Related Threats Research Articles

Determinants of adaptive capacities and coping strategies to climate change related extreme events by forest dependent communities in Malawi

Climate change related extreme events present significant threats against the sustainability of forest-based livelihoods. Adaptive capacities and coping strategies of forest residents in Malawi towards climate change and extreme weather events were analyzed. Purposive sampling was used to select key informants while random sampling was employed to sample household heads or older member of the household (n = 422) involved in the household survey. Questionnaire administration, interviews and focus group discussions were used to collect the primary data. Cross tabulation of frequencies, Pearson Chi-square tests, and Binary logistic regression tests were used for the data analysis. Results showed that forest residents have always employed different adaptation and coping strategies during different climate extreme events over the years. Winter cropping (Dimba) around streams and wells, scored 66 % in Mchinji whilst the shifting of crop planting periods to coincide with rainy seasons topped the list in Mangochi (55 %) against droughts and erratic rainfall, respectively. Household satisfaction with water supply facilities and communication services dictated the respondents’ choice of the coping strategies employed. Furthermore, household human capital enhanced the adaptive capacity of forest residents. In conclusion, institutional services, social networks and human capital resources are important in devising climate coping and adaptation strategies hence recommending for more sustainable and transformative adaptation and coping strategies that can withstand projected climate change and weather-related events.

Advancements in monkeypox vaccines development: a critical review of emerging technologies.

Monkeypox (mpox) is a zoonotic illness caused by the monkeypox virus (MPXV), with higher health concerns among people who are pregnant, children, and persons who are immunocompromised, including people with untreated and advanced HIV disease. Significant progress has been made in developing vaccines against mpox, yet critical challenges and limitations persist in ensuring their effectiveness, safety, and accessibility. The pertinence of this review is highlighted by the World Health Organization's declaration of a global health emergency on August 14, 2024, due to the recent mpox outbreak, underscoring the critical necessity for effective vaccine solutions in the face of a rapidly evolving virus. Here, we comprehensively analyze various vaccine platforms utilized in mpox prevention, including attenuated and non-replicating virus vaccines, viral vector-based vaccines, recombinant protein vaccines, and DNA and mRNA vaccines. We evaluate the advantages and limitations of each platform, highlighting the urgent need for ongoing research and innovation to enhance vaccine efficacy and safety. Recent advancements, such as incorporating immunostimulatory sequences, improved delivery systems, and developing polyvalent vaccines, are explored for their potential to offer broader protection against diverse orthopoxvirus strains. This work underscores the need to optimize currently available vaccines and investigate novel vaccination strategies to address future public health emergencies effectively. By focusing on these advanced methodologies, we aim to contribute to the development of robust and adaptable vaccine solutions for mpox and other related viral threats.

Environmental Management in Central Asia

The environment is an increasingly debated topic in international society, politics and the media. This is all the more true in the context of climate change, which is readily apparent every year. The processes associated with climate change strongly influence the state and shape of the environment of which we humans are an integral part. The factor of dramatic population growth also intervenes in the situation. The object of the study is Central Asia with extreme climatic conditions. The environment has a negative impact on living conditions, health and development. Agricultural production is the main branch of economy of all Central Asian republics. The environment and related threats affect the economic situation of the region. Human activities also have a negative impact on the shape and condition of the environment in the whole region. Inefficient and unsustainable management of agriculture and water resources is the cause of the unfavourable situation. Environment and security are seen as two inseparable areas that interact and influence environmental management.

Securing BYOD environment from social and mobility related threats: the case of Nigerian banking sector

Securing BYOD environment from social and mobility related threats: the case of Nigerian banking sector

