Exploring the concept of scope to provide better security for internet services.

The Internet was originally designed to support universal reachability by allowing any host to communicate with any end server over the globe. Unfortunately, this feature has been abused by attackers to overload the servers with malicious traffic. In order to deal with this situation, many mechanisms such as Firewalls and Access Lists have been introduced to restrict servers’ accessibility only to legitimate users. This paper discusses some of these mechanisms, highlights their pros and cons and then proposes a new mechanism that attempts to limit a server’s reachability based on its operational scope

Providing security in 4G systems: unveiling the challenges

Several research groups are working on designing new security architectures for 4G networks such as Hokey and Y-Comm. Since designing an efficient security module requires a clear identification of potential threats, this paper attempts to outline the security challenges in 4G networks. A good way to achieve this is by investigating the possibility of extending current security mechanisms to 4G networks. Therefore, this paper uses the X.805 standard to investigate the possibility of implementing the 3G’s Authentication and Key Agreement (AKA) protocol in a 4G communication framework such as YComm. The results show that due to the fact that 4G is an open, heterogeneous and IP-based environment, it will suffer from new security threats as well as inherent ones. In order to address these threats without affecting 4G dynamics, Y-Comm proposes an integrated security module to protect data and security models to target security on different entities and hence protecting not only the data but, also resources, servers and users

Enhancing naming and location services to support multi-homed devices in heterogeneous environments

The growth of the Mobile Internet is being fuelled by the development of heterogeneous devices which have several wireless interfaces. This brings new challenges which require a critical examination of current Internet Infrastructure with a view to providing better support for mobility, multi-homing and virtual networking. This paper considers a recently published solution to the multi-homing issue, and based on that proposes enhancements to support the core location and naming servers with the introduction of the Master Locator and the Enhanced DNS

Default Effects, Transaction Costs, and Imperfect Information

経済学 / EconomicsWe develop a decision framework with imperfect information to analyze the effects of transaction costs on the tendency for individuals to remain with a default option. We demonstrate how transaction costs can be a more important source of such default effects than commonly thought. A further, potentially surprising result shows that transaction costs are able to explain why some forms of default effects increase with the number of options.JEL Classification Codes: D03, D83http://www.grips.ac.jp/list/jp/facultyinfo/munro_alistair

Enabling human pluripotent stem cell derived megakaryocyte

Annually 4.5 million platelet units are transfused in Europe and the United States. These are obtained solely from allogeneic donations and have a shelf life of 5-7 days. To address the corresponding supply challenge, Moreau et al. have devised a novel process for producing megakaryocytes (MKs, the platelet precursor cell) in vitro. A transcription-factor driven, forward-programming approach converts human pluripotent stem cells into MKs. This strategy has the unique advantage of generating high yields of pure MKs in chemically defined medium through the establishment of 2-3 month long-term cultures. This could lead to the production of a consistent, reliable supply of platelets which overcomes the logistical, financial and biosafety challenges for health organisations worldwide. However to enable commercialisation of platelet manufacture, process optimisation and scale-up are essential. Medium can contribute a significant proportion of the cost of a cell based product. We have used tissue culture flasks to represent static culture and compared this to a scaled-down automated bioreactor system (ambr15, Sartorius) to evaluate feasibility and optimisation factors for the growth of forward programmed (FoP) MKs in scalable stirred-suspension culture. The medium supply and exchange strategy were analysed using high temporal resolution growth curves for three medium exchange regimes. We assessed the productivity of the medium, showing that approximately 1.3 million cells are produced per millilitre of medium. Common metabolites lactate and ammonium were unlikely to be limiting proliferation and only 20% of glucose was depleted. Using novel deterministic modelling software developed by our group, we have constructed a model of forward-programmed MKs growth. Based on inhibitor production, the model demonstrates the most efficient expansion strategy using the exchange strategies and observed growth characteristics of proliferating populations. Cell populations were identified using flow cytometry and phenotype analysis. This type of mechanistic modelling can be used to inform and optimise manufacturing strategy for scaled production of FoPMKs for platelet production and more generally for the manufacturing of cell based therapies

