1 sponsors all traffic alerts, sponsor X2 sponsors all weather alerts, sponsor X3 sponsors Amber alerts, etc). In another embodiment, the sponsors may be cycled through (i.e., each sponsor is used for one hour or based on specific alert types such as Winter Weather Advisories). In another embodiment, each sponsor only sponsors certain dynamic content type. In an example using weather information, if the dynamic real-time temperature information is displayed to the user, the sponsor is selected based on this data.
For example, server 108 executes the following logical process: if the temperature is above 90 degrees, then display sponsor X1 (a brand of a popular soft drink), if the temperature is below 70 degrees, then display sponsor X2 (an advertisement for weather stripping), and otherwise display sponsor X3 (an advertisement for clothing). Further, as noted above, the advertisement can be created dynamically.
FIG. 6 shows an example of a multimedia content output 702 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Multimedia content output 702 includes a visual display 704 (e.g., a browser window on a computer or a page in a magazine). The visual display 704 shows content 706 and an alert 708, which is included in an advertisement. Each of the content 706 and the alert 708 are visible on at least a portion of the visual display 704. In this example the content 706 is a content requested by a user and the alert 708 includes advertisement having dynamic real-time information and information pertaining to the sponsorship of the advertisement. The dynamic real-time information is information that is relevant to the user, and is selected in a manner as discussed above. Although the alert is shown as being separate from the content 706, one of skill in the art will know that an advertisement may be superimposed on the content, for example, as a window placed over the content, or a banner advertisement in an Internet page placed alongside or around the requested content. One example of such an advertising graphical user interface is described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/813,751, filed Mar. 21, 2001 entitled "Method for Enhancing the Effectiveness of Advertising Delivery Over Interactive Media", the entire contents of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Furthermore, as noted above, the alert can be displayed in other formats besides video, which include but are not limited to, text, audio, or graphics.
As a further example, as shown, in FIG. 7, alert 806 may be superimposed over content 804. Alternatively, as shown in the example of FIG. 8, a mixed content and alert 904 may include both content and advertisements. Further, the display of content in advertisements is not limited to the examples shown and other possible combinations of advertisement and content are also included in the present invention.
In other embodiments of the present invention, real-time reporting and analytics can be generated overlaying the alert data, with other data such as population, location of power plants, nuclear facilities, etc.
Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to Internet based systems. For example, the present invention can be used in a satellite based system (such as a satellite phone system or a satellite television system) or a terrestrial broadcast system (i.e., television or radio). Furthermore, the digital content can be delivered using any digital system, and is not limited to HTML. Persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognized that any communication protocol can be used, including but not limited to EDXL (emergency data exchange language), XML (extensible markup language), and CAP (common alert protocol).
FIG. 9 shows an example of a multimedia content output 1002 that presents a video stream 1004 to the user. Video stream 1004 includes content 1006 and alert 1008, which is included in an advertisement. Thus, in the present example, video frames of content 1006 are intermixed with video of alert 1008 (e.g., an advertising video).
For example, the multimedia content output 1002 may be an example of a video window or user's computer, and video stream 1004 may be the video content received over the Internet channel which includes a desired program (e.g., content 1006).
For example, a user may be identified using a radio signal scheme to identify the user to the multimedia content output device or by correlating a location of the user with a location of the multimedia content output device or by other means of associating a passerby/user with a particular multimedia content output. Alternatively, the multimedia content output 1002 may be an example of a portable device having a video and audio display, such as a PDA or portable computer or cell phone.
FIG. 10 shows a further possible embodiment of a multimedia content output according to the present invention. In this example, multimedia content output 1102 presents an audio stream 1104 which includes audio content 1106 and audio alert 1108.
For example, the multimedia content output 1102 may be an example of a user's computer, and audio stream 1104 may be the video content received over the Internet radio channel which includes a desired program (e.g., content 1106).
In another embodiment, the multimedia content output 1102 may be a portable user radio listening device and audio stream 1104 may be an example of audio information broadcast from a particular terrestrial or satellite radio station. In addition, content 1106 may be an example of a particular audio program, for example a talk radio show, and alert 1108 may be an example of an audio advertisement presented during or in between breaks on the talk radio show.
Further, although multimedia content output examples are shown with visual display images, video streams and audio streams, a particular multimedia content output according to the present invention may include the presentation of combinations of these types of media as well as other types of media.
For example, the system shown in FIG. 2B can match DCA with targeting criteria and create an automatic insertion order. The automatic insertion order is sent through an API to one or more ad serving platforms, such as DoubleClick and Advertising.com. In this embodiment, an end use can create a profile that sets a cookie, installs an application, or through some other method, that manages user preferences. Each end user will receive alerts based on their personal preferences. FIG. 2D shows a flow of information between the components of FIG. 2B.
FIG. 11 shows an embodiment of a content distribution system 1302. In the content distribution system 1302, content inserters 1306 and 1310 receive content from content providers and combine that content with an advertisement (including alert information) as indicated by stream selector 1312. Stream selector 1312 receives an advertisement/alert from an advertisement server. Stream selector 1312, in some embodiments, also receives sponsor information for the received advertisement/alert. The content and advertisement/alert (along with sponsor information) are combined and communicated to a content presenter (i.e., television, radio, cell phone, internet, PC, etc.) using communication channels 1304 and 1308.