Audio-Video Analysis Method of Public Speaking Videos to Detect Deepfake Threat

Aim: The purpose of the article is to present the hypothesis that the use of discrepancies in audiovisual materials can significantly increase the effectiveness of detecting various types of deepfake and related threats. In order to verify this hypothesis, the authors proposed a new method that reveals inconsistencies in both multiple modalities simultaneously and within individual modalities separately, enabling them to effectively distinguish between authentic and altered public speaking videos. Project and methods: The proposed approach is to integrate audio and visual signals in a so-called fine-grained manner, and then carry out binary classification processes based on calculated adjustments to the classification results of each modality. The method has been tested using various network architectures, in particular Capsule networks – for deep anomaly detection and Swin Transformer – for image classification. Pre-processing included frame extraction and face detection using the MTCNN algorithm, as well as conversion of audio to mel spectrograms to better reflect human auditory perception. The proposed technique was tested on multimodal deepfake datasets, namely FakeAVCeleb and TMC, along with a custom dataset containing 4,700 recordings. The method has shown high performance in identifying deepfake threats in various test scenarios. Results: The method proposed by the authors achieved better AUC and accuracy compared to other reference methods, confirming its effectiveness in the analysis of multimodal artefacts. The test results confirm that it is effective in detecting modified videos in a variety of test scenarios which can be considered an advance over existing deepfake detection techniques. The results highlight the adaptability of the method in various architectures of feature extraction networks. Conclusions: The presented method of audiovisual deepfake detection uses fine inconsistencies of multimodal features to distinguish whether the material is authentic or synthetic. It is distinguished by its ability to point out inconsistencies in different types of deepfakes and, within each individual modality, can effectively distinguish authentic content from manipulated counterparts. The adaptability has been confirmed by the successful application of the method in various feature extraction network architectures. Moreover, its effectiveness has been proven in rigorous tests on two different audiovisual deepfake datasets. Keywords: analysis of audio-video stream, detection of deepfake threats, analysis of public speeches

“You liked that Instagram post?!” Adolescents’ jealousy and digital dating abuse behaviors in reaction to digital romantic relationship threats

Seeing a romantic partner interact digitally with someone can be threatening for adolescents, yet it remains unclear what characteristics of these interactions induce jealousy and digital dating abuse. In two preregistered experiments (Experiment 1: N = 717; Experiment 2: N = 140), we examined the impacts of adolescents' romantic partners hypothetically “liking” another individual's Instagram photo. Experiment 1 utilized a between-subjects design with middle adolescents (Mage = 13.73, SD = 1.54) and investigated the impact of gender similarity, familiarity, and popularity of an individual in an Instagram post on participants' reports of how upset and jealous they would feel and which behaviors linked to digital dating abuse they would engage in if their romantic partner “liked” the post. Results revealed adolescents' partner's “liking” a post from a different-gender person increased feeling upset and jealousy, and digital dating abuse behaviors. No effects were found for familiarity or popularity. Feeling upset and jealous mediated associations between different-gender Instagram photo-liking and digital dating abuse engagement. Experiment 2, a systematic replication of Experiment 1, utilized a within-subjects design with late adolescents (Mage = 20.40 years, SD = 3.98) to investigate the impact of gender similarity and attractiveness. We found jealousy and digital dating abuse behaviors were highest when the relationship threat was attractive. Findings from both experiments demonstrate how digital interactions trigger jealousy and abusive digital relationship behaviors in adolescents. As these interactions occur frequently in a fast-paced digital world, prevention should focus on how adolescents manage jealousy without resorting to digital dating abuse.

Chital's call: An appeal for conservation strategies in the forest of the Institute of Forestry, Hetauda, Nepal

The chital, Axis axis, constitutes one of Nepal's six deer species and maintains a closed population within the forest of the Institute of Forestry, Hetauda Campus. Presently, the chital population faces a range of challenges, prompting a comprehensive study encompassing population status, habitat preference analysis, and threat assessment. We utilized the pellet group count method on 74 systematic random sample plots (4×4m) within a 100×100 m grid for population estimation. Pellet presence/absence in predetermined habitat characteristics was analyzed to assess habitat preferences. Concurrently, a relative threat ranking method from household interviews was employed to evaluate existing threats. The study revealed a total chital population estimate of approximately 141 individuals, with a population density of 190 individuals per km2. Their habitat preference showed an affinity towards areas abundant in Sal and riverine forests, along with an inclination towards locations further from roads within the forested areas. Primary threats to the chital population encompassed attacks from feral dogs, illegal hunting, and habitat degradation mainly due to invasive alien plant species. This study shows that with effective management of the feral dogs, mitigation strategy to control illegal hunting with the help of local authorities, and improving the habitat conditions concerning their preferences, the chital population has the potential to continue growing in the coming years.

