The pharmaceuticalisation of security: molecular biomedicine, antiviral stockpiles, and global health security

Pharmaceuticals are now critical to the security of populations. Antivirals, antibiotics, next-generation vaccines, and antitoxins are just some of the new ‘medical countermeasures’ that governments are stockpiling in order to defend their populations against the threat of pandemics and bioterrorism. How has security policy come to be so deeply imbricated with pharmaceutical logics and solutions? This article captures, maps, and analyses the ‘pharmaceuticalisation’ of security. Through an in-depth analysis of the prominent antiviral medication Tamiflu, it shows that this pharmaceutical turn in security policy is intimately bound up with the rise of a molecular vision of life promulgated by the biomedical sciences. Caught in the crosshairs of powerful commercial, political, and regulatory pressures, governments are embracing a molecular biomedicine promising to secure populations pharmaceutically in the twenty-first century. If that is true, then the established disciplinary view of health as a predominantly secondary matter of ‘low’ international politics is mistaken. On the contrary, the social forces of health and biomedicine are powerful enough to influence the core practices of international politics – even those of security. For a discipline long accustomed to studying macro-level processes and systemic structures, it is in the end also our knowledge of the minute morass of molecules that shapes international relations

Lying takes time : a meta-analysis on reaction time measures of deception

Lie detection techniques are frequently used, but most of them have been criticized for the lack of empirical support for their predictive validity and presumed underlying mechanisms. This situation has led to increased efforts to unravel the cognitive mechanisms underlying deception and to develop a comprehensive theory of deception. A cognitive approach to deception has reinvigorated interest in reaction time (RT) measures to differentiate lies from truths and to investigate whether lying is more cognitively demanding than truth telling. Here, we provide the results of a meta-analysis of 114 studies (n = 3307) using computerized RT paradigms to assess the cognitive cost of lying. Results revealed a large standardized RT difference, even after correction for publication bias (d = 1.049; 95% CI [0.930; 1.169]), with a large heterogeneity amongst effect sizes. Moderator analyses revealed that the RT deception effect was smaller, yet still large, in studies in which participants received instructions to avoid detection. The autobiographical Implicit Association Test produced smaller effects than the Concealed Information Test, the Sheffield Lie Test, and the Differentiation of Deception paradigm. An additional meta-analysis (17 studies, n = 348) showed that, like other deception measures, RT deception measures are susceptible to countermeasures. Whereas our meta-analysis corroborates current cognitive approaches to deception, the observed heterogeneity calls for further research on the boundary conditions of the cognitive cost of deception. RT-based measures of deception may have potential in applied settings, but countermeasures remain an important challenge

The ‘Curiouser and curiouser’ legal nature of non-UN sanctions : the case of the US sanctions against Russia

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Um estudo comparativo de contramedidas para detectar ataques de spoofing em sistemas de autenticação de faces

Orientador: José Mario De MartinoDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Elétrica e de ComputaçãoResumo: O Resumo poderá ser visualizado no texto completo da tese digitalAbstract: The complete Abstract is available with the full electronic document.MestradoEngenharia de ComputaçãoMestre em Engenharia Elétric

Vibration as an exercise modality: how it may work, and what its potential might be

Whilst exposure to vibration is traditionally regarded as perilous, recent research has focussed on potential benefits. Here, the physical principles of forced oscillations are discussed in relation to vibration as an exercise modality. Acute physiological responses to isolated tendon and muscle vibration and to whole body vibration exercise are reviewed, as well as the training effects upon the musculature, bone mineral density and posture. Possible applications in sports and medicine are discussed. Evidence suggests that acute vibration exercise seems to elicit a specific warm-up effect, and that vibration training seems to improve muscle power, although the potential benefits over traditional forms of resistive exercise are still unclear. Vibration training also seems to improve balance in sub-populations prone to fall, such as frail elderly people. Moreover, literature suggests that vibration is beneficial to reduce chronic lower back pain and other types of pain. Other future indications are perceivable

Face liveness detection using dynamic texture

User authentication is an important step to protect information, and in this context, face biometrics is potentially advantageous. Face biometrics is natural, intuitive, easy to use, and less human-invasive. Unfortunately, recent work has revealed that face biometrics is vulnerable to spoofing attacks using cheap low-tech equipment. This paper introduces a novel and appealing approach to detect face spoofing using the spatiotemporal (dynamic texture) extensions of the highly popular local binary pattern operator. The key idea of the approach is to learn and detect the structure and the dynamics of the facial micro-textures that characterise real faces but not fake ones. We evaluated the approach with two publicly available databases (Replay-Attack Database and CASIA Face Anti-Spoofing Database). The results show that our approach performs better than state-of-the-art techniques following the provided evaluation protocols of each database2014This work has been performed within the context of the TABULA RASA project, part of the 7th Framework Research Programme of the European Union (EU), under the grant agreement number 257289. The financial support of FUNTTEL (Brazilian Telecommunication Technological Development Fund), Academy of Finland and Infotech Oulu Doctoral Program is also gratefully acknowledg

Aerospace medicine and biology: A continuing bibliography with indexes (supplement 361)

This bibliography lists 141 reports, articles and other documents introduced into the NASA Scientific and Technical Information System during Mar. 1992. Subject coverage includes: aerospace medicine and physiology, life support systems and man/system technology, protective clothing, exobiology and extraterrestrial life, planetary biology, and flight crew behavior and performance

Assessing Information Security Competencies of Firm Leaders towards Improving Procedural Information Security Countermeasure: Awareness and Cybersecurity Protective Behavior

Cybersecurity threats are a serious issue faced by many organizations in this new information era. Therefore, security leaders play a significant role not only to ensure that all their employees are practicing good security behavior to protect organizational information assets but also to ensure that security technology has been installed properly to protect network infrastructure. This study aims to examine cybersecurity protective behavior (CPB) among employees in the organization and focus on the role of leadership competencies and information security countermeasure awareness. The questionnaires were distributed via email and self-administered, and the study managed to obtain 245 responses. Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) analysis was used to analyze the final data. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) testing shows that all the measurement items of each construct were adequate in their validity individually based on their factor loading value. Moreover, each construct is valid based on its parameter estimates and statistical significance. The research findings show that Procedural Information Security Countermeasure (PCM) awareness strongly influences CPB compared to a leader's information security competencies (ISI). Meanwhile, ISI significantly influences PCM awareness. This study adapts the theory of leadership competencies in the context of cybersecurity, which is particularly beneficial to any industry in improving organizational information security strategic plans