Abstract: A practice selection method is provided. The method comprises recording first information describing one or more characteristics of a first project in at least one storage medium; determining whether a first practice is likely to have a successful impact on the first project based on the first information; and suggesting the first practice, in response to determining that the first practice is likely to have a successful impact on the first project. The first information may comprise subjective and objective information and may also be used to select a second practice for a second project.

Abstract: Aspects of the present invention provide systems and methods relating to aggregated access to healthcare information. One aspect of the invention relates to providing a single point of access to multiple stakeholders with respect to a medical case that may include information from multiple healthcare providers.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention provide a solution for service-supporting resources (e.g., IT resources such as processor, storage, network, etc.). Specifically, the present invention will first create a resource configuration data repository that includes resource scaling capabilities of a set of IT resources. A unit of work data repository that includes details of jobs handled by the IT resources will also be included. Then, a profile will be created for the set of IT resources, the profile typically including information related to a service demand, a capacity, a utilization, and a performance of the set of IT resources. Resource utilization and performance data (e.g., historical and/or real-time data) will then be collected. Using the resource configuration data repository, the unit of work data repository, the profile, and the resource utilization and performance data, a scaling strategy will be generated/developed and implemented for the IT resources.

Abstract: Various embodiments provide a scheduling system structured for generating at least one posting to fill a vacant post on a schedule. In an embodiment, the scheduling system includes a scheduling database and an automated rotation tool. The scheduling database includes a personnel roster and a schedule. The schedule includes a vacant post. The scheduling database transmits the schedule and the personnel roster to the automated rotation tool. The automated rotation tool includes a computer system, and receives the personnel roster and the vacant post beginning within the vacancy window from the scheduling database, and also receives a rule, a parameter, and a vacancy window. The automated rotation tool generates a posting assigning a person from the personnel roster to the vacant post according to the rule and the parameter, and transmits the posting to the scheduling database.

Abstract: The present invention improves upon existing systems and methods by providing a passive profile creation method. The data accessible to a financial processor, such as spend level data, is leveraged using sophisticated data clustering and/or data appending techniques. Associations are established among entities (e.g., consumers), among merchants, and between entities and merchants. In one embodiment, a system and method for passively collecting spend level data for a transaction of a first entity, aggregating the collected spend level data for a plurality of entities; and clustering the first entity with a subset of the plurality of entities, based on aggregated spend level data of the first entity is provided.

Abstract: An integrated business decision-making system is provided. The system comprises a data processing component, a prediction component and an optimization component. The data processing component is configured to process observational data related to one or more members of a target population. The prediction component is configured to predict a business measure based on one or more selected combinations of marketing actions and the observational data related to one or more of the members of the target population. The optimization component is configured to determine an optimal marketing action based on one or more of the selected combinations of marketing actions and the predicted business measure associated with each of the marketing actions. The optimization component is further configured to determine an optimal predicted business measure for the members of the target population, based on the optimal marketing action.

Abstract: A method of authenticating an applicant. A history is obtained of transactions performed on an account held by the applicant and for which the applicant has been previously authenticated. The transaction history includes information about each transaction. The applicant is asked one or more questions relating to the information in the history. Answers to the one or more questions are received from the applicant, and a decision is made based on the received answers and the transaction history whether the applicant is authenticated. The applicant may be applying for enrollment in a service, and enrollment may be accepted or declined based on whether the applicant is authenticated. The account may relate to a payment instrument, and the authentication may be performed by an entity other than the issuer of the payment instrument.

Abstract: A method of identifying target businesses with above-average potential to achieve a selected financial performance target, in accordance with the principles of one embodiment of this invention comprises identifying a plurality of model businesses which have already achieved the selected financial performance target; identifying financial statistics common to the identified model businesses; and screening target businesses for the financial statistics common to the identified businesses. The financial statistics preferably include: at least one of historic annual sales, annual sales growth rates, and time since found to exceed selected annual sales thresholds, gross margins, SG&D, R & D expense, EBIDTA, cash flow from operations, market capitalization.

Abstract: A system has been disclosed which allows improved sexual interaction between two individuals who are in separate locations or between one user and computer game software. One component of the system measures the displacement of a fluid that occurs when an object is inserted into an orifice to create digital data, which data can be transmitted to a remote location or used in software on the local computer. Another component of the system responds to a data signal that is received from a remote location or generated on the local computer and generates thrusting movement of a phallic object which movement is related to said data signal.

Abstract: Lead distribution systems and methods distribute consumer business leads received from lead sources for routing to one or more destinations that will use the lead and/or will forward the lead to another destination. The system identifies a set of most profitable destinations for each lead, while complying with business rules associated with the lead source and the destinations. For each lead, the system identifies a set of candidate destinations, each with associated business rules. The candidate destinations may include destinations with which the system has established business rules, destinations with which the lead source has established business rules, or both. For leads that may be multi-distributed, different business rules may apply to each time the lead is distributed. When both the lead distribution system and the source have different business rules established with a destination, the rules established by the source may take precedence over those of the lead distribution system.

