Our picksSynthetic Virology: The Experts Speak | Misinformation Is a Problem | Anthrax Attacks: We’re Still Unprepared, and more

Published 8 October 2021

·  Americans Agree Misinformation Is a Problem, Poll Shows

·  Applying Arms-Control Frameworks to Autonomous Weapons

·  20 Years After the Anthrax Attacks, We’re Still Unprepared

·  The Grid Isn’t Ready for the Renewable Revolution

·  A Declassified State Department Report Says Microwaves Didn’t Cause “Havana Syndrome”

·  Synthetic Virology: The Experts Speak

·  California Governor Vetoed AB 70

Americans Agree Misinformation Is a Problem, Poll Shows  (Amanda Seitz and Hannah Fingerhut, AP News)
Nearly all Americans agree that the rampant spread of misinformation is a problem.
Most also think social media companies, and the people that use them, bear a good deal of blame for the situation. But few are very concerned that they themselves might be responsible, according to a new poll from The Pearson Institute and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
Ninety-five percent of Americans identified misinformation as a problem when they’re trying to access important information. About half put a great deal of blame on the U.S. government, and about three-quarters point to social media users and tech companies. Yet only 2 in 10 Americans say they’re very concerned that they have personally spread misinformation.
More, about 6 in 10, are at least somewhat concerned that their friends or family members have been part of the problem.

Applying Arms-Control Frameworks to Autonomous Weapons  (Zachary Kallenborn, Brookings)
Mankind’s earliest weapons date back 400,000 years—simple wooden spears discovered in Schöningen, Germany. By 48,000 years ago, humans were making bows and arrows, then graduating to swords of bronze and iron. The age of gunpowder brought flintlock muskets, cannons, and Gatling guns. In modern times, humans built Panzer tanks, the F-16 Fighting Falcon, and nuclear weapons capable of vaporizing cities.
Today, humanity is entering a new era of weaponry, one of autonomous weapons and robotics.
The development of such technology is rapidly advancing and poses hard questions about how their use and proliferation should be governed. In early 2020, a drone may have been used to attack humans autonomously for the first time, a milestone underscoring that robots capable of killing may be widely fielded sooner rather than later. Existing arms-control regimes may offer a model for how to govern autonomous weapons, and it is essential that the international community promptly addresses a critical question: Should we be more afraid of killer robots run amok or the insecurity of giving them up?

20 Years After the Anthrax Attacks, We’re Still Unprepared  (Maryn McKenna, Wired)
The first fatal bioterror attack in the US killed five people and caused a national panic—and we’re still short of funding and tech to handle health emergencies.

The Grid Isn’t Ready for the Renewable Revolution  (Matt Simon, Wired)
The massive deployment of wind and solar will turn you, the humble homeowner, into a critical actor in the operation of the U.S. power grid.

A Declassified State Department Report Says Microwaves Didn’t Cause “Havana Syndrome”  (Dan Vergano, BuzzFeedNews)
A declassified State Department report obtained by BuzzFeed News dismissed the theory that microwave weapons are behind the mysterious neurological injuries in diplomats worldwide.

Synthetic Virology: The Experts Speak  (Laura DeFrancesco, Laura DeFrancesco, Nature Biotechnology)
Synthetic virology—the re-creation and manipulation of viruses to study their properties—provides a powerful way of investigating how viruses cause infections and how to combat pathogenic subtypes. This is particularly true for hard-to-culture viruses. However, this approach also raises the prospect that bad actors could create more deadly viruses.

California Governor Vetoed AB 70 (Pandora Report)
On 5 October, California Governor Gavin Newsom returned Assembly Bill 70 without his signature. This bill, also called Gene Synthesis Security bill, which would have created the first biosecurity regulations for the field of synthetic biology. Governor Newsom cited a lack of funding and lack of a national approach to the issue as the grounds for his veto.
According to the announcement, the bill would require the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to “establish a new state regulatory program to provide oversight over gene synthesis providers and manufacturers of gene synthesis operating equipment,” and it would also “require gene synthesis businesses to demonstrate membership in a voluntary industry consortium or be verified by CDPH to use customer and sequence screening protocols that meet or exceed the protocols established by that consortium.” Funding the program would “authorize CDPH to begin charging fees from the entities to be regulated before the program is established and before businesses are required to be in compliance.”
The Governor asserts that “this structure is not implementable.” While the scope and sophistication of the synthetic biology industry continues to grow, biosecurity policy falls further behind.