Bottlenecks in the coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: the coverage of the first and second intifada in the Flemish press

Various authors suggest that the public's knowledge of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is inadequate. As it is generally accepted that public opinion on international news items is mainly formed by media content, the international media are often held responsible for sustaining the prevailing misconceptions about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by covering the conflict parties in a biased and imbalanced way. This study focuses on the representation of Israelis and Palestinians in the news coverage of the First and Second Intifada by the Flemish press. By way of a content analysis evolutions and discrepancies in the coverage of both Intifadas are described in a longitudinal analytical perspective. We conclude that the portrayal of the Palestinian actors shifts from a rather positive view during the First Intifada period to a more critical portrayal during the period of the Second Intifada. At the same time, there is an opposite move in the representation of the Israeli actors in the conflict. Although our results show differences in the distinct portrayals, they do not provide sufficient evidence to conclude unequivocally that the coverage of the First and Second Intifada is imbalanced. Indeed, we find that while some variables definitely favour the Israeli point of view (e.g. the use of sources), others clearly sustain the Palestinian side (e.g. the individualisation of victims). In other words, the Flemish dailies cover the First and Second Intifada in quite a balanced way, contrary to what international studies on the coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have concluded regarding the media in different national settings

Providing security in 4G systems: unveiling the challenges

Several research groups are working on designing new security architectures for 4G networks such as Hokey and Y-Comm. Since designing an efficient security module requires a clear identification of potential threats, this paper attempts to outline the security challenges in 4G networks. A good way to achieve this is by investigating the possibility of extending current security mechanisms to 4G networks. Therefore, this paper uses the X.805 standard to investigate the possibility of implementing the 3G’s Authentication and Key Agreement (AKA) protocol in a 4G communication framework such as YComm. The results show that due to the fact that 4G is an open, heterogeneous and IP-based environment, it will suffer from new security threats as well as inherent ones. In order to address these threats without affecting 4G dynamics, Y-Comm proposes an integrated security module to protect data and security models to target security on different entities and hence protecting not only the data but, also resources, servers and users

The Illiberal Turn? News Consumption, Polarization and Democracy in Central and Eastern Europe, 2019-2020