If the user is registered, the advertisement/alert is constructed by having stream selector 1312 direct alert X1 and the sponsor information to content inserter 1306. Content inserter 1306 adds alert X1 and the corresponding sponsor information to the content that is distributed to the content presenter of the user via communication channel 1304.
FIG. 12 illustrates a computer system 1701 upon which an embodiment of the present invention may be implemented. The computer system 1701 includes a bus 1702 or other communication mechanism for communicating information, and a processor 1703 coupled with the bus 1702 for processing the information. The computer system 1701 also includes a main memory 1704, such as a random access memory (RAM) or other dynamic storage device (e.g., dynamic RAM (DRAM), static RAM (SRAM), and synchronous DRAM (SDRAM)), coupled to the bus 1702 for storing information and instructions to be executed by processor 1703. In addition, the main memory 1704 may be used for storing temporary variables or other intermediate information during the execution of instructions by the processor 1703. The computer system 1701 further includes a read only memory (ROM) 1705 or other static storage device (e.g., programmable ROM (PROM), erasable PROM (EPROM), and electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM)) coupled to the bus 1702 for storing static information and instructions for the processor 1703.
The computer system 1701 also includes a disk controller 1706 coupled to the bus 1702 to control one or more storage devices for storing information and instructions, such as a magnetic hard disk 1707, and a removable media drive 1708 (e.g., floppy disk drive, read-only compact disc drive, read/write compact disc drive, compact disc jukebox, tape drive, flash memory drive, and removable magneto-optical drive). The storage devices may be added to the computer system 1701 using an appropriate device interface (e.g., small computer system interface (SCSI), integrated device electronics (IDE), enhanced-IDE (E-IDE), direct memory access (DMA), or ultra-DMA).
The computer system 1701 may also include special purpose logic devices (e.g., application specific integrated circuits (ASICs)) or configurable logic devices (e.g., simple programmable logic devices (SPLDs), complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs), and field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs)).
The computer system 1701 may also include a display controller 1709 coupled to the bus 1702 to control a display 1710, such as a cathode ray tube (CRT), for displaying information to a computer user. The computer system includes input devices, such as a keyboard 1711 and a pointing device 1712, for interacting with a computer user and providing information to the processor 1703. The pointing device 1712, for example, may be a mouse, a trackball, or a pointing stick for communicating direction information and command selections to the processor 1703 and for controlling cursor movement on the display 1710. In addition, a printer may provide printed listings of data stored and/or generated by the computer system 1701.
The computer system 1701 performs a portion or all of the processing steps of the invention in response to the processor 1703 executing one or more sequences of one or more instructions contained in a memory, such as the main memory 1704. Such instructions may be read into the main memory 1704 from another computer readable medium, such as a hard disk 1707 or a removable media drive 1708. One or more processors in a multi-processing arrangement may also be employed to execute the sequences of instructions contained in main memory 1704. In alternative embodiments, hard-wired circuitry may be used in place of or in combination with software instructions. Thus, embodiments are not limited to any specific combination of hardware circuitry and software.
As stated above, the computer system 1701 includes at least one computer readable medium or memory for holding instructions programmed according to the teachings of the invention and for containing data structures, tables, records, or other data described herein. Examples of computer readable media are compact discs, hard disks, floppy disks, tape, magneto-optical disks, PROMs (EPROM, EEPROM, flash EPROM), DRAM, SRAM, SDRAM, or any other magnetic medium, compact discs (e.g., CD-ROM), or any other optical medium, punch cards, paper tape, or other physical medium with patterns of holes, a carrier wave (described below), or any other medium from which a computer can read.
Stored on any one or on a combination of computer readable media, the present invention includes software for controlling the computer system 1701, for driving a device or devices for implementing the invention, and for enabling the computer system 1701 to interact with a human user (e.g., print production personnel). Such software may include, but is not limited to, device drivers, operating systems, development tools, and applications software. Such computer readable media further includes the computer program product of the present invention for performing all or a portion (e.g., locally portion of distributed processing) of the processing performed in implementing the invention.
The computer code devices of the present invention may be any interpretable or executable code mechanism, including but not limited to scripts, interpretable programs, dynamic link libraries (DLLs), Java classes, and complete executable programs. Moreover, parts of the processing of the present invention may be distributed or centralized for better performance, reliability, and/or cost.
The term "computer readable medium" as used herein refers to any medium that participates in providing instructions to the processor 1703 for execution. A computer readable medium may take many forms, including but not limited to, non-volatile media, volatile media, and transmission media. Non-volatile media includes, for example, optical, magnetic disks, flash memory, and magneto-optical disks, such as the hard disk 1707 or the removable media drive 1708. Volatile media includes dynamic memory, such as the main memory 1704. Transmission media includes coaxial cables, copper wire and fiber optics, including the wires that make up the bus 1702. Transmission media also may also take the form of acoustic or light waves, such as those generated during radio wave and infrared data communications.
