Challenges in Improving Information Security Practice in Australian General

The status of information security in Australian medical general practice is discussed together with a review of the challenges facing small practices that often lack the technical knowledge and skill to secure patient information by themselves. It is proposed that an information security governance framework is required to assist practices in identifying weaknesses and gaps and then to plan and implement how to overcome their shortcomings through policies, training and changes to processes and management structure

Public channel cryptography by synchronization of neural networks and chaotic maps

Two different kinds of synchronization have been applied to cryptography: Synchronization of chaotic maps by one common external signal and synchronization of neural networks by mutual learning. By combining these two mechanisms, where the external signal to the chaotic maps is synchronized by the nets, we construct a hybrid network which allows a secure generation of secret encryption keys over a public channel. The security with respect to attacks, recently proposed by Shamir et al, is increased by chaotic synchronization.Comment: 4 page

An Information Security Governance Framework for Australian Primary Care Health Providers

The competitive nature of business and society means that the protection of information, and governance of the information security function, is increasingly important. This paper introduces the notion of a governance framework for information security for health providers. It refines the idea of an IT Balanced Scorecard into a scorecard process for use in governing information security for primary care health providers, where IT and security skills may be limited. The approach amends and justifies the four main elements of the scorecard process. The existence of a governance framework specifically tailored for the needs of primary care practice is a critical success factor if such organizations are to move to a robust level of information security. The challenge is twofold. Firstly, measures for governance need to be understandable to the target audience using the framework. Secondly, the number of measures needs to be controllable otherwise the process will become unviable and unused. This research synthesizes existing models and industry standards to formulate a new governance process that meets these two important criteria. The contribution of this research is in the refinement of governance metrics to make them useful to healthcare providers, specifically in relation to IT and new information communication technologies

Discovery of a dark, massive, ALMA-only galaxy at z~5-6 in a tiny 3-millimeter survey

We report the serendipitous detection of two 3 mm continuum sources found in deep ALMA Band 3 observations to study intermediate redshift galaxies in the COSMOS field. One is near a foreground galaxy at 1.3", but is a previously unknown dust-obscured star-forming galaxy (DSFG) at probable $z_{CO}=3.329$, illustrating the risk of misidentifying shorter wavelength counterparts. The optical-to-mm spectral energy distribution (SED) favors a grey $\lambda^{-0.4}$ attenuation curve and results in significantly larger stellar mass and SFR compared to a Calzetti starburst law, suggesting caution when relating progenitors and descendants based on these quantities. The other source is missing from all previous optical/near-infrared/sub-mm/radio catalogs ("ALMA-only"), and remains undetected even in stacked ultradeep optical ($>29.6$ AB) and near-infrared ($>27.9$ AB) images. Using the ALMA position as a prior reveals faint $SNR\sim3$ measurements in stacked IRAC 3.6+4.5, ultradeep SCUBA2 850$\mu$m, and VLA 3GHz, indicating the source is real. The SED is robustly reproduced by a massive $M^*=10^{10.8}$M$_\odot$ and $M_{gas}=10^{11}$M$_\odot$, highly obscured $A_V\sim4$, star forming $SFR\sim300$ M$_{\odot}$yr$^{-1}$ galaxy at redshift $z=5.5\pm$1.1. The ultrasmall 8 arcmin$^{2}$ survey area implies a large yet uncertain contribution to the cosmic star formation rate density CSFRD(z=5) $\sim0.9\times10^{-2}$ M$_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$ Mpc$^{-3}$, comparable to all ultraviolet-selected galaxies combined. These results indicate the existence of a prominent population of DSFGs at $z>4$, below the typical detection limit of bright galaxies found in single-dish sub-mm surveys, but with larger space densities $\sim3 \times 10^{-5}$ Mpc$^{-3}$, higher duty cycles $50-100\%$, contributing more to the CSFRD, and potentially dominating the high-mass galaxy stellar mass function.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 2 galaxies, too many pages, 8 figures, 2 table

Breakfast and exercise contingently affect postprandial metabolism and energy balance in physically active males

