Long-Term Preservation of Digital Records, Part I: A Theoretical Basis

The Information Revolution is making preservation of digital records an urgent issue. Archivists have grappled with the question of how to achieve this for about 15 years. We focus on limitations to preservation, identifying precisely what can be preserved and what cannot. Our answer comes from the philosophical theory of knowledge, especially its discussion about the limits of what can be communicated. Philosophers have taught that answers to critical questions have been obscured by "failure to understand the logic of our language". We can clarify difficulties by paying extremely close attention to the meaning of words such as 'knowledge', 'information', 'the original', and 'dynamic'. What is valuable in transmitted and stored messages, and what should be preserved, is an abstraction, the pattern inherent in each transmitted and stored digital record. This answer has, in fact, been lurking just below the surface of archival literature. To make progress, archivists must collaborate with software engineers. Understanding perspectives across disciplinary boundaries will be needed.

The Art of Manipulation: Agents of Influence and the Rise of the American National Security State, 1914-1960

Throughout the twentieth century, British and Chinese agents of influence, fellow travelers and their unwitting allies conducted political warfare campaigns designed to exploit America’s rising xenophobia to achieve specific diplomatic goals. The result of these “friendly” political warfare campaigns led the United States to not only fight in two world wars but also lead to a fundamental shift in U.S. foreign and domestic policy. By creating a culture of fear, these political warfare specialists influenced the U.S. political climate making it amiable toward their respective governments’ diplomatic agendas. These foreign agents infiltrated the media, created front organizations, and quietly worked behind the scenes to shape American foreign and domestic policy. During the First World War, British intelligence played on American fears by suggesting that “hyphenated” Americans might be treasonous. Patience, luck, and nerve finally paid off as a reluctant president asked Congress to declare war. Two decades later, England, once again, found itself embroiled in war. By the summer of 1940, Winston Churchill, the newly appointed British Prime Minister, knew the only way the British Empire could survive was to drag the United States into the conflict. Using the lessons learned from the Great War, British intelligence began working to drag a reluctant nation to war. British agents of influence suggested that German Fifth columnists working on American soil sought to undermine the nation. The fear of subversion helped to shift U.S. attitudes. The British were not the only nation struggling to survive. Half a world away, the Chinese fought Imperial Japan, and like the British, the Chinese began lobbying the United State for support. The British and the Chinese competed for American aid. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor did not end this competition nor did the defeat of the Axis powers. As the “Good War” ended, the British and the Chinese worked to ensure that U.S. aid would help rebuild their shattered economies. The blowback from these operations led the rise of the American national security state. This is the story of how these agents of influence and their domestic allies worked to change the course of a nation.History, Department o

The Lost Fortune of the Virginiaman: Analyzing the History of the Beale Ciphers Using Historical Land Grants

Since the mid-19th century, the mystery of the Beale ciphers has confounded cryptanalysts, intelligence agencies, historians, and treasure hunters alike. Countless works of scholarship have analyzed the story, the ciphers, and possible locations for the massive buried treasure allegedly in rural Bedford County, Virginia. However, prior methodology applied to historiography on the subject has been unsuccessful in making headway in an understanding of the history and location of the Beale treasure. In examining prior scholarship in conjunction with recorded land grants and associated archaeological scholarship, this paper proposes a new direction for research into the Beale cipher mystery and new locations to search for the treasure. In addition, this paper provides explanations as to potential members of the Beale party as not previously identified. It can be concluded that the Beale treasure has likely been moved from its original location in Virginia, and that Thomas Beale was a real person despite limited records on the matter. It can also be concluded that George Strother and Roger Weightman were most likely members of the Beale party, and these new conclusions are crucial to any future efforts to locate a potential vault

General Education Requirements: Fontbonne Catalog, 2018-2019

This catalog reflects an institution that is devoted to upholding its new, self-identified value of the common good. The addition of the Mission Core classes and restructuring of the GERs that took place in 2015 fundamentally changed how the program worked. A system that relies on Mission core being the “heart” of the GER program with “Pillars” of knowledge supporting the “structure” of Fontbonne is an important change. The institution is now focused on bringing its own version of a liberal arts education to its students rather than a more standardized one, coming close to finalizing the vision started in the 1970s.https://griffinshare.fontbonne.edu/gen-ed/1004/thumbnail.jp

Digital watermarking in medical images

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University, 05/12/2005.This thesis addresses authenticity and integrity of medical images using watermarking. Hospital Information Systems (HIS), Radiology Information Systems (RIS) and Picture Archiving and Communication Systems (P ACS) now form the information infrastructure for today's healthcare as these provide new ways to store, access and distribute medical data that also involve some security risk. Watermarking can be seen as an additional tool for security measures. As the medical tradition is very strict with the quality of biomedical images, the watermarking method must be reversible or if not, region of Interest (ROI) needs to be defined and left intact. Watermarking should also serve as an integrity control and should be able to authenticate the medical image. Three watermarking techniques were proposed. First, Strict Authentication Watermarking (SAW) embeds the digital signature of the image in the ROI and the image can be reverted back to its original value bit by bit if required. Second, Strict Authentication Watermarking with JPEG Compression (SAW-JPEG) uses the same principal as SAW, but is able to survive some degree of JPEG compression. Third, Authentication Watermarking with Tamper Detection and Recovery (AW-TDR) is able to localise tampering, whilst simultaneously reconstructing the original image

U.S. Military Intelligence in Mexico, 1917-1927: An Analysis

The Military Intelligence Division (MID) was the U.S. Army\u27s intelligence agency that reported to the Chief of Staff within the War Department. During the years 1917- 1927, the MID routinely conducted surveillance of Mexico, including: espionage, mail censorship, radio intercepts, intelligence gathering, and development of plans for the invasion of Mexico. This study utilizes a tripartite model to evaluate the production and analysis of military intelligence by the MID in Mexico during the period 1917-1927. First, the organization and development of the Military Intelligence Division from its origins in 1885 through the year 1927 is explored with sections on institutional history and objects of investigation. Second, a quantitative analysis of intelligence documents identifies the focus and priorities of the MID in Mexico. Third, a textual analysis of intelligence documents makes use of a cross-cultural framework to demonstrate the prevailing attitudes, perspectives and world views of the MID toward the Mexican state and its peoples. The thesis question as to whether the U.S. Military Intelligence Division created an accurate and complete picture of reality of Mexico is answered in the negative. The MID perspective was colored by cultural bias, ignorance, and misunderstanding. Ultimately, the MID failed to grasp the reality of Mexico because it failed to ask the right questions. It seriously misunderstood the nature of Mexico and its peoples, especially in its relationship with the United States .. The particular model developed for this study lends itself to the possibility of further research in the area of international history and cross-cultural studies. The use of multiple analysis techniques provides a more comprehensive picture of the various factors involved that influence historical events

Who Was the Man in Mexico? The Degree to Which the Mexican State Enjoyed Autonomy and Sovereignty With Respect to Its National and International Relationships From 1958 to 1964

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Social Studies of Bard College