概要写作

vulnerability

lies

in

the

fact

that

fingerprint-based

authentication

systems

feature

small

sensors that do not capture a user's full fingerprint. Instead, they scan and store partial fingerprints,

and

many

phones

allow

users

to

enroll

several

different

fingers

in

their

authentication

system.

Identity is confirmed when a user's fingerprint matches any one of the saved partial prints. The

researchers hypothesized that there could be enough similarities among different people's partial

prints that one could create a

Nasir Memon, a professor of computer science and engineering at NYU Tandon and the research

team

leader,

explained

that

the

MasterPrint

concept

bears

some

similarity

to

a

hacker

who

attempts to crack a PIN-based system using a commonly adopted password such as 1234.

4

percent

of

the

time,

the

password

1234

will

be

correct,

which

is

a

relatively

high

probability

when

you're

just

guessing,

said

Memon.

The

research

team

set

out

to

see

if

they

could

find

a

MasterPrint

that

could

reveal

a

similar

level

of

vulnerability.

Indeed,

they

found

that

certain

attributes in human fingerprint patterns were common enough to raise security concerns.

Memon

and

his

colleagues,

NYU

Tandon

Postdoctoral

Fellow

Aditi

Roy

and

Michigan

State

University Professor of Computer Science and Engineering Arun Ross, undertook their analysis

using 8,200 partial fingerprints. Using commercial fingerprint verification software, they found an

average

of

92

potential

MasterPrints

for

every

randomly

sampled

batch

of

800

partial

prints.

(They

defined

a

MasterPrint

as

one

that

matches

at

least

4

percent

of

the

other

prints

in

the

randomly sampled batch.)

They

found,

however,

just

one

full-fingerprint

MasterPrint

in

a

sample

of

800

full

prints.

surprisingly, there's a much greater chance of falsely matching a partial print than a full one, and

most devices rely only on partials for identification,

The

team

analyzed

the

attributes

of

MasterPrints

culled

from

real

fingerprint

images,

and

then

built an algorithm for creating synthetic partial MasterPrints. Experiments showed that synthetic

partial prints have an even wider matching potential, making them more likely to fool biometric

security systems than real partial fingerprints. With their digitally simulated MasterPrints, the team

reported

successfully

matching

between

26

and

65

percent

of

users,

depending

on

how

many

partial fingerprint impressions were stored for each user and assuming a maximum number of five

attempts per authentication. The more partial fingerprints a given smartphone stores for each user,

the more vulnerable it is.

Roy emphasized that their work was done in a simulated environment. She noted, however, that

improvements in creating synthetic prints and techniques for transferring digital MasterPrints to

physical artifacts in order to spoof a device pose significant security concerns. The high matching

capability

of

MasterPrints

points

to

the

challenges

of

designing

trustworthy

fingerprint-based

authentication systems and reinforces the need for multi-factor authentication schemes. She said

this work may inform future designs.

be significantly improved in order for them to capture additional fingerprint features,

resolution

is

not

improved,

the

distinctiveness

of

a

user's

fingerprint

will

be

inevitably

compromised. The empirical analysis conducted in this research clearly substantiates this.

Memon noted that the results of the team's research are based on minutiae-based matching, which

any particular vendor may or may not use. Nevertheless, as long as partial fingerprints are used for

unlocking devices and multiple partial impressions per finger are stored, the probability of finding

MasterPrints increases significantly, he said.

investments

in

cybersecurity

research

build

the

foundational

knowledge

base

needed

to

protect

us

in

cyberspace,

said

Nina Amla,

program

director

in

the

Division

of

Computing

and

Communication

Foundations

at

the

National

Science

Foundation.

as

other

NSF-funded

research

has

helped

identify

vulnerabilities

in

everyday

technologies,

such

as

cars

or

medical

devices,

investigating

the

vulnerabilities

of

fingerprint-based

authentication

systems

informs

continuous advancements in security, ensuring more reliable protection for users.

Summary:

No two people are believed to have identical fingerprints, but researchers have

found

that

partial

similarities

between

prints

are

common

enough

that

the

fingerprint-based

security

systems

used

in

electronic

devices

can

be

more

vulnerable

than

previously

thought.

The

vulnerability

lies

in

the

fact

that

fingerprint-based

authentication

systems

feature

small

sensors

that

store

partial

fingerprints.

The

researchers found there

could

be

enough

similarities

among different people's partial prints that one could create a 'MasterPrint.'

ve

achievement

can

provide

a

buffer

against

being

anxious

about

death,

research

from

psychologists at the University of Kent shows.

Creative people, such as newly- announced Nobel Prize for Literature winner Bob Dylan, are often

thought to be motivated by the desire to leave an enduring cultural legacy. Through their creative

work, creatives such as Leonard Cohen and David Bowie continue to live on in our culture even

after passing away.

Conversely,

the

destruction

of

ancient

monuments

and

artefacts

in

Iraq

in

2015

by

members

of

Islamic State could be interpreted as a symbolic act aimed at achieving high negative impact on

society through the destruction of a cultural legacy.

Now

research,

conducted

by

Rotem

Perach,

a

postgraduate

researcher

at

Kent's

School

of

Psychology

under

the

supervision

of

Dr

Arnaud

Wisman,

shows

that

those

with

high

levels

of

creative ambition and achievement are particularly likely to be more resilient to death concerns.