Cyberbullying Prevalence at a Rural Based University in the Eastern Cape, South Africa

Defences within the digital space against cybersecurity include detection, prevention and response to threats using software tools, however, there no significant technology-based defence systems that deal with cyberbullying related threats. A lack of cybersecurity defence systems and limited cybersecuriy awareness may expose students to cyberbullying and students are likely to suffer, resulting in effects such as psychological and emotional abuse that may eventually contribute towards high drop-outs rates. The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of cyberbullying among students at a public university based in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. This research study followed a mixed method approach and a thematic analysis guided by the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) theoretical framework. The study found strong cyberbullying penetration within the student community under investigation. As part of the study findings, it was found that activities such as cybersecurity awareness programmes may mitigate the impact of cyberbullying on students and such interventions should form part of any higher education institution’s responsibility.

МЕТОДИЧНІ ЗАСАДИ АНАЛІЗУ ЕФЕКТИВНОСТІ МЕХАНІЗМУ УПРАВЛІННЯ ФІНАНСОВО-ЕКОНОМІЧНОЮ БЕЗПЕКОЮ ПІДПРИЄМСТВА

Actualization of the need to monitor the effectiveness of the financial and economic security system is primarily a consequence of the objective analysis of the effectiveness of the relevant mechanism. The purpose of the article is to determine the methodological principles of the analysis of the effectiveness of the mechanism of managing the financial and economic security of the enterprise in conditions of instability of the internal and external environments. The subject of the study is the mechanism of managing the financial and economic security of the enterprise. Research methods: analysis and synthesis, comparison, grouping and analogies, deduction, economic and mathematical modeling. The hypothesis of the study is that the effectiveness of the financial and economic security management mechanism of the enterprise in conditions of dynamic external environment depends on the objective information support for management decision-making thanks to the operational monitoring of the identification of the main objects of protection against potential threats. Presenting main material. The article examines the financial and economic security of the enterprise as one of the most important components of economic security. The features of managing financial and economic security in the conditions of the financial crisis and related internal and external threats to the enterprise are revealed. The system of financial and economic security of the enterprise is presented as one that reflects the level of the company's financial situation, is characterized by resistance to the influence of threats from the internal and external environments, and is aimed at the effective use of the enterprise's resources. That is why it is important for the management of financial and economic security to have a deep understanding of threats, which are systematized as threats from the external and internal environments. A structural and functional model of the development of the management mechanism of the financial and economic security of the enterprise is proposed. The algorithm for controlling the financial and economic security of the enterprise has been improved, which is primarily focused on monitoring the implementation of the financial and economic security management program aimed at neutralizing threats to financial and economic security from internal and external environments. Based on the generalization of domestic and international experience, the main tasks of state administration bodies to ensure effective management of the financial and economic security of the enterprise, taking into account modern challenges, are structured. In total, the structured methodological principles of the analysis of the effectiveness of the financial and economic security management mechanism of the enterprise create an information basis for making management decisions based on the identification of the main objects of protection and potential threats. Originality and practical significance of the research. The practical value of the research lies in the fact that the obtained results in the form of a structural-functional model for the development of the mechanism for managing the financial and economic security of the enterprise and the algorithm for controlling the financial and economic security of the enterprise are suitable for practical application by enterprises in conditions of dynamic changes. At the same time, the complex result of the development of methodological principles for the analysis of the effectiveness of the mechanism of managing the financial and economic security of the enterprise was tested on the example of the case of the enterprise in the medical field using correlation-regression analysis. In further investigations, the developed methodological developments can be used to develop a system of adaptive management of enterprises in conditions of uncertainty. Сonclusions and prospects for further research. Management of financial and economic security is an integral part of the successful functioning of the enterprise in modern dynamic conditions. Currently, this is the main element of enterprise management, which allows to comprehensively influence the financial condition, providing the ability to effectively use financial resources, competently manage threats, to achieve effective development and implementation of the enterprise's strategy in the present and future. Correlation-regression analysis allows you to determine which financial indicators are the most influential on the level of financial and economic security of the enterprise.

