The Beneblog is a weblog by Benetech CEO Jim Fruchterman, on issues and ideas that affect the application of technology to unmet social needs.

]+>(.*)<\/a>)/misU", $str)) { return substr($str, 0, $maxlen); } // remove images $str = preg_replace("//misU", "", $str); // remove images that only had inside $str = preg_replace("/]+><\/a>/misU","", $str); while (preg_match("/(]+>(.*)<\/a>)/misU", $str, $m, PREG_OFFSET_CAPTURE)) { $index = $m[1][1]; $atext = $m[1][0]; $text = $m[2][0]; $alen = strlen($atext); $textlen = strlen($text); $curlen = strlen($mystr); if ($curlen > $maxlen) return $mystr; $addtext = substr($str, 0, $index+$alen); $addtextlen = strlen($addtext) - ($alen - $textlen); # empty if ($textlen == 0) { // $str = substr($str, 0, $index-1) . substr($str, $index+strlen($m[1][0])); $str = ""; continue; } if ($curlen + $addtextlen > $maxlen) { if ($mystr == "") { # if first thing is after max, just return first maxlen if ($index > $maxlen) return substr($str, 0, $maxlen); else return substr($str, 0, $index); } return $mystr; } $mystr .= $addtext; $str = substr($str, $index + $alen); } // print_r("HERE: $mystr LEN: ".strlen($mystr)."\n"); // print_r("STR: $str"); // if we get here, we have handled all the links and are still // less than the $maxlen value, so start adding words if (!empty($str) && strlen($mystr) < $maxlen) { $str = str_replace(" "," ", $str); $arr = explode(" ", $str); foreach ($arr as $word) { $len = strlen(strip_tags($word,"")); $curlen = strlen($mystr); // print_r("WORD: $word LEN: $len CURLEN: $curlen MAX: ${maxlen}\n"); if ($len+$curlen > $maxlen) break; $mystr .= "$word "; } } // print_r("FINALLEN: ".strlen($mystr)); return $mystr; } // grab the first entry if (preg_match("/(.*)<\/entry>/misU", $data, $m)) { $data = $m[0]; } if (preg_match("/\(.*)\<\/title\>/misU", $data, $m)) { $title = $m[1]; } if (preg_match("/(.*)<\/content>/misU", $data, $m)) { if (preg_match("/\(.*)\<\/div\>/misU", $m[1], $n)) $content = $n[1]; else $content = $m[1]; // remove any CDATA if (preg_match("/!\[CDATA\[(.*)\]\]/misU", $content, $m)) { $content = $m[1]; } // Rita says we should fix this $content = preg_replace("/.*/imsU", "

", $content); // replace newlines that are followed by simple text with a p tag $content = preg_replace("/\n([A-Za-z0-9\"\'])/", "

\\1", $content); } if (preg_match("/(.*)<\/updated>/misU", $data, $m)) { $posted = $m[1]; } if (preg_match("//misU", $data, $m)) { $link = $m[1]; } $content = strip_tags($content, "

"); $out = sprintf("%s", nicetime($posted)); $out .= "
$title
"; // ugh, new blogger does something funky $content = preg_replace("/<a /", '', $content); $content = preg_replace("/\<\;br \/\>\;/i", '
', $content); //print_r(strlen($content) . " - " . $maxlen); if (strlen($content) > $maxlen) { $content = smartSplit($content); $content .= sprintf("...

"); } $out .= sprintf("
%s", $content); ?>

Beneblog Continues...

The Benetech business model: sustainable technology solutions for
social needs with a focus on ROH - Return on Humanity. Learn more about our business model.

Web Hosting donated by Hurricane Electric Internet Services

Benetech is hiring! Check out our open positions.

Benetech's HRDAG Releases Report on the Missing In Colombia

December 6, 2007 — Benetech's Human Rights Data Analysis Group (HRDAG) has released a report which provides a scientific estimation of the number of missing people in the Colombian department or state of Casanare, including those who have never been documented. The report will help guide further investigations of homicides and missing persons across Colombia where data collection efforts are vital to understanding the magnitude, trends and patterns of this phenomenon.

The report, "Missing People In Casanare" estimates that the total number of missing persons in Casanare from 1986-2007 is 2,553 compared to the 1,544 persons reported missing during this period. This analysis suggests that between thirty and forty percent of missing persons in Casanare were unreported during this period. While the rate of undocumented missing persons in Casanare does not represent the rate that could be found in all of Colombia's 32 departments, the report argues that additional data should be gathered throughout the country and made available for rigorous analysis by statisticians and social scientists. More information on the report can be found on Colombia project page of the HRDAG web site.

New York Times Quotes Benetech CEO On Charitable Giving For A Financial and Social Return

November 12, 2007 — The New York Times has quoted Benetech CEO Jim Fruchterman in a holiday Giving Section story on Silicon Valley entrepreneurs who are using their business acumen to transform their charitable giving to mission-oriented investing for both a financial and social return. The story, "With Sudden Wealth, the Desire for Sudden Impact" includes Fruchterman's observation that an increasing number of people are deploying capital in for-profit initiatives that have a social outcome.

"Within a 10-mile radius of Palo Alto, there are a couple of thousand families that could give $50 million to a social cause and fundamentally change some issue," Fruchterman said. "You could do a lot with $50 million, or even $10 million. You could cure a disease, or revolutionize services to an impoverished part of the world."

See more updates in Media Resources.

Help us develop technology solutions that will profoundly transform and improve the lives of others. Your investment will enable us to continue our global programs and expand our work as we take on new challenges. Learn more about supporting Benetech.

See who else is supporting us and making our work possible.