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Adaptive-ID Secure Identity-Based Signature Scheme from Lattices in the Standard Model
No full textIdentity-based signature (IBS) which is a paradigm built on public key cryptography has played a significant role in light-weight authentication. With the advent of the post quantum era, the lattice has become a main mathematical tool to construct quantum-immune cryptographic schemes. By utilizing an admissible hash function with compatible algorithms and lattice trapdoors as basic building blocks, we propose a new IBS scheme over lattices. The scheme is proved existentially unforgeable against adaptive identity attacks and chosen message attacks in the standard model under inhomogeneous short integer solution assumption via the generalized partitioning proof technique. Moreover, the scheme needs only logarithmic basic matrices as master public key while keeping the same private key size and signature size as those of other standard model lattice-based IBS schemes. This construction is the first adaptive-ID secure standard model IBS scheme over lattice with such space efficiency
When perceptions are deadly: Policing, given the summer in Ferguson, Missouri and other similar stories, before and since
Get PDFWhen law enforcement officers, regardless of race and ethnicity, are exposed to messages of Black violence, these perceptions of danger can become deadly. In 2014, the Michael Brown case in Ferguson, Missouri elevated this concern; but, there were many other cases previously publicized in the media such as Amadou Diallo, and Sean Bell. Using a content analysis of news reports from 1994 to summer 2015, this paper offers an assessment of media influence in the construction of public perceptions of Black dangerousness that seems to impact Black male and law enforcement interactions that become deadly for the former. The study also describes the local police-community contexts where such interactions seem likely. Patterns of contact and police narratives across a number of high profile police and Black male interactions are described. Noting these patterns, suggestions are offered toward creating a path for constructively addressing the problem of news-generated perceptions that can lead to needless tragedy for some. Community disempowerment and divergent community perspectives of law enforcement are often evident in these cases. This study is thus, an effort at enhancing awareness of modern-day news-perpetuated perceptions linking crime and Blackness
Does KIPP Grow Advantaged? Analyzing KIPP Campuses Over Time
Get PDFKnowledge Is Power Program (KIPP) charter schools are regarded as among the most academically successful schools serving high poverty populations. KIPP schools serve students that are more likely to be poor and from racial minorities than their peers in nearby traditional public schools. Nevertheless, it is possible that, as parents become aware of KIPP’s seemingly successful track record, the student population at KIPP might become less disadvantaged over time. Using Common Core data, we examined demographic changes in 81 KIPP schools that opened between 1995 and 2011, finding no quantitative evidence that KIPP students are growing more advantaged over time. Interviews with KIPP leaders suggest that such stability may reflect purposeful marketing aimed at attracting the most disadvantaged students, though more research is needed
Pedestrian safety under permissive left-turn signal control
No full textAt intersections with permissive only signal control, pedestrians will move at the phase with the parallel through vehicular movement and the permissive left-turn movement. The left-turn vehicles have to yield to both opposing vehicles and pedestrians at the crosswalk. Under such complicated driving conditions, collision risks rise if left-turn vehicles make misjudgments and fail to yield to the pedestrians. In this research, driving-simulation based experiments were conducted for identifying and assessing the impacts of the factors that contribute to the collision between the left-turn vehicles and the pedestrians during the permissive left-turn phase. The results of this study showed that the percentage of left-turn trucks and the pedestrian volume has significant impacts on the pedestrian safety under permissive left-turn signal control
An Econometric Planning Model of Urban Forestry as a Measure of Sustainability: A Matrix of Action and Change
No full textThe urban forest holds several important positions within the built and unbuilt environments. Those positions include economic, health, sustainability, quality of life measures, and overall protection of the environment, including air, water, and soil. The points are highlighted by Wolf (2005;2007); McPherson (2005) and Rowntree and Nowak (1991). This research references the four socio-economic sectors; the public or government sector, for profit or market sector, philanthropic or nonprofit sector, and the household or private sector (Biggs and Helms, 2007). The common purposes and role of each sector with respect to the urban tree cover takes on importance as they interrelate with concerns for public health, economic viability, tree coverage, tree placement, ecological relationships, and public policy. Harris County and its 52 heterogeneous subgovernmental units serve as the study area and the base for the administration of a random internet-based survey. Additionally, the research used urban tree canopy data to relate socio-economics, household preferences, sustainability measures, and overall environmental consciousness to gauge the sectors‟ connection to the urban forest. The research used multiple correlation analysis and regression modeling with secondary data. The research incorporated the results of the primary data collected, employed hierarchal linear modeling to address the perceived problem of a lack of concern for the urban forest and sustainability in respect to sectoral frame of reference in answering the survey questions. The element of willingness and receptivity serves as independent variables and overall environmental sustainability. The results can help policy makers promote sustainable initiatives that enhance the urban forest and protect the overall natural environment for the benefit of all, now and in the future
Editorial: Critical Perspectives on Deviance and Social Control in Rural Africa
Get PDFThere is an urban and western bias in criminology as a sub-field of sociology compared to the preoccupation of colonial anthropology with rural cultures in search of ‘intelligence’ that would facilitate the colonization of the natives. This papyrus surveys the efforts by scholars to critically account for the phenomena of deviance and social control in Africa from the distant past to the present. There is a consensus that human life originated in Africa and that Africans pioneered the building of cities before this form of human settlement spread to other parts of the world. Hence, the study of deviance and social control in rural Africa promises to critique some taken-for-granted assumptions in conventional western criminology and thereby help to map future directions of the scholarly answers to the crisis of insecurity that plagues the modern world in both urban and rural locations. Reversing the modernist snobbery of conventional criminology, this papyrus assumes that rural areas in Africa have one or two things to teach criminologists in general. The papyrus starts from the contentious assumption that rural dwellers are more victims of the abuse of power than law-breakers who need to be controlled with the repressive fetishes of modern criminology. This assumption could be generalized to the rest of the society by recognizing that the oppressed masses have effective resources that could be tapped to solve major problems instead of seeing them as problems that only those in authority could solve through repressive policies