Identifying conservation values: a case study in trans-Himalayan region of Thanpattan, Lahaul-Spiti, Himachal Pradesh

The rugged topography, harsh climate and limited livelihood options have resulted in pastoralism being the predominant land use in the Himalayan landscape. To identify the most significant sites in this landscape, we employed the concept of ‘High Conservation Value Areas’ (HCVAs) in Thanpattan, one of the largest pastureland in Lahaul-Spiti. We have examined this region as a potential HCVA, providing information on biological diversity, pastoralism and related threats. The Gaddi community of Chamba and Bharmour districts relies on these pastures for their livelihoods, and several threatened flora and fauna species also call the area home. We found that Thanpattan fulfils all six criteria for HCVAs and is undoubtedly an HCVA due to its biodiversity values and the dependency of the indigenous communities on the region.

Diversity, distribution patterns and indicatory potential of echinoderm communities of the tropical East Atlantic (Gulf of Guinea): Influence of multiple natural and anthropogenic factors along a 25–1000 m depth gradient

All earlier studies of the West African echinoderm fauna have focused on taxonomy, and general knowledge about benthic community responses to various human related threats are poorly diagnosed and not monitored along the whole African coast. Our analysis of diversity and distribution patterns of Ghanaian echinoderms yielded 36 species. Material was collected at nine transects distributed along the coast of Ghana (25–1000 m depth range, total of over 270 samples). Gradual decreases in species richness, diversity, evenness and abundance were observed along the depth gradient, with the most diverse fauna being recorded on the shelf (25–50 m). The most abundant species were Ophiactis luetkeni and Ophiothrix congensis, although both had very patchy distributions. Cluster analysis separated shelf communities (25–100 m) from slope communities (500–1000 m), although on a low level of similarity. Our analysis allowed to select most vulnerable benthic habitats that should be amongst priorities of the future monitoring. Local influence of arsenic was observed at some shelf sites, while slope fauna was affected by elevated levels of hydrocarbons and barium. Changes in salinity and fluorescence also influenced echinoderm assemblages. The most general trend showed patchily distributed, diverse shallow water fauna being influenced by increased microhabitat diversity and food availability, while depauperate slope fauna was affected by local disturbances associated with oil extraction. Tropical echinoderm communities have a great potential as indicators of even minor and local pollution, although high patchiness and low abundance creates difficulties in the multivariate analysis. High sampling effort and high number of replicates allowed to minimise those problems and demonstrated small scale microhabitat diversity.

The COVID-19 pandemic as an existential threat: Evidence on young people's psychological vulnerability using a Multifaceted Threat Scale.

Research offers evidence that younger generations suffered the most psychologically from the COVID-19 crisis. In this article, we look at the onset of the pandemic to understand the reasons for this increased vulnerability. We use the COVID-19 Multifaceted Threat Scale to explore potential mechanisms underlying generational differences in psychological well-being. In a sample of 994 individuals (+18) obtained in the USA and India, we first assess levels of perceived psychological well-being across the generations. Thus, we measure cross-generational differences in the perceived levels of financial, relational, existential, health and lifestyle threats experienced by respondents seven months after the pandemic broke out. In accordance with earlier findings, the results confirm that people from Generation Z and Generation Y reported worse levels of psychological well-being than older adults. Our results suggest that the heightened existential threat, as reflected in a loss of meaning and feelings of being "trapped", mediate the association between younger generations and worse psychological well-being. No substantial intergenerational differences were found for other threat dimensions. The observed effects were consistent across both national contexts, hence stressing the importance of existential concerns as a mechanism underlying the psychological vulnerability of younger people in the historical contingencies of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Married women's response to spousal pornography use: A grounded theory.

Empirical research suggests that married women may more commonly experience spousal pornography use as a relational attachment threat and are more likely to experience negative relational outcomes such as distress and loss of trust. The purpose of this study was to develop a grounded theory of married women's response to the discovery or disclosure of spousal pornography use. This study included the experiences of 30 married women who reported spousal pornography use as a threat to relational attachment, who chose to remain with their spouse, and who reported evidence of individual and relational healing thereafter. The research question, "How do married women describe the experience of learning of their spouse's pornography use and the individual and relationship sequelae that follow?" was explored using grounded theory methods to analyze deidentified blogpost accounts emphasizing response to a spouse's pornography use. The results describe a process model highlighting three interrelated informant categories-emotional response, mental response, and physical response-and one resultant category-behavioral response. Implications include (a) the importance of open communication regarding pornography use within relationships, (b) the necessity for individual and relational healing following betrayal trauma, and (c) the role of therapeutic intervention in shaping adaptive healing processes.

