Crowdsourced backend of the Encyclopedia of World Problems and Human Potential
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Lack of vocational teachers
The acquisition of technical expertise and functional skills not included in formal education is... -
Pathological gambling
Gambling can become addictive and progressive; the process become more important than the...
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Disorders of freedom
Disorders of freedom result from having too many freedoms that are abused rather than... -
Natural environment degradation
Natural environment degradation refers to the destruction and loss of native species and natural...
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Noise pollution
Noise pollution, operationally defined as 'unwanted sound', has become an environmental contaminant... -
Cyanosis
Cyanosis is a condition of bluish, grayish, slatelike or dark purple discolouration of the skin,... -
Benign prostatic hyperplasia
Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is the non-cancerous enlargement of the prostate gland that...
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Absolute idiocy
Absolute idiocy is a severe subnormality either innate or acquired through brain damage in very... -
Mastitis in animals
Mastitis in female mammals reduces milk yield, is irritable for the animal, and is the most...
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Refugees by boat
Aliens arriving by boat may be political refugees in desperate straits and fleeing from war, or may... -
Lupus vulgaris
Lupus vulgaris, the commonest form of cutaneous tuberculosis, occurs in previously sensitized... -
Physical intimidation
The threat of physical force to exploit others may be in the form of: police brutality;...
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Heresy
A theological doctrine or system rejected as false by ecclesiastical authority, heresy is...
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Gangrene
Gangrene means the death of tissues due to lack of blood supply. Gas gangrene is caused when...
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Epispadias
In male epispadias the urethra opens on the dorsal side of the penis, which is usually small and... -
Consumerism
In wealthier countries, replacement purchases for clothes, entertainment products, automobiles...
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Bestiality
Bestiality is sexual relations with animals, often goats, horses or dogs. -
Plastic pollution
Plastic wastes present formidable problems as they are at present not biodegradable, are bulky...
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Inadequate medical facilities
In both developed and developing countries the physical facilities for adequate health care... -
Soil erosion
Soil erosion is the deterioration of soil by the physical movement of soil particles from a...
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Colonialism
Colonialism is the establishment and maintenance, for an extended time, of rule over a people...
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Presbyopia
Presbyopia is a form of far-sightedness due to stiffening of lens with age. -
Sick building syndrome
Sick building syndrome (SBS) describes a medical condition in which people in a building suffer... -
Anomie
Anomie is a societal condition resulting from the disintegration of a commonly accepted normative... -
Salpingitis
Inflammation situated in the fallopian tubes, or the Eustachian tubes. -
House dust
Dust mites are microscopic creatures co-habitating with humans in virtually every type of housing... -
Concentration camps
The mass internment of civilians by military or police forces for indefinite periods of time and...
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Inequality before the law
Unequal access to legal advice, representation and other legal facilities, which may or may not be... -
Global cooling
Ice ages, when large areas of land are covered by continental glaciers, have occurred repeatedly...
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Parrot fever
Chlamydia psittaci is a strain of chlamydia that can lead to a rare flu-like condition...
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Incorrect information
Incorrect information may arise as a result of error or intentional distortion. Errors may occur...
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Denial of the right to procreate
By means of coercion such as loss of maternal and child health benefits or educational assistance,... -
Glaucoma
Glaucoma is a serious eye disease usually caused by excessive pressure inside the eye, although...
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Arterial hypertension
Arterial hypertension happens when the blood pressure in the arteries is excessive causing arterial... -
Epidemics
The extent to which contagious and infectious diseases spread through human populations is...
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Non-alignment
Non-alignment is a government policy of non-adherence to either of the major power blocs. To the... -
Anorectal atresia
Anorectal atresia consists of absence of an anus ("imperforate anus") or a lack of passage through... -
Fish stress
Stress is of central concern in aquaculture, as various stressors which accompany intensive fish... -
Fitz-Hugh-Curtis syndrome
The majority of patients who have violin-string adhesions of the liver have no symptoms at all.... -
Fevers
Fever is a natural defense mechanism of the body to certain infections. -
Stowing away
Intentionally remaining on board a vehicle like a bus, ship or plane for the purposes of obtaining... -
Allergy
Allergy is a 'supersensitivity' or a form of exaggerated immunological reactivity to some...
