The U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research awarded two researchers at the University of Arkansas approximately $588,000 to conduct a holistic study of the dynamic role of information in network protection in the face of disruption. The investigators on the award are Haoming Shen and Robert Curry, both assistant professors of industrial engineering, with Shen serving as the principal investigator.

When there is a catastrophic event — whether caused by man or nature — it is critical to know how to protect and evaluate the accuracy of information. The U of A researchers will produce mathematical models that can show when and how sensor technologies can be deployed to increase network protection during times of unrest.

In safeguarding critical infrastructure, the flow of information often determines how well communities can prepare for and withstand disruptions. Information is rarely static — communities and organizations actively seek out new signals, such as early warnings of floods, storms or infrastructure failures, and may also share selected information to guide public response and reduce vulnerabilities.

In the event of a human-directed attack on infrastructure, the interplay of information between attacker and defender is asymmetrical and dynamic, as the defender acquires new information and allocates resources, or even disseminates misinformation to protect key facilities to mitigate risks in the face of uncertain threats.

This in mind, the researchers propose to answer two questions:

1. How should a defender strategically allocate resources to discover future attacks?
2. How can a defender proactively deflect potential attacks by disseminating misinformation about system parameters to the attacker?

For the purposes of the grant, an attack can be anything that threatens to create a system failure and uncertainty in how to deploy limited resources, whether the attacker is human or Mother Nature.

Shen will take the lead in answering the first question, in conjunction with a graduate student, while Curry will take the lead on the second, also with the assistance of a graduate student. Ultimately, though, they will all work together to answer both questions.

Most of the work will be largely theoretical, given the researchers' strong background in mathematics. Their goal is to produce mathematical models to help future crisis planners deploy resources in the face of uncertainty, with applications for protecting transportation and logistics networks through employment of advanced tools such as sensors and drones.

"If we put it in non-mathematical terms," Curry explained, "we're trying to make a set of data-informed decisions, and we're trying to make those decisions with uncertain information."

Shen added, "We want to proactively configure sensor networks to detect any potential disruptions in our network. However, in practice, deploying sensors or conducting sensing tasks requires investment, and the total amount of a budget is always limited. So we want to identify best strategies to allocate resources and to detect these attacks and strategically protect our infrastructure."

The award comes as part of the Department of War's Defense Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (DEPSCoR). DEPSCoR's website describes itself as "a capacity-building program designed to strengthen the basic research infrastructure at institutions of higher education in underutilized states/territories."

"I am pleased the Air Force recognizes the value that the University of Arkansas brings to the table," said U.S. Sen. John Boozman, a supporter of the DEPSCoR program. "This grant provides an opportunity to pursue high-quality research with far reaching, real-world applications like protecting critical infrastructure. Investing in this project reinforces and enhances our largest institution's significant role in supporting national security."