A Security Threat Analysis of Smart Home Network with Vulnerable Dynamic Agents

This chapter presents a security analysis of a smart home network containing vulnerable dynamic agents in the form of smart toys. As a case study, a smart toy is used as an example of an Internet of Things (IoT) device which could be potentially used as a vector into the smart home network. This chapter discusses a threat model for smart home security with a focus on the smart toy as an entry point into the network and what a threat actor could potentially achieve through this relatively new type of threat to the home

Enhanced production of oxidised mercury over the tropical Pacific Ocean: A key missing oxidation pathway

Mercury is a contaminant of global concern. It is transported in the atmosphere primarily as gaseous elemental mercury, but its reactivity and deposition to the surface environment, through which it enters the aquatic food chain, is greatly enhanced following oxidation. Measurements and modelling studies of oxidised mercury in the polar to sub-tropical marine boundary layer (MBL) have suggested that photolytically produced bromine atoms are the primary oxidant of mercury. We report year-round measurements of elemental and oxidised mercury, along with ozone, halogen oxides (IO and BrO) and nitrogen oxides (NO2), in the MBL over the Galápagos Islands in the equatorial Pacific. Elemental mercury concentration remained low throughout the year, while higher than expected levels of oxidised mercury occurred around midday. Our results show that the production of oxidised mercury in the tropical MBL cannot be accounted for by bromine oxidation only, or by the inclusion of ozone and hydroxyl. As a two-step oxidation mechanism, where the HgBr intermediate is further oxidised to Hg(II), depends critically on the stability of HgBr, an additional oxidant is needed to react with HgBr to explain more than 50% of the observed oxidised mercury. Based on best available thermodynamic data, we show that atomic iodine, NO2, or HO2 could all play the potential role of the missing oxidant, though their relative importance cannot be determined explicitly at this time due to the uncertainties associated with mercury oxidation kinetics. We conclude that the key pathway that significantly enhances atmospheric mercury oxidation and deposition to the tropical oceans is missing from the current understanding of atmospheric mercury oxidation

Latitudinal distribution of reactive iodine in the Eastern Pacific and its link to open ocean sources

Ship-based Multi-Axis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy measurements of iodine monoxide (IO) and atmospheric and seawater Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometer observations of methyl iodide (CH3I) were made in the Eastern Pacific marine boundary layer during April 2010 as a part of the HaloCarbon Air Sea Transect-Pacific (HaloCAST-P) scientific cruise. The presence of IO in the open ocean environment was confirmed, with a maximum differential slant column density of 5 × 1013 molecules cm−2 along the 1° elevation angle (corresponding to approximately 1 pptv) measured in the oligotrophic region of the Southeastern Pacific. Such low IO mixing ratios and their observed geographical distribution are inconsistent with satellite estimates and with previous understanding of oceanic sources of iodine. A strong correlation was observed between reactive iodine (defined as IO + I) and CH3I, suggesting common sources

Asynchronous behavior of outlet glaciers feeding Godthåbsfjord (Nuup Kangerlua) and the triggering of Narsap Sermia's retreat in SW Greenland