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Human consumption of animals
The consumption of animal flesh (whether meat, fowl or fish) or the use of animal products (...
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Human immunodeficiency virus infection
The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is the infective agent for acquired human...
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Social jetlag
Deliberate but unproductive excessive sleep after a period of sleep deprivation, for example...
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Human cannibalism
Human flesh may be consumed as a food or as part of a ritual, especially in order to obtain...
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Furunculosis
Furunculosis is an infection of fish caused by the bacteria Aeromonas salmonicida and...
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Health hazards of uranium
In addition to its radioactivity, uranium is chemically toxic. Like lead, and can damage the... -
Martial law
Martial law may be used by consecutive governments in order to restrict political freedom,... -
Alveolar hydatid disease
This is a very serious form of echinococcosis. The disease is transmitted to man through infected... -
Hunting of animals
Hunting is the seeking, pursuance and capture or destruction of game and wild animals for...
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Economic conflict
Economic warfare is interference in international economic relations by a state, or group of states... -
Coastal erosion
Every land mass on Earth has miles of coast at the interface between the hydrosphere and the... -
Unhealthy tongue
In Chinese medicine, the state of the tongue is often the clearest indication of a state of...,
Tongue colour Paleness denotes deficient blood or deficient qi or excess cold; red (...,
Tongue shape and movementPuffy with scalloped edges denotes deficient qi or excess...
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Inhuman methods of conception
Artificial insemination in human involves introducing sperm (usually from a man not the husband...
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Allergic asthma
The inhalation of allergens is the most commonly identified cause of inflammation of the airway.... -
Endangered species of Cryptoblepharus egeriae
The blue tailed skink, endemic to Christmas Island, was downgraded from "critically endangered...
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Health hazards of technology
Techno-pathology or the ill-health effects of technology, includes injuries from machines and...
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Scarification
Altering one's body by piercing, cutting, scarring, branding, amputating, or blood-letting, whether... -
Strabismus
Stabismus refers to "crossed" or "wall" eyes. -
Distortion of international trade by embargoes
Governmental prohibitions of all or certain kinds of shipments to foreign countries, to serve... -
Sleep disorders
The many abnormalities of sleep include excessive sleep, inability to sleep, restless sleep,...
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Inadequate mental hospitals
Instead of being located in the community it serves, the traditional mental hospital is usually of... -
Starvation
Starvation is the state of an organism that is completely deprived of food, has an insufficient...
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Uterine fibroids
Also known as myoma and uterine fibroids, fibromyoma are benign (non-cancerous) tumours in the...
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Laguna Negra virus
Laguna Negra virus is one of the hantaviruses which cause Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS)....
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Dust
Dust is a particulate contaminant suspended in the atmosphere. Like carbon dioxide it limits the... -
Impropriety
Debates about public (and even private) morality are curiously selective. This is often not...
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Depravity
Total depravity is not only that every part of a human being is affected by sin, but that every... -
Anophthalmia
Anophthalmia is a medical term used to describe the absence of the globe and ocular tissue from the... -
Heart disorders
Many general diseases affect the heart and can be classified according to the part of the heart...
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Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a learning disorder arising from abnormality in the part of the brain that organizes...
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Mental disorders of the aged
Loss of mental functioning is one of the most distressing burdens of old age. The condition is...
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Looting
Looting is a common part of the aftermath of social confusion - war, disaster, coups, revolutions.... -
Social injustice
Social injustice impedes growth and development, hampering or even halting improvement in living...
