Modular approach to the design and analysis of password-based security protocols

In this paper, a general framework for designing and analyzing password-based security protocols is presented. First we introduce the concept of "weak computational indistinguishability" based on current progress of password-based security protocols. Then, we focus on cryptographic foundations for password-based security protocols, i.e., the theory of "weak pseudorandomness". Furthermore, based on the theory of weak pseudorandomness, we present a modular approach to design and analysis of password-based security protocols. Finally, applying the modular approach, we design two kinds of password-based security protocols, i.e., password-based session key distribution (PSKD) protocol and protected password change (PPC) protocol. In addition to having forward secrecy and improved efficiency, new protocols are proved secure.     

The verification and analysis on the results of the video retrieval system

The retrieval of video information is a key multimedia technology, which has been paid wide-range attention recently. This paper introduces the verification and analysis of video information results in the video retrieval system from three aspects： first, the way of the browse and navigation; second, video summary; third, display and interaction interface.     

Phase equilibria and thermodynamic investigation of the In–Li system

Phase equilibria and thermodynamic properties of the In–Li system were analyzed by combining the first-principles approach and Computer Coupling of Phase Diagrams and Thermochemistry (CALPHAD) methodology. The enthalpies of formation for all the stable compounds were calculated by first-principles calculations based on the density functional theory (DFT). Phase diagram of the In–Li system was calculated for the first time, and a set of self-consistent thermodynamic parameters was finally obtained by CALPHAD approach coupling experimental measurements and first-principles calculations. An associate model of (In, In₂Li₃, Li) was used to describe the liquid phase, and InLi and InLi₂ were treated by sub-lattice models. Other intermediate phases were considered to be stoichiometric compounds. The calculated phase diagram, voltage curve and thermodynamic properties can reproduce the available experimental data reasonably.     

A comparative analysis of the EU GDPR to the US’s breach notifications

One component of the newly implemented European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), a revision of a 1995 directive, is mandatory breach notification. The US has no such federal law. This means companies must satisfy multiple US laws and that makes it more challenging to comply. This study is a comparison of the GDPR with the statutes of the 50 US states, highlights the challenges companies face and reveals the types of decisions companies must make to be in compliance with these statutes.     

Sampled-data theory applied to the modelling and control analysis of compression ignition engines—Part I†

Proposals for the use of electronic speed governing of diesel engines used for driving alternators has led to a re-examination of the dynamic behaviour of the engine for control purposes. If maximum advantage to the plant performance is to be achieved from using more complex and expensive governing devices, then better models of individual components in the power system for simulation and control studies may be necessary. This paper describes an investigation performed to model the engine in terms of a discrete system. The frequency domain properties of the model (for various numbers of cylinders) are examined and compared with the model usually assumed, as well as with the frequency response of an actual engine. A companion paper will extend this work using 2-transform techniques.     

Proteomic analysis of the kidney filtration barrier—Problems and perspectives

Diseases of the glomerular filter of the kidney are a leading cause of end-stage renal failure. The kidney filter is localized within the renal glomeruli, small microvascular units that are responsible for ultrafiltration of about 180 liters of primary urine every day. The renal filter consists of three layers, fenestrated endothelial cells, glomerular basement membrane, and the podocytes, terminally differentiated, arborized epithelial cells. This review demonstrates the use of proteomics to generate insights into the regulation of the renal filtration barrier at a molecular level. The advantages and disadvantages of different glomerular purification methods are examined, and the technical limitations that have been significantly improved by in silico or biochemical approaches are presented. We also comment on phosphoproteomic studies that have generated considerable molecular-level understanding of the physiological regulation of the kidney filter. Lastly, we conclude with an analysis of urinary exosomes as a potential filter-derived resource for the noninvasive discovery of glomerular disease mechanisms.     

Using BPNN and DEMATEL to modify importance–performance analysis model – A study of the computer industry

The importance–performance analysis (IPA) model has been widely used as the primary tool for customer satisfaction management. IPA is a 2-D matrix analysis based on the importance and performance of the organization from the customer perception of quality. The firm’s customer satisfaction management strategy is formulated according to the IPA analysis results. However, both conventional and modified IPA models have important hidden assumptions: (1) assumptions regarding the importance of quality characteristics and performance; (2) the assumption that performance and satisfaction have a linear relationship; (3) that quality characteristics are mutually independent variables, with no causal relationship. Under these assumptions, if the quality characteristics cannot meet the above-mentioned assumptions, the conventional and modified IPA models will not accurately analyze the importance and priority ranking for improvement, leading to wrongful decision making. This study puts forth a new decision making and analysis methodology that will, on one hand, exploit the back-propagation neural network (BPNN) to establish quality characteristics and the hidden important integral satisfaction assumptions. The decision making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) is used to calculate the causal relationship and extent of mutual influence among the qualities to adjust the importance of the quality characteristics and identify the core Order-Winners and Qualifiers problems. The proposed method modifies the quality importance and improves the IPA model ranking and also resolves difficult practical problems with fewer resources. This study illustrates using Taiwan industrial computer, working in conjunction with IPA models established with BPNN and DEMATEL to observe its application and effect.     

