Bits Blog: Facebook Unveils a New Search Tool

3:22 p.m. | Updated

Facebook on Tuesday took a stab at cracking a big, elusive problem of its own making: How to help its one billion users find what they’re looking for in the jumble of posts, pictures and blue thumbs-up “likes” they share every day.

At an event at company headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s co-founder and chief executive, announced a tool the company had spent over a year honing. He called it “graph search,” and said it would be available to a limited number of Facebook users on Tuesday — in the “thousands”— and gradually rolled out to the rest. It would enable Facebook users to search their social network for people, places, photos and things that interest them.

That might include, Mr. Zuckerberg offered, Mexican restaurants in Palo Alto that his friends have “liked” on Facebook or checked into — though not status updates as yet. The tool might be used to find a date, or a job, Facebook executives said. “Graph search is a completely new way to get information on Facebook,” Mr. Zuckerberg said.

What he didn’t say, but which was clear, was how it would try to elbow out other companies that allow you to search for other things – LinkedIn for jobs, Yelp for restaurants, Amazon for gifts to buy for a friend and, of course, Facebook’s biggest rival on the Web, Google, which dominates Web search.  Facebook is staking its bet on the sheer volume of data that it has access to; it is hoping that its users will find what they’re looking for on Facebook itself, without having to go to the rest of the Web.

And that is how Mr. Zuckerberg distinguished Facebook search from Google search, which sends you to other sites. The Facebook search tool is meant to keep you inside Facebook itself. “Web search is designed to take any open-ended query,” Mr. Zuckerberg said. “Graph search is designed to take a precise query and return to you the answer, not links to other places where you get the answer.”

Mr. Zuckerberg sought to reassure Facebook users that their posts and pictures would be found only if they want them to be found. Before the new search tool rolls out, users will get a nudge: “Please take some time to review who can see your stuff,” it will read. Facebook tweaked its privacy controls last December.

Mr. Zuckerberg said Tuesday that initially, photos posted on Instagram, which Facebook owns, would not be part of the database of photos that can be searched. He did not specify how soon graph search would be available to those who log in on cellphones.

The search tool is plainly designed with an eye to producing profits. If done right, said Brian Blau, an analyst with Gartner, the Facebook search tool could offer marketers a more precise signal of a Web user’s interests than a keyword on Google. “It’s going to lend itself to advertising or other revenue-generating products that better matches what people are looking for,” he said. “Advertisers are going to be able to better target what you’re interested in. It’s a much more meaningful search than keyword search.”

Search earns the lion’s share of advertising revenues on the Web, which is why Google makes nearly 10 times more money than Facebook on a yearly basis.

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Vital Signs: Nutrition: Vitamin D Doesn’t Reduce Knee Pain

About 27 million people in the United States have osteoarthritis, an incurable condition with few effective treatments beyond pain control. Some observational evidence suggests that vitamin D supplements might slow progression of the disease.

But a two-year randomized placebo-controlled study found that vitamin D did not reduce knee pain or restore cartilage.

In an article published in The Journal of the American Medical Association last week, researchers described a study of 146 men and women with painful knee arthritis who were randomly assigned to take vitamin D supplements or placebos. Vitamin D was given in quantities sufficient to raise blood levels to 36 nanograms per milliliter, a level considered sufficient for good health.

Knee pain decreased slightly in both groups, but there were no differences in the amount of cartilage lost, bone mineral density or joint deterioration as measured by X-rays and M.R.I. scans.

The lead author, Dr. Timothy McAlindon, chief of the division of rheumatology at Tufts Medical Center, said taking vitamin D in higher doses or for longer periods might make a difference, but he’s not hopeful.

“Although there were lots of promising observational data, we find no efficacy of vitamin D for knee osteoarthritis,” he said. “There may be reasons to take vitamin D supplements, but knee osteoarthritis is not one of them.”

Read More..

Vital Signs: Nutrition: Vitamin D Doesn’t Reduce Knee Pain

About 27 million people in the United States have osteoarthritis, an incurable condition with few effective treatments beyond pain control. Some observational evidence suggests that vitamin D supplements might slow progression of the disease.

But a two-year randomized placebo-controlled study found that vitamin D did not reduce knee pain or restore cartilage.

In an article published in The Journal of the American Medical Association last week, researchers described a study of 146 men and women with painful knee arthritis who were randomly assigned to take vitamin D supplements or placebos. Vitamin D was given in quantities sufficient to raise blood levels to 36 nanograms per milliliter, a level considered sufficient for good health.

