Advertising, promotion, and the rise of a national building society movement in interwar Britain

This article examines the role of advertisement and promotion in the successful development of nationwide building societies in interwar Britain and the rapid overall growth of the building society movement. Major building societies are shown to have used extensive advertising to compensate for their initial lack of established national brands, promote home-ownership, and make savers aware of the attractive earnings and high security of building society savings. During a period when most building societies had very limited branch networks, extensive advertising increased the public profile of the major societies and thus assisted their rapid expansion via lower-cost modes such as agency networks.

Soft computing in biometrics : a pragmatic appraisal

The ever increasing spurt in digital crimes such as image manipulation, image tampering, signature forgery, image forgery, illegal transaction, etc. have hard pressed the demand to combat these forms of criminal activities. In this direction, biometrics - the computer-based validation of a persons' identity is becoming more and more essential particularly for high security systems. The essence of biometrics is the measurement of person’s physiological or behavioral characteristics, it enables authentication of a person’s identity. Biometric-based authentication is also becoming increasingly important in computer-based applications because the amount of sensitive data stored in such systems is growing. The new demands of biometric systems are robustness, high recognition rates, capability to handle imprecision, uncertainties of non-statistical kind and magnanimous flexibility. It is exactly here that, the role of soft computing techniques comes to play. The main aim of this write-up is to present a pragmatic view on applications of soft computing techniques in biometrics and to analyze its impact. It is found that soft computing has already made inroads in terms of individual methods or in combination. Applications of varieties of neural networks top the list followed by fuzzy logic and evolutionary algorithms. In a nutshell, the soft computing paradigms are used for biometric tasks such as feature extraction, dimensionality reduction, pattern identification, pattern mapping and the like.

Avaliação microbiológica de um processo de sanificação de galões de água com a utilização do ozônio

O Brasil é o sétimo maior consumidor mundial de águas engarrafadas. Os recipientes mais utilizados, galões plásticos de 20 litros, devem ser submetidos à inspeção individual e posteriormente a sanificação. Recentemente, enfermidades associadas a microrganismos emergentes têm despertado o interesse por novos sanitizantes. Entre estes, o gás ozônio é um dos mais atraentes em virtude da sua segurança e eficácia superiores aos desinfetantes convencionais, não gerando resíduos tóxicos. Neste trabalho, o ozônio foi avaliado como método alternativo na sanificação de galões de água de 20 litros, na cidade de Alfenas, MG. Trinta galões foram avaliados sem tratamento e trinta após a sanificação com água ozonizada (4mg/L/2minutos) quanto à contagem total de microrganismos aeróbios mesófilos heterotróficos, número mais provável (NMP) de coliformes totais e Escherichia coli, Staphyloccocus aureus e Pseudomonas spp. em 100mL de solução enxaguatória. A contagem média de unidades formadoras de colônias (UFC) de microrganismos heterotróficos no estágio de pré-lavagem foi de 5,7/cm² enquanto que o tratamento com a água ozonizada reduziu este valor para 0,003/cm², além de promover a negativação das análises para coliformes Pseudomonas ssp. e somente 13,3% das amostras apresentaram-se positivas para Staphylococcus aureus após a sanificação. Concluiu-se que o tratamento com utilização de ozônio foi eficiente, nas condições testadas.

Cholesterol granuloma of the petrous apex: benefit of computer-aided surgery

The following is an analysis of the role of computer aided surgery by infralabyrinthine-subcochlear approach to the petrous apex for cholesterol granulomas with hearing preservation. In a retrospective case review from 1996 to 2008 six patients were analysed in our tertiary referral centre, otorhinolaryngology outpatient clinic. Excellent intraoperative localisation of the carotid artery, facial nerve and the entrance into the cholesterol cyst of the bone by means of the navigation system was seen. Additionally, the operation time decreased from an initial 4 h down to 2 h. The application of computer-aided surgery allows intraoperative monitoring of the position of the tip of the microsurgical instruments in case of a rare disease and in the delicate area of the petrous apex giving a high security level.