Various forms of computer readable media may be involved in carrying out one or more sequences of one or more instructions to processor 1703 for execution. For example, the instructions may initially be carried on a magnetic disk of a remote computer. The remote computer can load the instructions for implementing all or a portion of the present invention remotely into a dynamic memory and send the instructions over a telephone line using a modem. A modem local to the computer system 1701 may receive the data on the telephone line and use an infrared transmitter to convert the data to an infrared signal. An infrared detector coupled to the bus 1702 can receive the data carried in the infrared signal and place the data on the bus 1702. The bus 1702 carries the data to the main memory 1704, from which the processor 1703 retrieves and executes the instructions. The instructions received by the main memory 1704 may optionally be stored on storage device 1707 or 1708 either before or after execution by processor 1703.
The computer system 1701 also includes a communication interface 1713 coupled to the bus 1702. The communication interface 1713 provides a two-way data communication coupling to a network link 1714 that is connected to, for example, a local area network (LAN) 1015, or to another communications network 1716 such as the Internet. For example, the communication interface 1713 may be a network interface card to attach to any packet switched LAN. As another example, the communication interface 1713 may be an asymmetrical digital subscriber line (ADSL) card, an integrated services digital network (ISDN) card or a modem to provide a data communication connection to a corresponding type of communications line. Wireless links may also be implemented. In any such implementation, the communication interface 1713 sends and receives electrical, electromagnetic or optical signals that carry digital data streams representing various types of information.
The network link 1714 typically provides data communication through one or more networks to other data devices. For example, the network link 1714 may provide a connection to another computer through a local network 1715 (e.g., a LAN) or through equipment operated by a service provider, which provides communication services through a communications network 1716. The local network 1714 and the communications network 1716 use, for example, electrical, electromagnetic, or optical signals that carry digital data streams, and the associated physical layer (e.g., CAT 5 cable, coaxial cable, optical fiber, etc). The signals through the various networks and the signals on the network link 1714 and through the communication interface 1713, which carry the digital data to and from the computer system 1701 maybe implemented in baseband signals, or carrier wave based signals. The baseband signals convey the digital data as unmodulated electrical pulses that are descriptive of a stream of digital data bits, where the term "bits" is to be construed broadly to mean symbol, where each symbol conveys at least one or more information bits. The digital data may also be used to modulate a carrier wave, such as with amplitude, phase and/or frequency shift keyed signals that are propagated over a conductive media, or transmitted as electromagnetic waves through a propagation medium. Thus, the digital data may be sent as unmodulated baseband data through a "wired" communication channel and/or sent within a predetermined frequency band, different than baseband, by modulating a carrier wave. The computer system 1701 can transmit and receive data, including program code, through the network(s) 1715 and 1716, the network link 1714 and the communication interface 1713. Moreover, the network link 1714 may provide a connection through a LAN 1715 to a mobile device 1717 such as a personal digital assistant (PDA) laptop computer, or cellular telephone. Another embodiment of the present invention includes an alert advertisement creation engine configured to dynamically create interactive online advertisements to display alert information based on the weather targeting engine.
The advertisement creation engine may include a web interface tool configured to define advertising campaigns, their associated source of alerts, the copy for the design of the advertisement, and the executable hyperlink leading to the URL for the campaign.
The alert information feeds may include, but are not limited to, CAP (common alerting protocol), National Weather Service, AWS Smart Notification alerts, and Ad-hoc messages generated and sent to consumers who fit the campaign's alerting criteria.
This web interface tool may integrate with a weather targeting engine, and enable, disable, or modify advertising campaigns as the advertising campaigns' alert targeting criteria are compared to the alert feeds assigned to the advertising campaigns.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the alert advertisement creation engine may create advertisements sized 300 pixels wide by 250 pixels high. FIG. 14 is an example of how an advertisement may be designed. The header of the advertisement may display information about the alert type, and may include approximately 33 or fewer characters at 14 point. The body of the advertisement may display full details of the alert message, to be approximately 300 pixels wide by 130 pixels high. The content in this section may include any dynamic content—text, graphics, audio, video, etc. The false alert disclaimer may include copy that includes a legal disclaimer regarding false alerts, or any other information. The false alert disclaimer section may include copy that takes up no more than approximately 300 pixels wide by 35 pixels high. The sponsor area may include text that says, "Brought to you by:" and branding for the sponsor for the alert advertisement. This section may be no larger than approximately 300 pixels wide by 60 pixels high. This section may include sponsor imagery.
Embodiments of the advertisement may be an executable HTML hyperlink, wherein the URL is defined in the advertisement's campaign set up process.
Numerous modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein.