In what is thought to be the first empirical study of the anxiety-buffering functions of creativity

among

people

for

whom

creativity

constitutes

a

central

part

of

their

cultural

worldview,

the

research analysed findings from a group of 108 students.

The

students

completed

two

questionnaires

to

gauge

their

level

of

creative

achievement

and

creative ambition. Those with a record of creative achievement, coupled to high levels of creative

ambition,

were

found

to

make

less

death

associations

in

their

thought

processes

after

thinking

about their own demise in comparison to those in the control condition.

In

comparison,

among

those

with

low

levels

of

creative

ambition

--

whatever

their

record

of

creative

achievement

--

thinking

about

their

own

mortality

did

not

affect

their

levels

of

death- thought accessibility in comparison to controls.

The

findings

suggest

that

those

who

pursue

creativity

and

produce

significant

creative

contributions may benefit from existential security in the face of death.

Summary:

Creative

people,

such

as

newly- announced

Nobel

Prize

for

Literature

winner

Bob

Dylan,

are

often

thought

to

be

motivated

by

the

desire

to

leave

an

enduring cultural legacy. Through their creative work, creatives such as Leonard

Cohen and David Bowie continue to live on in our culture even after passing

away.

ine-disrupting chemicals, or EDCs, are synthetic or naturally occurring compounds that

can interfere with or mimic the body's hormones. EDCs, such as flame retardants, phthalates and

bisphenol-A,

are

known

for

their

potential

effects

on

reproductive,

neurological

and

immune

functions. But animal studies also suggest that early life exposure to some EDCs can cause weight

gain later in life, and, as a result, have been called

the use of EDCs in products, but many are still ubiquitous in consumer goods. And they wind up

in indoor dust that can be inhaled, ingested, or absorbed through the skin. The U.S. Environmental

Protection

Agency

estimates

that

children

consume

50

milligrams

of

house

dust

each

day.

Concerned

about

the

potential

effects

EDCs

in

dust

might

have

on

children's

health,

Heather

Stapleton and colleagues wanted to see if the compounds in house dust might have an effect on fat

cells.

The

researchers

collected

samples

of

indoor

dust

from

11

homes

in

North

Carolina

and

tested

extracts from the samples in a mouse pre-adipocyte cell model, 3T3-L1 cells, often used to test

compounds for potential effects on the accumulation of triglycerides, a type of fat. Extracts from

seven

of

the

11

dust

samples

triggered

the

pre-adipocytes

to

develop

into

mature

fat

cells

and

accumulate triglycerides. Extracts from nine samples spurred the cells to divide, creating a larger

pool

of

precursor

fat

cells.

Only

one

dust

sample

had

no

effect.

Additionally,

among

the

44

individual common house dust contaminants tested in this model, pyraclostrobin (a pesticide), the

flame-retardant TBPDP, and DBP, a commonly used plasticizer, had the strongest fat- producing

effects.

This

suggests

that

the

mixture

of

these

chemicals

in

house

dust

is

promoting

the

accumulation

of

triglycerides

and

fat

cells,

the

researchers

say.

Amounts

of

dust

as

low

as

3

micrograms -- well below the mass of dust that children are exposed to daily -- caused measurable

effects. Thus, the researchers also suggest that house dust is a likely exposure source of chemicals

that may be able to disrupt metabolic health, particularly in children.

Poor diet and a lack of physical activity are major contributors to the world's obesity

epidemic, but researchers have also identified common environmental pollutants

that

could

play

a

role. Now one team reports that

small

amounts

of house

dust

containing

many

of

these

compounds

can

spur

fat

cells

to

accumulate

more

triglycerides, or fat, in a lab dish.

people are looking to lose weight, stay clear of saturated fat. Consuming these types of fatty

food affects a part of the brain called the hypothalamus, which helps regulate hunger.

The

fat

causes

inflammation

that

impedes

the

brain

to

control

the

food

intake.

In

other

words,

people

struggle

to

control

how

much

they

eat,

when

to

stop

and

what

type

of

food

to

eat

--

symptoms seen in obesity.

The study found, through tests in rats, that a meal rich in saturated fat, reduces a person's cognitive

function that make it more difficult to control eating habits.

days,

great

attention

is

dedicated

to

the

influence

of

the

diet

on

people's

wellbeing.

Although

the

effects

of

high

fat

diet

on

metabolism

have

been

widely

studied,

little

is

known

about the effects on the brain;

Mollica from the University of Naples Federico II.

A diet rich in fat can take different forms and in fact, there are different types of fats. Saturated

fats are found in lard, butter or fried food. Unsaturated fats are rich in food such as fish, avocado

or olive oil.

Consuming fish oil instead of lard makes a significant difference. The research shows that brain

function remains normal and manages to restrain from eating more than necessary.

brain. Our results suggest that being more aware about the type of fat consumed with the diet may

reduce the risk of obesity and prevent several metabolic diseases,

Summary:

A diet high in saturated fat can make your brain struggle to control what you

eat, says a new study. Consuming fish oil instead of lard can make a significant

difference, the study shows.