A single amino acid change humanizes long-chain fatty acid binding and activation of mouse peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα) is an important regulator of hepatic lipid metabolism which functions through ligand binding. Despite high amino acid sequence identity (>90%), marked differences in PPARα ligand binding, activation and gene regulation have been noted across species. Similar to previous observations with synthetic agonists, we have recently reported differences in ligand affinities and extent of activation between human PPARα (hPPARα) and mouse PPARα (mPPARα) in response to long chain fatty acids (LCFA). The present study was aimed to determine if structural alterations could account for these differences. The binding of PPARα to LCFA was examined through in silico molecular modeling and docking simulations. Modeling suggested that variances at amino acid position 272 are likely to be responsible for differences in saturated LCFA binding to hPPARα and mPPARα. To confirm these results experimentally, LCFA binding, circular dichroism, and transactivation studies were performed using a F272I mutant form of mPPARα. Experimental data correlated with in silico docking simulations, further confirming the importance of amino acid 272 in LCFA binding. Although the driving force for evolution of species differences at this position are yet unidentified, this study enhances our understanding of ligand-induced regulation by PPARα and demonstrates the efficacy of molecular modeling and docking simulations.     

CoMFA analysis on a set of new noncompetitive GABAA receptor antagonists： fipronil and related analogs

Fipronil and related analogs, a set of new noncompetitive GABAA receptor antagonists, were investigated using comparative molecular field analysis （CoMFA） to explore their three-dimensional quantitative structure-activity relationships （3D-QSAR）. Considering the structural complexity of molecules of fipronil and related analogs, three different alignments were performed in this paper. CoMFA model for housefly receptor yield the leave-one-out and cross-validated correlation coefficient q^2 value of 0.511 and the conventional correlation coefficient r^2 value of 0.997. The new compounds with higher activity would be designed from this model. CoMFA model for rat receptor was not successful using all these three alignments, the reason of which maybe that some molecules adopt different conformations for rat receptor.     

General linear regression analysis—application to the electric dipole-moment function of HCl

The program GWLREG has been designed for the convenient and efficient treatment of general problems in linear regression, including both multiple linear and univariate polynomial forms. There is provision for transformation and weighting of input data, and output of indicators of goodness of fit. Two versions of the program GWLREG are presented, each based on a different computational algorithm and having slightly differing capabilities and performance. The program is applied to a new determination of the electric dipole-moment function of the diatomic molecule HCl from a critical assessment of the published experimental data.     

On the combination of logical and probabilistic models for?information analysis

Formal logical tools are able to provide some amount of reasoning support for information analysis, but are unable to represent uncertainty. Bayesian network tools represent probabilistic and causal information, but in the worst case scale as poorly as some formal logical systems and require specialized expertise to use effectively. We describe a framework for systems that incorporate the advantages of both Bayesian and logical systems. We define a formalism for the conversion of automatically generated natural deduction proof trees into Bayesian networks. We then demonstrate that the merging of such networks with domain-specific causal models forms a consistent Bayesian network with correct values for the formulas derived in the proof. In particular, we show that hard evidential updates in which the premises of a proof are found to be true force the conclusions of the proof to be true with probability one, regardless of any dependencies and prior probability values assumed for the causal model. We provide several examples that demonstrate the generality of the natural deduction system by using inference schemes not supportable directly in Horn clause logic. We compare our approach to other ones, including some that use non-standard logics.     