Knee pain decreased slightly in both groups, but there were no differences in the amount of cartilage lost, bone mineral density or joint deterioration as measured by X-rays and M.R.I. scans.

The lead author, Dr. Timothy McAlindon, chief of the division of rheumatology at Tufts Medical Center, said taking vitamin D in higher doses or for longer periods might make a difference, but he’s not hopeful.

“Although there were lots of promising observational data, we find no efficacy of vitamin D for knee osteoarthritis,” he said. “There may be reasons to take vitamin D supplements, but knee osteoarthritis is not one of them.”

Read More..

Bits Blog: Facebook Unveils a New Search Tool

3:22 p.m. | Updated

Facebook on Tuesday took a stab at cracking a big, elusive problem of its own making: How to help its one billion users find what they’re looking for in the jumble of posts, pictures and blue thumbs-up “likes” they share every day.

At an event at company headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s co-founder and chief executive, announced a tool the company had spent over a year honing. He called it “graph search,” and said it would be available to a limited number of Facebook users on Tuesday — in the “thousands”— and gradually rolled out to the rest. It would enable Facebook users to search their social network for people, places, photos and things that interest them.

That might include, Mr. Zuckerberg offered, Mexican restaurants in Palo Alto that his friends have “liked” on Facebook or checked into — though not status updates as yet. The tool might be used to find a date, or a job, Facebook executives said. “Graph search is a completely new way to get information on Facebook,” Mr. Zuckerberg said.

What he didn’t say, but which was clear, was how it would try to elbow out other companies that allow you to search for other things – LinkedIn for jobs, Yelp for restaurants, Amazon for gifts to buy for a friend and, of course, Facebook’s biggest rival on the Web, Google, which dominates Web search.  Facebook is staking its bet on the sheer volume of data that it has access to; it is hoping that its users will find what they’re looking for on Facebook itself, without having to go to the rest of the Web.

And that is how Mr. Zuckerberg distinguished Facebook search from Google search, which sends you to other sites. The Facebook search tool is meant to keep you inside Facebook itself. “Web search is designed to take any open-ended query,” Mr. Zuckerberg said. “Graph search is designed to take a precise query and return to you the answer, not links to other places where you get the answer.”

Mr. Zuckerberg sought to reassure Facebook users that their posts and pictures would be found only if they want them to be found. Before the new search tool rolls out, users will get a nudge: “Please take some time to review who can see your stuff,” it will read. Facebook tweaked its privacy controls last December.

Mr. Zuckerberg said Tuesday that initially, photos posted on Instagram, which Facebook owns, would not be part of the database of photos that can be searched. He did not specify how soon graph search would be available to those who log in on cellphones.

The search tool is plainly designed with an eye to producing profits. If done right, said Brian Blau, an analyst with Gartner, the Facebook search tool could offer marketers a more precise signal of a Web user’s interests than a keyword on Google. “It’s going to lend itself to advertising or other revenue-generating products that better matches what people are looking for,” he said. “Advertisers are going to be able to better target what you’re interested in. It’s a much more meaningful search than keyword search.”

Search earns the lion’s share of advertising revenues on the Web, which is why Google makes nearly 10 times more money than Facebook on a yearly basis.

Read More..

Leon Panetta Says U.S. Has Pledged to Help France in Mali

LISBON — In a move that could draw the United States into another conflict in North Africa, the Obama administration has pledged to help the French in their fight against Islamist militants in Mali, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta said Monday. He said the assistance could include air and other logistical support.

Jacquelyn Martin/Associated Press

Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta boards a plane bound for Portugal on Monday.

The United States was already sharing intelligence with the French when their warplanes struck camps, depots and other militant positions deep inside Islamist-held territory in northern Mali on Sunday. Defense officials said that no decisions had been made about whether the United States would also offer help with midflight refueling planes and air transport, but that those options were under review.

Defense officials would not rule out the possibility that American military transport planes might land in Mali, where the United States has been conducting an ambitious counterterrorism program for years. The officials would not discuss whether the United States has deployed drone aircraft, either armed or unarmed, over Mali.

Mr. Panetta, who spoke to reporters on his plane en route to Portugal for a weeklong trip in Europe, said that the chaos in Mali was of deep concern to the administration, and he praised the French for their actions. He also said “what we have promised them is that we would work with them, to cooperate with them, to provide whatever assistance we can to try to help them in that effort.”

