Worcester Polytechnic Institute

About: Worcester Polytechnic Institute is a education organization based out in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Computer science & Population. The organization has 6270 authors who have published 12704 publications receiving 332081 citations. The organization is also known as: WPI.

Keys under doormats: mandating insecurity by requiring government access to all data and communications

Abstract: Twenty years ago, law enforcement organizations lobbied to require data and communication services to engineer their products to guarantee law enforcement access to all data. After lengthy debate and vigorous predictions of enforcement channels “going dark,” these attempts to regulate security technologies on the emerging Internet were abandoned. In the intervening years, innovation on the Internet flourished, and law enforcement agencies found new and more effective means of accessing vastly larger quantities of data. Today, there are again calls for regulation to mandate the provision of exceptional access mechanisms. In this article, a group of computer scientists and security experts, many of whom participated in a 1997 study of these same topics, has convened to explore the likely effects of imposing extraordinary access mandates. We have found that the damage that could be caused by law enforcement exceptional access requirements would be even greater today than it would have been 20 years ago. In the wake of the growing economic and social cost of the fundamental insecurity of today’s Internet environment, any proposals that alter the security dynamics online should be approached with caution. Exceptional access would force Internet system developers to reverse “forward secrecy” design practices that seek to minimize the impact on user privacy when systems are breached. The complexity of today’s Internet environment, with millions of apps and globally connected services, means that new law enforcement requirements are likely to introduce unanticipated, hard to detect

Bacterial activity, community structure, and centimeter-scale spatial heterogeneity in contaminated soil.

Abstract: In an anthropogenically disturbed soil (88% sand, 8% silt, 4% clay), 150-mg samples were studied to examine the fine-scale relationship of bacterial activity and community structure to heavy metal contaminants. The soils had been contaminated for over 40 years with aromatic solvents, Pb, and Cr. Samples from distances of <1, 5, 15, and 50 cm over a depth range of 40–90 cm underwent a sequential analysis to determine metabolic potential (from 14C glucose mineralization), bacterial community structure [using polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE)], and total extractable Pb and Cr levels. Metabolic potential varied by as much as 10,000-fold in samples <1 cm apart; log–log plots of metal concentration and microbial metabolic potential showed no correlation with each other. Overall, metal concentrations ranged from 9 to 29,000 mg kg−1 for Pb and from 3 to 8500 mg kg−1 for Cr with small zones of high contamination present. All regions exhibited variable metal concentrations, with some soil samples having 30-fold differences in metal concentration in sites <1 cm apart. Geostatistical analysis revealed a strong spatial dependence for all three parameters tested (metabolic activity, Pb, and Cr levels) with a range up to 30 cm. Kriging maps showed that in zones of high metal, the corresponding metabolic activity was low suggesting that metals negatively impacted the microbial community. PCR-DGGE analysis revealed that diverse communities were present in the soils with a random distribution of phylotypes throughout the sampling zones. These results suggest the presence of spatially isolated microbial communities within the soil profile.

Mineração de Dados Educacionais: Oportunidades para o Brasil

Abstract: A mineracao de dados educacionais (EDM) e uma area recente de pesquisa que tem como principal objetivo o desenvolvimento de metodos para explorar conjuntos de dados coletados em ambientes educacionais. Atualmente ela vem se estabelecendo como uma forte e consolidada linha de pesquisa que possui grande potencial para melhorar a qualidade do ensino. Apesar dos esforcos de pesquisadores brasileiros, essa area ainda e pouco explorada no pais. Para divulgar alguns dos resultados desta area este artigo apresenta uma revisao das pesquisas realizadas na area, dando enfase aos metodos e aplicacoes que veem influenciado, com sucesso, a pesquisa e a pratica da educacao em varios paises. Serao discutidas as condicoes que viabilizam a pesquisa da EDM no cenario internacional e quais os desafios para consolidar a area no Brasil. Alem disso, tambem sera abordado o potencial impacto da EDM na melhora da qualidade dos cursos na modalidade educacao a distância (EAD) que vem recebendo incentivo governalmental e um crescente numero de alunos matriculados.

Investing in lean manufacturing practices: an environmental and operational perspective

Abstract: Lean manufacturing practices (LMPs) and corporate environmental sustainability are becoming inextricably linked. Throughout the lean and green debate, many organisations have recognised that LMPs h...