A Pandemic of Violence? The Impact of COVID-19 on Conflict

Author(s):  
Sara M.T. Polo

AbstractThis article examines the impact and repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic on patterns of armed conflict around the world. It argues that there are two main ways in which the pandemic is likely to fuel, rather than mitigate, conflict and engender further violence in conflict-prone countries: (1) the exacerbating effect of COVID-19 on the underlying root causes of conflict and (2) the exploitation of the crisis by governments and non-state actors who have used the coronavirus to gain political advantage and territorial control. The article uses data collected in real-time by the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) and the Johns Hopkins University to illustrate the unfolding and spatial distribution of conflict events before and during the pandemic and combine this with three brief case studies of Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Libya. Descriptive evidence shows how levels of violence have remained unabated or even escalated during the first five months of the pandemic and how COVID-19-related social unrest has spread beyond conflict-affected countries.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Daher ◽  
Nesma Aldash

Abstract With the global push towards Industry 4.0, a number of leading companies and organizations have invested heavily in Industrial Internet of Things (IIOT's) and acquired a massive amount of data. But data without proper analysis that converts it into actionable insights is just more information. With the advancement of Data analytics, machine learning, artificial intelligence, numerous methods can be used to better extract value out of the amassed data from various IIOTs and leverage the analysis to better make decisions impacting efficiency, productivity, optimization and safety. This paper focuses on two case studies- one from upstream and one from downstream using RTLS (Real Time Location Services). Two types of challenges were present: the first one being the identification of the location of all personnel on site in case of emergency and ensuring that all have mustered in a timely fashion hence reducing the time to muster and lessening the risks of Leaving someone behind. The second challenge being the identification of personnel and various contractors, the time they entered in productive or nonproductive areas and time it took to complete various tasks within their crafts while on the job hence accounting for efficiency, productivity and cost reduction. In both case studies, advanced analytics were used, and data collection issues were encountered highlighting the need for further and seamless integration between data, analytics and intelligence is needed. Achievements from both cases were visible increase in productivity and efficiency along with the heightened safety awareness hence lowering the overall risk and liability of the operation. Novel/Additive Information: The results presented from both studies have highlighted other potential applications of the IIOT and its related analytics. Pertinent to COVID-19, new application of such approach was tested in contact tracing identifying workers who could have tested positive and tracing back to personnel that have been in close proximity and contact therefore reducing the spread of COVID. Other application of the IIOT and its related analytics has also been tested in crane, forklift and heavy machinery proximity alert reducing the risk of accidents.


2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Justine Atkinson ◽  
Firdoze Bulbulia

As a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic and resulting lockdowns across the world, digital access has become paramount, as most aspects of education have moved online. Drawing together five case studies located in South Africa, Argentina, the Netherlands, India and Ethiopia, this article assesses the role of film education during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a specific focus on the impacts of digital access. We examine multimodal forms of film education, and how these were used to inform, entertain and educate children during the crisis by the varying work undertaken by the organizations. Applying theories of intersectionality, we address the need for context-specific approaches to film education, focusing upon the impact that the societal and individual contexts had on the dissemination of film education in each country.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meor M. Meor Hashim ◽  
M. Hazwan Yusoff ◽  
M. Faris Arriffin ◽  
Azlan Mohamad ◽  
Tengku Ezharuddin Tengku Bidin ◽  
...  

Abstract The restriction or inability of the drill string to reciprocate or rotate while in the borehole is commonly known as a stuck pipe. This event is typically accompanied by constraints in drilling fluid flow, except for differential sticking. The stuck pipe can manifest based on three different mechanisms, i.e. pack-off, differential sticking, and wellbore geometry. Despite its infrequent occurrence, non-productive time (NPT) events have a massive cost impact. Nevertheless, stuck pipe incidents can be evaded with proper identification of its unique symptoms which allows an early intervention and remediation action. Over the decades, multiple analytical studies have been attempted to predict stuck pipe occurrences. The latest venture into this drilling operational challenge now utilizes Machine Learning (ML) algorithms in forecasting stuck pipe risk. An ML solution namely, Wells Augmented Stuck Pipe Indicator (WASP), is developed to tackle this specific challenge. The solution leverages on real-time drilling database and supplementary engineering design information to estimate proxy drilling parameters which provide active and impartial pattern recognition of prospective stuck pipe events. The solution is built to assist Wells Real Time Centre (WRTC) personnel in proactively providing a holistic perspective in anticipating potential anomalies and recommending remedial countermeasures before incidents happen. Several case studies are outlined to exhibit the impact of WASP in real-time drilling operation monitoring and intervention where WASP is capable to identify stuck pipe symptoms a few hours earlier and provide warnings for stuck pipe avoidance. The presented case studies were run on various live wells where restrictions are predicted stands ahead of the incidents. Warnings and alarms were generated, allowing further analysis by the personnel to verify and assess the situation before delivering a precautionary procedure to the rig site. The implementation of the WASP will reduce analysis time and provide timely prescriptive action in the proactive real-time drilling operation monitoring and intervention hub, subsequently creating value through cost containment and operational efficiency.


