Polymorphic & Essays - Cyberwarfare, Malware, Computer Viruses

Polymorphic & Polymorphic & Cloning Computer Viruses The generation of today is growing up in a fast-growing, high-tech world which allows us to do the impossibilities of yesterday. With the help of modern telecommunications and the rapid growth of the personal computer in the average household we are able to talk to and share information with people from all sides of the globe. However, this vast amount of information transport has opened the doors for the computer virus of the future to flourish. As time passes on, so-called viruses are becoming more and more adaptive and dangerous. No longer are viruses merely a rarity among computer users and no longer are they mere nuisances. Since many people depend on the data in their computer every day to make a living, the risk of catastrophe has increased tenfold. The people who create computer viruses are now becoming much more adept at making them harder to detect and eliminate. These so-called polymorphic viruses are able to clone themselves and change themselves as they need to avoid det ection. This form of smart viruses allows the virus to have a form of artificial intelligence. To understand the way a computer virus works and spreads, first one must understand some basics about computers, specifically pertaining to the way it stores data. Because of the severity of the damage that these viruses may cause, it is important to understand how anti-virus programs go about detecting them and how the virus itself adapts to meet the ever changing conditions of a computer. In much the same way as animals, computer viruses live in complex environments. In this case, the computer acts as a form of ecosystem in which the virus functions. In order for someone to adequately understand how and why the virus adapts itself, it must first be shown how the environment is constantly changing and how the virus can interact and deal with these changes. There are many forms of computers in the world; however, for simplicity's sake, this paper will focus on the most common form of personal computers, the 80x86, better known as an IBM compatible machine. The computer itself is run by a special piece of electronics known as a microprocessor. This acts as the brains of the computer ecosystem and could be said to be at the top of the food chain. A computer's primary function is to hold and manipulate data and that is where a virus comes into play. Data itself is stored in the computer via memory. There are two general categories for all memory: random access memory (RAM) and physical memory (hard and floppy diskettes). In either of those types of memory can a virus reside. RAM is by nature temporary; every time the computer is reset the RAM is erased. Physical memory, however, is fairly permanent. A piece of information, data, file, program, or virus placed here will still be around in the event that the computer is turned off. Within this complex environment, exists computer viruses. There is no exact and concrete definition for a computer virus, but over time some commonly accepted facts have been related to them. All viruses are programs or pieces of programs that reside in some form of memory. They all were created by a person with the explicit intent of being a virus. For example, a bug (or error) in a program, while perhaps dangerous, is not considered a computer virus due to the fact that it was created on accident by the programmers of the software. Therefore, viruses are not created by accident. They can, however, be contracted and passed along by accident. In fact it may be weeks until a person even is aware that their computer has a virus. All viruses try to spread themselves in some way. Some viruses simply copy clones of themselves all over the hard drive. These are referred to as cloning viruses. They can be very destructive and spread fast and easily throughout the computer system. To illustrate the way a standard cloning virus would adapt to its surroundings a theoretical example will be used. One day a teacher decides to use his/her classroom Macintosh's Netscape to download some material on photosynthesis. Included in that material is a movie