Stray light modelling and analysis for the FY‐2 meteorological satellite

Based on the analysis of the mechanism of stray light of the FY‐2 meteorological satellite, the main component of the stray light, generated from the folding mirror direct reflections, is modelled physically. Through the analysis of the stray light outside of the Earth region as well as extracting the high‐order statistical eigenvalues of the designated areas, the stray light function matrix, A, can be calculated using the total least squares (TLS) method, which is applied to the inside of the Earth region, and the full field‐of‐view (FFOV) stray light estimation can be produced efficiently. It is shown that the mean restoration errors of the stray light outside of the Earth region of the infrared (IR), water vapour (WV) and visible (VIS) channels are less than two scaled units, while the visual images are improved greatly. The images of FY‐2B IR with stray light removed and the FY‐2B raw images are inter‐calibrated with the NOAA‐17 Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) Ch4 data. The results show that, from 180 to 300?K of the brightness temperature area, the standard deviation of the data with stray light removed is from 1.3 to 3.8?K relative to the NOAA‐17 data, which is improved by 3–10 times in calibration accuracy compared with the raw data inter‐calibration results. The model has been running for testing in the FY‐2B ground operational system and will be applied operationally to the follow‐up satellite system. With the adjustment of a few parameters, the principle of the model can be used for stray light analysis of other instruments on geostationary satellite platform.     

Fractal analysis of the structure and dynamics of a satellite‐detected urban heat island

In this Letter, three fractal models—surface, profile and pixel models are developed to analyse the structure and dynamics of an urban heat island (UHI). These three models were tested using data from Shanghai taken in 1990, 1995 and 1998. The surface model is capable of capturing the fractal dimension of the entire study area. The profile model can be used to analyse the structural characteristics of the UHI along certain directions and is capable of revealing changes in the texture characteristics of UHI. The pixel model can describe the changes in thermal characteristics surrounding each pixel in a particular locale and is suitable for analysing the micro‐structure of the UHI.     

The Ndynamics package—Numerical analysis of dynamical systems and the fractal dimension of boundaries

A set of Maple routines is presented, fully compatible with the new releases of Maple (14 and higher). The package deals with the numerical evolution of dynamical systems and provide flexible plotting of the results. The package also brings an initial conditions generator, a numerical solver manager, and a focusing set of routines that allow for better analysis of the graphical display of the results. The novelty that the package presents an optional C interface is maintained. This allows for fast numerical integration, even for the totally inexperienced Maple user, without any C expertise being required. Finally, the package provides the routines to calculate the fractal dimension of boundaries (via box counting).New version program summaryProgram Title: NdynamicsCatalogue identifier:%Leave blank, supplied by Elsevier.Licensing provisions: no.Programming language: Maple, C.Computer: Intel(R) Core(TM) i3 CPU M330 @ 2.13 GHz.Operating system: Windows 7.RAM: 3.0 GBKeywords: Dynamical systems, Box counting, Fractal dimension, Symbolic computation, Differential equations, Maple.Classification: 4.3.Catalogue identifier of previous version: ADKH_v1_0.Journal reference of previous version: Comput. Phys. Commun. 119 (1999) 256.Does the new version supersede the previous version?: Yes.Nature of problemComputation and plotting of numerical solutions of dynamical systems and the determination of the fractal dimension of the boundaries.Solution methodThe default method of integration is a fifth-order Runge–Kutta scheme, but any method of integration present on the Maple system is available via an argument when calling the routine. A box counting [1] method is used to calculate the fractal dimension [2] of the boundaries.Reasons for the new versionThe Ndynamics package met a demand of our research community for a flexible and friendly environment for analyzing dynamical systems. All the user has to do is create his/her own Maple session, with the system to be studied, and use the commands on the package to (for instance) calculate the fractal dimension of a certain boundary, without knowing or worrying about a single line of C programming. So the package combines the flexibility and friendly aspect of Maple with the fast and robust numerical integration of the compiled (for example C) basin. The package is old, but the problems it was designed to dealt with are still there. Since Maple evolved, the package stopped working, and we felt compelled to produce this version, fully compatible with the latest version of Maple, to make it again available to the Maple user.Summary of revisionsDeprecated Maple Packages and Commands: Paraphrasing the Maple in-built help files, “Some Maple commands and packages are deprecated. A command (or package) is deprecated when its functionality has been replaced by an improved implementation. The newer command is said to supersede the older one, and use of the newer command is strongly recommended”. So, we have examined our code to see if some of these occurrences could be dangerous for it. For example, the “readlib” command is unnecessary, and we have removed its occurrences from our code. We have checked and changed all the necessary commands in order for us to be safe in respect to danger from this source.Another change we had to make was related to the tools we have implemented in order to use the interface for performing the numerical integration in C, externally, via the use of the Maple command “ssystem”. In the past, we had used, for the external C integration, the DJGPP system. But now we present the package with (free) Borland distribution. The compilation and compiling commands are now slightly changed. For example, to compile only, we had used “gcc-c”; now, we use “bcc32-c”, etc. All this installation (Borland) is explained on a “README” file we are submitting here to help the potential user.RestrictionsBesides the inherent restrictions of numerical integration methods, this version of the package only deals with systems of first-order differential equations.Unusual featuresThis package provides user-friendly software tools for analyzing the character of a dynamical system, whether it displays chaotic behaviour, and so on. Options within the package allow the user to specify characteristics that separate the trajectories into families of curves. In conjunction with the facilities for altering the user’s viewpoint, this provides a graphical interface for the speedy and easy identification of regions with interesting dynamics. An unusual characteristic of the package is its interface for performing the numerical integrations in C using a fifth-order Runge–Kutta method (default). This potentially improves the speed of the numerical integration by some orders of magnitude and, in cases where it is necessary to calculate thousands of graphs in regions of difficult integration, this feature is very desirable. Besides that tool, somewhat more experienced users can produce their own C integrator and, by using the commands available in the package, use it as the C integrator provided with the package as long as the new integrator manages the input and output in the same format as the default one does.Running timeThis depends strongly on the dynamical system. With an Intel^® Core? i3 CPU M330 @ 2.13 GHz, the integration of 50 graphs, for a system of two first-order equations, typically takes less than a second to run (with the C integration interface). Without the C interface, it takes a few seconds. In order to calculate the fractal dimension, where we typically use 10,000 points to integrate, using the C interface it takes from 20 to 30 s. Without the C interface, it becomes really impractical, taking, sometimes, for the same case, almost an hour. For some cases, it takes many hours.     