The present study examined the impact of breakfast and exercise on postprandial metabolism, appetite and macronutrient balance. A sample of twelve (blood variables n 11) physically active males completed four trials in a randomised, crossover design comprising a continued overnight fast followed by: (1) rest without breakfast (FR); (2) exercise without breakfast (FE); (3) breakfast consumption(1859 kJ) followed by rest (BR); (4) breakfast consumption followed by exercise (BE). Exercise was continuous, moderate-intensity running (expending approximately 2·9MJ of energy). The equivalent time was spent sitting during resting trials. A test drink (1500 kJ) was ingested on all trials followed 90 min later by an ad libitum lunch. The difference between the BR and FR trials in blood glucose time-averaged AUC following test drink consumption approached significance (BR: 4·33 (SEM 0·14) v. FR: 4·75 (SEM 0·16) mmol/l; P¼0·08); but it was not different between FR and FE (FE: 4·77 (SEM 0·14) mmol/l; P¼0·65); and was greater in BE (BE: 4·97 (SEM 0·13) mmol/l) v. BR(P¼0·012). Appetite following the test drink was reduced in BR v. FR (P¼0·006) and in BE v. FE (P¼0·029). Following lunch, the most positive energy balance was observed in BR and least positive in FE. Regardless of breakfast, acute exercise produced a less positive energy balance following ad libitum lunch consumption. Energy and fat balance is further reduced with breakfast omission. Breakfast improved the overall appetite responses to foods consumed later in the day, but abrogated the appetite suppressive effect of exercise

Improving Assessment of Drug Safety Through Proteomics: Early Detection and Mechanistic Characterization of the Unforeseen Harmful Effects of Torcetrapib.

BackgroundEarly detection of adverse effects of novel therapies and understanding of their mechanisms could improve the safety and efficiency of drug development. We have retrospectively applied large-scale proteomics to blood samples from ILLUMINATE (Investigation of Lipid Level Management to Understand its Impact in Atherosclerotic Events), a trial of torcetrapib (a cholesterol ester transfer protein inhibitor), that involved 15 067 participants at high cardiovascular risk. ILLUMINATE was terminated at a median of 550 days because of significant absolute increases of 1.2% in cardiovascular events and 0.4% in mortality with torcetrapib. The aims of our analysis were to determine whether a proteomic analysis might reveal biological mechanisms responsible for these harmful effects and whether harmful effects of torcetrapib could have been detected early in the ILLUMINATE trial with proteomics.MethodsA nested case-control analysis of paired plasma samples at baseline and at 3 months was performed in 249 participants assigned to torcetrapib plus atorvastatin and 223 participants assigned to atorvastatin only. Within each treatment arm, cases with events were matched to controls 1:1. Main outcomes were a survey of 1129 proteins for discovery of biological pathways altered by torcetrapib and a 9-protein risk score validated to predict myocardial infarction, stroke, heart failure, or death.ResultsPlasma concentrations of 200 proteins changed significantly with torcetrapib. Their pathway analysis revealed unexpected and widespread changes in immune and inflammatory functions, as well as changes in endocrine systems, including in aldosterone function and glycemic control. At baseline, 9-protein risk scores were similar in the 2 treatment arms and higher in participants with subsequent events. At 3 months, the absolute 9-protein derived risk increased in the torcetrapib plus atorvastatin arm compared with the atorvastatin-only arm by 1.08% (P=0.0004). Thirty-seven proteins changed in the direction of increased risk of 49 proteins previously associated with cardiovascular and mortality risk.ConclusionsHeretofore unknown effects of torcetrapib were revealed in immune and inflammatory functions. A protein-based risk score predicted harm from torcetrapib within just 3 months. A protein-based risk assessment embedded within a large proteomic survey may prove to be useful in the evaluation of therapies to prevent harm to patients.Clinical trial registrationURL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT00134264

Development of a critical appraisal tool to assess the quality of cross-sectional studies (AXIS)

Objectives: The aim of this study was to develop a critical appraisal (CA) tool that addressed study design and reporting quality as well as the risk of bias in cross-sectional studies (CSSs). In addition, the aim was to produce a help document to guide the non-expert user through the tool. Design: An initial scoping review of the published literature and key epidemiological texts was undertaken prior to the formation of a Delphi panel to establish key components for a CA tool for CSSs. A consensus of 80% was required from the Delphi panel for any component to be included in the final tool. Results: An initial list of 39 components was identified through examination of existing resources. An international Delphi panel of 18 medical and veterinary experts was established. After 3 rounds of the Delphi process, the Appraisal tool for Cross-Sectional Studies (AXIS tool) was developed by consensus and consisted of 20 components. A detailed explanatory document was also developed with the tool, giving expanded explanation of each question and providing simple interpretations and examples of the epidemiological concepts being examined in each question to aid non-expert users. Conclusions: CA of the literature is a vital step in evidence synthesis and therefore evidence-based decision-making in a number of different disciplines. The AXIS tool is therefore unique and was developed in a way that it can be used across disciplines to aid the inclusion of CSSs in systematic reviews, guidelines and clinical decision-making