Article Summary Essays - Newts, Amphibians, Herpetology, Free Essays

Article Summary Essays - Newts, Amphibians, Herpetology, Free Essays Article Summary In southern California, adult California newts (Taricha torosa)have been found to frequently cannibalize both larvae and egg masses. In turn, for those adult newts that remain in the stream pools after breeding, conspecifics have become one of their main sources of prey in the chaparral stream pools of the Santa Monica Mountains. This study was undertaken to examine whether wildfire-induced sedimentation would provide an alternative prey, such as earthworms, and modify interactions between life stages of T. torosa. A diet analysis, field surveys, and a laboratory experiment provided observations and data for this study. For the diet analysis and field surveys, three sites were studied: Cold Creek Canyon, which was burned in 1993, and Newton Creek Canyon and Trancas Creek Canyon, which were unburned sites and served as controls. Adult newts were collected during the spring and summer of 1992-1996 from Cold Creek and during 1995 from Trancas Creek for diet analysis. A water lavage was used to collect the stomach contents, which were then examined by microscope. In addition, both burned and unburned sites were surveyed and monitored for the availability of both earthworms and conspecifics. In the laboratory experiment, a gravitational flow-through system was used to examine the behavioral responses of larval newts to chemical cues of both adult newts and earthworms. Previous studies had determined that larval newts hid from chemical cues of the adult newts. Through diet analysis, it was found that most of the stomach samples of the adult newts contained conspecifics, earthworms, beetles, and mayflies. Stomach samples from Cold Creek indicated that conspecifics were consumed significantly more often than earthworms were consumed during the two years before the fire(1992, 1993). However, during the two years after the fire (1994, 1995), more earthworms were consumed and conspecifics were eliminated as a food source. In 1996, diet analysis showed a reappearance of conspecifics, but the frequency of earthworms in adult newt stomachs was still greater. Frequency of beetles and mayflies appeared to be similar before and after the fire. In 1995,stomach contents from Cold Creek and Trancas Creek indicated that more earthworms were available at burned sites than at unburned sites. In the laboratory study, it was determined that the larvae tended to hide more when the adult newt was present, but larval hiding appeared to depend on the earthworm c ues. If the earthworms were present, the larvae did not attempt to hide; if the earthworms were absent, the larvae would attempt to hide. In addition, they tended to hide more with adult newts present minus the earthworms than in the company of both. Before the fire, adult newts frequently fed on their own larvae and egg masses. Due to wildfires, stream banks were disrupted causing sedimentation and the input of earthworms in the streams. As a result, earthworms became an alternative prey eliminating cannibalism for two years after the fire. With the availability of the earthworms, larvae and eggs were allowed to focus on development rather than survivorship. This is evident in the two years after the fire for the density of the larvae and egg masses appeared to have increased slightly. However, cannibalism reappeared three years after the fire. By this time, vegetation growth had recovered and the stream banks were more stable resulting in less sedimentation and fewer available earthworms. Perhaps, after a few more years, conspecifics will become a main source of food once again. Bibliography Kerby, L.J. and L.B. Kats. 1998. Modified interactions between salamander life stages caused by wildfire-induced sedimentation. Ecology, 79:740-745.

An example of community engagement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

An example of community engagement - Essay Example However, for purposes of this paper, the example that is going to be given emphasis is a case study of Ethiopian youth participation in a national HIV/Aids program. The project had the objective of planning the actions needed to address the menace of HIV/AIDS (Communities Scotland, 2012). The initiative employed a participatory, learning and action paradigm with 51 young people being chosen to facilitate the process. They then identified youth groups and networks in every region and held workshops and interviews. After this was accomplished, three-day long National Youth Conference was held, in which volunteer participants attend the event. The Youth Charter was launched on a one-day event (Communities Scotland, 2012). This example of community engagement had a number of strengths. To begin with, the approach created youth ownership of the process. In addition, it developed knowledgeable, vigorous youth stakeholders in the realm of sexual health. It also built youth capability to act in response to HIV/AIDS in an effective manner (Communities Scotland, 2012). Despite these strengths of the initiative, the project had a number of limitations. For instance, it required a lot of time, and this may be a limiting factor because many youths may be busy with studies. In add ition, support from experts in the field of sexual health would also have been a welcoming idea, but appeared to be lacking in the project Communities Scotland. (2012). Youth participation in a national campaign: involvement in the HIV/AIDS program in Ethiopia. Retrieved on 4th May, 2012 from

Research paper qualitative and quantitative Essay

Research paper qualitative and quantitative - Essay Example Caldwell’s framework is the basis of the research charter that has been followed for the critical analysis of research regarding health. The article is inscribed by Rtensson (RNT) & Persson (PhD, RN) and it was printed in Journal of Nursing Management in 2006. The authors are well known for their credibility. The focus of research is on the a world wide issue nowadays that is the the effect of life-style on health; the relationship between influence on health of working at night and the resulting diet or exercise habits is explored. It argues the issue which can potentially lead to the highest amount of life years mislaid by 2025 that is life style related illness. The issue is handled by concentrating on life-style issues identified with unhealthy dietary patterns and absence of physical action. The key issues discussed here include the affect of different variables/actors on the nurses working during night hours. These include colleagues, circadian rhythm and freedom of action. The facts presented and discussed help identify the objective of research i.e. whether these variables affect the diet and exercise habits of the workers. However, focus is more being laid upon the general health of the workers instead of a specific focus related to what they eat and if they work out or not. Nevertheless, the rationale for carrying out the research is clearly mentioned by stating that there is very scant data available on the relationship between working during night hours and diet or exercise habits: a gap in literature exists on this issue. Qualitative exploration is centered on subjective data. . Gatherings allow the researcher to examine the subject all around with respect to a particular topic and to have more noticeable control over the examination. In observation, subjects can be analyzed in their standard living space. The purpose of this sort of investigation is that the conclusions can be illuminating to

