TERRORISM: US Air Force Studies Blogs

It's a sign of the times. It's also a clear indication of the great importance blogging has attained within the scope of all information, that the USAF Office of Scientific Research today announced a $450,000, 3-year study titled "Automated Ontologically-Based Link Analysis of International Web Logs for the Timely Discovery of Relevant and Credible Information"

Dr. Brian E. Ulicny, senior scientist was quoted:

“It can be challenging for information analysts to tell what’s important in blogs unless you analyze patterns...

“We are developing an automated tool to tell analysts what bloggers are most interested in at a point in time...

“Relevance involves developing a point of focus and information related to a particular focus. Credibility is the amount of trust you have in an information source...

“Blog entries have a different structure. They are typically short and are about something external to the blog posting itself , such as a news event. It’s not uncommon for a blogger to simply state, ‘I can’t believe this happened,’ and then link to a news story...

"There might not be much of interest in the blog posting, yet the fact that the blogger called attention to this story can be significant to understanding what matters...

"A good example is the recent furor in the Muslim world over the publication of cartoons of Mohammad in a Danish newspaper. The original publication wasn’t much noticed in the West, but bloggers discussed this event that possibly contributed to riots worldwide...

“The fact that the web is a vast source of information is sometimes overlooked by military analysts. Our research goal is to provide the warfighter with a kind of information radar to better understand the information battlespace... more

Google GBUY

The Wall Street Journal confirmed today, that Google's entry into the online payments arena. Called Google GBuy, the new service allows consumers to make online transactions without a credit card. The announcement has been expected for months. Online payments competitor, PayPal, has launched PayPal Mobile, and is planning other new initiatives in an effort to deter Google's entry into the lucrative space. Paypal has over 100 million account holders. Unlike PayPal, however, Google GBuy will be closely tied to their keyword advertising business. Excerpt from the WSJ:

"Here is how the service will work: Consumers who search for items like "shoes" or "strollers" on Google’s search site will see text ads with a symbol or icon designating advertisers that accept GBuy payments. Shoppers normally would have clicked on an ad and been linked to that merchant’s Web site. Now, while they will still be linked to the merchant’s site, they will go through a different checkout process integrated with Google if they choose GBuy for their transaction. Details of the service could still change before Google’s official GBuy announcement…Google plans to charge merchants a 2.2% commission on a sale, plus 30 cents per transaction using its payment service, according to people briefed on Google’s pricing. That is higher than Pay-Pal’s lowest published rate of a 1.9% commission plus 30 cents per transaction."

GBuy, which will begin on June 28, will handle purchases between shoppers and merchants, RBC Capital Markets analyst Jordan Rohan wrote today in a note to investors. Participating sellers will be listed as ``trusted GBuy merchant'' in Google search results, he said. Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt has confirmed that Mountain View, California-based Google is working on a payment system to make it easier for users to buy products online. The move counters an initiative by EBay, the world's largest Internet auctioneer, which last month formed an alliance with Yahoo! Inc. for Internet advertising and online payments... more

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