1. A method of presenting content, comprising steps of:
determining a location associated with a user;
receiving notice of a dynamic content alert (DCA);
creating an advertisement that includes real-time information related to the dynamic content being within a predetermined range of the location associated with the user; and
presenting the advertisement to the user.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:
issuing an order to insert a real-time alert message into the advertisement in response to the notice if the location of the user is within the predetermined range of the location.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the environmental event relates to at least one of temperature, wind direction, wind speed, barometric pressure, hurricanes, tornadoes, thunderstorms, flooding, and rate of rain fall, NWS Alert, Amber Alert, DHS, DOT or FEMA Alert.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the environmental event relates to traffic conditions, incidents and forecast.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the environmental event occurs from 1 second to 15 minutes prior to receiving the notice.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the environmental event occurs 1 second to 15 minutes prior to receiving the notice.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the advertisement includes one or more of real-time temperature, real-time wind speed, real-time wind direction, real-time barometric pressure, and real-time rate of rain fall, NWS Alerts, Amber Alerts, DHS, DOT and FEMA Alerts, etc.
8. A method presenting content, comprising steps of:
obtaining dynamic real-time information when a predetermined condition is satisfied;
including the dynamic real-time information in an advertisement;
accessing a database that stores sponsor information in correspondence with a characteristic of the dynamic real-time information;
determining, based on information stored in the database, which sponsor corresponds with the dynamic real-time information;
including the sponsor in the advertisement; and
presenting the advertisement to a user.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein the dynamic real-time information is information related to sports, information related to a financial market, or information related to weather.
10. The method of claim 8, further comprising:
determining a location associated with the user; and
the step of obtaining includes obtaining dynamic real-time information associated with the location.
11. A system for presenting content, comprising:
means for determining a location associated with a user;
means for receiving notice of a dynamic content alert (DCA);
means for creating an advertisement that includes real-time information related to the dynamic content being within a predetermined range of the location associated with the user; and
means for presenting the advertisement to the user.
12. The system of claim 11, further comprising:
means for issuing an order to insert a real-time alert message into the advertisement in response to the notice if the location of the user is within the predetermined range of the location.
13. The system of claim 11, wherein the environmental event relates to at least one of temperature, wind direction, wind speed, barometric pressure, hurricanes, tornadoes, thunderstorms, flooding, and rate of rain fall, NWS Alert, Amber Alert, DHS, DOT or FEMA Alert.
14. The system of claim 11, wherein the environmental event relates to traffic conditions, incidents and forecast.
15. The system of claim 11, wherein the environmental event occurs from 1 second to 15 minutes prior to receiving the notice.
16. The system of claim 11, wherein the environmental event occurs 1 second to 15 minutes prior to receiving the notice.
17. The system of claim 11, wherein the advertisement includes one or more of real-time temperature, real-time wind speed, real-time wind direction, real-time barometric pressure, and real-time rate of rain fall, NWS Alerts, Amber Alerts, DHS, DOT and FEMA Alerts, etc.
means for obtaining dynamic real-time information when a predetermined condition is satisfied;
means for including the dynamic real-time information in an advertisement;
means for accessing a database that stores sponsor information in correspondence with a characteristic of the dynamic real-time information;
means for determining, based on information stored in the database, which sponsor corresponds with the dynamic real-time information;
means for including the sponsor in the advertisement; and
means for presenting the advertisement to a user.
means for determining a location associated with the user; and
the means for obtaining obtains dynamic real-time information associated with the location.
20. A computer readable storage medium encoded with instructions, which when executed by a computer, causes the computer to implement a method of presenting content, comprising steps of:
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text:
Home » Sports » Barcelona Open honours Spain's Albert Montanes
Barcelona Open honours Spain's Albert Montanes
Albert Montanes thanked his fans for always showing support and giving him strength.
IANS | Barcelona | April 27, 2017 12:25 pm
Representational Image (Photo: Getty Images)
The organisers of the Barcelona Open have honoured Spanish tennis player Albert Montanes after his defeat in the second round against compatriot Feliciano Lopez in a match during which he decided to end his professional career.
Spectators present at the centre court on Wednesday, now renamed after Rafa Nadal, cheered the 36-year-old player after he lost to Lopez 2-6, 2-6, reports Efe.
After the match concluded, Montanes's wife and daughter entered the court along with the tournament's director Albert Costa and the president of the Association of Tennis Professionals Chris Kermode, who gave Montanes a souvenir in recognition of his career.
Montanes, visibly moved, thanked the directors and his family for the support he had received from the very first day of his 18 years of experience, before addressing the spectators.
He thanked his fans for always showing support and giving him strength, for which he said he was grateful.
Albert Montanes
Barcelona Open
Feliciano Lopez
Nadal withdraws from Tokyo Olympics, Wimbledon
Nagal crashes out in first round of Barcelona Open
Nadal led Spain to face Canada in Davis Cup final

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Westminster shouldn't block Wales from buying its own covid vaccines say Plaid Cymru
Image by fernando zhiminaicela from Pixabay
Westminster shouldn't stand in the way of Wales from buying its own covid vaccines according to Plaid Cymru.
The party's health spokesperson Rhun ap Iorwerth MS says he's worried that Wales might not receive enough doses of the jab under the system that is currently in place.
The UK Government is in control of buying vaccines and says it has secured five million doses of Moderna's vaccine. The firm announced on Monday that its jab may be 94.5 per cent effective against Covid-19. It has also secured 40 million doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.
