• West Reliant on Russian Nuclear Fuel Amid Decarbonization Push

    A new report and research from a British defense research group has found that many Western nations are still reliant on Russian nuclear fuel to power their reactors, despite efforts to sever economic ties with the Kremlin following its February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

  • Critical Minerals in Africa: Strengthening Security, Supporting Development, and Reducing Conflict amid Geopolitical Competition

    US economic and national security depends on a reliable supply of critical minerals that underlie an array of products and services important to ever-changing modern economies. Yet for many critical minerals (e.g., cobalt, graphite, and manganese), the United States is heavily dependent on imports. Especially concerning is that the United States is at or near 100 percent reliant on “foreign entities of concern”—mainly the People’s Republic of China—for key critical minerals. Africa can play an important role in strengthening US critical minerals supply chain security.

  • Tech War: China Could Face U.S., EU Curbs Over Legacy Chips Dominance

    Legacy chips, used in everything from washing machines to cars and TVs to medical devices, may not be as powerful as the state-of-the-art semiconductors that power artificial intelligence (AI) platforms. But they’re a growing headache for the United States and European Union: After the United States cut China’s access to cutting-edge chips, the EU and the United States are concerned about the country’s dominance of semiconductors used in everyday technology.

  • U.S. Drugs with Noted Supply-Chain Risks 5 Times More Likely to Go into Shortage in Early COVID

    In the first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic, US prescription drugs flagged for potential supply-chain disruptions were nearly five times more likely to go into shortage than those without such warnings, finds a new study.

  • Cybertech Startup Aims to Keep Aircraft Safe

    As hackers get more daring and sophisticated, and even try to hijack airplanes, it’s increasingly vital to keep our aircraft safe from attack. Cybertech startup Cyviation aims to do just that.

  • Cyber Safety Review Board Releases Report on Microsoft Online Exchange Incident from Summer 2023

    On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the Cyber Safety Review Board’s (CSRB) findings and recommendations following its independent review of the Summer 2023 Microsoft Exchange Online intrusion. The review detailed operational and strategic decisions that led to the intrusion and recommended specific practices for industry and government to implement to ensure an intrusion of this magnitude does not happen again.

  • Engineers Fortifying Critical Infrastructure

    In a bid to protect the nation’s energy sector against cyber attacks, engineers are creating a digital twin to help weed out threats and fix software and firmware vulnerabilities. If left unchecked, these weaknesses could allow ransomware attacks that could cause severe havoc to critical U.S. energy systems.

  • Where Did All the Water Go? New Study Explores Water Use in the Colorado River Basin.

    The final 100 miles of the Colorado River is a shell of its former self — nearly 10 miles wide at the turn of the century, farmers had more water than they knew what to do with. Now, a weave of concrete canals brings water to sprawling industrial farms situated in the Mexicali Valley, with much of the natural riverbed dry and the wildlife sparse. Where did all the water go?

  • States and Tribes Scramble to Reach Colorado River Deals Before Election

    There are three main forces driving the conflict on the Colorado River. The first is an outdated legal system that guarantees more water to seven Western states than is actually available in the river during most years. The second is the exclusion of Native American tribes from this legal system. The third is climate change, which is heating up the western United States and diminishing the winter snowfall and rainwater that feed the river. Landmark agreements would cut big states’ water usage for decades and deliver water to the Navajo Nation.

  • USCIS Springs Unseasonable Costs and Demands on American Employers

    With spring approaching, U.S. businesses that sponsor noncitizen workers for employment‐based immigration benefits are accustomed to weathering seasonal changes. Most employers are likely ready for the initial FY 2025 H 1B lottery registration season. American businesses, however, now face particularly inclement headwinds stirred up by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) component tasked with deciding immigration‐benefits requests.

  • Canada’s Biosecurity Scandal: The Risks of Foreign Interference in Life Sciences

    In July 2019, world-renowned biological researchers Xiangguo Qiu and Keding Cheng were quietly walked out of the Canadian government’s National Microbiology Lab (NML). The original allegation against them was that Qiu had authorized a shipment to China of some of the deadliest viruses on the planet, including Ebola and Nipah. Then the story seemed to go away—until now.

  • Plan B: Keeping Nuclear Power Plants Cool in a Warmer, Drier Climate

    Waterways — tried and true cooling sources for nuclear power plants — could get warmer due to global climate change. Climate scientists and nuclear science and engineering experts are joining forces to develop a plan B for nuclear power.

  • Strike Looms at Nuclear Power Plants

    Security officers at nuclear power plants operated by Constellation energy company may go on strike after the union representing them and the company have so far failed to reach an agreement on a new contract. Under federal law, nuclear plants must operate under a costly contingency plan in the run-up to and during a strike, and the union highlights the fact that cost of the contingency plan far exceeds the cumulative cost to the company of the annual wage increases to the security officers during the life of the contract. 

  • Companies Ignoring Climate Risks Get Punished by Markets: Study

    Companies that proactively manage climate risks boost their valuations, while those with a passive stance are discounted in the equity market, according to new research.

  • Tweaking U.S. Trade Policy Could Hold the Key to Reducing Migration from Central America

    Small changes to U.S. trade policy could significantly reduce the number of migrants arriving at the southern border. The Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement, or CAFTA-DR. was aimed at encouraging trade and investment ties. But restrictive provisions, particularly its rules of origin, have hindered the region’s ability to benefit fully from the agreement. Loosening the rules to allow for new fabrics would not only attract investment and create more jobs for Central Americans, it could also reduce immigration from the region by as much as 67%, according to our estimates.