Towards an Enforceable GDPR Specification

While Privacy by Design (PbD) is prescribed by modern privacy regulations such as the EU's GDPR, achieving PbD in real software systems is a notoriously difficult task. One emerging technique to realize PbD is Runtime enforcement (RE), in which an enforcer, loaded with a specification of a system's privacy requirements, observes the actions performed by the system and instructs it to perform actions that will ensure compliance with these requirements at all times. To be able to use RE techniques for PbD, privacy regulations first need to be translated into an enforceable specification. In this paper, we report on our ongoing work in formalizing the GDPR. We first present a set of requirements and an iterative methodology for creating enforceable formal specifications of legal provisions. Then, we report on a preliminary case study in which we used our methodology to derive an enforceable specification of part of the GDPR. Our case study suggests that our methodology can be effectively used to develop accurate enforceable specifications

Efficient Evaluation of Arbitrary Relational Calculus Queries

The relational calculus (RC) is a concise, declarative query language. However, existing RC query evaluation approaches are inefficient and often deviate from established algorithms based on finite tables used in database management systems. We devise a new translation of an arbitrary RC query into two safe-range queries, for which the finiteness of the query's evaluation result is guaranteed. Assuming an infinite domain, the two queries have the following meaning: The first is closed and characterizes the original query's relative safety, i.e., whether given a fixed database, the original query evaluates to a finite relation. The second safe-range query is equivalent to the original query, if the latter is relatively safe. We compose our translation with other, more standard ones to ultimately obtain two SQL queries. This allows us to use standard database management systems to evaluate arbitrary RC queries. We show that our translation improves the time complexity over existing approaches, which we also empirically confirm in both realistic and synthetic experiments.Comment: minor revisio

Significance of color doppler ultrasonography in the assessment of pancreatic carcinoma vascular invasion

Background/Aim. It is highly appreciated to provide exact data on vascular invasion of pancreatic carcinoma relying as much as possible on non-invasive diagnostic procedures. Color Doppler ultrasonography has been proven as an efficient method for clinical staging of pancreatic carcinoma essential for therapeutic decisions. The aim of this study was to provide an analysis of the sensitivity and specificity for color Doppler ultrasonography in patients suffering from pancreatic carcinoma. Methods. We performed color Doppler ultrasonography examination in 43 patients with pancreatic carcinoma prior to the surgery. The findings of ultrasonography on neoplasm vascular invasion were correlated to the findings obtained during the subsequent surgical procedures. An estimation of neoplastic invasion of certain blood vessels including portal vein, celiac trunk, and superior mesenteric artery and vein is critical for decision making regarding surgical treatment. The patients with metastases of pancreatic carcinoma were excluded from the study. Results. Comparing color Doppler and the surgical findings we estimated the sensitivity for detection of neoplastic vascular invasion ranging from 79−93%, whereas the specificity range was from 83−93%. Conclusion. Color Doppler ultrasonography is a sufficiently sensitive and specific method for evaluation of vascular invasion in pancreatic carcinoma patients. Since color Doppler ultrasonography is a non-invasive, radiation free, and inexpensive diagnostic tool, considering also the results of this and similar studies we could strongly recommend its use for an initial presurgical evaluation of vascular invasion in pancreatic carcinoma patients

Electrical characteristics of female and male human skin

Bioimpedance spectroscopy (BIS) is a popular method for characterizing the electrical properties of biological tissues. In this study, BIS measurement data of female and male human skin were analyzed and compared. The electrical characteristics of tissue were followed according to four-parameters of the Cole-Cole model: low frequency resistance R0; high frequency resistance R∞; relaxation time t and parameter a. Individual electrical characteristics of human skin were determined for 30 women and 30 men. The distribution and one-way analysis of variance (one-way ANOVA) of the Cole-Cole parameters R0, R∞, t, a within the human population indicated their different dependence on gender. Parameter a, which is higher in the female subjects (a =0.83±0.03) than in the male subjects (a=0.7±0.05), is strongly dependent on gender (p=0). Parameter R∞ also significantly depends on gender (p=0.002), while t and R0 seem to be slightly related to gender (p>0.05)

Efficient Evaluation of Arbitrary Relational Calculus Queries

The relational calculus (RC) is a concise, declarative query language. However, existing RC query evaluation approaches are inefficient and often deviate from established algorithms based on finite tables used in database management systems. We devise a new translation of an arbitrary RC query into two safe-range queries, for which the finiteness of the query's evaluation result is guaranteed. Assuming an infinite domain, the two queries have the following meaning: The first is closed and characterizes the original query's relative safety, i.e., whether given a fixed database, the original query evaluates to a finite relation. The second safe-range query is equivalent to the original query, if the latter is relatively safe. We compose our translation with other, more standard ones to ultimately obtain two SQL queries. This allows us to use standard database management systems to evaluate arbitrary RC queries. We show that our translation improves the time complexity over existing approaches, which we also empirically confirm in both realistic and synthetic experiments

