• European Countries Would Be Wise to Assist Each Other with Regard to Energy

    If European countries collaborate, they can avoid severe energy scarcity due to a gas shortage. If the European countries act selfishly in times of gas shortage, Eastern Europe in particular will suffer. Eastern Europe is vulnerable because the entry points for natural gas are now in the west of the continent.

  • PEGA Committee Votes on Spyware Recommendations

    In July 2021, the Pegasus Project—a consortium of 80 journalists from 17 media organizations in 10 countries—broke the story that several governments were using the Israel-made Pegasus spyware against journalists, activists, politicians, academics, and even heads of state. Responding to the public backlash, the European Parliament set up a committee of inquiry (PEGA committee) to investigate the allegations concerning misuse of spyware on the continent.

  • Using AI to Find Rare Minerals

    A machine learning model can predict the locations of minerals on Earth—and potentially other planets—by taking advantage of patterns in mineral associations.

  • COVID-19’s Total Cost to the U.S. Economy Will Reach $14 Trillion by End of 2023: New Research

    Putting a price tag on all the pain, suffering and upheaval Americans and people around the world have experienced because of COVID-19 is hard to do. To come up with estimates, researchers used economic modeling to approximate the revenue lost due to mandatory business closures at the beginning of the pandemic, and the cost of the many changes in personal behavior that continued long after the lockdown orders were lifted.

  • DOJ: Charges Related to Efforts by Russia, China, Iran to Steal American Technology

    DOJ announced five criminal cases exposing the relentless efforts by Russia, China and Iran to steal sensitive U.S. technologies. The cases were brought by a new “strike force” created earlier this year to deter foreign adversaries from obtaining advanced U.S. innovation.

  • One in Six Properties in England Will Be Affected by Flood Risk by 2050: Study

    Flood risk affects English residential property values. New report shows that residential properties at risk of flooding are sold at 8.14% lower on average compared to non-affected properties. The report shines a light on the extent to which climate change and the increased propensity of natural disasters is affecting the housing market.

  • Lessons from ‘Star Trek: Picard’ – a Cybersecurity Expert Explains How a Sci-Fi Series Illuminates Today’s Threats

    Sometimes Hollywood gets it right by depicting reality in ways that both entertain and educate. And that’s important, because whether it’s a large company, government or your personal information, we all share many of the same cybersecurity threats and vulnerabilities. As a former cybersecurity industry practitioner and current cybersecurity researcher, I believe the final season of “Star Trek: Picard” is the latest example of entertainment media providing useful lessons about cybersecurity and the nature of the modern world.

  • More Protective Service Officers Vote to Join LEOS-PBA

    More Paragon Systems’ Protective Service Officers (PSOs) are voting to have the United Federation LEOS-PBA represent them. In recent elections in Boston, Atlanta, and El Paso. PSOs voted to join LEOSPBA.

  • Backgrounder: Police and Security Unions

    The history of unionizing police officers and security guards in the United States is complex. It spans over a century, and has been shaped by different factors, including changes in the political and economic landscape, shifts in public opinion toward organized labor, and the evolving roles and responsibilities of law enforcement professionals.

  • Making Electric Vehicle Charging Stations Cybersecure

    As more electric vehicles (EVs) hit the road, charging stations are popping up across the United States. The benefits go beyond curbing carbon emissions from road travel. These systems can also link to the electric grid through smart charging, drawing power when overall demand is low and feeding it back to the grid when needed.

  • The Critical Minerals End-Game?

    To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, there’s been a dramatic uptake of renewable energy, primarily solar and wind, with a transition to lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage. The transition relies on increasing the extraction of critical minerals for their production.

  • To Restrict, or Not to Restrict, That Is the Quantum Question

    Innovation power—the ability to invent, scale, and adapt emerging technologies—will determine which country prevails in the great power competition of the 21st century. Export controls thus assume a central position in the U.S. foreign policy toolkit, carrying the ability to significantly impact an adversary’s innovation potential. “U.S. policymakers are right to identify quantum information science as a critical technology area ripe for restriction, but introducing export controls now is likely to cause more harm than good.,” Sam Howell writes.

  • Texas Senate Passes Bill Limiting Farmland Sales to China, Other Countries

    The Texas Senate on Wednesday gave final approval to a bill that limits the sale of Texas farmland to citizens and entities associated with China and several other countries. The amended bill is a dramatically watered-down version of an earlier proposal that sought to ban land and home purchases by citizens of China and three other countries.

  • U.S., Taiwan Defense to Firms Explore Weapons Co-Production

    Defense contractors from the U.S. and Taiwan will next month resume in-person conversations to explore possibilities of co-producing weapons, a move likely to ignite protests from China. The Taiwan-US Defense Industry Forum will meet on May 3 in Taipei, with a focus on co-production, integrating Taiwan’s industrial capabilities, and a range of defense cooperation issues.

  • Economic Earthquake Risk in the United States

    Earthquakes cost the nation an estimated $14.7 billion annually in building damage and associated losses, a new report finds. The new estimate is twice that of previous annual estimates due to increased building value and the fact that the report incorporates the latest hazards as well as improvements to building inventories.