The UK Government has decided that Wales will receive its population share of 4.78 per cent under what is called the Barnett formula. The Welsh Government has backed this approach.
The formula automatically adjusts the amount of public money allocated to Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales based on what is spent in England.
But Plaid Cymru believe that this is unfair to Wales because it has an older and sicker population than the rest the rest of the UK's four nations.
'Tripped'
Mr ap Iorwerth told the PA news agency: "If we're being told we're going to get a population share, well that doesn't really make sense. We have an older population. A strict population share isn't really going to work for Wales.
"So, it's so we're being told, everything is going to be okay, and I think I should be forgiven for not quite trusting that at face value."
"I just couldn't see the harm in Wales trying to procure this Moderna vaccine given that the UK central procurers decided 'no, we're not going to bother'.
"I've got nothing against cooperation between the nations of the UK. If there's an agreement that can make sure there's a basic level of a vaccine that can be secured in a particular way, as there would have been with PPE, fine. And if that works and that delivers a vaccine that's great.
"But I can't see why that should preclude Scotland, or England or Wales, being able to come to agreement ourselves as well, especially in this kind of context – when the UK decided we're not chasing this one up. Wales could have been.
"By now on Moderna, it's probably the case that the UK is going to be doing the bidding on our behalf, so maybe we've missed that boat. We might end up with a decent supply of Moderna, but we might not.
"Throughout all of this, I just feel the Welsh Government has been at its best when it's been trying to exert as much control over its ability to respond to the pandemic as possible. And it has tripped up most often when it's decided to throw its lot in with a four-nations approach."
The Welsh Government says it believes that Wales will get its fair share of the vaccine under the current system.
A spokesperson said: "Wales, along with the other UK nations, is part of the UK Government's advanced procurement of a number of promising vaccines and we will get a share of any successful vaccine. Purchasing in this way is the best way to ensure we got the most possible doses of future vaccines."


Fantastic, completely remodeled 111 year old farmhouse. This exclusive home sits on 13 acres m/l just outside Farmington and features 4+ bedrooms & 5 baths. The entire home has been remodeled from the kitchen & baths to the stunning family room, to the wrap around porch to the garage. Home also features TWO 2-Car garages, 3 functioning barns & silo. Dont miss the guest quarters above the attached 2-car garage. Extra acres available.


Superstar wife, mom and blogger Ayesha Curry opens up about her key to achieving work-life balance and the lessons she hope to pass down to her daughters.
A few days ago, in the same week that the death of Chinese American poet Fay Chiang was reported, Bridgeport, Connecticut, announced that it will require high school students to take a course in African American studies, Caribbean/Latin American studies, or Perspectives on Race in order to graduate.
According to CTPost, the school board unanimously approved the measure.
Fay Chiang was a poet who used her writing to understand who she was as a Chinese American. She worked to establish Asian American studies classes in colleges within the City University of New York system, according to the New York Times. Her quest to comprehend her identity, along with her activism, made up her life's work.
People want to know who they are and where they came from. That may be illustrated perhaps most emphatically by the Mexican American studies classes taught in Tucson, Arizona, in which 100% of students enrolled in them graduated from high school; 85% went on to college. This is while 48% of Latino students were dropping out of high school altogether, according to NPR.
Baraka has been urging the adoption of such courses for some time, the website reports. But in the Trump era, a new urgency may be leading to their proliferation across the country. According to Ravi Perry, president of the National Association for Ethnic Studies, the courses have "gained momentum" with Trump's election, NPR reports.
According to CTPost, about half of the district's 21,000 students are Latino and 35% are black. This demographic mix is consistent with a recent analysis done by the Pew Research Center, which states that although blacks and Hispanics make up 15.5% and 25.4% of the U.S. public school population, many attend schools where their own race or ethnicity makes up at least half of the students.
Bridgeport students will take a half-year ethnic studies course of their choosing that will be paired with a half-year civics course. Eventually the city may add similar courses to its middle schools.
For more, go to CTPost.


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Who the hell were The Showstoppers ?
enquiries about half-remembered songs, records, etc
by AndyM » Wed Jan 13, 2010 4:57 pm
Because I'm shallowly influenced by the weather, and because its chorus includes the words "I know it's cold outside, come on in I'll keep you satisfied", I just dug out my ancient copy of 'Ain't Nothing But A Houseparty' by The Showstoppers. And I had quite forgotten what an irresistible chunk of lightweight soul-pop wonderment it is.
But who were they & why didn't they do anything else ??
And if we want to get pedantic, which sub-genre would you put it in ? It's not Motown, though it's very slightly Four-Tops-esque and even more slightly Miracles-esque; it's too bouncy for Stax. Is it swift & slippery enough to be Northern Soul ? Though that's a genre constructed through consumption rather than production.
I need to get out more.
Or just play it again. (If only for the faux-party noises)
Location: Brighton
Re: Who the hell were The Showstoppers ?
by Rob Hall » Wed Jan 13, 2010 5:31 pm
You're right: it's a great tune; it's neither Motown nor Stax; and yes, Northern Soul is a genre constructed through consumption rather than production (well put).