A Precharge-Absorbed DPL Logic for Reducing Early Propagation Effects on FPGA Implementations

In this paper, a new countermeasure against power and electromagnetic (EM) Side Channel Attacks (SCA) on FPGA implemented cryptographic algorithms is proposed. This structure mainly focuses on a critical vulnerability, Early Evaluation, also known as Early Propagation Effect (EPE), which exists in most conventional SCA-hardened DPL (Dual-rail with Precharge Logic) solutions. The main merit of this proposal is that the EPE can be effectively prevented by using a synchronized non regular precharge network, which maintains identical routing between the original and mirror parts, where costs and design complexity compared with previous EPE-resistant countermeasures are reduced, while security level is not sacrificed. Another advantage for our Precharge Absorbed(PA) - DPL method is that its Dual-Core style (independent architecture for true and false parts) could be generated using partial reconfiguration. This helps to get a dynamic security protection with better energy planning. That means system only keeps the true part which fulfills the normal en/decryption task in low security level, and reconfigures the false parts once high security level is required. A relatively limited clock speed is a compromise, since signal propagation is restricted to a portion of the clock period. In this paper, we explain the principles of PA-DPL and provide the guidelines to design this structure. We experimentally validate our methods in a minimized AES co-processor on Xilinx Virtex-5 board using electromagnetic (EM) attacks.

Propuesta de Mecanismos de Verificación de Integridad de Plataformas Móviles de Computación basados en Entornos Seguros de Ejecución

Las prestaciones y características de los dispositivos móviles actuales los sitúa a un nivel similar a los ordenadores de escritorio tradicionales en cuanto a funcionalidad y posibilidades de uso, añadiendo además la movilidad y la sensación de pertenencia al usuario que se deriva de ésta. Estas cualidades convierten a las plataformas móviles de computación en verdaderos ordenadores personales, y cada día es más popular su utilización en ámbitos distintos del ocio y las comunicaciones propiamente dichas, pasando a convertirse en herramientas de apoyo a la productividad también en el entorno profesional y corporativo. La utilización del dispositivo móvil como parte de una infraestructura de telecomunicaciones da lugar a nuevas expresiones de problemas clásicos de gestión y seguridad. Para tratar de abordarlos con la flexibilidad y la escalabilidad necesarias se plantean alternativas novedosas que parten de enfoques originales a estos problemas, como las ideas y conceptos que se engloban en la filosofía del Control de Acceso a la Red (Network Access Control, o NAC). La mayoría de los planteamientos de NAC se basan, en el ámbito de la seguridad, en comprobar ciertas características del dispositivo móvil para tratar de determinar hasta qué punto puede éste suponer una amenaza para los recursos de la red u otros usuarios de la misma. Obtener esta información de forma fiable resulta extremadamente difícil si se caracteriza el dispositivo mediante un modelo de caja blanca, muy adecuado dada la apertura propia de los sistemas operativos móviles actuales, muy diferentes de los de antaño, y la ausencia de un marco de seguridad efectivo en ellos. Este trabajo explora el Estado de la Técnica en este ámbito de investigación y plantea diferentes propuestas orientadas a cubrir las deficiencias de las soluciones propuestas hasta el momento y a satisfacer los estrictos requisitos de seguridad que se derivan de la aplicación del modelo de caja blanca, materializándose en última instancia en la definición de un mecanismo de evaluación de características arbitrarias de un cierto dispositivo móvil basado en Entornos Seguros de Ejecución (Trusted Execution Environments, o TEEs) con elevadas garantías de seguridad compatible con los planteamientos actuales de NAC. ABSTRACT The performance and features of today’s mobile devices make them able to compete with traditional desktop computers in terms of functionality and possible usages. In addition to this, they sport mobility and the stronger sense of ownership that derives from it. These attributes change mobile computation platforms into truly personal computers, allowing them to be used not only for leisure or as mere communications devices, but also as supports of productivity in professional and corporative environments. The utilization of mobile devices as part of a telecommunications infrastructure brings new expressions of classic management and security problems with it. In order to tackle them with appropriate flexibility and scalability, new alternatives are proposed based on original approaches to these problems, such as the concepts and ideas behind the philosophy of Network Access Control (NAC). The vast majority of NAC proposals are based, security-wise, on checking certain mobile device’s properties in order to evaluate how probable it is for it to become a threat for network resources or even other users of the infrastructure. Obtaining this information in a reliable and trustworthy way is extremely difficult if the device is characterized using a white-box model, which is the most appropriate if the openness of today’s mobile operating systems, very different from former ones, and the absence of an effective security framework are taken into account. This work explores the State of the Art related with the aforementioned field of research and presents different proposals targeted to overcome the deficiencies of current solutions and satisfy the strict security requirements derived from the application of the white box model. These proposals are ultimately materialized in the definition of a high-security evaluation procedure of arbitrary properties of a given mobile device based on Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs) which is compatible with modern NAC approaches.