Visualization of curvature plots and evaluation of fairness: an analysis of the effect of ‘scaling’

Changing the aspect-ratio (scale) of a graphical plot significantly affects the “messages” getting across to a viewer. This is true also for curvature plots and other graphs currently used in Curve & Surface Modeling to evaluate fairness. In particular, the sharp corners appearing in such graphs, employed as local fairness indicators by current practices, are significantly affected by nonuniform scaling. A detailed study of this phenomenon is presented offering specific guidelines for correctly “reading” curvature plots.     

Development and Application of the Cauchy–Poisson Method to Layer Elastodynamics and the Timoshenko Equation

We consider a generalization of the Cauchy–Poisson method to an n-dimensional Euclidean space and its application to the construction of hyperbolic approximations. In Euclidean space, constraints on derivatives are introduced. The principle of hyperbolic degeneracy in terms of parameters is formulated and its implementation in the form of necessary and sufficient conditions is given. As the particular case of a four-dimensional space with preserving operators up to the sixth order a generalized hyperbolic equation is obtained for bending vibrations of plates with coefficients dependent only on the Poisson number. As special cases, this equation includes all the well-known Bernoulli–Euler, Kirchhoff, Rayleigh, and Timoshenko equations. As a development of Maxwell’s and Einstein’s research on the propagation of perturbations with finite velocity in a continuous medium, Tymoshenko’s non-trivial construction of the equation for bending vibrations of a beam is noted.     

An analysis of the business characteristics of adopters and non‐adopters of World Wide Web technology

The World Wide Web has received considerable media attention in recent times. Little is known concerning the technology’s appeal for commercial applications, and the topic deserves investigation. This study aims to analyze the differences between adopter and non‐adopter businesses according to their organizational characteristics. Six characteristics consistently associated with the adoption of technology, business size, age, industry, use of an IT support unit and IT budget, and degree of technology experience, are selected from the literature. A sample of 245 adopter businesses is gathered using on‐line directories and “keyword” searches of the World Wide Web. A sample of 245 non‐adopter businesses is obtained from the state business telephone directory. The study finds a number of interesting associations. No significant relationship is found between business size and World Wide Web adoption. Adopters tend to be younger yet more experienced with technology than non‐adopters. Businesses that made use of IT budgets and IT support units also tended to be adopters, however adoption did not rely on the existence of these two factors. The study raises a number of additional findings that are of interest but are not directly related to this work. These findings merit further research. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

What are the trend and core knowledge of information security? A citation and co-citation analysis

Information technology brings business success opportunities, but also causes potential safety hazards to organizations. In response to the increasing academia and industry concerns regarding information security (ISec), this study systematically explored extant ISec research and identified eight core knowledge groups, including (1) intrusion detection, (2) privacy protection, (3) secure machine learning, (4) cryptosystem, (5) data service security, (6) malware analysis, (7) security decision-making, and (8) security management. The detection of research hotspots shows that data service security and risk management garner the most current research attention. Furthermore, we establish a comprehensive ISec framework to help systematically understand and achieve ISec.