Mr. Panetta said that the Obama administration was deeply worried about the two extremist groups that hold large swaths of territory in northern Mali, Ansar Dine and Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, or AQIM. “We’re concerned that any time Al Qaeda establishes a base of operations, while they might not have any immediate plans for attacks in the United States and in Europe, that ultimately that still remains their objective,” he said.

For that reason, he said, “we have to take steps now to make sure that AQIM does not get that kind of traction.”

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DealBook: Dell Shares Surge After Report of Possible Buyout

Shares of Dell rose more than 12 percent early Monday afternoon after Bloomberg News reported that the personal computer maker was in talks with at least two private equity firms about going private.

A buyout of Dell would be worth more than $17 billion, based on its total enterprise value. The company has some $9 billion in debt, but $11 billion in cash at hand. A deal would make it the largest technology buyout since the $17.6 billion acquisition of Freescale Semiconductor by a group of buyers led by the Blackstone Group in 2006.

The Bloomberg report, citing two people with knowledge of the matter, said the talks were preliminary. It cautioned that the firms might not be able to line up financing.

The report of the talks comes a week after a top Dell executive, David Johnson, who was in charge of the company’s corporate strategy, including deals, left to join the Blackstone Group.

Any buyout would involve Michael Dell, who started the company out of his University of Texas dormitory room in 1984. The chief executive owns nearly 16 percent of the company.

At a Sanford C. Bernstein conference in June 2010, Mr. Dell was asked whether he had considered taking the private. “Yes,” was all he would say on the matter.

Since Michael Dell returned as chief executive six years ago, Dell has tried to move from its core business of personal computers and computer servers into the more stable and growing business of equipping corporate data centers with hardware and software. Its personal computer and associated laptop businesses, however, still accounts for about half of Dell’s revenue.

That PC business is shrinking fast. On Monday, Gartner, a market analysis firm, stated that for all of 2012 Dell sold 37.6. million PCs worldwide, a 12.3 percent drop from its 2011 shipments. It was the worst performance, in a weak market, of any major manufacturer. Dell’s drop was particularly severe in both the United States and in the fourth quarter, indicating that its erosion is accelerating. Hewlett Packard, the world’s top PC maker, shipped 6.7 percent fewer PCs in 2012, but was only modestly lower in the fourth quarter, and increased its share in the United States, Gartner said.

PCs, until recently the primary way people worked with computers and got on the Internet, are facing increasing competition from tablets and smartphones. The launch of Microsoft’s Windows 8 operating system in October, which PC makers hoped would revitalize their business, may have made things worse . Customers seem not to like Microsoft’s design and touch screen innovations.

Dell has been trying to cut its reliance on the PC business, but the company faces challenges.

Last July, Dell purchased Quest Software, a maker of software for data centers, for $2.4 billion. John Swainson, the head of Dell’s corporate software business, has said it will take five years to build a business big enough to significantly affect Dell’s performance.

In October Dell announced advanced products in servers, data storage, and computer networking. It faces tough competition in these areas, however, from H.P., I.B.M., and Oracle.

In the meantime, Dell’s stock has suffered. Before Monday, the stock price was down some 30 percent over the last 12 months.

The math for a leveraged buyout seems daunting, at least initially. Dell’s market value as of Friday was about $18.9 billion. Assuming a 30 percent takeover premium — slightly below the average for high technology L.B.O.’s last year, according to Thomson Reuters — that would value the company at about $24.6 billion.

Mr. Dell would presumable roll over his stake, which would still leave about $24.3 billion to cover. That means would-be buyers still have to stump anywhere from $6 billion to almost $8.5 billion in equity. That’s an enormous amount for even two private equity firms to cover, even assuming that these shops brought in co-investors to help out with the equity check.

And that leaves an investor consortium needing to raise $15.8 billion to more than $18 billion in debt. To say that’s a hefty sum is an understatement. But bankers have long argued that the debt markets can support an enormous amount of borrowing, as investors have shown a willingness to pay cheaply for high-yield debt in a world of near-zero interest rates.

One could also subtract Dell’s bulging cash horde, making the debt figure seem less onerous. However, given the company’s already significant debt load, the company is likely to remain highly levered even after an L.B.O.

For now, it appears that the company has some breathing room with ratings agencies, because with an A2 rating, Dell has a solidly investment grade assessment from Moody’s Investors Service.