Los espacios mineros abandonados. El caso de la Comunidad de Madrid

La Comunidad de Madrid ha tenido un pasado minero importante que ha dejado su vestigio en el territorio. Actualmente la explotación de minerales no metálicos y de rocas industriales y ornamentales continúa, pero no así la de la minería metálica que en el pasado fue abundante. Hoy en día todas estas minas están abandonadas, dando lugar a zonas degradadas con un elevado riesgo para la seguridad de las personas y de los animales terrestres que habitan por sus inmediaciones, y necesitan ser intervenidas atendiendo, además, a su integración o recuperación ecológica y paisajística en el territorio. El principal propósito de esta tesis es conocer la situación actual que presentan las minas abandonadas de metales y proponer unos modelos de actuación para la rehabilitación e integración de los espacios mineros abandonados de la Comunidad de Madrid, cuya ventaja también estriba en su posible extrapolación a otras aéreas de gestión con una problemática similar. Partiendo de una selección de cincuenta y siete minas de interior metálicas abandonadas, se ha hecho un diagnostico en función de su seguridad (riesgo), interés cultural, arqueológico e histórico y por su afección a espacios protegidos, resultando que en todas, excepto en tres de ellas, es preciso llevar a cabo medidas protectoras y de restauración e integración en el medio ambiente. El conjunto de minas catalogadas de alto riesgo para la seguridad son veintitrés, y sobre ellas se ha realizado un Análisis Clúster, en el que además de los criterios de gestión formulados: seguridad, protección del patrimonio minero-industrial e integración ecológico-paisajística, se han incorporado otros modificadores como distancia a poblaciones, caminos, pistas y vías pecuarias, y accesibilidad. Con los resultados de este análisis se obtienen una clasificación por grupos de las minas en relación con las características intrínsecas de las explotaciones preseleccionadas y la tipología de problemas que presentan, y a partir de ella se plantean soluciones viables que se concretan en la redacción de una serie de anteproyectos tipo. Una de las principales aportaciones es que se trata de un modelo de inventariocaracterización- actuación extrapolable a otros entornos similares con problemáticas parecidas. Las propuestas de actuación que figuran en los anteproyectos tipo se proponen como medidas aplicables en situaciones similares. La tesis además también incorpora una base de datos georreferenciada que permite la localización de las explotaciones mineras abandonadas, el acceso rápido a sus características y a la propuesta de restauración correspondiente. ABSTRACT The Community of Madrid had an important mining past that left its traces in the territory. Currently the explotation of non-metallic minerals and industrial and ornamental rocks continues, but not so much with the metal deposits that were abundant in the past. Today these mines are abandoned, resulting in degraded areas with a high risk to the safety of nearby people and animals that inhabit its vicinity, and they need to be intervened, by tending to their environment integration or ecological and landscape recovery. The main objective of this thesis is to know the current situation of abandoned metal mines and propose an action model for the rehabilitation and integration of abandoned mining areas of the Community of Madrid, whose advantage also is its possible extrapolation to other management areas with similar problems. From a selection of fifty-seven abandoned metal mines, a diagnosis has been made, based on safety (risk), cultural, archaeological and historical interests and how it can be related to protected areas, resulting that all but three of them need measures of protection, restoration and integration to the environment. The set of mines that are classified as a high security risk are twenty-three, and it has been made on them an Cluster Analysis, as in addition to the management formulated criteria, such as safety, protection of mining and industrial heritage and eco-landscape integration, it has been incorporated other modifying variables, such as distance to populations, roads, tracks and livestock paths, and accessibility. With the results of this analysis, a classification of similar groups of mines in relation with the intrinsic characteristics of the preselected mines and typology problems, and from it a set of viable solutions will be specified, being then drafted on a series of proposals. One of the main contributions of this research is that it consists of an inventorycharacterization- action model, which can be extrapolated to other similar environments with similar problems. The action measures that are contained in the proposals are defined as applicable to similar situations. The thesis also incorporates a geo-referenced database that allows finding the location of abandoned mines, thus giving quick access to its features and its corresponding restoration proposal.