Global and targeted serum metabolic profiling of colorectal cancer progression
No full textBACKGROUND: Patients with colorectal adenoma polyps (PLPs) are at higher risk for developing colorectal cancer (CRC). However, the development of improved and robust biomarkers to enable the screening, surveillance, and early detection of PLPs and CRC continues to be a challenge. The aim of this study was to identify biomarkers of progression to CRC through metabolomic profiling of human serum samples with a multistage approach. METHODS: Metabolomic profiling was conducted with the Metabolon platform for 30 CRC patients, 30 PLP patients, and 30 control subjects, and this was followed by the targeted validation of the top metabolites in an additional set of 50 CRC patients, 50 PLP patients, and 50 controls with liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Unconditional multivariate logistic regression models, adjusted for covariates, were used to evaluate associations with PLP and CRC risk. RESULTS: For the discovery phase, 404 serum metabolites were detected, with 50 metabolites showing differential levels between CRC patients, PLP patients, and controls (P for trend \u3c.05). After validation, the 3 top metabolites (xanthine, hypoxanthine, and d-mannose) were validated: lower levels of xanthine and hypoxanthine and higher levels of d-mannose were found in PLP and CRC cases versus controls. A further exploratory analysis of metabolic pathways revealed key roles for the urea cycle and caffeine metabolism associated with PLP and CRC risk. In addition, a joint effect of the top metabolites with smoking and a significant interaction with the body mass index were observed. An analysis of the ratio of hypoxanthine levels to xanthine levels indicated an association with CRC progression. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest the potential utility of circulating metabolites as novel biomarkers for the early detection of CRC. Cancer 2017;123:4066-74. © 2017 American Cancer Society
Placental Growth Factor Levels in Populations with High Versus Low Risk for Cardiovascular Disease and Stressful Physiological Environments such as Microgravity: A Pilot Study
No full textThis pilot study compared placental growth factor (PIGF) levels in populations with high versus low risk for cardiovascular disease. Previous experiments from our laboratory (Sundaresan et al. 2005, 2009) revealed that the angiogenic factor PIGF was up regulated in modeled microgravity conditions in human lymphocytes leading to possible atherogenesis and pathogenesis in microgravity. Since the findings came from microgravity analog experiments, there is a strong link to its usefulness in the microgravity field as a biomarker. It is important to understand, that these findings came from both studies on expression levels of this cardiovascular marker in human lymphocytes in microgravity (in vitro microgravity analog), and a follow up gene expression study in hind limb suspended mice (in vivo microgravity analog). The relevance is enhanced because in life on earth, PIGF is an inflammatory biomarker for cardiovascular disease. Studies on the levels of PIGF would help to reduce the risk and prevention of heart failures in astronauts. If we can use this marker to predict and reduce the risk of cardiac events in astronauts and pilots, it would significantly help aerospace medicine operations. The investigations here confirmed that in a cardiovascular stressed population such as coronary artery disease (CAD) and acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients, PIGF could be overexpressed. We desired to re-evaluate this marker in patients with cardiovascular disease in our own study. PIGF is a marker of inflammation and a predictor of short-term and long-term adverse outcome in ACS. In addition, elevated PIGF levels may be associated with increased risk for CAD.PIGF levels were determined in thirty-one patients undergoing cardiovascular catheterization for reasons other than ACS and in thirty-three low-risk asymptomatic subjects. Additional data on traditional cardiovascular risk factors for both populations were also compiled and compared. We found that PIGF levels were significantly higher in the high-risk population as compared to low-risk population. Also we were able to ascertain that PIGF levels were inversely correlated with HDL-cholesterol but directly correlated with the triglyceride levels. With further validation, PIGF may prove a useful addition to the armamentarium of noninvasive biomarkers for cardiovascular disease including a new area of stressful physiological conditions such as microgravity
Framework for rapid integration of offline experiments into remote laboratory
No full textRemote laboratory (RL) has become an important component of online education and smart factory due to its capability of remote operation and cost-saving. Recent advantages of information technology have provided various ways to develop RLs. However, how to rapidly bring an offline experiment online is still a vital issue in the development of RL. In this paper, a new flexible framework based on social instant messaging (IM) application architecture is proposed for integrating an offline remote experiment into RL rapidly as a communication node with unique ID. To rapidly connect the LabVIEW controlled devices to server, a new LtoN_UID (LabVIEW to Node.js with Unique ID) module built on Socket.IO protocol is designed and implemented. To demonstrate the effectiveness of this new flexible framework, two existing engineering experiments, i.e., a Smart Vibration Platform (SVP) experiment and a PID motor speed control experiment, are integrated into remote laboratory
Shifting the Blame in Public Education: Are There Parallels Between Opinion and Policy?
Get PDFFederal policies have expanded the use of market driven performance reforms. A growing number of these reforms assume that citizens believe educators should be held accountable for outcomes and funding sanctions will cause underperforming school to enhance outcomes. However it is unclear if citizens share these views. This research assesses these assumptions by examining who citizens believe should be most accountable for education outcomes and whether they support policies that removes funds from underperforming schools and rewards them to other education entities. The results reveal that citizens believe either parents or students should be held more accountable for education outcomes, not teachers. Also targeted groups were less supportive of financially sanctioning underperforming schools