Abstract: According to an embodiment, a biodiversity evaluation index calculation apparatus includes following units. The first calculation unit calculates, for each region, a vegetation/living-animal coefficient by referring to a vegetation database. The second calculation unit calculates, for each region, a biodiversity value based on a type of a reserve and the vegetation/living-animal coefficient by referring to a reserve geography database. The third calculation unit calculates, for each mine, a biodiversity evaluation, index by referring to a mine database which describes a position,, an output, a purity, and a mineral species for each -nine, the biodiversity evaluation index representing a mining impact on biodiversity.

Abstract: An apparatus includes: an acquiring unit configured to acquire a measured image including a cloud and a reference article; a specifying unit configured to specify a first area of the reference article in the measured image; a determining unit configured to determine whether or not the cloud exists on the near side of the reference article in the measured image; a position estimating unit configured to estimate the position of the cloud, if the cloud exists on the near side of the reference article, from a second area of the cloud in the measured image and the height and position of the reference article acquired from the information storage unit; an attenuation rate calculating unit configured to calculate a first luminance, which is a luminance of the second area of the measured image, and a second luminance, which is a luminance of the corresponding second area for the reference image acquired from the image storage unit, and calculating the attenuating rate of light from the first luminance and the second

Abstract: A medical image retrieval system includes an image database which stores medical images. An interpretation unit acquires a currently diagnosed image for use in performing interpretation of one of the medical images and provides the currently diagnosed image to a computer terminal. An image requesting unit issues an image request associated with the currently diagnosed image. An image retrieval unit retrieves a reference image from the image database in accordance with the image request and provides the reference image to the computer terminal in order to propose the reference image as references for diagnosis. An evaluation input unit prompts to input an evaluation indicating whether the reference image has been helpful for diagnosis based on the currently diagnosed image.

Abstract: A medical image retrieval system includes an image database which stores medical images. An interpretation unit acquires a currently diagnosed image for use in performing interpretation of one of the medical images and provides the currently diagnosed image to a computer terminal. An image requesting unit issues an image request associated with the currently diagnosed image. An image retrieval unit retrieves a reference image from the image database in accordance with the image request and provides the reference image to the computer terminal in order to propose the reference image as references for diagnosis. An evaluation input unit prompts to input an evaluation indicating whether the reference image has been helpful for diagnosis based on the currently diagnosed image.

Abstract: An association rule extraction apparatus extracts an association rule from time series data including events. A characteristic part extraction section extracts a characteristic change part from time series data of each event as an event sequence. The event sequence includes at least a start time of the characteristic change part as attribute data. An association rule extraction section extracts the association rule representing a tendency among the events in accordance with the attribute data.

Abstract: A method and a system for displaying multimedia data including video data. A display of video data and related information are controlled according to a movement of a pointing selection marker, a type of related information, or a distribution of pointing selection possible regions over frames of video data. Linked related information can be displayed in synchronization with a progress of a display of the video data. Information indicating a presence/absence of pointing selection possible region for currently displayed video data can also be displayed. A useful information can be obtained by collecting a statistical information on the desired positions specified by the user's pointing selection inputs. Each frame of video data can be partitioned and related information can be provided in correspondence to partitioned parts of each frame.

Abstract: A mutual credit server apparatus sends credit information about a seller to an inquiring buyer on a computer. Stored is a direct confidence degree about a seller from the point of view of each of a plurality of buyers. The direct confidence degree is determined by each buyer based on direct trade history. Also stored is a buyer confidence degree about each of the plurality of buyers from the point of view of each buyer. The buyer confidence degree is determined by each buyer based upon trade information from the other buyers. When a confidence inquiry is made about a seller by a buyer, a processing section calculates a total confidence degree about the seller and calculates a buyer confidence degree about each of the other buyers, each calculation being made from the viewpoint of the inquiring buyer.

Abstract: This invention relates to a dialing control method in a system, which comprises a PBX, a plurality of telephones connected to the PBX, a host computer connected to the PBX, and a plurality of operator terminals connected to the host computer, and in which an outbound task program runs on each terminal, and the host computer predicts a conversation completion timing of each operator for one called party, performs automatic dialing in accordance with a called party list prior to the completion of the conversation, and connects an answered call to the telephone corresponding to a free operator. The conversation completion timing is detected in advance by detecting execution of a specific portion of the program on the operator terminal, and the number of calls to be automatically originated is determined on the basis of the number of operators, whose conversation completion timings are detected in advance.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus for the concurrency control in the database system, in which each transaction can be executed properly according to its scale. In the apparatus, a processing time for each transaction is estimated, a timestamp appropriate for each transaction is determined from the estimated processing time and a current time, and a concurrency control is carried out according to the determined timestamps for the transactions to be executed concurrently.

Abstract: A database management system has a plurality of nodes each having a computer, a database and a clock. The nodes are interconnected by a communication line. Each database stores a plurality of data for processing. When a transaction request is generated at a first node, a transaction management section of the first node computer determines which node database(s) includes necessary data for executing the transaction. A maximum delay decision section of the first node computer determines the maximum delay for sending an instruction to all of the nodes having necessary data. A locktime decision section of the first node computer determines a locktime according to the maximum delay determined and the current time of the clock. Then, a transaction management section of the first node computer sends the locktime through the communication line as a lock instruction to the node(s) having the necessary data.