Approaching public perceptions of datafication through the lens of inequality: a case study in public service media

In the emerging field of critical data studies, there is increasing acknowledgement that the negative effects of datafication are not experienced equally by all. Research on data and discrimination in particular has highlighted how already socially unequal populations are discriminated against in data-driven systems. Elsewhere, there is growing interest in public perceptions of datafication, amongst academic researchers interested in producing ‘bottom up’ understandings of the new roles of data in society and non-academic stakeholders keen to establish positive perceptions of data-driven systems. However, research into public perceptions rarely engages with the issue of inequality which is so central in data and discrimination scholarship. Bringing these two issues together, this paper explores public perceptions of datafication through the lens of inequality, focusing on the relationship between understandings and feelings within these perceptions. The paper draws on empirical focus group research into how audiences perceive the data practices that signing in to access BBC digital services enable. The paper shows how inequalities relating to age, dis/ability, poverty and their intersections played a role in shaping perceptions and that these social inequalities informed understandings of and feelings about data practices in complex and diverse ways. It concludes with reflections on the significance of these findings for future research and for data-related policy

Stability assessment of a tailings storage facility using a non-local constitutive model accounting for anisotropic strain-softening

Recent failures of upstream-raised tailings storage facilities (TSF) raised con-cerns on the future use of these dams. While being cost-effective, they entail higher risks than conventional dams, as stability largely relies on the strength of tailings, which are loose and normally-consolidated materials that may exhibit strain-softening during un-drained loading. Current design practice involves limit equilibrium analyses adopting a fully-softened shear strength; while being conservative, this practice neglects the work input required to start the softening process that leads to progressive failure. This paper describes the calibration and application of the NGI-ADPSoft constitutive model to evaluate the potential of static liquefaction of an upstream-raised TSF and provides an indirect measure of resilience. The constitutive model incorporates undrained shear strength anisotropy and a mesh-independent anisotropic post-peak strain softening. The calibration is performed using laboratory testing, including anisotropically-consolidated triaxial compression tests and direct simple shear tests. The peak and residual undrained shear strengths are validated by statistical interpretation of the available CPTu data. It is shown that this numerical exercise is useful to verify the robustness of the TSF design.Comment: NGI-ADPSoft, Plaxis 2D, Strain-softening, Tailings, Static Liquefactio

Issues related to piezocone sleeve friction measurement accuracy in soft sensitive clays

Over the past decades, the piezocone testing has been increasingly adopted for field investigation as it offers a quick and cost-effective methodology for subsoil profiling and geotechnical parameters estimation. Although the piezocone testing has revealed good applicability worldwide, difficulties are encountered in complex soil conditions, such as soft sensitive clays. One of the key issues in such soils is represented by the poor quality of the sleeve friction (fs) measurement due to inaccuracy and poor resolution of the sleeve sensor. This paper investigates the influence of fs data quality on soil parameters determination with particular emphasis on the soil behavior type (SBT) chart classification. The field investigation was conducted in a soft sensitive clay site located in Finland using two different penetrometers: a standard piezocone and an advanced piezocone characterized by enhance accuracy sleeve friction sensor. Results show that the use of high-resolution piezocone plays a key role in soft clays to avoid misleading soil type classification.publishedVersionPeer reviewe

Piezocone testing in Nordic soft clays : Comparison of high-quality databases

Soft and sensitive clays are widespread in Scandinavia. Piezocone correlations for Norwegian clays have been previously proposed based on high-quality block samples from several sites. Recently, a large database of Finnish soft clays was compiled by Tampere University from piezocone measurements as well as high-quality laboratory tests on specimens from large tube samples. Finnish and Norwegian clays exhibit some differences in terms of basic properties. Norwegian clays show lower water content, lower organic content, higher silt content and lower plasticity than the clays from Finland. This may be linked to the source of the materials, their depositional and post-depositional processes that in turn impact on the mechanical behaviour. This paper aims to compare piezocone Norwegian and Finnish data with focus on strength and stress history. The database trends are compared for relevant engineering parameters. The data and its variability are critically discussed considering differences in geological history, basic properties, sampling techniques and disturbance.publishedVersionPeer reviewe

A Hundred Thousand Lousy Cats (exploring drawing, AI and creativity)

This paper introduces a practice-led project that uses the Google Quick, Draw! project and dataset to explore the potential differences of algorithmic machine or digitally constructed drawings, and fictional associative hand-drawings. The authors use both digital 20-second sketching (the rule set for the Quick, Draw! Project) and more elaborate drawings and collages to then analyse and speculate about the results of these types of visualisations. At this phase of research it seems obvious to label and move the machine drawing to the reductive, the handdrawn to the more complex and associative realm but we seek to unpack this binary. Artificial intelligence and machine-learning are producing a wealth of creative projects, we select a couple of case studies to speak to particular visual artefacts that derive from algorithmic processing. For instance, the (IBM AI) Watson-composed film trailer for Morgan is considered as a creative artefact and looked at for its apparent allure and effect on a creative process. Through this inquiry we contemplate surprises and mistakes that come naturally when producing hand-made works, exploring then, what it means to draw and to work within classification systems in an algorithm-leaning world

COSMO-SkyMed Dual-Use and Multi-National Experienced Challenges and Operational Implications

COSMO-SkyMed is an Earth Observation space program funded by the Italian Ministry of Research and Italian Ministry of Defence (It-MoD) and conducted by the Italian Space Agency (ASI) in conjunction with It-MoD, which was designed in order to fulfill Dual-Use requirements in terms of different needs of Defence and Civilian Users, such as different requirements in data products, system performances, security needs, response time, request priority management and data accessibility/confidentiality, being a pioneer program in the frame of the Civil and Military Space Duality and representing a reference for future Earth Observation space programs. Furthermore, COSMO-SkyMed was designed in order to achieve Interoperability, Expandability with respect to additional Defence and Civilian Partners and Multi-Mission features, which are the bases for the establishment of international cooperation programs that have been set up by ASI and It-MoD or are going-on, such as the Italian-French cooperation named ORFEO (Optical and Radar Federated Earth Observation) and the Italian-Argentinean cooperation named SIASGE (Sistema Ítalo Argentino de Satélites para la Gestión de Emergencias). In such a context, a significant example of successful COSMO-SkyMed international partnership is the recent French Defence User Ground Segment (F-DUGS) integration within COSMO-SkyMed system. The aim of this paper is to show the COSMO-SkyMed conceived architecture, the experienced operational implications collected in operating the system from the launch of the first COSMO-SkyMed satellite until the completion of the constellation and the integration of the French Partner into the system, highlighting the lessons learned and the experienced challenges to fulfill very innovative and demanding requirements