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Shoplifting
Shoplifters are those people who take articles from retail stores. Items stolen may be as small as... -
Jaundice
Jaundice describes the yellow pigmentation of the skin and mucous membranes produced by elevated... -
Agricultural pollution
By-products and wastes from agriculture pollute water, soil, and air. The use of pesticides and... -
Cleft palate
A cleft is a separation of parts of the mouth that are usually joined together during the early...
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Underground press
Illegal or semi-legal newspapers, news sheets and journals may be published in opposition to the... -
Mites as pests
Acarina, an order comprised of mites and ticks, are of the class Arachnida. Mites live in varied... -
Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber syndrome
The features of Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber syndrome are large cutaneous hemangiomata with hypertrophy... -
Headache
Headache is one of the most common ills. Most adults have experienced a headache at some point....,
Migraine
is usually a throbbing, severe pain that occurs on one side of the head. The...,Tension headaches
are a dull and more generalized pain, often affecting the entire head...,Cluster headaches
are the most excruciating, occur most often on one side of the head... -
Vasculitis
Vasculitis is inflammation of a blood vessel or blood vessels
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Harassment of human rights monitors
Whistle-blowers, people who reveal secrets their employers, the government or other powerful... -
Underdevelopment of countries
Underdevelopment occurs when some resources are not used to their full socio-economic potential,... -
Bladder exstrophy
Bladder exstrophy, or ectopia vesica, consists of the absence of the lower abdominal...
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Pneumoconiosis
Pneumoconiosis is caused by the accumulation of dust in the lungs and the tissue reaction to its... -
Exploitation in employment
The most extreme form of exploitation in employment is slavery. Most groups which are exploited in... -
War
War generally denotes armed conflict. It can also mean sustained conflict, such as a cold war,...
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Ankylosis of joint
Ankylosis may be fibrous or osseous and affects numerous joints, including spinal vertebrae,... -
Divisive effects of official cultural pluralism
Official cultural pluralism exists in countries where there are two or more indigenous cultural...
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Criminalization of prostitution
The making of prostitution a criminal offence does little or nothing to protect women from becoming... -
Pneumothorax
A collection of air or gas in the pleural cavity.
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Thiols and mercaptans as pollutants
Thiols have an intensely disagreeable odour and contact with the liquid or vapour may cause... -
Ineffective tax systems
In addition to problems of harmonization between tax systems, there are also internal problems...
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Chaos magic
In Chaos Magic, beliefs are not seen as ends in themselves, but as tools for creating desired... -
Osteoarthritis
Sometimes called degenerative joint disease, osteoarthritis is a result of “wear-and-tear” or...
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Cricket fighting
Cricket fighting is an ancient Chinese sport which was suppressed as a symptom of decadence during...
The Encyclopedia of World Problems and Human Potential was initiated in 1972 following a collaboration between two international non-profits, the Union of International Associations (UIA) and Mankind 2000. It is the result of an ambitious effort to collect and present information on the problems humanity is confronted with, as well as the challenges such problems pose to societies' values, development strategies and concept formation.
The online version of the resource is currently undergoing significant transformation, and the publishing model is changing in exciting new ways. The main points are:
- Whilst the above NGOs remain equal copyright holders of the data, it is becoming possible for partners to re-publish any content on presentation sites under a Creative Commons licence (CC BY-SA)
- Content of the database is being made centrally editable at edit.ewphp.org — to allow content changes on this site to propagate to any and all presentation sites
Please feel free to get in touch if you want to know more about the project, the ongoing transformation, or if you aspire to join the volunteer team as a database editor, presentation site developer or any other skill you feel might benefit the project!
News
- March 2016: An initial version of an API that allows retrieval and licensed re-use of the data is ready at demo.ewphp.org. We are currently working with selected developers, and a first public implementation of the API is taking shape as well. News about launch of both will follow soon!
- June 2015: Read the paper and presentation "Loop Mining in the Encyclopedia of World Problems" prepared for the 17th International Futures Conference "Futures Studies Tackling Wicked Problems" in Turku, Finland, 11-12. June 2015 — www.futuresconference.fi/2015