Approaches and Strategy for Cancer Research and Surveillance Data: Integration, Information Pipeline, Data Models, and Informatics Opportunities

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-04

Is corrections correcting? An examination of prisoner rehabilitation policy and practice in Queensland

This article provides an analysis of the policy and practice of prisoner rehabilitation in Queensland, and the extent to which they accord with international best practice. Actual practice was identified through interviews and written submissions from 20 ex-prisoners and 18 prisoner service providers (including two past staff members from Queensland prisons), as well as through an examination of reported judicial review decisions and Department of Corrective Services statistics. The results demonstrate that although the legislation and procedures suggest that a best practice system of prisoner rehabilitation exists in Queensland, there is a significant gulf between policy and practice. Far from being sufficiently prepared for release, Queensland prisoners are generally released directly from high security facilities into a community which they have great difficulty reintegrating into. The results suggest that the corrective services system in Queensland is not succeeding in fulfilling its primary purpose, 'correction', or in meeting its well-publicised goal of ensuring community safety.

Water rights for variable supplies

The relative merits of different systems of property rights to allocate water among different extractive uses are evaluated for the case where variability of supply is important. Three systems of property rights are considered. In the first, variable supply is dealt with through the use of water entitlements defined as shares of the total quantity available. In the second, there are two types of water entitlements, one for water with a high security of supply and the other a lower security right for the residual supply. The third is a system of entitlements specified as state-contingent claims. With zero transaction costs, all systems are efficient. In the realistic situation where transaction costs matter, the system based on state-contingent claims is globally optimal, and the system with high-security and lower security entitlements is preferable to the system with share entitlements.

The psychometric properties of a psychosis screen in a correctional setting

Many people who go to gaol are mentally ill. Remandees, prisoner receptions or people in jails have a substantially higher rate of severe mental disorder than other prisoners and the general population. There are no completely satisfactory ways to screen for psychosis and few existing screening questionnaires are available for use in correctional establishments. The Screening Instrument for Psychosis (PS) was developed in the context of the Australian Mental Health Survey: Study of Low Prevalence Disorders. It can help indicate whether a person should be referred to mental health professional for a diagnostic evaluation and possible treatment and/or diversion. We trialled the PS in a high security remand and reception centre. Measures of validity and reliability are reported. (c) 2006 Published by Elsevier Inc.