The bigger question, then, is whether would-be buyers can assemble a bid in the first place. Shareholders and analysts alike were already skeptical that Best Buy could be taken private by a group of investors when the proposal was first announced last summer. And at that time, a potential buyout bid for the electronics retailer was valued at a relatively paltry $8.8 billion.

Read More..

Really?: The Claim: Hand Sanitizer Stops Norovirus Spread

Really?

Anahad O’Connor tackles health myths.

THE FACTS

As public health officials struggle to contain a series of viral outbreaks this winter, many people are reaching for bottles of hand sanitizer.

Studies show that alcohol-based sanitizers, particularly those with 60 percent ethanol or more, can reduce microbial counts on contaminated hands and reduce the spread of some strains of the flu. But against norovirus, the severe gastrointestinal illness gripping many parts of the country, they may be useless.

Some viruses, like influenza, are coated in lipids, “envelopes” that alcohol can rupture. But non-enveloped viruses, like norovirus, are generally not affected.

Bleach is effective against norovirus, and can be used to decontaminate countertops and surfaces. And for people, the best strategy may be washing hands with plain old soap and water.

In 2011, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention studied 91 long-term care facilities. During the winter of 2006-07, they identified 73 outbreaks, 29 of which were confirmed to be norovirus.

The facilities where staff members used alcohol-based sanitizers, were six times more likely to have an outbreak of norovirus than the facilities where the staff preferred using soap and water.

The C.D.C. says that as a means of preventing norovirus infection, alcohol-based sanitizers can be used “in addition” to hand washing, never as a substitute.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Hand sanitizers can reduce the spread of some viruses, like the flu. But against norovirus they are largely ineffective; better to use soap and water.

Read More..

Really?: The Claim: Hand Sanitizer Stops Norovirus Spread

Really?

Anahad O’Connor tackles health myths.

THE FACTS

As public health officials struggle to contain a series of viral outbreaks this winter, many people are reaching for bottles of hand sanitizer.

Studies show that alcohol-based sanitizers, particularly those with 60 percent ethanol or more, can reduce microbial counts on contaminated hands and reduce the spread of some strains of the flu. But against norovirus, the severe gastrointestinal illness gripping many parts of the country, they may be useless.

Some viruses, like influenza, are coated in lipids, “envelopes” that alcohol can rupture. But non-enveloped viruses, like norovirus, are generally not affected.

Bleach is effective against norovirus, and can be used to decontaminate countertops and surfaces. And for people, the best strategy may be washing hands with plain old soap and water.

In 2011, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention studied 91 long-term care facilities. During the winter of 2006-07, they identified 73 outbreaks, 29 of which were confirmed to be norovirus.

The facilities where staff members used alcohol-based sanitizers, were six times more likely to have an outbreak of norovirus than the facilities where the staff preferred using soap and water.

The C.D.C. says that as a means of preventing norovirus infection, alcohol-based sanitizers can be used “in addition” to hand washing, never as a substitute.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Hand sanitizers can reduce the spread of some viruses, like the flu. But against norovirus they are largely ineffective; better to use soap and water.

Read More..

DealBook: Dell Shares Surge After Report of Possible Buyout

Shares of Dell rose more than 12 percent early Monday afternoon after Bloomberg News reported that the personal computer maker was in talks with at least two private equity firms about going private.

A buyout of Dell would be worth more than $17 billion, based on its total enterprise value. The company has some $9 billion in debt, but $11 billion in cash at hand. A deal would make it the largest technology buyout since the $17.6 billion acquisition of Freescale Semiconductor by a group of buyers led by the Blackstone Group in 2006.

The Bloomberg report, citing two people with knowledge of the matter, said the talks were preliminary. It cautioned that the firms might not be able to line up financing.

The report of the talks comes a week after a top Dell executive, David Johnson, who was in charge of the company’s corporate strategy, including deals, left to join the Blackstone Group.

Any buyout would involve Michael Dell, who started the company out of his University of Texas dormitory room in 1984. The chief executive owns nearly 16 percent of the company.

At a Sanford C. Bernstein conference in June 2010, Mr. Dell was asked whether he had considered taking the private. “Yes,” was all he would say on the matter.

Since Michael Dell returned as chief executive six years ago, Dell has tried to move from its core business of personal computers and computer servers into the more stable and growing business of equipping corporate data centers with hardware and software. Its personal computer and associated laptop businesses, however, still accounts for about half of Dell’s revenue.