Evolution of Art forms Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Evolution of Art forms - Essay Example Baroques artistic style was most influential art form which spreads its features entire Europe. The artifacts used to depict simple, robust and well format meaning in each art form. Baroques were initially used to proliferate much of the religious and spiritual conscience in Europe. The art forms exhibited artistic grandeur of high society to the external world. The roman empire which has been decentralized with the efforts from people like Martin Luther king have demanded for more precise religious expansion from Roman church elite. Roman Catholic Church society has evolved steps to move the catholic religious into the people by depicting the features of important aspects in art form. Bernini was one of most acclaimed artist of this era who carved a "cornaro chapel" with Saint Theresa as a focal attraction. As time passed the religious importance was condemned in future eras mostly in neoclassic era. Neoclassicism is a period where the art form depicted the historical events with more clarity and distinctiveness .The art forms were extended to contemporary issues. The art forms were derived from rich historical basics which were well accepted and molded in new artistic form. The neoclassic art were implicated from famous artifacts. The neoclassic artists tried to carry the glory of the baroques and rococo in their works.

Effect of Bone Marrow Composition Changes With Age

Effect of Bone Marrow Composition Changes With Age PROJECT TOPIC: INVESTIGATION INTO THE EFFECT OF BONE MARROW COMPOSITION CHANGES WITH AGE BETWEEN THE TWO GENDERS ON FINE STRUCTURE ANALYSIS (FINESA) TECHNIQUE A short 100 word lay-person summary– The project is about the investigation into the bone marrow composition changes with age between the two genders and its effect on the structure MRI technique fineSA. It utilizes MR to excite the rectangular prism shape volume in the human body to generate a signal that is processed to provide information about anatomical structure of interest. It will be conducted in a 12 weeks period commencing with literature review of relevant journals and conference papers relating the topic. It will be followed by the modelling of a bone marrow phantom aimed at adding a uniform composition structure that will control the outcome of the project. It will then be concluded with the analysis of the processed clinical data for both genders with different age range. Aim The main aim of this project is to identify a trend between different gender subjects with a varying range of ages from 18-80 and other measures of signal which can be attributed to bone marrow composition and its effect on the fineSA technique. FineSA is a technique that defines anatomical structures using MR data by acquiring data from rectangular prisms located in the anatomical region and region of interest. It is currently unknown what happens to the fineSA in regards to bone marrow (BM) changes. By identifying the trend it will enable the technique to be adjusted to suit each subject and not generalise its bone marrow applications as it is currently done. The research will fill a gap in the industry concerning the bone marrow composition (BMC) changes with ages with the use of the fineSA techniques. Objectives Carry out a detailed literature research related to BMC changes with age and sex. Relevant journals and conference papers will be analysed to support the research work. The modelling of a bone marrow phantom to observe the effect of fat will be accomplished. The fluid around the phantom will simulate the bone marrow and that will give the signal expected. Analysis and evaluation of a clinical data set for different gender ages ranging 18-80 will be carried out. It will be started by looking at the k0 on the spectra with respect to the age and the expected bone marrow composition. The data obtained from the company is made of spectra in Matlab format and the relevant information will be extracted in Matlab. It will also be necessary to investigate the effect of noise as noise is measured during the acquisition. Resources and necessary approvals I will need to complete Human Subjects Protection training in order to work with patient data. It is used to fulfil the requirement for education in the protection of human subjects. The ethical review board that approved this study is Western Institutional Review Board (WIRB) located in the USA. There are no known health risks associated with this research. Literature review According to the literatures, bone marrow does changes with age and becomes fatty and so it is expected to give a higher signal in the MR technique used. According to an early studies conducted, for daughters and their parents to compare (BMF) content assessed by inphase and out-of-phase MRI in between family members. It was found that the daughters had less BMF and BM whole body and regions where BMF was assessed than their mothers and fathers. This was in agreement with a previous studies that link increased BMF with age [1]. MR spectroscopy studies have demonstrate that vertebral fat content increases as the bone density (BD) decreases. Several literatures have suggested a relationship between bone mineral content and bone marrow fat (BMF) which has been found to lead to bone weakness. A study was conducted on fifty-six female patients with the age range 50–65 years to assess vertebral bone marrow fat (BMF) content’s relationship with osteoporosis by the use of chemical-shift magnetic resonance imaging (CS-MRI). It was however concluded that BMF content calculated with CS-MRI was not reliable for predicting bone mineral density in female patients aged between 50 and 65 years and so further research was recommended [2]. Differences in the relationship between BMF and bone has also been attributed to the potential ethnic differences in African American and Caucasian men and women. This was shown in a study done to evaluate the relationship between BMAT and BMD for potential sex and ethnic differences within a large sample with DXA and whole-body MRI data. The results obtained was found to be consistent with a previous findings done in Caucasian women and of Asian men and women. However there is reported inverse association between BMF and BMD in studies of men and women without ethnicity explicitly [3]. A further study conducted on 211 subjects also suggested that BMC changes are different for both male and female subjects. The largest change in the BMC in the lumbar spine was seen to have occurred from 5 to 24 years in the male subjects. Conversely, the largest decrease occurred after 45 years in female subjects. In an earlier research by Dunnill et al. [4] to investigate the changes in cellular and BMF in the vertebral bodies and correlate those changes with age and sex, no differences between the sexes for age-related variations was found. This also implied more research need to be done to ascertain the relationship between BMC and age and sex [5]. Methodologies The project will be managed with the aid of programme of work with details on a Gantt chart that list all the tasks dates. The milestones mark the completion of a task and meetings with the supervisor for review. Literature research (2 week) A review of relevant literatures in relation to BMC changes with age and gender. Outcome 1: Literature review finished and theories for further research have been studied. Phantom Modelling (2 week) Arrangement will be made with the company for this to be carried out Outcome 2: Pantom modelled and analysed. Data analysis and evaluation (3 week) The clinical data will be analysed will be carried out at this stage and then evaluated. Outcome 3: Data analysed and a conclusion drawn. Draft write up (2 week) Write the first draft of the dissertation which will be presented to the research supervisor for review. Outcome 4: Complete first drafted of the report. Final dissertation (2 week) The final copy will be produced and reviewed for any errors and ethical issues by supervisor and then submitted. Outcome 5: Complete the final report for submission. Contingency (1 week) This is an open period where any problems encountered will be dealt with. Conclusion The research plan was conducted to evaluate the purpose and methodologies that will be employed for the project to be successful. With the timelines drafted and the resources effectively utilised the project is expected to be successful. At the end of the project, the results should guide the industry in use of the fineSA with bone marrow composition changes with age application. If it is concluded that there is a trend in the bone marrow composition changes with age, it will require changes made to the technique used in acquiring the signals. This could lead to having to adjust for composition the current technique used.

