DroidNet: An Android Application Security Framework through Crowdsourcing

In the current Android architecture, users have to decide whether an app is safe to use or not by themselves. Savvy users can make correct decisions to avoid unnecessary privacy breaches, however most users are not capable or do not care to make impactful decisions. To assist those users, we propose DroidNet, an Android permission control framework based on crowdsourcing. In this framework, DroidNet runs new apps and their permissions initially, and then collects data based on each individual user’s settings in regards to each permission unique to every installed app. After collecting each user’s data, DroidNet provides recommendations on whether to accept or reject the permission requests based on decisions from peer expert users. To seek expert users, we utilize an expertise ranking algorithm using a transitional Bayesian inference model. The recommendation, respective to each application permission, is based on the aggregated expert responses and our generated confidence level, which are collectively stored and sorted in our DroidNet database. The overall culmination of the model resulted in the creation of a real-time Android application which utilizes our Bayesian inference model and aggregate data from each individual user, all of which is connected to our DroidNet database.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/capstone/1173/thumbnail.jp

Women at Risk: Why Many Women Are Forgoing Needed Health Care

Based on Commonwealth Fund 2007 Biennial Health Insurance Survey data, compares women's rates of uninsurance or underinsurance, sources of coverage, out-of-pocket and premium expenses, access to care, medical debt, and unmet needs, with those of men

Out of Options: Why So Many Workers in Small Businesses Lack Affordable Health Insurance, and How Health Care Reform Can Help

Based on the 2007 Commonwealth Fund Biennial Health Insurance Survey, examines small business employees' limited access to health insurance and contributing factors. Explores how small businesses and employees could benefit from proposed reforms

Paying the Price: How Health Insurance Premiums Are Eating Up Middle-Class Incomes

Analyzes state-by-state trends in insurance premium costs and as a share of household income. Compares projected cost increases by 2015 and 2020 under three scenarios for growth depending on the effects of healthcare reform. Discusses policy implications

Failure to Protect: Why the Individual Insurance Market Is Not a Viable Option for Most U.S. Families

Based on the Commonwealth Fund 2007 Biennial Health Insurance Survey, examines access to and affordability of individual insurance. Reviews obstacles to obtaining coverage, such as health issues and costs, and out-of-pocket costs of those who obtain it

Squamous Cell Cancers: A Unified Perspective on Biology and Genetics.

Squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs) represent the most frequent human solid tumors and are a major cause of cancer mortality. These highly heterogeneous tumors arise from closely interconnected epithelial cell populations with intrinsic self-renewal potential inversely related to the stratified differentiation program. SCCs can also originate from simple or pseudo-stratified epithelia through activation of quiescent cells and/or a switch in cell-fate determination. Here, we focus on specific determinants implicated in the development of SCCs by recent large-scale genomic, genetic, and epigenetic studies, and complementary functional analysis. The evidence indicates that SCCs from various body sites, while clinically treated as separate entities, have common determinants, pointing to a unified perspective of the disease and potential new avenues for prevention and treatment

The Health Insurance Provisions of the 2009 Congressional Health Reform Bills: Implications for Coverage, Affordability, and Costs

Analyzes the House and Senate healthcare reform bills for the number of people likely to gain coverage and the implications for federal financing, families' insurance premium and out-of-pocket costs, employers, and the potential for price competition

Coming Out of Crisis: Patient Experiences in Primary Care in New Orleans, Four Years Post-Katrina

Examines the network of neighborhood clinics funded with federal, state, and local money that emerged after Hurricane Katrina as a model for serving vulnerable populations. Looks at access, communication, chronic illnesses management, and preventive care

Losing Ground: How the Loss of Adequate Health Insurance Is Burdening Working Families: Findings From the Commonwealth Fund Biennial Health Insurance Surveys, 2001-2007

Highlights declining health coverage and rising deductibles for American adults and the implications for medical costs, debt burdens, and access to health care. Examines socioeconomic and demographic characteristics of the uninsured and underinsured

An Analysis of Leading Congressional Health Care Bills, 2007-2008: Part I, Insurance Coverage

Compares coverage and cost estimates of bills to improve health coverage through private-public approaches, universal public insurance, tax changes, increased coverage for children and the disabled, expanded health savings accounts, and other strategies