Oxide powder mixture with poly-vinyl alcohol (PVA) and added polyethylene glycol (PEG) as plasticizer

Powder mixture consisted of ZnO, Mn2O3 (MnCO3) and Fe2O3 blended powders, was found laminating during compaction. Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and a combination of PVA with polyethylene glycol (PEG) added as a plasticizer, were introduced as polymer binders to improve the compaction of oxide mixtures. It has been done by forming a suspension of oxide mixture and varying the polymer solution concentration and composition. By evaporating the solvent, new materials were obtained, which consist of oxide particles bound via polymer. In such a manner obtained hybrid materials were characterized with attenuated total reflection Fourier transformed infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy, differential thermal analysis (DTA) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The oxide polymer material was compacted at 200 MPa and the expansion of this compact during heating was monitored in temperature range up to 550 ºC with dilatometer. It was found that PVA forms graft polymer with PEG and specific interaction with oxide particles surface was revealed

Clinical relevance of IL-6 gene polymorphism in severely injured patients

In polytrauma, injuries that may be surgically treated under regular circumstances due to a systemic inflammatory response become life-threatening. The inflammatory response involves a complex pattern of humoral and cellular responses and the expression of related factors is thought to be governed by genetic variations. This aim of this paper is to examine the influence of interleukin (IL) 6 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) -174C/G and -596G/A on the treatment outcome in severely injured patients. Forty-seven severely injured patients were included in this study. Patients were assigned an Injury Severity Score. Blood samples were drawn within 24 h after admission (designated day 1) and on subsequent days (24, 48, 72, hours and 7days) of hospitalization. The IL-6 levels were determined through ELSA technique. Polymorphisms were analyzed by a method of Polymerase Chain Reaction-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (PCR). Among subjects with different outcomes, no statistically relevant difference was found with regards to the gene IL-6 SNP-174G/C polymorphism. More than a half of subjects who died had the SNP-174G/C polymorphism, while this polymorphism was represented in a slightly lower number in survivors. The incidence of subjects without polymorphism and those with heterozygous and homozygous gene IL-6 SNP-596G/A polymorphism did not present statistically significant variations between survivors and those who died. The levels of IL-6 over the observation period did not present any statistically relevant difference among subjects without the IL-6 SNP-174 or IL- 6 SNP -596 gene polymorphism and those who had either a heterozygous or a homozygous polymorphism

Congenital intestinal lymphangiectasia

Background. Congenital intestinal lymphangiectasia is a disease which leads to protein losing enteropathy. Tortous, dilated lymphatic vessels in the intestinal wall and mesenterium are typical features of the disease. Clinical manifestations include malabsorption, diarrhea, steatorrhea, edema and effusions. Specific diet and medication are required for disease control. Case report. A 19-year old male patient was hospitalized due to diarrhea, abdominal swelling, weariness and fatigue. Physical examination revealed growth impairment, ascites, and lymphedema of the right hand and forearm. Laboratory assessment indicated iron deficiency anaemia, lymphopenia, malabsorption, inflammatory syndrome, and urinary infection. Enteroscopy and video capsule endoscopy demonstrated dilated lymphatic vessels in the small intestine. The diagnosis was confirmed by intestinal biopsy. The patient was put on high-protein diet containing medium-chain fatty acids, somatotropin and suportive therapy. Conclusion. Congenital intestinal lymphangiectasia is a rare disease, usually diagnosed in childhood. Early recognition of the disease and adequate treatment can prevent development of various complications

Horses naturally infected with Strongylidae and Ascaridae: Evaluation of hematological and some biochemical parameters

Infectious larvae of equine parasites: Strongylidae and Ascaridae may induce direct as well as indirect damage, during their migration within the host. The aim of this study was to evaluate changes in hematological and biochemical parameters in naturally infected horses, with the above mentioned parasites

Some traits of Verotoxin-producing strains of Escherichia coli isolated from cattle

Verotoxin-producing Esherichia coli (VTEC) is one of six pathogenicity groups of Eschericha coli. The reservoir for VTEC is the intestinal tract of domestic animals, primarily ruminants. Investigations in our geographic region have also demonstrated that domestic animals are a significant VTEC reservoir. In spite of this, sporadic diseases in humans caused by these agents are rare, and no epidemics have been registered so far. The question is, therefore, what percentage of VTEC isolated in our region have the characteristics of enterohaemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) which cause intestinal diseases in humans. The aim of this study was to test the isolated bovine strains for some phenotypic and genotypic traits and to determine the percent of strains that belong to EHEC. A total of 105 VTEC strains isolated from cattle were tested for the presence of verotoxin (vtx) genes by PCR (polymerase chain reaction) method. All of them possessed one or more vtx genes. In accordance with our investigations, only four (3.8%) strains, of a total of 105 VTEC strains belong to groups of EHEC. It may be concluded that the majority of strains isolated from cattle in this part of the world do not have phenotypic traits typical for EHEC. Therefore human VTEC associated diseases in Serbia are rare, despite the fact that domestic animals frequently harbor VTEC