That PC business is shrinking fast. On Monday, Gartner, a market analysis firm, stated that for all of 2012 Dell sold 37.6. million PCs worldwide, a 12.3 percent drop from its 2011 shipments. It was the worst performance, in a weak market, of any major manufacturer. Dell’s drop was particularly severe in both the United States and in the fourth quarter, indicating that its erosion is accelerating. Hewlett Packard, the world’s top PC maker, shipped 6.7 percent fewer PCs in 2012, but was only modestly lower in the fourth quarter, and increased its share in the United States, Gartner said.

PCs, until recently the primary way people worked with computers and got on the Internet, are facing increasing competition from tablets and smartphones. The launch of Microsoft’s Windows 8 operating system in October, which PC makers hoped would revitalize their business, may have made things worse . Customers seem not to like Microsoft’s design and touch screen innovations.

Dell has been trying to cut its reliance on the PC business, but the company faces challenges.

Last July, Dell purchased Quest Software, a maker of software for data centers, for $2.4 billion. John Swainson, the head of Dell’s corporate software business, has said it will take five years to build a business big enough to significantly affect Dell’s performance.

In October Dell announced advanced products in servers, data storage, and computer networking. It faces tough competition in these areas, however, from H.P., I.B.M., and Oracle.

In the meantime, Dell’s stock has suffered. Before Monday, the stock price was down some 30 percent over the last 12 months.

The math for a leveraged buyout seems daunting, at least initially. Dell’s market value as of Friday was about $18.9 billion. Assuming a 30 percent takeover premium — slightly below the average for high technology L.B.O.’s last year, according to Thomson Reuters — that would value the company at about $24.6 billion.

Mr. Dell would presumable roll over his stake, which would still leave about $24.3 billion to cover. That means would-be buyers still have to stump anywhere from $6 billion to almost $8.5 billion in equity. That’s an enormous amount for even two private equity firms to cover, even assuming that these shops brought in co-investors to help out with the equity check.

And that leaves an investor consortium needing to raise $15.8 billion to more than $18 billion in debt. To say that’s a hefty sum is an understatement. But bankers have long argued that the debt markets can support an enormous amount of borrowing, as investors have shown a willingness to pay cheaply for high-yield debt in a world of near-zero interest rates.

One could also subtract Dell’s bulging cash horde, making the debt figure seem less onerous. However, given the company’s already significant debt load, the company is likely to remain highly levered even after an L.B.O.

For now, it appears that the company has some breathing room with ratings agencies, because with an A2 rating, Dell has a solidly investment grade assessment from Moody’s Investors Service.

The bigger question, then, is whether would-be buyers can assemble a bid in the first place. Shareholders and analysts alike were already skeptical that Best Buy could be taken private by a group of investors when the proposal was first announced last summer. And at that time, a potential buyout bid for the electronics retailer was valued at a relatively paltry $8.8 billion.

Read More..

India Ink: Woman Raped by Seven Men in Punjab, India, Police Say

NEW DELHI — Police said Sunday that a  29-year-old woman had been raped by a bus driver, a bus conductor and five other men in the north Indian state of Punjab, in an incident that recalls the recent attack in Delhi that has caused widespread outrage.

The woman boarded a bus on Friday bound for Gurdaspur, to visit her in-laws, the police chief of Gurdaspur, Raj Jit Singh, said in a telephone interview. When she got off the bus, the driver offered her a ride on his motorcycle, perhaps to her in-laws village, the police said. Instead, he took her to a nearby village where he and six other men, including the bus conductor, raped her repeatedly through the night.

The next morning, the driver dropped her at her in-laws home, where the woman told her family members of the incident, and then reported it to the police, Mr. Singh said.

Six men, including the bus driver and conductor, have been arrested, he said. All of the men are their twenties.

Gurmesh Singh, the deputy superintendent of police for the  region, said it was unclear how or why the bus driver persuaded the woman to go with him on his motorcycle. She was in a state of distress during the bus ride, Mr. Singh said, and originally refused to get off of the bus when it reached its final destination.

The Press Trust of India reported that the bus driver did not stop at her stop when requested.

The gang-rape of a woman on a moving bus in New Delhi on Dec. 16, and her subsequent death from injuries sustained during the rape, has sparked widespread protests and calls for increased policing and tougher laws against sexual assault in India.

The case against five of the men arrested in that rape is being heard this month in a special fast-track court created just for incidents of sexual assault.

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