Author(s):  
Christine Gledhill ◽  
Julia Knight

This book examines film history with the goal of reframing it to accommodate new approaches to women's filmmaking. It brings together a wide range of case studies investigating women's work in cinema across its histories as they play out in different parts of the world from the pioneering days of silent cinema through recent developments in HD transmissions of live opera. It also tackles a range of conceptual and methodological questions about how to research women's film history—how, for example, to reconceptualize film history in order to locate the impact of women in that history. Furthermore, the book looks at the debates over relations among gender, aesthetics, and feminism. In this introduction, a number of interrelated themes and issues that can be grouped into four broad problematics are discussed: evidence and interpretation; feminist expectations of both contemporary and past women's filmmaking; the impact of women's film history on existing historical narratives and theories; and factors that determine the visibility of women's films and build audiences for them.


The Novel Corona virus is emerging as a Global public health threat. The outbreak initially emerged in Wuhan, China, large numbers of patients were getting sick because of Pneumonia and later it was found that they were nfected with the Novel Corona virus this emphasizes the importance of analyzing the data of this virus and predicting their risks of infecting people all around the globe. In this study, we present an effort to compile and analyze the outbreak information on COVID19 based on the open datasets on 2019 nCoV provided by the Johns Hopkins University, World Health Organization. An exploratory data analysis with visualizations has been made to understand the number of different cases reported (confirmed, death, and re-covered) in the World. Overall, at the outset of an outbreak like this, it is highly important to readily provide information to begin the evaluation necessary to understand the risks and begin containment activities.


2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Noel B. Verrinder ◽  
Kagiso Zwane ◽  
Debby Nixon ◽  
Sara Vaca

Impact investing is becoming one of the largest forces in driving social and environmental change globally. However, how one defines, measures and communicates this impact is not well defined or consistently implemented. This can prevent investors from making well-informed decisions and allows for ‘impact washing’. The evaluation community has many tools that could be adapted and used in the world of impact investing. Theories of change allow for the better communication of impact, identification of indicators to be measured and critical interrogation of logic. The attributes of theories of change could assist in steering the growing force of impact investing towards gathering more investment and achieving greater impact. This paper is exploratory and examines the development and use of theories of change as a tool for impact investing and seeks to identify the benefits of the tool. We qualitatively review three case studies of organisations that have implemented theories of change and identify common key themes. We find that theories of change are a useful tool for the communication of impact, identification of indicators to be measured and for the critical interrogation of logic. However, theories of change do not provide a panacea to the impact challenge; the need to rigorously measure impact is not fulfilled by merely identifying what needs to be measured. Regardless, the use of theories of change adds an advantage in a space where others have not gone to the same length to show their commitment to driving change.


2006 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-21
Author(s):  
Ian Davis ◽  
Yasamin O. Izadkhah

Many societies in the world live with different types of risks and the threat of disasters has always presented a major challenge to devise ways to achieve sustainable development by reducing patterns of vulnerability. Disaster reduction is therefore crucial and must have a place in national policies in order to create favourable conditions for effective and efficient hazard mitigation at various levels. This can help in increasing the resilience among communities at risk by enabling them to withstand shocks, cope with emergencies as they bounce back from the impact and adapt in new ways to cope with future threats. The aim of this paper is to explore the concept of resilience in general and what this means before, during, and after disaster impact. Case studies are cited to indicate how resilience operates or fails to occur and why. The study defines how resilience can be developed to create sustainable systems and structures that focus on robustness, redundancy, resourcefulness and rapidity.


This book provides a series of case studies concerning ports and port communities from around the world, in attempt to determine the impact of globalisation on the port industry and the link between local and global port conditions. It also presents the case for the absolute necessity of ports and port systems to trade and industry on a global scale. The book is comprised of ten essays, the first six of which concern local issues in a rapid globalising industry. The second section contains the remaining four essays, which consider port systems from national perspectives.


Author(s):  
Stefano Ambroso ◽  
Josep-Maria Gili ◽  
Rebeca Zapata Guardiola ◽  
Janire Salazar

The study of pristine places is very important for learning about the state of the oceans before the impact of human beings. Because of the extreme environmental conditions of the Antarctic continental shelf – its distance from other continents, depth, and the weight of the continental ice – it offers us a great opportunity to better understand how a pristine ecosystem would normally be. In addition to a high level of biodiversity, Antarctic benthic organisms present patterns of demographic and spatial distribution that are different from the communities of the continental platforms in other seas and oceans of the world. This makes Antarctic benthic communities look, more than one might think, like the communities with the highest known biodiversity in the world.


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