A case study in hardware Trojan design and implementation

As integrated circuits (ICs) continue to have an overwhelming presence in our digital information-dominated world, having trust in their manufacture and distribution mechanisms is crucial. However, with ever-shrinking transistor technologies, the cost of new fabrication facilities is becoming prohibitive, pushing industry to make greater use of potentially less reliable foreign sources for their IC supply. The 2008 Computer Security Awareness Week (CSAW) Embedded Systems Challenge at the Polytechnic Institute of NYU highlighted some of the vulnerabilities of the IC supply chain in the form of a hardware hacking challenge. This paper explores the design and implementation of our winning entry.     

First results from the modular multi-channel dispersion interferometer at the TEXTOR tokamak

At the TEXTOR tokamak in Ju?lich, Germany, a modular dispersion interferometer was installed and operated for the first time. Equipped with four lines of sight, the line-integrated density could be measured in parallel at different major radii with a resolution of better than 3 × 10(17) m(-2). This paper will describe the setup and show the first measurement results. Among others, it was possible to detect the evolution of a disruption with a time resolution of 4 μs. The movement of the runaway beam following the disruption could be resolved spatially and temporarily.     

Swelling-activated chloride current is persistently activated in ventricular myocytes from dogs with tachycardia-induced congestive heart failure

The hypothesis that cellular hypertrophy in congestive heart failure (CHF) modulates mechanosensitive (ie, swelling- or stretch-activated) anion channels was tested. Digital video microscopy and amphotericin-perforated-patch voltage clamp were used to measure cell volume and ion currents in ventricular myocytes isolated from normal dogs and dogs with rapid ventricular pacing-induced CHF. In normal myocytes, osmotic swelling in 0.9T to 0.6T solution (T, relative osmolarity; isosmotic solution, 296 mOsmol/L) was required to elicit ICl,swell, an outwardly rectifying swelling-activated Cl- current that reversed near -33 mV and was inhibited by 1 mmol/L 9-anthracene carboxylic acid (9AC), an anion channel blocker. Block of ICl,swell by 9AC simultaneously increased the volume of normal cells in hyposmotic solutions by up to 7%, but 9AC had no effect on volume in isosmotic or hyperosmotic solutions. In contrast, ICl,swell was persistently activated under isosmotic conditions in CHF myocytes, and 9AC increased cell volume by 9%. Osmotic shrinkage in 1.1T to 1.5T solution inhibited both ICl,swell and 9AC-induced cell swelling in CHF cells, whereas osmotic swelling only slightly increased ICl,swell. The current density for fully activated 9AC-sensitive ICl,swell was 40% greater in CHF than normal myocytes. In both groups, 9AC-sensitive current and 9AC-induced cell swelling were proportional with changes in osmolarity and 9AC concentration, and the effects of 9AC on current and volume were blocked by replacing bath Cl- with methanesulfonate. CHF thus altered the set point and magnitude of ICl,swell and resulted in its persistent activation. We previously observed analogous regulation of mechanosensitive cation channels in the same CHF model. Mechanosensitive anion and cation channels may contribute to the electrophysiological and contractile derangements in CHF and may be novel targets for therapy.     

A novel marker design for magnetic marker monitoring in the human gastrointestinal tract

Magnetic marker monitoring (MMM) is a technique to determine the motility of the gastrointestinal tract and to observe the dissolution of pharmaceutical compounds. Today's magnetic markers usually consist of magnetized magnetite. Because of their weak magnetic fields, highly sensitive sensor systems are required. For a wider class of applications, stronger markers and more flexible measurement setups are necessary. In this paper, a novel marker design is introduced. This marker comprises one permanent magnet and a compartment of iron powder in a magnetically unstable configuration. During dissolution of the pharmaceuticals, the powder is redistributed around the magnet, thereby altering the externally measured magnetic induction. Based on this design, magnetically marked tablets and capsules were prepared and their magnetic field during dissolution was observed. Magnetic induction values were between 16 and 0.2 μT at distances of 5-30 cm, which is considerably higher compared to the pico-Tesla range of conventional markers. During dissolution, the magnetic induction decreased by between 14% and 27%. These values could be confirmed in detailed finite element method simulations. In conclusion, the present results indicate that our novel marker design is well suited for MMM with more flexible sensor technologies, such as magnetoresistive sensors.     

Reconfigurable logistics systems in production and disassembly networks

The importance of the recycling of resources is continuously increasing in Europe and around the world. The major driver is the scarcity of both natural resources and disposal capacities. In this context, the efficient design of logistics processes is of high importance as high costs for collection, return, treatment and redistribution are combined with a low value added. There are already some (logistics) recycling concepts for quantitatively significant material flows like packaging materials, high-quality products like end-of-life vehicles or very hazardous products like batteries. However, the problem remains unsolved for those end-of-life products that have?‘a bit of everything but not enough of anything’: household appliances. For these end-of-life products, logistics plant concepts have been developed that accommodate the high number of options and the low value added.     

Introducing a light-weight autonomic network middleware based on stigmergic mechanisms

Autonomous systems are capable of performing activities by taking into account the local environment and adapting to it. No planning is necessary therefore autonomous systems have to make the best of the resources at hand. Locality in this case is no longer geographical but rather the information and applications on the boundary of the autonomic communicating element which may be distributed over a wide area. The aim of autonomous communication systems is that they exhibit self-awareness properties, in particular self-contextualisation, self-programmability and self-management. In this paper, we identify the need for autonomous systems, their architecture, the path of evolution from traditional network elements, the need for open networks and future trends within autonomic computing.     

Prostaglandins compared with oxytocin for induction of labour at term (author's transl)

12 cases of induction of labour with prostaglandin F2 alpha and 8 with prostaglandin E2 were compared with 14 cases in which induction was undertaken with oxytocin. All inductions were successful, the induction--delivery intervals being slightly shorter in the prostaglandin groups than in the oxytocin group. Both with prostaglandin F2 alpha and with prostaglandin E2 the cardiotocogram showed uterine hyperactivity in most of the cases with an unexpected, episodically-occurring increase in basal uterine tone and remarkable tachysystoly. Uterine hyper-activity led to fetal heart rate alterations of the "dip 2" type in about 50% of the cases. According to these results prostaglandins cannot be considered superior to oxytocin for the induction of labour at term.