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Water Systems Vulnerable to Cyberthreats
In February, a hacker tried to manipulate the water utility’s computers in Oldsmar, Fla. so that the level of lye in the water would be raised. Joel Griffin writes that “had the perpetrator not been caught…. this cyber-attack could have resulted in actual physical harm to residents and potentially even deaths. The simplicity of this cyber-attack … also illustrates the gravity of the situation facing water utilities,” as they try to implement contemporary IT security solutions to decades-old equipment ad operational technology.
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New Book Helps Readers Spot Online Health Scams
UBC’s Dr. Bernie Garrett, the author of a new book on health scams, misinformation, and disinformation, says that “Scam marketers are well-versed in modern advertising techniques and the psychology of persuasion. They know all the triggers that can help sell a product.” He adds that, during the COVID period, such scams “definitely have proliferated, and this has been aided by social media… Unfortunately, people can post misinformation on social media with no real consequences.”
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Protecting Lives on the Wildland Fire Line
Unlike first responders who fight structural fires, wildland firefighters are unable to use the current standard respirator systems, which are heavy, limited to 45 minutes of air and are too bulky. Since the current standard equipment for respiratory protection is a bandanna, DHS S&T and partners designed the Wildfire Respirator around a lightweight mask covering just the mouth and nose, relying on filtration rather than on heavy tanks of compressed air.
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Smartphone Screens Effective Sensors for Soil or Water Contamination
The touchscreen technology used in billions of smartphones and tablets could also be used as a powerful sensor, without the need for any modifications.
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Surgeon General Urges ‘Whole-of-Society’ Effort to Fight Health Misinformation
“Misinformation is worse than an epidemic: It spreads at the speed of light throughout the globe, and can prove deadly when it reinforces misplaced personal bias against all trustworthy evidence,” said National Academy of Sciences President Marcia McNutt. “Research is helping us combat this ‘misinfodemic’ through understanding its origins and the aspects of human nature that make it so transmittable.”
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5 Million Deaths a Year Linked to Abnormal Temperatures
More than five million extra deaths a year can be attributed to abnormal hot and cold temperatures, according to a new study.
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Sen. Rubio Urges Senate to Pass Genomics Data Security Act
Senator Marco Rubio urged the Senate to pass his Genomics Data Security Act following a new Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) report, which found that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) did not consider national security risks for any CMS programs. Rubio noted that Chinese and Russian labs may be receiving federal dollars to processing Americans’ genomic data.
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More Than 100 Deaths Tied to Heat Wave in Pacific Northwest
More than 100 deaths in Oregon, Washington, and y British Columbia may have been caused by hyperthermia, authorities say, as the region continues to experience record-shattering high temperatures.
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Let Scientific Evidence Determine Origin of SARS-CoV-2: Presidents of the National Academies
Earlier this week, the leaders of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine issued a statement about the ongoing debate regarding the origins of the COVID-19 virus. “We urge that investigations into the origins of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 be guided by scientific principles, including reliance on verifiable data, reproducibility, objectivity, transparency, peer review, international collaboration, minimizing conflicts of interest, findings based on evidence, and clarity regarding uncertainties” they write.
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The Future of U.S. Pandemic Preparedness
On May 26, 2021, the National Biodefense Science Board (NBSB) held a (virtual) public meeting that discussed actions that the United States needs to take to be better prepared for the challenges posed by public health emergencies such as pandemics, “Disease X,” and other biological threats.
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FDA Approves Drug to Treat Smallpox
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration last week approved Tembexa (brincidofovir) to treat smallpox. Although the World Health Organization declared smallpox, a contagious and sometimes fatal infectious disease, eradicated in 1980, there have been longstanding concerns that the virus that causes smallpox, the variola virus, could be used as a bioweapon.
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Securing Transportation of Ammonia
Ammonia is used in many cleaning products, and it also fertilizes most of the U.S. agricultural crops. It will soon be used as emission free green fuel to power ships. With all of the many benefits, there are risks as well, as ammonia is the most produced and widely distributed toxic inhalation hazard chemical in the United States. If released in large quantities, it poses a significant risk to life and the health of those exposed.
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Rising Trends in Suicide by Firearms in Young Americans
Deaths from suicide are rising in the United States. These rising trends are especially alarming because global trends in suicide are on a downward trajectory. Moreover, in the U.S., the major mode of suicide among young Americans is by firearms.
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Unmedicated, Untreated Brain Illness is Likely in Mass Shooters: Study
The first analysis of medical evidence on domestic mass shooters in the U.S. finds that a large majority of perpetrators have psychiatric disorders for which they have received no medication or other treatment.
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The Many Ways Domestic Violence Foreshadows Mass Shootings
The San Jose transit shooting is the latest to illustrate the deadly connection between intimate partner violence and mass murder. How are these seemingly separate issues intertwined, and what can be done to save lives?
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More headlines
The long view
Ransomware Attacks: Death Threats, Endangered Patients and Millions of Dollars in Damages
A ransomware attack on Change Healthcare, a company that processes 15 billion health care transactions annually and deals with 1 in 3 patient records in the United States, is continuing to cause massive disruptions nearly three weeks later. The incident, which started on February 21, has been called the “most significant cyberattack on the U.S. health care system” by the American Hospital Association. It is just the latest example of an increasing trend.