The role of law textbooks in the teaching and application of methods of legal interpretation in Poland (in historical and contemporary perspective)

The purpose of this article is to explain the role of legal interpretation in Poland in the context of its teaching and application, resulting from the way legal interpretation is presented in law textbooks. This explanation is based on the following theses: (1) the contemporary way in which law is taught in Poland, in particular law interpretation and its impact on the application of law, is due to historical and political conditions. (2) Polish law textbooks do not show the political and worldview context of the law, which results in an unawareness of the legal-political role of legal interpretation, (3) the current state of Polish law teaching, in particular textbooks, contributes to an increase in the importance of the so-called judicial interpretation and the related threats to the teaching and application of law. Clarification of the indicated theses will not only allow us to understand the current role of law textbooks in teaching the method of civil law interpretation, but also to show the potential direction of development of legal theory. It is therefore important to pay attention to the broader context, which is the way law teaching is practiced in Poland and its impact on the application and development of law, as well as on legal awareness and the level of legal culture.

Crash frequency prediction based on extreme value theory using roadside lidar-based vehicle trajectory data

Crash prediction models (CPMs) are mostly developed using statistical or data-driven methods that rely on observed crashes. However, the historical crash records can be unreliable due to availability and data quality issues. Near-crashes based CPMs offer a proactive approach to predict crash frequencies prior to the occurrence of crashes. Surrogate safety measures can be used to identify near-crashes from road user trajectories. Roadside LiDAR offers an innovative approach to collect vehicle trajectory data at a microscopic resolution with high accuracy providing detailed information of all road user movements. This study presents a methodology to identify near-crashes from Roadside LiDAR based vehicle trajectory data using the surrogate indicators: TTC (Time to Collision), PET (Post Encroachment Time), ACT (Anticipated Collision Time) and MaxD (Maximum Deceleration). Additionally, time-based, and evasive-action-based surrogate measures are combined as different pairs to obtain crash probabilities using extreme value theory (EVT). The study results show that the bivariate EVT model displays a better fit to conflict extremes, predicting crash frequencies better than the univariate model. Likewise, while the bivariate model with ACT and MaxD pair performed the best in terms of accuracy, the TTC and MaxD pair was able to reflect the relative threat levels at the study intersections. Overall, the methodology lays ground for using roadside lidar based trajectory data for proactive safety analysis of signalized intersections.

COVID‐19‐related threat perceptions, political identity, and voting in the 2020 presidential election

AbstractPerceptions of the COVID‐19 virus varied drastically in the United States, with many people highly concerned by health‐related consequences (realistic threats) and many others concerned by sociocultural implications (symbolic threats). Across three studies, we tested whether differing realistic and symbolic COVID‐19 related threat perceptions varied along gender and political identity near the 2020 US Presidential Election. In all three studies, we found that realistic COVID‐19 related threat perceptions were positively associated with a liberal political identity; this pattern did not vary by gender. In Studies 1 and 3, symbolic COVID‐19 related threat perceptions were positively associated with a conservative political identity and also did not vary by gender. In Study 2, however, the association between symbolic threat and political identity did vary by gender. Symbolic COVID‐19 related threat perceptions were positively associated with a conservative identity for men but not women; for women, threat and political identity were unrelated.

Agroterrorism involving biological agents and related threats in Poland and Europe in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine

With the growing threat of agroterrorism and the highest level of risk in Poland and the European region since the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (1972) and the Additional Protocols to the Geneva Conventions (1977) came into force, it is important to analyse the challenges in the area of biosecurity and food security and make recommendations. The analysis carried out by the author of this article indicates that the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to the dissemination of knowledge of the basics of microbiology and epidemiology and to the increased availability of low-cost, portable microbiological diagnostics, which may also have negative effects. The analysis took into account the possibility of foreign intelligence influencing food production in Poland, e.g. through disinformation via social media. Conclusions of the analysis include: expanding monitoring of the expert community and social media, strengthening the vigilance of food producers and agricultural experts, simulating introduction scenarios, studying radicalisation processes and using epidemiological assessment tools in case of alarming events.

