In 1980, a group of scientists from national laboratories, universities, and other research organizations gathered informally in a series of meetings to consider the state of research on risks to health, safety, and the environment. Each scientist had conducted research on the subject. All felt that the traditional disciplines and professional societies to which they belonged were neither ade quate nor appropriate for addressing the extraordinarily complex problems of assessing the risks inherent in modern society. The con sensus of the group was that a new society was needed to address these problems in a scientific and objective way. From these initial meetings, the Society for Risk Analysis was formed The major aims of the Society for Risk Analysis, as stated in its constitution, are • to promote knowledge and understanding of risk analysis techniques and their applications; • to promote communication and interaction among those engaged in risk analysis; and • to disseminate risk analysis information and promote the advancement of all aspects of risk analysis. Members of the Society are drawn from a variety of disciplines, including the health sciences, engineering, the physical sciences, the humanities, and the behavioral and social sciences. An import ant function of the Society is the annual meeting, at which var ious aspects of risk analysis are discussed. The first annual meet ing, represented by this volume, was the International Workshop on the Analysis of Actual vs.

Surveillance cameras. Airport security lines. Barred store windows. We see manifestations of societal fears everyday, and daily news reports on the latest household danger or raised terror threat level continually stoke our sense of impending doom. In A Philosophy of Fear, Lars Svendsen now explores the underlying ideas and issues behind this powerful emotion, as he investigates how and why fear has insinuated itself into every aspect of modern life. Svendsen delves into science, politics, sociology, and literature to explore the nature of fear. He examines the biology behind the emotion, from the neuroscience underlying our “fight or flight” instinct to how fear induces us to take irrational actions in our attempts to minimize risk. The book then turns to the political and social realms, investigating the role of fear in the philosophies of Machiavelli and Hobbes, the rise of the modern “risk society,” and how fear has eroded social trust. Entertainment such as the television show “Fear Factor,” competition in extreme sports, and the political use of fear in the ongoing “War on Terror” all come under Svendsen’s probing gaze, as he investigates whether we can ever disentangle ourselves from the continual state of alarm that defines our age. Svendsen ultimately argues for the possibility of a brighter, less fearful future that is marked by a triumph of humanist optimism. An incisive and thought-provoking meditation, A Philosophy of Fear pulls back the curtain that shrouds dangers imagined and real, forcing us to confront our fears and why we hold to them.

This book is about managing business risks by examining worst-case scenarios and putting safeguards into place to mitigate loss of revenue, market share, customers, and other assets.

A series of papers on business, economics, and financial sciences, management selected from International Conference on Business, Economics, and Financial Sciences, Management are included in this volume. Management in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively. Management comprises planning, organizing, staffing, leading or directing, and controlling an organization (a group of one or more people or entities) or effort for the purpose of accomplishing a goal. Resourcing encompasses the deployment and manipulation of human resources, financial resources, technological resources and natural resources. The proceedings of BEFM2011 focuses on the various aspects of advances in Business, Economics, and Financial Sciences, Management and provides a chance for academic and industry professionals to discuss recent progress in the area of Business, Economics, and Financial Sciences, Management. It is hoped that the present book will be useful to experts and professors, both specialists and graduate students in the related fields.