ClaimChain: Improving the Security and Privacy of In-band Key Distribution for Messaging

The social demand for email end-to-end encryption is barely supported by mainstream service providers. Autocrypt is a new community-driven open specification for e-mail encryption that attempts to respond to this demand. In Autocrypt the encryption keys are attached directly to messages, and thus the encryption can be implemented by email clients without any collaboration of the providers. The decentralized nature of this in-band key distribution, however, makes it prone to man-in-the-middle attacks and can leak the social graph of users. To address this problem we introduce ClaimChain, a cryptographic construction for privacy-preserving authentication of public keys. Users store claims about their identities and keys, as well as their beliefs about others, in ClaimChains. These chains form authenticated decentralized repositories that enable users to prove the authenticity of both their keys and the keys of their contacts. ClaimChains are encrypted, and therefore protect the stored information, such as keys and contact identities, from prying eyes. At the same time, ClaimChain implements mechanisms to provide strong non-equivocation properties, discouraging malicious actors from distributing conflicting or inauthentic claims. We implemented ClaimChain and we show that it offers reasonable performance, low overhead, and authenticity guarantees.Comment: Appears in 2018 Workshop on Privacy in the Electronic Society (WPES'18

The role of resveratrol in liver disease: A comprehensive review from in vitro to clinical trials

Many studies have shown that resveratrol has a lot of therapeutic effects on liver disorders. Its administration can significantly increase the survival rate after liver transplantation, reduce fat deposition and ischemia-induced necrosis and apoptosis in Wistar rats. Resveratrol can provide Liver protection against chemical, cholestatic, and alcohol-mediated damage. It can improve glucose metabolism and lipid profile, reduce liver fibrosis, and steatosis. Additionally, it is capable of altering the fatty acid composition of the liver cells. Resveratrol may be a potential treatment option for the management of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) due to its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and calorie-restricting effects. There are also studies that have evaluated the effect of resveratrol on lipid and liver enzyme profiles among patients with metabolic syndrome (MetS) and related disorders. Based on the extent of liver disease worldwide and the need to find new treatment possibilities, this review critically examines current in vitro and in vivo preclinical studies and human clinical studies related to liver protection

A cross-cultural comparison of the link between modernization, anthropomorphism and attitude to wildlife

Anthropogenic pressure has significantly increased in the last decades, often enhancing conflicts at the humanndash;wildlife interface. Therefore, understanding peoplesrsquo; value orientations, attitudes and behavioural intentions towards wildlife is a crucial endeavour to reduce the occurrence of conflicts between humans and wildlife. Previous research in the USA has shown a consistent link between modernization and increased anthropomorphism (i.e., the tendency to attribute human mental or physical characteristics to other entities), leading to positive changes in value orientations, attitudes, and behavioural intentions towards wildlife. In this paper, we aimed to address whether this link is also present in other cultures, by testing participants (N = 741) in five different countries (Brazil, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, and Spain). Our study shows that while the positive link between anthropomorphism, positive attitudes and behavioural intentions towards wildlife is universal, the link between modernization and anthropomorphism is culturally mediated. In some countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Spain), modernization increased anthropomorphism, while in others modernization predicted no differences (Brazil) or even a decrease in anthropomorphism (Mexico), ultimately deteriorating individualsrsquo; attitude and behavioural intentions towards wildlife. These results call for caution when generalizing findings from western industrialized countries to inform conservation policies worldwide

Desarrollo y Aplicación de una Metodología CSAU para el Caso de un ATWS en un BWR utilizando Métodos de Teoría de la Información

Se ha desarrollado una metodología tipo CSAU utilizando herramientas de teoría de la información para evaluar la incertidumbre en los parámetros de entrada y de los modelos que pueden afectar al parámetro crítico de seguridad (PCS). Para ello se han desarrollado dos herramientas auxiliares los programas GEDIPA-V1 y UNTHERCO –V1, el primero averigua la distribución de un parámetro o parámetros utilizando teoría de la información y evalúa también los momentos de la distribución con sus intervalos de confianza a partir de los datos. Mientras que el segundo realiza el muestreo por MONTECARLO de los parámetros de entrada cuya importancia ha sido puesta de manifiesto previamente mediante el PIRT y el análisis de sensibilidad. En el caso de que la información sobre un parámetro sea incompleta se aplica el principio de la máxima entropía o el de la máxima entropía relativa para obtener su función de distribución. La metodología se ha aplicado a la C.N. de Cofrentes para determinar el valor del Parámetro Crítico de Seguridad de un ATWS con un 95/95 de cubrimiento y confianza.Muñoz-Cobo González, JL.; Escrivá Castells, FA.; Mendizabal, R.; Pelayo, F.; Melara San Román, J. (2013). Desarrollo y Aplicación de una Metodología CSAU para el Caso de un ATWS en un BWR utilizando Métodos de Teoría de la Información. Sociedad Nuclear Española. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/71591

The asymmetry and temporal dynamics of incidental letter-location bindings in working memory.

Verbal-spatial bindings are integral to routine cognitive operations (e.g., reading), yet the processes supporting them in working memory are little understood. Campo and colleagues [Campo, P., Poch, C., Parmentier, F. B. R., Moratti, S., Elsley, J. V., Castellanos, N., … Maestú, F. (2010). Oscillatory activity in prefrontal and posterior regions during implicit letter-location binding. Neuroimage, 49, 2807-2815] recently reported data suggesting obligatory letter-location binding when participants were directed to remember the letters in a display (of letters in locations), but no evidence for binding when instructed to remember the filled locations. The present study contrasted two explanations for this binding asymmetry. First, it may result from an obligatory dependence on "where" during the representation of "what" information, while "where" information may be held independently of its contents (the strong asymmetry hypothesis). Second, it may constitute a snapshot of a dynamic feature inhibition process that had partially completed by test: the asymmetrical inhibition hypothesis. Using Campo and colleagues' task with a variable retention interval between display and test, we presented four consonants in distinct locations and contrasted performance between "remember letters" and "remember locations" instructions. Our data supported the strong asymmetry hypothesis through demonstrating binding in the verbal task, but not in the spatial task. Critically, when present, verbal-spatial bindings were remarkably stable, enduring for at least 15 seconds