We assess ice loss and velocity changes between 1985 and 2014 of three tidewater and fiveland terminating glaciers in Godthabsfjord (Nuup Kangerlua), Greenland. Glacier thinning accounted for 43.8 +/- 0.2 km(3) of ice loss, equivalent to 0.10 mm eustatic sea-level rise. An additional 3.5 +/- 0.3 km(3) was lost to the calving retreats of Kangiata Nunaata Sermia (KNS) and Narsap Sermia (NS), two tidewater glaciers that exhibited asynchronous behavior over the study period. KNS has retreated 22 km from its Little Ice Age (LIA) maximum (1761 AD), of which 0.8 km since 1985. KNS has stabilized in shallow water, but seasonally advects a 2 km long floating tongue. In contrast, NS began retreating from its LIA moraine in 2004-06 (0.6 km), re-stabilized, then retreated 3.3 km during 2010-14 into an over-deepened basin. Velocities at KNS ranged 5-6 km a(-1), while at NS they increased from 1.5 to 5.5 km a(-1) between 2004 and 2014. We present comprehensive analyses of glacier thinning, runoff, surface mass balance, ocean conditions, submarine melting, bed topography, ice melange and conclude that the 2010-14 NS retreat was triggered by a combination of factors but primarily by an increase in submarine melting.We thank W. Dryer and D. Podrasky for assistance with fieldwork and L. Kenefic for assisting with digitizing glacier front positions. CH2 M HILL Polar Services and Air Greenland provided logistics support. The SPOT-5 images used for the 2008 DEM were provided by the SPIRIT program (Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales, France). The DigitalGlobe Worldview images used for the 2014 DEM were obtained from P. Morin. Terminus positions were derived from Landsat images courtesy of the U.S. Geological Survey. Funding was provided by the US National Science Foundation (NSF) Office of Polar Programs (OPP) grants NSF PLR-0909552 and NSF PLR-0909333. Cassotto is supported by NASA under the Earth and Space Science Fellowship Program (Grant NNX14AL29H). K. K. Kjeldsen acknowledges support from the Danish Council Research for Independent Research (grant no. DFF-409000151). K. Kjaer is thanked for his support during the earlier phases of this study. On-ice weather stations are operated by GEUS (Denmark) within the Programme for Monitoring of the Greenland Ice Sheet (PROMICE). J. Mortensen acknowledges support from IIKNN (Greenland), DEFROST project of the Nordic Centre of Excellence program "Interaction between Climate Change and the Cryosphere" and the Greenland Ecosystem Monitoring Programme (www. g-e-m. dk).S. Rysgaard was funded by the Canada Excellence Research Chair Programme. Additional funding was provided by the Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska Fairbanks, and Greenland Climate Research Centre. Scientific editor H. Fricker and reviewers H. Jiskoot and G. Cogley provided very constructive feedback that helped improve the paper.Peer ReviewedRitrýnt tímari

Successful myomectomy during pregnancy : A case report

BACKGROUND: The medical literature has reported an increase in myomectomy during caesarean section in the past decade. However, myomectomy performed during pregnancy remains a rarity. The management of uterine fibroids during pregnancy is usually expectant and surgical removal is generally delayed until after delivery. We present a case of a large, symptomatic uterine fibroid diagnosed during pregnancy which was successfully managed by antepartum myomectomy. CASE PRESENTATION: A 30 year old woman presented with a one year history of abdominal swelling, amenorrhea and severe epigastric discomfort of 19 weeks duration. The abdomen was grossly distended and tense. A sonographic diagnosis of ovarian tumor in pregnancy was made. Laparotomy revealed a 32 cm degenerating subserosal uterine fibroid co-existing with an intrauterine pregnancy. Myomectomy was successfully performed. The subsequent antenatal period was uneventful with a spontaneous vaginal delivery of a female baby at 38 weeks. CONCLUSION: This report supports other studies and case series that have demonstrated the safety of myomectomy during pregnancy in selected circumstances

Large tunable valley splitting in edge-free graphene quantum dots on boron nitride

Coherent manipulation of binary degrees of freedom is at the heart of modern quantum technologies. Graphene offers two binary degrees: the electron spin and the valley. Efficient spin control has been demonstrated in many solid state systems, while exploitation of the valley has only recently been started, yet without control on the single electron level. Here, we show that van-der Waals stacking of graphene onto hexagonal boron nitride offers a natural platform for valley control. We use a graphene quantum dot induced by the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope and demonstrate valley splitting that is tunable from -5 to +10 meV (including valley inversion) by sub-10-nm displacements of the quantum dot position. This boosts the range of controlled valley splitting by about one order of magnitude. The tunable inversion of spin and valley states should enable coherent superposition of these degrees of freedom as a first step towards graphene-based qubits

Kinome rewiring reveals AURKA limits PI3K-pathway inhibitor efficacy in breast cancer.

Dysregulation of the PI3K-AKT-mTOR signaling network is a prominent feature of breast cancers. However, clinical responses to drugs targeting this pathway have been modest, possibly because of dynamic changes in cellular signaling that drive resistance and limit drug efficacy. Using a quantitative chemoproteomics approach, we mapped kinome dynamics in response to inhibitors of this pathway and identified signaling changes that correlate with drug sensitivity. Maintenance of AURKA after drug treatment was associated with resistance in breast cancer models. Incomplete inhibition of AURKA was a common source of therapy failure, and combinations of PI3K, AKT or mTOR inhibitors with the AURKA inhibitor MLN8237 were highly synergistic and durably suppressed mTOR signaling, resulting in apoptosis and tumor regression in vivo. This signaling map identifies survival factors whose presence limits the efficacy of targeted therapies and reveals new drug combinations that may unlock the full potential of PI3K-AKT-mTOR pathway inhibitors in breast cancer

