Abstract: With respect to each part at which a word included in a characteristic condition defining a characteristic text set designated by a user through the input device appears in text, the characteristic condition assurance degree calculating unit of the text mining device obtains a reliability of the word from the word reliability storage unit to operate a value of a characteristic condition assurance degree for each text by predetermined operation based on all the obtained reliabilities. The characteristic condition assurance degree calculating unit executes operation such that when a value of each reliability is large, a value of a degree of assurance becomes large. The representative text output unit outputs text whose characteristic condition assurance degree is the highest among texts whose characteristic condition assurance degrees are calculated together with its characteristic condition assurance degree.

Abstract: Techniques are described for managing access of executing programs to non-local block data storage. In some situations, a block data storage service uses multiple server storage systems to reliably store network-accessible block data storage volumes that may be used by programs executing on other physical computing systems. A group of multiple server block data storage systems that store block data volumes may in some situations be co-located at a data center, and programs that use volumes stored there may execute on other physical computing systems at that data center. If a program using a volume becomes unavailable, another program (e.g., another copy of the same program) may in some situations obtain access to and continue to use the same volume, such as in an automatic manner in some such situations.

Abstract: The present invention provides a system, method and software for linking persistent and unique business identifiers, associated with business entities, for associating corresponding business records without a loss of historical records, regardless of subsequent changes, updates, and mergers. In the various embodiments, a first business record, of the plurality of business records, is associated with a first business identifier; and a second business record, which does not match the first record, is associated with a second business identifier.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for a recommendation system based on collaborative filtering is provided. Explicit and implicit ratings of items by network users are used to create a contextual model. The explicit ratings comprise different rating types regarding different item attributes. The implicit ratings comprise different rating types derived from different user events and may include recency, intensity, or frequency ratings. The contextual model may be optimized for a specific objective function, such as click-through-rate or conversion rate. In other embodiments, item information is used to produce a content model where item information for an item is encoded as metadata into a document that represents the item. The contextual or content model is used to recommend one or more items to a current user. The basic unit of the recommendation system may be an item set of two or more items or a particular sequence of two or more items.

Abstract: At power-on again, a restore processing unit restores block information tables from a primary storage to a volatile memory. After classifying the block information tables into group-specific links of a plurality of time zones, a first sort processing unit connects the group-specific links to form a group classification link. Then, a second sort processing unit sequentially retrieves the block information tables of the group classification link from the earliest time stamp side for insertion in a position so as to achieve a time-stamp ascending order, thereby reconfiguring the links.

Abstract: A system and method for identifying crawl paths of a web cruise operation, where each crawl path represents successive uniform resource locator (URL) nodes in a parent/child relationship. One or more seed URLs are identified for the web cruise operation, each seed URL defining an origination of at least one crawl path. A set of attributes of each parent URL in each crawl path are identified to be inherited by one or more child URLs found in the web cruise operation. Then, each child URL is associated with the set of attributes identified for all parent URLs in the crawl path.

Abstract: In some embodiments, a method for providing a graphical user interface for displaying search results includes displaying a graphical representation of search results and parent categories for such search results, wherein individually graphically displayed search results appear within their respective parent categories, each search result representing an item of merchandise and each parent category relating to the type of merchandise included within such parent category.

Abstract: A system identifies a document and obtains one or more types of history data associated with the document. The system may generate a score for the document based, at least in part, on the one or more types of history data.

Abstract: The antenna configuration presented is an integral component of a retrofit module designed to incorporate a data telemetry transceiver within the confines of a utility meter.

Abstract: The present invention relates generally to laser diodes, and particularly to an operational amplifier able to switch laser diodes on and off quickly without adversely affecting data transmission by the laser diodes. A differential amplifier included in an operational amplifier has a high transconductance when a laser diode is first turned on and a low, near constant transconductance when the laser diode is transmitting data. The operational amplifier is preferably incorporated in optoelectronic transceivers used in passive optical networks. Switching laser diodes on and off quickly enables more efficient use of network bandwidth in such passive optical networks.

Abstract: A vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser comprises one or more quantum well layers and one or more barrier layers to define an gain region, a first mirror means and a second mirror means, wherein the first and second mirror means define a resonator. Moreover, the vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser further comprises a first indium phosphide layer adjacent to the gain region and a second indium phosphide layer adjacent to the gain region to define a laser cavity.

Abstract: A VCSEL has an active layer, a photodetector in one of the DBR gratings and with a radiation-absorbing layer that is arranged in an antinode of a laser mode. The laser and the photodetector are electrically driven by a common contact on a thick, heavily doped spacer layer that ensures low laser impedance and little electrical crosstalk between the laser and the photodetector.