The Illiberal Turn project aims to carry out the first-ever systematic, comparative study of news consumption and political polarization in Central and Eastern Europe, at a key point in time when the region is undergoing dramatic changes. The project employs comparative study of news consumption and political attitudes, using a novel multi-method analytical framework that combines survey data, media diaries, and qualitative interviews with audiences in four CEE countries: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Serbia. The quantitative element of the project involved a longitudinal and a comparative study. The longitudinal study was conducted during the European Parliament election campaign in May 2019 in the Czech Republic, and is comprised of digital tracking of news consumption, as well as pre-and post-election population surveys, which collect data about peoples’ media consumption habits, perceptions of the EU, general political attitudes and political participation, including voting. The comparative study consists of a population survey conducted between November 2019 and January 2020 in four countries: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Serbia. These questionnaires collect data about peoples’ a) sources of news and patterns of news consumption, as well as media bias perceptions; and b) political attitudes, support for populist and right-wing arguments, support for (liberal) democratic values, trust in democratic institutions, and political participation, including voting. The quantitative data uploaded here includes the two datasets (one for the longitudinal study and one for the comparative study), as well as their corresponding codebooks and questionnaires. The qualitative side of the project involved two rounds of qualitative semi-structured interviews, conducted between February and May 2020 (media diaries are not included herein). The first round of interviews, conducted in February and March 2020 in participants' native language, covered topics like every day routines, political engagement, the media environment, and news consumption routines and preferences; these interviews also made use of a 'card exercise', where participants ranked the personal importance of various media types and news sources (not included herein). In the second round of interviews participants were mainly asked to discuss their media diaries and the COVID-19 pandemic. The qualitative data uploaded here includes the Participant Information Sheets and Consent Forms (in English, Czech, Hungarian, Polish, Serbian), First Interview Protocol (all languages), Second Interview Protocol (all languages), and English transcriptions of all first and second round interviews.Recent years have seen worrying political developments across both old and new democracies, ranging from the rise of populist leaders and dwindling support for democratic rule to the growing polarization of public opinion, evident in the stark divergence of political attitudes among both political elites and the general electorate. Many of these transformations have been linked to changes in information environments, and specifically to the growth of social media and digital platforms, which have given unprecedented visibility to populist rhetoric and hate speech, facilitated the spreading of misinformation, and allegedly encouraged the formation of ideological 'echo chambers'. According to many commentators, these developments contribute to the erosion of the public sphere, particularly in light of the gradual weakening of the role of professional, legacy news media organizations as primary providers of political information. With the proliferation of various "alternative", hyperpartisan online news sources whose content gets amplified via social media, unverified information, unchecked claims and fringe opinions spread virally and get exploited by populist actors and movements. While these tendencies currently pose challenges to democracies across the world, their impact is particularly detrimental in countries that have a shorter history of democratic development and where democratic institutions are more fragile. This is the case in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), a region that has recently experienced an unprecedented decline in the quality of democracy, a resurgence of illiberal nationalism, and a shift towards authoritarian forms of government. These troublesome developments are arguably threatening to reverse the process of post-1989 transition following the fall of communism. This makes the research into the relationship between media use, political attitudes and behaviour, and popular support for democracy in CEE particularly topical - especially given the fact that systematic research into these issues has so far been limited largely to the U.S. and Western Europe. The ambition of this project is therefore to fill this gap, and to carry out the first-ever systematic, comparative study of news consumption and political polarization in Central and Eastern Europe, at a key point in time when the region is undergoing dramatic changes. This is achieved by means of a comparative study of news consumption an political attitudes, using a novel multi-method analytical framework that combines survey data, digital tracking of media consumption, as well as media diaries and qualitative interviews with audiences in four CEE countries. While empirically focused on CEE, the project also makes a key contribution to general debates on political polarization, populism, nationalism and related phenomena (a) by clarifying the role of the changing media environment in these phenomena, and (b) by pioneering a new multi-method comparative framework that can be adapted for similar research elsewhere in the world. Given the urgent nature of developments in CEE, the project also includes a significant impact component. We have collaborated with several CEE-based and pan-European organizations and associations representing media regulators and journalists, dedicated to the promotion of media literacy, media pluralism and freedom. Through designated activities with these partners we seek to influence both professional and public debate concerning the political impact of the changing news environment in CEE, and contribute to the development of regulatory frameworks, professional standards and civil society activities designed to counter the growth of media partisanship and the spreading of disinformation and "fake news" via online media channels.</p

Enhancing the Use of ResilienceDirect in the Covid-19 Response, 2020-2021

This dataset contains 20 interviews conducted with UK emergency response practitioners during the Covid-19 response in 2020 and 2021. The purpose of the interviews was to understand how ResilienceDirect - a multi-agency digital collaboration platform - was used during the Covid-19 response.The proposed research will explore and enhance how the ResilienceDirect (RD) digital collaboration platform is used by multi-agency Local Resilience Forums (LRFs) to remotely plan and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The research aims to produce the first independent evidence base for LRF practitioners, national policymakers, and scholars, to understand how RD is being used to facilitate LRF collaboration and to then rapidly circulate best practices through RD to enhance the UK’s planning and response to COVID-19. The national scope of the COVID-19 pandemic presents a unique opportunity to compare how RD is being used to enable collaboration across different LRFs. This analysis will: a) diagnose sub-optimal uses of RD within LRFs; and b) help identify best practice solutions for joint working on RD within, and between, LRFs. These findings will be identified and communicated to all UK multi-agency emergency forms on a monthly basis via the ‘Learning and Development’ section on the RD platform. This research will provide timely, cyclical, feedback on the effective use of RD to support multi-agency collaboration. This project is designed to deliver immediate impact to improve the UK’s response to COVID-19 as well as critical insights into the role of technology in facilitating emergency collaborations that will benefit future responses.</p