Relational Effects of Romantic Partner’s Perceived Parasocial Romantic Attachment With Pornography

Abstract: An online experiment investigated heterosexual women’s responses to their romantic partners’ pornography use. Specifically, we examined how a perceived parasocial (i.e., entirely fanciful, one-sided) versus social (i.e., reciprocal) interaction with a porn actress, as well as a perceived parasocial romantic attachment to a porn actress, may pose a relational threat to one’s actual romantic relationship. Results revealed that perceptions of infidelity and jealousy were dampened by women’s belief that their romantic partner had a weak (vs. stronger) parasocial romantic attachment to and parasocial (vs. social) interaction with a porn actress. These findings advance our understanding of the effects of pornography use within romantic relationships and highlight how parasocial relationships can affect romance.

The NOAA Weather Prediction Center’s Use and Evaluation of Experimental Warn-on-Forecast System Guidance

This study examines use of experimental Warn-on-Forecast System (WoFS) guidance for short-term flash flood prediction at the NOAA Weather Prediction Center’s Meteorological Watch (Metwatch) desk. The WoFS guidance provides storm-scale ensemble forecasts for individual thunderstorms out to six hours and has previously shown great promise in its predictive skill for heavy rainfall events. Its operational utility was examined during 2019 and 2020 in a formal collaboration between Warn-on-Forecast scientists and Metwatch meteorologists. During that time, Metwatch meteorologists integrated real-time WoFS guidance into their Mesoscale Precipitation Discussion forecast processes and provided evaluations via a post-event survey. The survey queried impacts of WoFS guidance on their situational awareness, workload, and confidence, and Metwatch meteorologists also reported subjective assessments of model performance. Survey results highlighted the importance of viewing consistency in WoFS guidance across runs and agreement between WoFS guidance with conceptual models, other numerical weather prediction guidance, and observations. The use of WoFS tended to either maintain or slightly increase Metwatch meteorologists’ workload, while also increasing their confidence (notably for events perceived as better predicted). Of the different forecast attributes evaluated, Metwatch meteorologists reported convective mode as the attribute best predicted by WoFS. Use of WoFS guidance supported Mesoscale Precipitation Discussion decision making, including the placement and spatial extent of the product and the level of specificity provided about the related flash flood threat(s).

Management and Society 5.0

While technology and digital transformation are developing, today’s society is rapidly changing. In this context, current management and strategies are becoming outdated, which raises the need to adapt to new challenges and keep pace with innovation. One option that seeks to bring new solutions is the concept of Society 5.0 which combines technological progress and sustainable development, and attempts to achieve a balance between them, ensuring the well-being of all members of society.
 Society 5.0 emphasises the creation of socially beneficial solutions, human needs, and improving the quality of life, not just economic growth. Successful implementation of this concept requires quality management that is open to new mindsets, strategies, and approaches to management with a focus on sustainability, innovation, and collaboration. In Industry 5.0, success depends more than ever on management’s ability to understand and address the challenges posed by new technologies. Therefore, it is necessary to think about the key skills and capabilities that a manager should have in order to successfully manage an organisation in the context of Society 5.0.
 The aim of this paper is to analyse the challenges associated with the management and implementation of the Society 5.0 concept, as well as to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in this area, and to provide an overview of the key factors for successful management in the context of Society 5.0. In the first part, the theoretical background of this paper will be set, which will be applied for the subsequent analysis. The theoretical part focuses specifically on the definition and description of Society 5.0, and the key elements of this concept. It also focuses on new approaches to management that are key to management in this area, as well as defines the role and importance of SWOT analysis in management and strategic planning.
 Based on a comparative analysis of relevant sources, the SWOT analysis will be performed in the practical part as a tool for assessing strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in relation to the new concept of Society 5.0. The results of the analysis will be evaluated, summarised, and finally recommendations will be made. This text will be useful for managers and executives who want to better adapt themselves to the new era of digital transformation and sustainable development.