Abstract: Methods, systems, and computer program products determine, for a number of individuals having a common interest, locations relevant to that common interest. Each individual possesses a user terminal that has a location and executes a messaging application. During the course of a messaging conversation, the application transmits search parameters to a central server. The search parameters may be entered manually or determined automatically by analyzing the conversation. The server identifies clusters of locations that satisfy the search parameters in addition to satisfying geographic proximity to the participants in the conversation. The server scores the clusters, and transmits to the user terminal data relating thereto, for integrated display in the messaging application. Relevant advertising may be identified and transmitted for contemporaneous display.

Abstract: A method and system for automated generation of social networks. A graphical user interface receives a user query for an entity of interest, and outputs a graphical network showing entities and associations related to the entity of interest. A search engine interface transmits the query to a search engine, and receives references to documents. A named entity extractor downloads a selection of the documents, and generates a list of named entities referenced in the downloaded documents. A network inference module receives each list of named entities, and generates associations between the named entities in each list. An entity matcher operates on the associations to consolidate them in instances wherein differently named entities are determined to be the same named entity, and provides a consolidated list of named entities and associations to the user interface for display as a graphical network.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and computer program products determine, for a number of individuals having a common interest, locations relevant to that common interest. Each individual possesses a user terminal that has a location and executes a messaging application. During the course of a messaging conversation, the application transmits search parameters to a central server. The search parameters may be entered manually or determined automatically by analyzing the conversation. The server identifies clusters of locations that satisfy the search parameters in addition to satisfying geographic proximity to the participants in the conversation. The server scores the clusters, and transmits to the user terminal data relating thereto, for integrated display in the messaging application. Relevant advertising may be identified and transmitted for contemporaneous display.

Abstract: Methods are provided for providing a user with real-time access to supplemental information about named entities that appear within a conversation in a messaging application on a user terminal. Named entities, conversational topics, and sentiments are recognized as the user enters messages into the application. These are provided to a semantic search engine in a server system, that classifies the named entities into one of a variety of domains. Each domain has an associated tool for retrieving detailed supplemental information about the named entity. The server system transmits, to the user terminal, indicia that allow the user terminal to retrieve the supplemental information. Advertising related to a named entity having favorable sentiment also may be transmitted to the user terminal for display. These functions occur without the need for a separate search interface in the messaging application.