The Wiki entry isn't terribly helpful: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Showstoppers apart from telling us that a couple of them were the brothers of Solomon Burke.
Rob Hall
Location: Home, home on the range
by Neil Foxlee » Wed Jan 13, 2010 5:41 pm
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:3jfyxqqgldke~T1 has a bit more.
Neil Foxlee
Location: Bay Area (Morecambe, not San Francisco)
A salutary though not unique tale - ripped off, mismanaged, impersonated & defunct. (I'm surprised they were so young though - pretty mature voices for teens.)
Still, it's a better track than the entire collected works of Radiohead.
For those that don't know (or need to be reminded of) the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvrAce0fK4Q
And the You Tube comments seem to suggest it was indeed one of those relatively obscure U.S. singles revitalised & given unexpected success here through the Northern Soul vector.
The disc dates from 1968, which was apparently the year the term Northern Soul was first used (though not widely) by Dave Godin (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_soul). Although the Wikipedia article describes Ain't Nothing... as a Northern Soul classic, diehard NS fans would have shunned it as soon as it became popular - for them, the more obscure a record, the better (the ingroup thing), which is why they generally avoided Motown material, even if much of the stuff they went for was Motownesque. Not that I'm a Northern Soul man myself, you understand...
I thought there was some Northern Soul mileage in records released on Motown but which never became chart hits (at least on first release). But I could be off the mark. Although I do recall seeing Wigan's Chosen Few & Wigan's Ovation on Top of the Pops!!
Neil Foxlee wrote: The disc dates from 1968, which was apparently the year the term Northern Soul was first used (though not widely) by Dave Godin (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_soul). Although the Wikipedia article describes Ain't Nothing... as a Northern Soul classic, diehard NS fans would have shunned it as soon as it became popular - for them, the more obscure a record, the better (the ingroup thing), which is why they generally avoided Motown material, even if much of the stuff they went for was Motownesque. Not that I'm a Northern Soul man myself, you understand...
Yeah, despite the fact that I am originally from t'North - the Golden Torch was close by - and a lover of soul music, I always found the elitist/snooty aspect of the Northern Soul scene very off-putting. Plus, there was the dress code and all that messing about with talcum power...
by Hugh Weldon » Wed Jan 13, 2010 7:29 pm
I remembered hearing this a lot on Caroline North as a kid - they did play a lot of soul. I've also seen it on a lot of Northern soul compilations but never really classed it as such myself - despite growing up only 20 miles or so from Wigan that scene pretty much passed me by.
The record was re-released in the early 70s - I may still have it somewhere. And for some reason it sticks in my mind that it was on the green Beacon label with a catalogue number such as BEA100. Why I recall such things God knows...
Last edited by Hugh Weldon on Wed Jan 13, 2010 7:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Hugh Weldon
Location: London N11
As to who they were, though I'm curious too, I also like the sense of mystery. For a long time this was just a record on the radio, I didn't have a clue if it was British or American or the band was black or white. It was just a bloody great sound.
by Jamie Renton » Wed Jan 13, 2010 11:07 pm
AndyM wrote: I thought there was some Northern Soul mileage in records released on Motown but which never became chart hits (at least on first release). But I could be off the mark. Although I do recall seeing Wigan's Chosen Few & Wigan's Ovation on Top of the Pops!!
I've got a CD called something like "Motown Best iof Northern Soul" with lots of rare n dancefloor friendly Tamla tracks. I can't lay my hands on it for the minute, but I won it on Charlie's show back in the mid 90s, when I'd compete with Aly Prince to be the 1st to get through on the phone & give my answer to Norman & Nikki!
Jamie Renton
Location: Exotic Barnet
by AndyM » Thu Jan 14, 2010 2:36 pm
Sometimes the process worked in 'reverse' - Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons' brief stint on Mowest (Motown's 'California' label) produced no hits, but the faaaaaabulous track 'The Night' became a cult success in Northern Soul circles.
It then got reissued in the UK & charted, at which point I dare say the talcum Taliban (copyright - ME) of the NS hardcore disowned it.
Still a gem, and brilliantly covered by Soft Cell much more recently. But I doubt if many SOTWers have much time for Soft Cell......
by Hugh Weldon » Thu Jan 14, 2010 2:42 pm
I doubt if many SOTWers have much time for Soft Cell
You might be surprised. I thought 'Say Hello Wave Goodbye' was a great record. I didn't know they had covered 'The Night'. Marc Almond was from Southport, and clearly something of a Northern Soul boy to have covered 'Tainted Love'.
Hugh Weldon wrote: Andy
I assume The Night was designed to be Tainted Love Part 2 as Soft Cell attempted to relaunch themselves once they reunited a few years back - it didn't really come off commercially but they still delivered an excellent version.
Say Hello Wave Goodbye is one of my Desert Island Discs. (Most weeks, anyway)
I'd be pleasantly surprised to flush out more Soft Cell aficionados in here - I'd suspected they were a bit, erm, inauthentic and, erm, lacking in manly grizzledness for an SOTW aesthetic (which appreciates femininity, but only in women).
