Challenges and Opportunities for Practical and Effective Dynamic Information Flow Tracking

Information flow tracking was proposed more than 40 years ago to address the limitations of access control mechanisms to guarantee the confidentiality and integrity of information flowing within a system, but has not yet been widely applied in practice for security solutions. Here, we survey and systematize literature on dynamic information flow tracking (DIFT) to discover challenges and opportunities to make it practical and effective for security solutions. We focus on common knowledge in the literature and lingering research gaps from two dimensions— (i) the layer of abstraction where DIFT is implemented (software, software/hardware, or hardware) and (ii) the security goal (confidentiality and/or integrity). We observe that two major limitations hinder the practical application of DIFT for on-the-fly security applications: (i) high implementation overhead and (ii) incomplete information flow tracking (low accuracy). We posit, after review of the literature, that addressing these major impedances via hardware parallelism can potentially unleash DIFT’s great potential for systems security, as it can allow security policies to be implemented in a built-in and standardized fashion. Furthermore, we provide recommendations for the next generation of practical and efficient DIFT systems with an eye towards hardware-supported implementations.

Structural Probing with MNase Tethered to Ribosome Assembly Factors Resolves Flexible RNA Regions within the Nascent Pre-Ribosomal RNA

The synthesis of ribosomes involves the correct folding of the pre-ribosomal RNA within pre-ribosomal particles. The first ribosomal precursor or small subunit processome assembles stepwise on the nascent transcript of the 35S gene. At the earlier stages, the pre-ribosomal particles undergo structural and compositional changes, resulting in heterogeneous populations of particles with highly flexible regions. Structural probing methods are suitable for resolving these structures and providing evidence about the architecture of ribonucleoprotein complexes. Our approach used MNase tethered to the assembly factors Nan1/Utp17, Utp10, Utp12, and Utp13, which among other factors, initiate the formation of the small subunit processome. Our results provide dynamic information about the folding of the pre-ribosomes by elucidating the relative organization of the 5′ETS and ITS1 regions within the 35S and U3 snoRNA around the C-terminal domains of Nan1/Utp17, Utp10, Utp12, and Utp13.

A Fast Diagnosis Method of Escalator Reversal Faults Based on Dynamic Information and Multiattribute Decision-Making

There are many reasons for escalator reversal failure, and the reasons are distributed in different locations. It is difficult to locate the specific location of the fault in the actual fault troubleshooting. At the same time, the information related to the failure is not used in the troubleshooting, so there is a problem of inefficient troubleshooting. To this end, this paper proposes a multiattribute decision-making method that integrates dynamic information and gives the optimal troubleshooting order to improve the efficiency of the troubleshooting. First of all, according to the structure of the escalator components, the escalator reversal fault tree is established. Secondly, a static decision matrix is established by comprehensively considering the failure probability, search cost, and influence degree of the bottom event of the fault tree. Finally, the influence matrix of information on each attribute is given by the dynamic information obtained in troubleshooting, the static decision fusion influence matrix determines the dynamic decision matrix, the dynamic decision matrix is weighted and normalized, and the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution is used to determine the optimal troubleshooting order. Taking the reversal failure of a certain type of escalators as an example, the method of multiattribute decision-making of fusion dynamic information is used to shorten the troubleshooting time, improve the efficiency of troubleshooting, and verify the effectiveness of this method.

Exploring the direct and indirect effects of elite influence on public opinion

Political elites both respond to public opinion and influence it. Elite policy messages can shape individual policy attitudes, but the extent to which they do is difficult to measure in a dynamic information environment. Furthermore, policy messages are not absorbed in isolation, but spread through the social networks in which individuals are embedded, and their effects must be evaluated in light of how they spread across social environments. Using a sample of 358 participants across thirty student organizations at a large Midwestern research university, we experimentally investigate how real social groups consume and share elite information when evaluating a relatively unfamiliar policy area. We find a significant, direct effect of elite policy messages on individuals’ policy attitudes. However, we find no evidence that policy attitudes are impacted indirectly by elite messages filtered through individuals’ social networks. Results illustrate the power of elite influence over public opinion.

Application of Big Data Technology in the Fight Against New Coronary Pneumonia Epidemic in China

In the fight against New Coronary Pneumonia Epidemic, Chinese Ministry of Health put forward the inevitable requirements of precise policy implementation and scientific epidemic prevention. Accordingly, the big data technology has been applied in the analysis of epidemic dynamic, information inquiry, disease prevention and treatment, and prediction of epidemic trend. And, great success has been achieved in the fight, where the big data technology has played a vital role. This article outlines the main applications of big data technology in the prevention and control of New Coronary Pneumonia Epidemic, and proposes suggestions based on the problems in the application of big data during the epidemic prevention and control period. In the later stage, the integration of big data technology in various fields should be accelerated, information should be further shared and the utility value of data should be maximized.

How to use Google street view for a time-lapse data collection methodology: potential uses for retailing

Finding the optimal location is a relevant strategic decision for retailers. The classic theories of retail location offer complementary perspectives, and later models include new variables, although they present methodological problems, these methodologies are static in time. Google Street View (GSV) allows extending the analysis of predictive models to different fields by a time-lapse collection data offering new opportunities to research and providing dynamic information. The development of a customized methodology, incorporating the time-lapse technique for practical applications, is the main contribution of this research, since there is almost no research on this topic.

Pushing Notifications as Dynamic Information Design

We study the dynamic information design problem of a firm seeking to influence consumer checking behavior by designing push notifications.

Artificial Landscape: in search of publicness through urban spectacle in Hong Kong

Screen technologies increasingly permeate the experience of public space in Hong Kong. Large media walls have occupied the façades of many buildings, rendering a cityscape with dynamic information visible as a new urban skin. This article is a case study on Artificial Landscape, a site-specific media art project located on Asia Pacific’s largest LED outdoor screen. The case sets an example of how a public screen can serve as a mediating agent. It provides an opportunity for artists to provoke absent ideas in the public space and explore subversive potential, including critical reflection on issues surrounding surveillance, consumerism and rapid urban growth. The case also exemplifies how a public screen can mediate the public to experience an alternative context through artistic intervention, where negotiations of perceptions and subjectivities are made possible. This article provides insights into a public screen’s mode of spectatorship, quality of public space and curatorial strategies in an urban context. This is achieved by illustrating how various artworks extend the notion of publicness and remediate the mutually constitutive relationship among the built environment, media technologies, artists, public and everyday encounters.