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Cyberattacks
No full textA cyberattack is a technology-enabled attack that compromises the cybersecurity of a person or an organisation and targets their information assets. Such compromises are detrimental to customer trust and brand reputation and often have severe financial, legal, and regulatory implications. The operational recovery of a cybersecurity breach alone is estimated to cost more than US124 million from the UK Information Commissioner’s Office under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), for one of the biggest data breaches in history where personal information of 500 million guests was exposed by a hack in the reservation database of its Starwood properties. This entry explains the most common types of cyberattacks in the travel and tourism sector: phishing, malware attack, POS attack, ransomware attack, botnet/DDoS attack, third-party service provider attack and Wi-Fi network attack
Investigation of the strength evolution of lime-treated London clay soil
No full textThe paper investigates the effect of hydrated lime on shear strength properties and behaviour of London clay, triaxial. Unconsolidated undrained tests were performed to identify the effect of lime dosage, compaction water content and curing time on the shear strength and stress–strain behaviour of the treated soil. The mineralogical and physicochemical transformations occurring during the curing of the soil were also monitored. The results showed that strength gain was strongly influenced by lime content and the curing period, whereas compaction water content was less influential. It was found that the strength evolution is likely to continue over long periods of time and result in very considerable strength gains on the hardening of pozzolanic reaction products. It was also shown that adequate early strength gains can be obtained with reduced material consumption, thus further increasing the sustainability of the treatment processes. The paper also highlighted the importance for engineering design of considering the brittle stress–strain response of the lime-treated soil, and the benefit of using lower amounts of lime to alleviate this undesirable effect. The implications of various aspects of soil brittleness in different situations merit further attention and should be explored by way of modelling in future work
Encryption Techniques for Smart Systems Data Security Offloaded to the Cloud.
Get PDFWith technological advancement, cloud computing paradigms are gaining massive popularity in the ever-changing technological advancement. The main objective of the cloud computing system is to provide on-demand storage and computing resources to the users on the pay-per-use policy. It allows small businesses to use top-notch infrastructure at low expense. However, due to the cloud resource sharing property, data privacy and security are significant concerns and barriers for smart systems to constantly transfer generated data to the cloud computing resources, which a third-party provider manages. Many encryption techniques have been proposed to cope with data security issues. In this paper, different existing data protection and encryption techniques based on common parameters have been critically analyzed and their workflows are graphically presented. This survey aims to collect existing data encryption techniques widely presented in the literature for smart system data security offloaded to the cloud computing systems under a single umbrella
A Deep Learning-Based Framework for Feature Extraction and Classification of Intrusion Detection in Networks
No full textAn intrusion detection system, often known as an IDS, is extremely important for preventing attacks on a network, violatingnetwork policies, and gaining unauthorized access to a network. The effectiveness of IDS is highly dependent on datapreprocessing techniques and classification models used to enhance accuracy and reduce model training and testing time. Forthe purpose of anomaly identification, researchers have developed several machine learning and deep learning-basedalgorithms; nonetheless, accurate anomaly detection with low test and train times remains a challenge. Using a hybrid featureselection approach and a deep neural network- (DNN-) based classifier, the authors of this research suggest an enhancedintrusion detection system (IDS). In order to construct a subset of reduced and optimal features that may be used forclassification, a hybrid feature selection model that consists of three methods, namely, chi square, ANOVA, and principalcomponent analysis (PCA), is applied. These methods are referred to as “the big three.” On the NSL-KDD dataset, thesuggested model receives training and is then evaluated. The proposed method was successful in achieving the followingresults: a reduction of input data by 40%, an average accuracy of 99.73%, a precision score of 99.75%, an F1 score of 99.72%,and an average training and testing time of 138% and 2.7 seconds, respectively. The findings of the experiments demonstratethat the proposed model is superior to the performance of the other comparison approache