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The average American eats far more sugar than they need, and often without knowing the health consequences. Here's your primer on the dangers of sweets.
How many of us have muttered these words while hovering over a box of Krispy Kreme doughnuts or an Entenmann's strudel? Whether you were sitting in the office break room or standing on the sidelines at Timmy's 7 a.m. soccer match, temptation in the form of sugar is all around us.
Our culture seems to have divided sweet treats, and all foods, for that matter, into two categories: good and bad. Carrots = good. Carrot cake = bad. Brown rice = good. Rice pudding = bad. Cookies, candy, crumb cakes and sweets in general seem to top the list of bad foods; things that should be avoided at all costs. But this oversimplified model isn't necessarily the reality, nor does it encourage a very healthy attitude toward food. Although doughnuts and strudels should be avoided, it's important to know why. Simply labeling sugar or sugary foods as bad doesn't present the whole story.
Let's revise the good vs. bad dichotomy just a bit and instead look at sugars as simple vs. complex. Chemically, simple sugars are one, two or at most three units of sugar linked together in single molecules. Complex sugars – most often referred to as complex carbohydrates, and sometimes as "starches" – are hundreds or thousands of sugar molecules linked together. Generally, the simpler the sugar is, the sweeter it tastes, such as honey, table sugar or the high-fructose corn syrup in sodas. A complex carbohydrate, such as potatoes, tomatoes or whole grain breads and cereals, may not be sweet, but many people still find these foods pleasant to the taste.
Think of all sugar as existing in some stage of refinement: The simplest sugars have already been so heavily refined that the body has to work less in order to convert them into glucose, or blood sugar, once ingested. Complex sugars are the least refined and take longer for the body to break down. It would be easy to assume that less work for the body is better, but the refining process of simple sugars before they even touch your tongue has stripped away most if not all vitamins, minerals, nutrients and fiber, leaving a "food" of almost no nutritional value. The most complex sugars or complex carbohydrates are the least refined, retaining all original nutrients for the body.
Whether a sugar is simple or complex makes a difference not only in terms of its level of refinement or nutritional value, but also in terms of its journey through the body. By now, we know it requires less work for the body to break down simple sugars than complex sugars, but that fact merits even closer scrutiny.
One very important characteristic of sugar is how quickly it enters the bloodstream and triggers the insulin response after digestion. Those highly refined, simple sugars in icings, candy and fudge are quickly broken down and enter the bloodstream, causing blood sugar levels to rise almost instantaneously. This, in turn, prompts the pancreas to release insulin – the hormone needed to carry these sugars to the cells of the body. High amounts of insulin help the sugar to be used rapidly, but then blood sugar levels take a dive and the body hits what is known as a sugar low, or hypoglycemia. Just as the hormone insulin was released when the blood sugar level was quickly raised, other stress hormones are summoned as the blood sugar plummets.
These stress hormones attempt to restore blood sugar levels to normal, taxing the liver for stored sugar. This rollercoaster process can be taxing on anyone's body, but is most demanding on individuals with sugar-sensitivity, often causing mood swings and drastic behavioral changes.
Studies indicate that these spikes in blood sugar and subsequent stress on the pancreas to produce insulin eventually can cause the pancreas to, in essence, wear out. A resulting inability to produce enough insulin results in diabetes. Reckless sugar consumption may account, at least in part, for the estimated 1.5 million new cases of diabetes diagnosed in U.S. adults in 2005.
Complex sugars, which, again, are far less refined than simple sugars, make the body work a little bit to disassemble these molecules and convert them into blood sugar. The effect is like that of a time-released capsule: The slowly converted glucose enters the bloodstream at an even pace, providing constant energy without any rollercoaster rides or mood swings.
Aside from tempting diabetes, an excess of simple sugars in the diet adds countless extra calories accompanied by little or no nutrition. For a person trying to lose weight, avoiding additional caloric intake is one thing, but a lack of daily nutrition welcomes a slew of other health problems for anyone. For instance, a non-diet soda may contain 150 calories, which doesn't seem like much; but a person who is trying to limit their daily calorie intake to 2,000 calories per day has already consumed nearly 10 percent of their daily allotment of calories by drinking this soda.Those calories are accompanied by absolutely zero nutrition – in essence, they are empty calories.
In a 2003 report, the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization indicated that sugar should comprise less than 10 percent of total daily calories – that's one soda per day, based on a 2,000-calorie diet. It's up to the remaining 90 percent of your calorie allotment to supply the vitamins, minerals and nutrients you need. And if you throw in another soda, or perhaps a small slice of coffee cake, a larger and larger percentage of your remaining calories for that day need to be super-nutritive. That's a lot of pressure to track down and consume healthier foods throughout your busy day.
And let's be honest, there aren't many Americans who limit their caloric intake so strictly. A more likely scenario is that the sodas and cake are only added to their daily intake, without regard for excess. With that scenario the reality, fat storage and weight gain are imminent. Apparently, that's the case: A whopping (no pun intended) two-thirds of all U.S. adults are considered overweight or obese, according to the National Center for Health Statistics.
