2,763 research outputs found

    The Day of the Cyber Wolf

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    Terrorism has become a concern for public safety and security and can take on many appearances. However, in recent years the dilemma that presents the most substantial endangerment to public security comes from the threat of leaderless terrorists, also known as lone wolves. Due to the rapid advancement in technology over the past few decades, societies, specifically the United States, have become dependent upon it economically and socially. Terrorist organizations, as well as the lone wolf terrorist, understand that their enemies rely on technology in order to function and have recently redirected their efforts towards cyberspace. As a result, cyber-terrorism has become one of the greatest imminent threats to national security. This literature review presents an analysis of the issues and challenges faced in dealing with modern day terrorism in the forms of lone wolf terrorism and cyber terrorism. Why has this increase in lone wolf attacks occurred? Why are lone wolf terrorists more dangerous than terrorist organizations? What threat do cyber terrorist attacks present to the world, specifically from lone wolves? Why should cyber terrorist attacks be as great a concern as physical attacks? How can both of these forms of terrorism actually have an effect on society and a government\u27s infrastructure? Lone wolf terrorism presents a clear and imminent threat to national and international security. In light of this, the following research seeks to answer the question: Is there an imminent threat that the next major terrorist attack will come from a lone wolf cyber terrorist? An in-depth understanding of previous lone wolf terrorists and cyber terrorism, as well as the attacks that have been committed, is needed in order to combat future problems

    Discrete concavity and the half-plane property

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    Murota et al. have recently developed a theory of discrete convex analysis which concerns M-convex functions on jump systems. We introduce here a family of M-concave functions arising naturally from polynomials (over a field of generalized Puiseux series) with prescribed non-vanishing properties. This family contains several of the most studied M-concave functions in the literature. In the language of tropical geometry we study the tropicalization of the space of polynomials with the half-plane property, and show that it is strictly contained in the space of M-concave functions. We also provide a short proof of Speyer's hive theorem which he used to give a new proof of Horn's conjecture on eigenvalues of sums of Hermitian matrices.Comment: 14 pages. The proof of Theorem 4 is corrected

    Plant Biomarker Pattern, Apples grown with various availability of organic nitrogen and with or witout the use of pesticides

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    In the recent years there has been an increasing focus on the quality and health value of organic plant products compared with conventional products. The use of pesticides and concentrated fertilisers in conventional agriculture implies a risk of effects on plant composition, which may affect health of the consumer (Brandt & Mølgaard, 2001). To determine if organically grown plant food could provide more or less benefits to health than conventional food, a first step is to investigate the differences in the composition and relative concentration of natural compounds in the plant products. In this project apples were grown with two levels of nitrogen availability and with or without the use of pesticides. The apples were screened for changes in the phytochemical composition and concentration. The work is affiliated to the project "Organic food and health" supported by the Danish Research Centre for Organic Farming (DARCOF). Biomarkers and biomarker patterns were presented in plants cultivated with low and high N and with pesticides. One biomarker was related to: • the type of N with and without pesticides • pesticides at high N and type of N without pesticides • pesticides at low and high N One biomarker pattern was related to: • the type of N • the type of N without pesticides • pesticides at low N and type of N without pesticides • pesticides at high N and type of N with pesticide

    Perception gaps between patients with ulcerative colitis and healthcare professionals: An online survey

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    Background: The purpose of this study was to examine the differing perspectives and perceptual gaps relating to ulcerative colitis (UC) symptoms and their management between patients and healthcare professionals (HCPs). Methods: Structured, cross-sectional, Web-based questionnaires designed to assess a variety of disease indices were completed by adult patients with UC and HCPs involved in the care of patients with UC from Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Results: Surveys were completed by 775 patients, 475 physicians, and 50 nurses. Patient self-reported classification of disease severity revealed generally greater severity (mild, 32%; moderate, 53%) compared with physician and nurse estimates of UC severity among their caseloads (mild, 52% and 49%; moderate, 34% and 37%, respectively). Patients reported that an average of 5.5 (standard deviation, 11.0) flares (self-defined) occurred over the past year, compared with 3.4 and 3.8 flares per year estimated by physicians and nurses. Perceived flare triggers differed between patients (stress ranked first) and HCPs (natural disease course ranked first). Fifty-five percent of patients stated that UC symptoms over the past year had affected their quality of life, while physicians and nurses estimated that 35% to 37% of patients would have a reduced quality of life over the same period. Patients ranked urgency and pain as the most bothersome symptoms, while physicians and nurses ranked urgency and stool frequency highest. About half of patients (47%) defined remission as experiencing no symptoms; by comparison, 62% to 63% of HCPs defined remission as requiring the complete absence of symptoms. HCPs (doctors/nurses in general practice and/or hospital) were regarded by patients as their main source of UC information by 72%; however, 59% reported not arranging regular visits to see their HCPs. Conclusions: This large survey identified important differences between patients' and HCPs' perceptions of the impact of UC symptoms on patients' lives. Notably, HCPs may underestimate the effect of specific UC symptoms on patients and may fail to recognize issues that are important to patients. © 2015, In House Publications. All rights reserved

    Kinetics of glucose oxidase catalyzed electron transfer mediated by sulfur and selenium compounds

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    AbstractUnusually high electron transfer rates in Aspergillus niger glucose oxidase catalyzed oxidation of glucose using 5,6:11,12-Bis(dithio)tetracene (TTT), 1,2-dimethyltetraselenafulvalene (DMTSF) and tetrathiafulvalene (TTF) were observed. At pH 7.0 oxidation rate constants (TN/Km) in the range from 1.0 · 107 to 8.7 · 107 M · s−1 were deduced from experimental data. One of the investigated mediators, DMTSF, has been used for electrocatalytical glucose oxidation on graphite at a potential of 0.3 V vs. a standard calomel electrode (SCE). The prepared bioelectrodes have a sensitivity of 1.3 μA/(cm2 · mM), a pH optimum at 6.5-7.0, and a linear range which covers the relevant range for monitoring physiological levels of glucose. The bioelectrodes are stable for more than one month

    Small Angle X-Ray Scattering Investigation of Taser Using Correlation Functions

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