The Role of Genetics in Alzheimers Disease Essay -- Alzheimers Disea

The Role of Genetics in Alzheimer's Disease The call came at 9:05 p.m. on January 20, 2004. Mom had just finished telling the news about the girl's grandfather. He had Alzheimer's Disease and was not doing well at all. The ruling was that he probably would not make it through the night. She knew exactly what the news was the moment her mom said, "No." After the news came, the decision was made they would leave the next day to attend the funeral. This girl began wondering, "If grandpa had Alzheimer's do I have a chance of getting it too? What can I do to avoid getting it? He suffered so much, I don't want to go through that." What if a person's genetics have something to do with whether or not they will get Alzheimer's? What are possible ways to prevent the onset of Alzheimer's disease? Genetics might have something to do with whether or not one will get Alzheimer's but their chances of avoiding the disease are better if they take care of themselves. Let us start with some general history and facts and then proceed to the specifics. Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is named after a German doctor, Alois Alzheimer. He discovered the disease in 1906, while doing an autopsy on a woman who had died from an unusual mental illness. Dr. Alzheimer noted unique changes in the brain tissue (U.S 1995). His findings included clumps, which are also known as plaques, and tangled fibers, also called neurofibrillary tangles. These findings have become "hallmarks of AD" (U.S. 1995). AD is now considered the most common form of dementia (Travis). Researchers from New York State did autopsies on 87 people who were seen at a dementia clinic to find out if any of them showed signs of a cerebrovascular disease. They all did and 87% of them also ... ...1 December 2003). Alzheimer's in the Family. Time. P 86-87 National Institute of Aging. (2002). Alzheimer's Disease: Unraveling the Mystery. National Institute of Mental Health (1994). Alzheimer's Disease: Decade of the Brain. P. 12-13. National Institute of Health. Nolan KA, Lino MM, Seligmann AW, et al. (August 1998). Alzheimer's may play a Greater role in 'vascular' dementia. Geriatrics. V. 53 Issue 8, p81, 2p. Shenk, D. (2001). The Forgetting Alzheimer's: Portrait of an Epidemic. New York: Doubleday. Travis, J. (20 September, 2003). A Surprising Role For Alzheimer's Proteins? Science News. V.152, Issue 12, p182, 2p U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (1995). Alzheimer's Disease. National Institutes of Health. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (1997). Alzheimer's Disease Genetics. National Institutes of Health