Motion vector encryption in multimedia streaming

Streaming video application requires high security as well as high computational performance. In video encryption, traditional selective algorithms have been used to partially encrypt the relatively important data in order to satisfy the streaming performance requirement. Most video selective encryption algorithms are inherited from still image encryption algorithms, the encryption on motion vector data is not considered. The assumption is that motion vector data are not as important as pixel image data. Unfortunately, in some cases, motion vector itself may be sufficient enough to leak out useful video information. Normally motion vector data consume over half of the whole video stream bandwidth, neglecting their security may be unwise. In this paper, we target this security problem and illustrate attacks at two different levels that can restore useful video information using motion vectors only. Further, an information analysis is made and a motion vector information model is built. Based on this model, we describe a new motion vector encryption algorithm called MVEA. We show the experimental results of MVEA. The security strength and performance of the algorithm are also evaluated.

Ensuring efficiency and robustness in MANET

This paper introduces a joint load balancing and hotspot mitigation protocol for mobile ad-hoc network (MANET) termed by us as 'load_energy balance + hotspot mitigation protocol (LEB+HM)'. We argue that although ad-hoc wireless networks have limited network resources - bandwidth and power, prone to frequent link/node failures and have high security risk; existing ad hoc routing protocols do not put emphasis on maintaining robust link/node, efficient use of network resources and on maintaining the security of the network. Typical route selection metrics used by existing ad hoc routing protocols are shortest hop, shortest delay, and loop avoidance. These routing philosophy have the tendency to cause traffic concentration on certain regions or nodes, leading to heavy contention, congestion and resource exhaustion which in turn may result in increased end-to-end delay, packet loss and faster battery power depletion, degrading the overall performance of the network. Also in most existing on-demand ad hoc routing protocols intermediate nodes are allowed to send route reply RREP to source in response to a route request RREQ. In such situation a malicious node can send a false optimal route to the source so that data packets sent will be directed to or through it, and tamper with them as wish. It is therefore desirable to adopt routing schemes which can dynamically disperse traffic load, able to detect and remove any possible bottlenecks and provide some form of security to the network. In this paper we propose a combine adaptive load_energy balancing and hotspot mitigation scheme that aims at evenly distributing network traffic load and energy, mitigate against any possible occurrence of hotspot and provide some form of security to the network. This combine approach is expected to yield high reliability, availability and robustness, that best suits any dynamic and scalable ad hoc network environment. Dynamic source routing (DSR) was use as our underlying protocol for the implementation of our algorithm. Simulation comparison of our protocol to that of original DSR shows that our protocol has reduced node/link failure, even distribution of battery energy, and better network service efficiency.

A probabilistic analysis of the biometrics menagerie existence: case study in fingerprint data

Until recently the use of biometrics was restricted to high-security environments and criminal identification applications, for economic and technological reasons. However, in recent years, biometric authentication has become part of daily lives of people. The large scale use of biometrics has shown that users within the system may have different degrees of accuracy. Some people may have trouble authenticating, while others may be particularly vulnerable to imitation. Recent studies have investigated and identified these types of users, giving them the names of animals: Sheep, Goats, Lambs, Wolves, Doves, Chameleons, Worms and Phantoms. The aim of this study is to evaluate the existence of these users types in a database of fingerprints and propose a new way of investigating them, based on the performance of verification between subjects samples. Once introduced some basic concepts in biometrics and fingerprint, we present the biometric menagerie and how to evaluate them.

A probabilistic analysis of the biometrics menagerie existence: case study in fingerprint data

Until recently the use of biometrics was restricted to high-security environments and criminal identification applications, for economic and technological reasons. However, in recent years, biometric authentication has become part of daily lives of people. The large scale use of biometrics has shown that users within the system may have different degrees of accuracy. Some people may have trouble authenticating, while others may be particularly vulnerable to imitation. Recent studies have investigated and identified these types of users, giving them the names of animals: Sheep, Goats, Lambs, Wolves, Doves, Chameleons, Worms and Phantoms. The aim of this study is to evaluate the existence of these users types in a database of fingerprints and propose a new way of investigating them, based on the performance of verification between subjects samples. Once introduced some basic concepts in biometrics and fingerprint, we present the biometric menagerie and how to evaluate them.