BALTIMORE, MD, May 24, 2025 – Most anti-human trafficking efforts focus on breaking up sex sales; however, new research in the INFORMS journal Manufacturing & Service Operations Management is turning its attention to where trafficking truly begins – recruitment. Using machine learning to analyze millions of online ads, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have uncovered patterns that link deceptive job offers to sex trafficking networks. By mapping the connections between recruitment and sales locations, the study reveals a hidden supply chain – one that can now be exposed and interrupted earlier in the trafficking process.
Drugs being explicitly developed to treat rare diseases are getting more expensive.
Old technology is behind the recent ongoing delays and cancellations at Newark Liberty International Airport, but newer technology will be an important part of the solution.
An audio journey of how data and analytics save lives, save money and solve problems.
Jeff Cohen
Chief Strategy Officer
INFORMS
Catonsville, MD
[email protected]
443-757-3565
Explore our resources for multiple topics including:
The rapid spread of the Covid-19 virus is already having a huge impact on the global economy, which is rippling around the world via the long supply chains of major industries.
We live in a time of unprecedented access to information. And in this era of sheltering-in-place around the nation and the globe, the desire for news may be higher than ever—at least for some people. But do we really want all this information, all the time? Some may indeed prefer to think happier thoughts and maintain an (overly) optimistic outlook about the health threat we face. On the other hand, others may prefer not to know what the swings in the market are doing to their retirement savings.
Social distancing is working, but timing and discipline are everything. Those are the takeaways of new research emerging into the effectiveness of mitigation measures aimed at the spreading novel coronavirus that demonstrates communities that acted more quickly and aggressively had better results than those that implemented partial, or gradual measures.
Santa Clara County, for example, imposed social-distancing restrictions starting on Feb. 10. A shelter-in-place order was implemented on March 17. By contrast Miami-Dade County waited until March 12 before it issued a state of emergency.
The people living in communities hardest hit by the coronavirus tend to be low-income, elderly, and those with underlying health issues. Recent data revealed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that older folks are by far the most vulnerable, accounting for 80% of fatal cases in China and the U.S.
OR/MS Today is the INFORMS member magazine that shares the latest research and best practices in operations research, analytics and the management sciences.
Access OR/MS Today Magazine
Analytics magazine showcases articles and research reports based on big data, AI, machine learning, data analytics and other new-age technologies.
Access Analytics Magazine