Tourism in India and the impact of weather and climate
Get PDFIn the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, India’s tourism industry has the opportunity to further grow and expand through the development and implementation of sustainable policies. The diversity of India’s geography is observed in its weather which is variable both spatially and temporally throughout the year. The number of foreign tourist arrivals into the country is influenced by the seasonal weather changes and significant reductions in visitors are observed during the monsoon season. In future decades, the changing climate has the potential to further shape tourism patterns. Warmer temperatures and an increased frequency of high intensity rainfall are the two most common predictions for the future climate of India. This will result in a shorter winter tourism season in the northern states where a cold climate currently enables winter sports activities such as skiing and snowboarding. Coastal tourism along India’s vast coast may become less attractive to tourists due to damage and disruption to coral reefs and marine wildlife. Sea-level rise and coastal erosion may push beach tourists to more desirable and scenic destinations. India’s transport infrastructure is key to enable the safe and efficient movement of tourists in urban areas and around the country. The current weather is already impacting the air, road and rail networks and further challenges are highly likely due to a changing climate. There is still opportunity for India’s tourism industry to adapt through physical and policy developments which would make India a more competitive and sustainable tourism destination
Influence of health literacy on maintenance of exclusive breastfeeding at 6 months postpartum: a multicentre study
Get PDFBackground: International organizations recommend initiating breastfeeding within the first hour of life and maintaining exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months. However, worldwide rates of exclusive breastfeeding for 6-month-old infants is far from meeting the goal proposed by the World Health Organization, which is to reach a minimum of 50% of infants. Education is one of the factors affecting the initiation and continuation of breastfeeding, and incidentally, it is also related to lower health literacy. This study explored the influence of health literacy on maintenance of exclusive breastfeeding at 6 months postpartum. Methods: A longitudinal multicenter study with 343 women were recruited between January 2019 and January 2020. The first questionnaire was held during the puerperium (24–48 h) with mothers practicing exclusive breastfeeding, with whom 6-month postpartum breastfeeding follow-up was performed. Socio-demographic, clinical and obstetric variables were collected. Breastfeeding efficiency was assessed using the LATCH breastfeeding assessment tool. The health literacy level was evaluated by the Newest Vital Sign screening tool. A multivariate logistic regression model was used to detect protective factors for early exclusive breastfeeding cessation. Results: One third of the women continued exclusive breastfeeding at 6 months postpartum. Approximately half the participants had a low or inadequate health literacy level. An adequate health literacy level, a high LATCH breastfeeding assessment tool score (>9 points) and being married were the protective factors against exclusive breastfeeding cessation at 6 months postpartum. Conclusion: Health literacy levels are closely related to maintaining exclusive breastfeeding and act as a protective factor against early cessation. A specific instrument is needed to measure the lack of “literacy in breastfeeding”, in order to verify the relationship between health literacy and maintenance of exclusive breastfeeding
Assessing the root system of urban trees by geostatistical analysis of GPR data
Get PDFThe monitoring and preservation of natural resources are vital in present times. With regards to urban trees, their benefits to the environment and the community are widely recognised. Nevertheless, the coexistence between street trees and the built environment is based on a delicate balance, as safeguarding the natural asset may conflict with the damaging mechanisms that tree roots cause to roads, building foundations and underground utilities.
Ground penetrating radar (GPR) is becoming popular as a reliable non-destructive testing (NDT) method for assessing and mapping tree roots. In street trees management, there is an increasing need for dedicated investigation methods, mainly related to accessibility constraints. Recent studies have investigated the feasibility of novel survey and processing methodologies for fast tree root evaluation based on time-frequency analysis of GPR data.