Abstract: A system and method for facilitating consistent management of a repeatable contract audit, resolution and recovery process is disclosed. A methodology that tightly defines the contract audit, resolution and recovery events enables an audit team to evaluate supplier performance against a contract, ascertain the existing health of a contract, and identify opportunities to improve and/or re-engineer a contracting process. The method begins with a meeting with a client, followed by a meeting with the supplier, and progresses to a process review, data collection, and a data analysis, which results in recommendations that are presented to the supplier based on the findings of the audit team. The audit team then works with the supplier to resolve any issues identified by the data analysis.

Abstract: A system and method are provided for trading a tradeable object. One example apparatus includes a microprocessor, a graphical user comprising a first screen region having a plurality of locations in the first screen region, each location corresponding to a price level along a first axis and a time along a second axis. The apparatus also comprises a user input device for sending a command to initiate placement of a timed trade order, and an indicator being dynamically displayed in one of the plurality locations of the first screen region and corresponding to the timed order. In one example embodiment, the indicator dynamically moves over time relative to the second axis indicating a time until the order will be automatically sent to a computerized matching process.

Abstract: A method for providing an electronic payment system includes receiving, in conjunction with a purchase by a buyer using a personal computing device in the purchase of content, a mobile telephone number of the buyer. The electronic payment system transmits, to a mobile communications device of the buyer, information to which the buyer must respond to authorize the purchase. The electronic payment system causes, following receipt of a reply to the information sent to the buyer's mobile communications device, a monetary amount corresponding to the price to be paid for the content to be charged to a mobile subscriber account corresponding to the mobile telephone number of the buyer. Methods further include processing a payment for a purchase at a POS terminal at a retail location based upon entry of the mobile telephone number of the buyer into the POS terminal.

Abstract: Advertisements are selected from a plurality of advertisements and associated with an advertisement environment in a document. Document advertisement request code that is configured to issue an advertisement request for one of the selected advertisements for presentation in the advertisement environment is stored in the document.

Abstract: Techniques are described for dynamically generating recommendations for users, such as for products and other items. In at least some situations, the techniques include using multiple recommendation strategies, such as by aggregating recommendation results from multiple different recommendation strategies. Such recommendation strategies may have various forms, and may be based at least in part on data regarding prior interactions of numerous users with numerous items. In addition, information about current selections of a particular user may be gathered based at least in part on providing a GUI (“graphical user interface”) for display to the user that includes selectable information about numerous recommended items, and dynamically updating the displayed GUI with newly generated recommendations of items as the user makes selections of particular displayed recommended items (e.g.

Abstract: A method of tracking productivity and utilization information regarding an individual of an organization. The method including entering via an input device information regarding the individual into a database that: 1) identifies each direct task worked on by the individual during a session of work, 2) direct time applied to each of the identified direct tasks during the session of work, and 3) a number of units processed or completed for each of the identified direct tasks corresponding to each of the applied direct times. The method further including displaying on a display information regarding productivity and utilization for the individual based on the direct tasks, the direct times and the number of units that are present in the database.

Abstract: A system and method are provided for chart pattern recognition and analysis. In one embodiment, a graphical interface is provided to enable a trader to select a portion of a chart to be used in the chart pattern analysis. The pattern of the selected portion of the chart could then be used to find one or more similar chart patterns in a user-defined timeframe, such as any future time period or a time period in the past. When a reoccurring chart pattern is found in any future time period, an alert signal can be generated to alert a user of a possibility of the chart pattern reoccurrence. Alternatively, chart pattern matches can be found in a time period in the past, and a set of studies can be applied to the found matches to generate a set of reoccurring indicator values. The reoccurring indicator values can be used in combination with the chart pattern to detect any similar chart patterns in the future.

Abstract: A mobile terminal capable of causing the user side to grasp whether or not a credit settlement service stops with a simple operation is provided. In the mobile terminal 10, validation and invalidation of a storage area within an IC chip assigned to an issuer application corresponding to one issuer are switched based on switching instruction information received from an issuer terminal 20 managed by one issuer. Then, when the issuer application starts, there is displayed in a lump whether or not the respective issuer applications are available on a display part 16, based on state information indicating whether or not the respective storage areas are validated. Therefore, in the mobile terminal 10, even if plural issuer applications are stored, it is possible to cause the user side to grasp which kind of the credit settlement service stops, with a simple operation of only starting a management application.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method prepares data for modeling. The method comprises storing data from customer sales transactions in a database and retrieving a dataset of the data from the database. The dataset may include promotion and merchandizing entries. The method includes cleansing the dataset to remove erroneous and anomalous entries. Cleansing the dataset may include determining a threshold value from the dataset and determining whether a value of the dataset exceeds the threshold value, and determining an out-of-stock status for a product from the dataset. The method includes aggregating the dataset over a plurality of dimensions of the transactional space including store, product, and time dimensions, and analyzing the dataset following the cleansing and aggregating steps within a model to predict attributes of subsequent sales transactions.

Abstract: A commodity trust is provided by a Trustee for a particular commodity. Commodity shares are backed by the Trustee's custody of the actual commodity. For example, commodity shares are created and issued when a trust participant deposits an amount of the commodity with the Trustee or a custodian acting on behalf of the Trustee. After confirmation of the receipt of the commodity, an amount of commodity shares is issued by the Trustee, which is equal in value to the value of the commodity.