Abstract: The invention features an edge-emitting semiconductor signal laser having an active region to produce laser light. There is provided a semiconductor pump laser monolithically integrated with the edge-emitting signal laser. The pump laser includes a photon emissive active region to provide photopumping of the active region of the edge-emitting signal laser, thereby providing optical excitation of the active region of the signal laser.

Abstract: A diode-pumped laser is disclosed with internal frequency doubling to prevent interfering power fluctuations in the laser radiation generated by the non-linear crystal at the start of the power adjustment in a simple and, therefore, inexpensive construction without power-reducing elements in the cavity or thermal effects having a negative impact on the laser behavior. The laser contains, as laser-active medium, a solid-state laser crystal with a temperature gradient directed substantially parallel to the cavity axis. The conversion of laser radiation of a fundamental laser wavelength into laser radiation of another wavelength is carried out by a non-linear optical crystal with a lower non-linear conversion efficiency than that required for achieving maximum power of the converted laser radiation. The laser can be used particularly for medical purposes, e.g., in the field of ophthalmology for coagulation of the retina as well as in the field of dermatology.

Abstract: In accordance with the invention, there is provided a device having a first portion with at least one quantum well, where the first portion emits light, a spacer layer, and a second portion with an amplifying region with at least one quantum well, where the device is configured so that the spacer layer transmits the light beam emitted by the first portion and the amplifying region increases the intensity of the light beam. In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing a vertical cavity surface emitting laser having the steps of, forming a first portion, having at least one quantum well, that emits light, forming a spacer layer made of a material that is transmissive of light emitted from the first portion, forming a second portion having at least one quantum well, where the second portion is positioned over the spacer layer and the spacer layer is positioned over the first portion.

Abstract: A process of producing a high energy chemical oxygen-iodine laser, including the steps of obtaining a quantity of oxygen in the singlet delta energy state [O2(a1&Dgr;)], combining the O2(a1&Dgr;) with a quantity of non-reactive carrier gas, combining the singlet delta oxygen and carrier gas with a non-reactive iodine donor gas and homogenizing the entire mixture, creating and maintaining an electrical discharge plasma downstream from a nozzle, passing the homogenized mixture through the nozzle and the discharge plasma at supersonic speeds to dissociate the iodine into free iodine atoms and directing the flow of gasses and free iodine atoms into the optical cavity laser action region of a laser.

Abstract: A semiconductor laser device includes a semiconductor laser element having a pair of cleavage planes which allows laser oscillation therebetween in a plurality of Fabry-Perot modes, an external resonator being coupled to the semiconductor laser element and including a wavelength selection element which has a passband including more than one wavelength of more than one Fabry-Perot mode out of the plurality of Fabry-Perot modes, and a high-frequency superimposing unit which superimposes a high-frequency current on a driving current of the semiconductor laser element.

Abstract: A semiconductor laser diode including: a resonator structure including a first facet having a reflection film and a second facet having an antireflection film; and an active region including a linear section a uniform width extending from the first facet along a direction of the resonator and a flared section extending from the linear section toward the second facet, the flared section having a tapered width increasing toward the second facet, wherein the relation of d<&lgr;0/{2·(2·n0·&Dgr;n)0.5} holds. The semiconductor laser diode which emits in a stabled fundamental mode can be realized by satisfying the above relation for increasing the effect for suppressing the spatial hole-burning phenomenon.

Abstract: Apparatus for use in tuning a tunable optical device to a target wavelength, the apparatus comprising: a beam splitter for tapping a portion of the light emerging from the tunable optical device; a walk-off reflector for dividing the portion of the light emerging from the beam splitter into a plurality of beams; a multiple etalon for tailoring the light from at least two of the plurality of beams provided by the walk-off reflector; a multiple detector for detecting light from the multiple etalon and the walk-off reflector, the multiple detector providing a plurality of output signals; and a control unit for controlling the tunable optical device by providing a control signal to the tunable optical device according to the output signals provided by the multiple detector.

Abstract: A semiconductor laser, includes: a first cladding layer; an active layer that is formed on top of the first cladding layer; a second cladding layer that is formed on top of the active layer and has a different type of conductivity to the first cladding layer; an etch-stop layer that is formed on top of the second cladding layer and has a same type of conductivity as the second cladding layer; and a light-confining construction that is formed on top of the etch-stop layer by an etching process. The etch-stop layer has a surface part that contacts the light-confining construction. This surface part is composed of an (AlxGa1−x)yIn1−yP semiconductor, where 0.2≦x<0.7 and 0<y≦1.