The purpose of this research is to present an analysis combining GPR with geostatistics, a branch of spatial statistics focused on the analyses and modelling of spatial data. The complex spatial patterns of tree roots represent a challenging spatial field to be investigated both from the geophysical as well as from the spatial statistical perspective. Two-dimensional GPR outputs from a real-life case study were analysed to assess the spatial correlation of radar data and evaluate the best interpolation approaches, allowing for more reliable detection and mapping of tree roots. The interpretation of the results confirmed the feasibility of the proposed approach, paving the way for novel and faster survey methodologies for urban trees
An investigation into road trees’ root systems through geostatistical analysis of GPR data
Get PDFStreet trees are a critical asset for the urban environment due to the variety of environmental and social benefits provided [1]. However, the conflicting coexistence of tree root systems with the built environment, especially with road infrastructure, frequently results in extensive damage, such as the uplifting and cracking of sidewalks and curbs, endangering pedestrians, cyclists, and road drivers’ safety.
Within this context, ground penetrating radar (GPR) is gaining recognition as an accurate nondestructive testing (NDT) method for tree roots’ assessment and mapping [2]. Nevertheless, the investigation methods developed so far are often inadequate for application on street trees, as these are often difficult to access. Recent studies have focused on implementing new survey and processing techniques for rapid tree root assessment based on combined time-frequency analyses of GPR data [3].
This research also explores the adoption of a geostatistical approach for the spatial data analysis and interpolation of GPR data. The radial development of roots and the complexity of root network constitute a challenging setting for the spatial data analysis and the recognition of specific spatial features.
Preliminary results are therefore presented based on a geostatistical analysis of GPR data. To this end, 2-D GPR outputs (i.e., B-scans and C-scans) were analysed to quantify the spatial correlation amongst radar amplitude reflection features and their anisotropy, leading to a more reliable detection and mapping of tree roots. The proposed processing system could be employed for investigating trees difficult to access, such as road trees, where more comprehensive analyses are difficult to implement. Results' interpretation has shown the viability of the proposed analysis and will pave the way to further investigations
Experimental and theoretical behaviour of large scale loaded steel mesh reinforced concrete ground-supported slabs
Get PDFExperimental and theoretical investigations were carried out to study the structural behaviour of loaded steel mesh reinforced concrete ground-supported 6.0 m × 6.0 m by 150 mm thick slabs. The aim of the study was to benchmark scientific theory with practice. Concentrated loading tests were carried out at the slab centre; at 300 mm, and 150 mm from both the edges and the corners of the slabs. Finite element (FE) numerical modelling results and predicted design values using technical guidance and codes were determined. Nonlinear behaviour under load was captured by the FE modelling. All of the results were evaluated and compared. The experimental tests included the centre and 300 mm edge loading. Other loading positions were evaluated numerically and compared with design guidance. Experimentally for centre loading, failure was predominantly in punching shear at a load of 417 kN. For the 300 mm edge loading, circumferential and radial cracks led to bending and a punching shear failure at a peak value of 369 kN. A notable difference was evident between the experimental and values obtained using the technical guidance. The experimental values were 51.0% higher for the central loading position and 53.2% higher for the 300 mm edge loading position
Living through lockdown: a qualitative exploration of individuals’ experiences in the UK
Get PDFIn response to the Covid-19 outbreak, the British government introduced a lockdown resulting in country wide restrictions on movement and socialisation. This research sought to explore individuals’ experience of the first lockdown in the UK. A qualitative online survey was conducted between April and June 2020. Using a convenience sample, 29 individuals participated in the study. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Four themes were identified: ‘health and wellbeing’, ‘social connectedness and belonging’, ‘employment and finances’ and ‘personal and collective values’. Participants’ experiences involved both challenges and opportunities. Participants reported challenges to their physical health, mental health, sense of connection to others as well as their employment and finances. However, they also viewed the lockdown as an opportunity to reassess their goals and values, and define a ‘new normal’ for society. Lockdown restrictions threatened individuals’ wellbeing on many aspects of their lives. As anxiety, loneliness and a compromised grieving process may lead to severe mental health issues, early interventions are needed to prevent these and promote wellbeing. Interventions may include traditional therapies (e.g. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy), or on developing social networks and social support (e.g. mutual help groups). These interventions may be conducive to the experience of growth reported by some participants