If you're thinking to yourself, but the sweets I eat are low-fat or even nonfat, check the nutrition labels. Many of the snack cakes and cookies hitting the market these days wave the nonfat banner, but are overloaded with sugar to make up for the difference in taste. Use common sense, a nutrition label featuring a high amount of sugar and calories, but severely low amounts of vitamins, minerals, fiber and protein, should be a red flag. Studies show that excess sugar in the American diet suppresses immunity, reduces the ability of white blood cells to kill germs, can alter attention span and behavior, and promotes heart disease.
(the average weight for a U.S. adult, as of 2006), you consume approximately 66 percent of your body weight in sugar every year.
According to Dr. Barry Sears, author of The Zone Diet, sweets can have an effect on the body similar to an addictive drug. Sugar releases endorphins or "feel-good" hormones that provide a high. But every peak has a trough and that's when cravings take hold. The good news is, there are other ways to stimulate the release of endorphins and other well-being hormones, and even keep them steady all day long.
By following the five guidelines listed below, you can reduce your intake of simple sugars and thus reduce your risk of diabetes and obesity. By replacing your consumption of simple sugars with complex sugars, you will feel better and take the stress off your body. This will lead to a longer, healthier life.
2. Graze On Healthy Snacks Throughout The Day.
healthy snacks accessible all throughout the day and use them to keep you satisfied (not full).
3. Drink Water. Lots Of Water.
iced herbal tea with you to combat sugar attacks.
4. Cut Back On Caffeine.
Plain and simple, caffeine can cause a drop in blood sugar levels. Switch to herbal tea if possible.
5. Grab A Piece Of All-Natural Fruit.
sugar levels on a rollercoaster ride, and the fiber in the fruit will fill you up.
Julie Engebretson is an associate editor for To Your Health.


Story updated 2:15 p.m. July 1 to reflect Walker spokesman declining comment, Sen. Glenn Grothman comments.
Kevin Kennedy, asked what's happened to public financing of elections in Wisconsin, sums it up succinctly: "It's all gone."And Kennedy, executive director of the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, played a role in its elimination.
What happened, he explains, is that Gov. Scott Walker proposed in his biennial budget to change how the state's public financing system is funded. But the Legislature's Joint Finance Committee, after hearing from Kennedy that this would create a purely token program, decided to do away with it entirely.
The change, which became official when Walker signed the budget on June 26, effectively ends the state's 33-year-old system of providing public funding to candidates who agree to abide by overall spending limits.
"There's no longer any mechanism in the statute for a candidate to get public financing," says Kennedy, the top overseer of the state's elections.
Currently, Wisconsin taxpayers are asked on the state's income tax forms whether to designate $3 to the Wisconsin Election Campaign Fund and Democracy Trust Fund. This amount, increased from $1 to cover Supreme Court races, does not decrease the amount of their tax refund or increase their tax obligation.
Walker proposed making contributions to public financing an "add-on" donation, similar to nine others now on the state's forms. These include donations for endangered resources, a Packers football stadium, a Veterans Trust Fund and prostate cancer research. Here any donation decreases the taxpayers' refund or increases the amount owed.
Kennedy says the change, consistent with the view that those who support public financing should foot the bill, would have "significantly reduced the amount of money coming in" to fund public financing.
"We were taking in maybe $200,000 a year from the checkoff," says Kennedy. But he estimates, based on the performance of other funds listed on the tax forms, as well as the experience of other states, this amount would have dropped to between $10,000 and $30,000.
Rather than maintain this token program, Kennedy suggested the state redirect the more than $900,000 in the Wisconsin Election Campaign Fund to pay for the costs of implementing the state's new Voter ID law.
The judicial fund was in place for only one election, this spring, when Supreme Court contenders received grants of $100,000 for the primary and $300,000 for the general election.
Wisconsin's system, adopted in 1978, was "one of the first and best public campaign financing laws in the nation," according to the nonpartisan Center for Governmental Studies. But in 1986 the Legislature nixed a provision that tied grant amounts to inflation, reducing the available funds and the size of the grants. Participation in the voluntary check-off also has steadily declined.
Heck notes that few candidates for public office in Wisconsin accept public financing — and the spending limits that go along with it — because the grant amounts are so low and the cost of modern elections so high.
In 2010, according to records provided by Kennedy, the Wisconsin Election Campaign Fund allocated $315,127 to candidates for statewide or legislative office. For example, grants to the 24 funded Assembly candidates ranged from $13 to $7,763, the maximum for those races.
Justice Shirley Abrahamson was the top recipient of support from attorneys whose cases reached the Supreme Court, pulling in $188,650 over the past 11 years, a Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism analysis shows. Overall, justices tended to rule in favor of clients whose attorneys contributed to the justices' election campaigns.


Come by the Veterans Lounge at the Memorial Union, grab a bite to eat and get connected with some of our service providers here on campus.
I'll be there, hope to see you there.
Please join us Friday, November 21 in Austin 300 at 1PM for a discussion on "How to Successfully Transition from the Military to Business" hosted by Intel. Please RSVP to brandi.fuhrman@oregonstate.edu.
Posted in Employment, Events, Uncategorized.