EQUIP: Implementing chronic care principles and applying formative evaluation methods to improve care for schizophrenia: QUERI Series

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>This paper presents a case study that demonstrates the evolution of a project entitled "Enhancing QUality-of-care In Psychosis" (EQUIP) that began approximately when the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' Quality Enhancement Research Initiative (QUERI), and implementation science were emerging. EQUIP developed methods and tools to implement chronic illness care principles in the treatment of schizophrenia, and evaluated this implementation using a small-scale controlled trial. The next iteration of the project, EQUIP-2, was further informed by implementation science and the use of QUERI tools.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This paper reports the background, development, results and implications of EQUIP, and also describes ongoing work in the second phase of the project (EQUIP-2). The EQUIP intervention uses implementation strategies and tools to increase the adoption and implementation of chronic illness care principles. In EQUIP-2, these strategies and tools are conceptually grounded in a stages-of-change model, and include clinical and delivery system interventions and adoption/implementation tools. Formative evaluation occurs in conjunction with the intervention, and includes developmental, progress-focused, implementation-focused, and interpretive evaluation.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Evaluation of EQUIP provided an understanding of quality gaps <it>and </it>how to address related problems in schizophrenia. EQUIP showed that solutions to quality problems in schizophrenia differ by treatment domain and are exacerbated by a lack of awareness of evidence-based practices. EQUIP also showed that improving care requires creating resources for physicians to help them easily implement practice changes, plus intensive education as well as product champions who help physicians use these resources. Organizational changes, such as the addition of care managers and informatics systems, were shown to help physicians with identifying problems, making referrals, and monitoring follow-up. In EQUIP-2, which is currently in progress, these initial findings were used to develop a more comprehensive approach to implementing and evaluating the chronic illness care model.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>In QUERI, small-scale projects contribute to the development and enhancement of hands-on, action-oriented service-directed projects that are grounded in current implementation science. This project supports the concept that QUERI tools can be useful in implementing complex care models oriented toward evidence-based improvement of clinical care.</p

A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of neramexane in patients with moderate to severe subjective tinnitus

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Neramexane is a new substance that exhibits antagonistic properties at α₉α₁₀cholinergic nicotinic receptors and <it>N</it>-methyl-D-aspartate receptors, suggesting potential efficacy in the treatment of tinnitus.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A total of 431 outpatients with moderate to severe subjective tinnitus (onset 3-18 months before screening) were assigned randomly to receive either placebo or neramexane mesylate (25 mg/day, 50 mg/day and 75 mg/day) for 16 weeks, with assessment at 4-week intervals. The primary (intention-to-treat) efficacy analysis was based on the change from baseline in Week 16 in the total score of the adapted German short version of the validated Tinnitus Handicap Inventory questionnaire (THI-12).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Compared with placebo, the largest improvement was achieved in the 50 mg/d neramexane group, followed by the 75 mg/d neramexane group. This treatment difference did not reach statistical significance at the pre-defined endpoint in Week 16 (<it>p </it>= 0.098 for 50 mg/d; <it>p </it>= 0.289 for 75 mg/d neramexane), but consistent numerical superiority of both neramexane groups compared with placebo was observed. Four weeks after the end of treatment, THI-12 scores in the 50 mg/d group were significantly better than those of the controls. Secondary efficacy variables supported this trend, with <it>p </it>values of < 0.05 for the 50 mg/d neramexane group associated with the functional-communicational subscores of the THI-12 and the assessments of tinnitus annoyance and tinnitus impact on life as measured on an 11-point Likert-like scale. No relevant changes were observed for puretone threshold, for tinnitus pitch and loudness match, or for minimum masking levels. The 25 mg/d neramexane group did not differ from placebo. Neramexane was generally well tolerated and had no relevant influence on laboratory values, electrocardiography and vital signs. Dizziness was the most common adverse event and showed a clear dose-dependence.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study demonstrated the safety and tolerability of neramexane treatment in patients with moderate to severe tinnitus. The primary efficacy variable showed a trend towards improvement of tinnitus suffering in the medium- and high-dose neramexane groups. This finding is in line with consistent beneficial effects observed in secondary assessment variables. These results allow appropriate dose selection for further studies.</p> <p>Trial Registration</p> <p>ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00405886</p