Search results for "Security studies"
showing 10 items of 314 documents
Disrupting resilient criminal networks through data analysis: The case of Sicilian Mafia
2020
Compared to other types of social networks, criminal networks present hard challenges, due to their strong resilience to disruption, which poses severe hurdles to law-enforcement agencies. Herein, we borrow methods and tools from Social Network Analysis to (i) unveil the structure of Sicilian Mafia gangs, based on two real-world datasets, and (ii) gain insights as to how to efficiently disrupt them. Mafia networks have peculiar features, due to the links distribution and strength, which makes them very different from other social networks, and extremely robust to exogenous perturbations. Analysts are also faced with the difficulty in collecting reliable datasets that accurately describe the…
Assisted phytostabilization of soil from a former military area with mineral amendments.
2019
Abstract Due to the presence of toxic pollutants, soils in former military areas need remedial actions with environmentally friendly methods. Greenhouse experiments were conducted to investigate the aided phytostabilization of multi-heavy metals (HMs), i.e. Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn, in post-military soil by Festuca rubra and three mineral amendments (diatomite, dolomite and halloysite). The amendments were applied at 0 and 3.0% to each pot filled with 5 kg of polluted soil. After seven weeks of the phytostabilization, selected soil properties, biomass yield of F. rubra and immobilization of HMs by their accumulation in plant and redistribution among individual fractions in soil were determine…
UML/OCL-based modeling of work-based access control policies for collaborative healthcare systems
2016
A work-based access control (WBAC) model is proposed by introducing the team role concept and modifying the user-role assignment model from a previous work. The main goals of WBAC are flexibility, easy manageability, security, as well as suitability to support cooperative work of dynamic teams in healthcare environments. One of the major challenges of WBAC regards authorization constraints in terms of organizational policies. In this article, we show how Unified Modeling Language (UML) and Object Constraints Language (OCL) are utilized to design and analyze the authorization constraints of WBAC in cooperative engagements with complex scenarios in the collaborative healthcare domain. We also…
Reliability Analysis of a Controlled Stage-Constructed and Reinforced Embankment on Soft Ground Using 2D and 3D Models
2020
Geosynthetic reinforcement has become a very practical technique to improve geotechnical structure safety. In spite of improved soil behavior, structures are affected by uncertainties related to soil and reinforcement material properties. This paper aims to present a reliability analysis in order to take statistical information (uncertainties) into account in a safety analysis of reinforced embankments. The analysis was used in a case study on a controlled stage-constructed embankment on soft ground in order to investigate its probabilistic stability. Modeling was performed by commercial geotechnical software usage (GeoStudio and RocScience packs, SIGMA/W+SLOPE/W and SLIDE³, respectively) a…
Effects of Activated Carbon on PCB Bioaccumulation and Biological Responses of Chironomus riparius in Full Life Cycle Test
2016
The nonbiting midge Chironomus riparius was used to study the remediation potential and secondary effects of activated carbon (AC, ø 63-200 μm) in PCB contaminated sediments. AC amendments efficiently reduced PCB bioavailability determined by Chironomus riparius bioaccumulation tests and passive samplers. PCBs were shown to transfer from larvae to adults. Lower PCB concentrations were observed in adult midges emerging from AC amended compared to unamended sediments. Increased reproduction, survival, larval growth and gut wall microvilli length were observed with low AC dose (0.5% sediment dw) compared to unamended sediment, indicating an improved success of larvae in the sediment with low o…
Biotransformation and toxicity effect of monoanthraquinone dyes during Bjerkandera adusta CCBAS 930 cultures.
2020
Abstract The aim of this study was to evaluate of possibility of biotransformation and toxicity effect of monoanthraquinone dyes in cultures of Bjerkandera adusta CCBAS 930. Phenolic compounds, free radicals, phytotoxicity (Lepidium sativum L.), ecotoxicity (Vibrio fischeri) and cytotoxicity effect were evaluated to determine the toxicity of anthraquinone dyes before and after the treatment with B. adusta CCBAS 930. More than 80% of ABBB and AB129 was removed by biodegradation (decolorization) and biosorption, but biodegradation using oxidoreductases was the main dye removing mechanism. Secondary products toxic to plants and bacteria were formed in B. adusta strain CCBAS 930 cultures, despi…
Factors influencing structural heat-induced structural relaxation of dissolved organic matter
2018
Abstract Physical and chemical structure affect properties of dissolved organic matter (DOM). Recent observations revealed that heating and cooling cycles at higher temperature amplitude lead to a change in DOM physical conformation assumingly followed by a slow structural relaxation. In this study, changes at lower temperature amplitudes and their relation to DOM composition were investigated using simultaneous measurements of density and ultrasonic velocity in order to evaluate the adiabatic compressibility, which is sensitive indicator of DOM structural microelasticity. Six fulvic acids (FAs) having various origins were analyzed at concentrations of 0.12, 0.6 and 1.2 g L−1 and at differe…
Assessment of chronic effects of tebuconazole on survival, reproduction and growth of Daphnia magna after different exposure times
2015
The effect of the fungicide tebuconazole (0.41, 0.52, 0.71 and 1.14mg/L) on survival, reproduction and growth of Daphnia magna organisms was monitored using 14 and 21 days exposure tests. A third experiment was performed by exposing D. magna to the fungicide for 14 days followed by 7 days of recovery (14+7). In order to test fungicide effects on D. magna, parameters as survival, mean whole body length, mean total number of neonates per female, mean number of broods per female, mean brood size per female, time to first brood/reproduction and intrinsic rate of natural increase (r) were used. Reproduction was seriously affected by tebuconazole. All tebuconazole concentrations tested affected t…
Shear design of high strength concrete beams in MRFs
2019
This paper presents the criteria for the shear design of high strength concrete (HSC) beams in moment resisting frames (MRFs). The formulation of an analytical model is provided for the case of beams with longitudinal reinforcement in the presence of transverse stirrups. The model is of additive type, in the meaning that the shear resistance of the beam is evaluated as the sum of several contributions. In particular, the contribution of concrete, longitudinal rebars, and transversal reinforcement are taken into account. Furthermore, for assessing the concrete contribution, a classical approach is followed, according to which two effects arise in the shear mechanism: the arc and the beam eff…
“Another Munich We Just Cannot Afford”: Historical Metonymy In Politics
2016
The appeasement of Hitler and the Munich Agreement is a rhetorical comparison used commonly in international relations to defend politico-military action. On the basis of conceptual history and rhetorics, we examine cases of political speech in this paradigm. Firstly, we discuss time and conceptualize experience into first and second order experiences. Secondly, the roles of metaphor, metonymy and analogy in relation to thought and action are examined. We then contextualise Munich 1938, and present three cases demonstrating the political usage of this metonymy since WWII. These range from the Suez Crises to the Gulf War and on-going War on Terror. These cases show that “Munich” can be used …