• H1N1-induced work-from-home may clog Internet

    Telecommuting is a good idea — up to a point; if, as a result of a pandemic, too many people decide to work from home, this could threaten to overwhelm the Internet, rendering it useless as a way for communicating and conducting transactions vital to public safety and the economy

  • Canadian farm exports snagged in world safety net

    Canadian farm products have recently been banned in several countries, driving down prices at the farm gate; Canadians believe these restrictions have less to do with worries about food safety, and more to do with governments trying to placate the domestic farming sector in a recessionary period

  • The brief

    Smart grid technologies may themselves introduce new problems, such as increasing the vulnerability to cyber attack, as power grid resources become increasingly linked to the Internet

  • Obama's approach to illegal immigration has businesses worried

    The Bush administration tried to reduce that number by trying to stop the flow of illegal immigrants into the country; the Obama administration announced a new strategy: going after an illegal immigrant’s employer and its managers

  • Vulnerability identified in Amazon's cloud computing

    Researchers show that it is possible to find would-be victims within cloud hardware; cloud technologies use virtual machines — remote versions of traditional onsite computer systems; the number of these virtual machines can be expanded or contracted on the fly to meet demand, creating tremendous efficiencies — but the actual computing is performed within one or more physical data centers, creating troubling vulnerabilities

  • Raytheon buys BBN for $350 million

    The latest example of traditional defense contractors expanding into the information systems sector is Raytheon’s acquisition of Massachusetts-based BBN, the company which put the “@” in e-mail addresses

  • Israeli company shows unmanned smart-missile pack

    A large box contains several vertically launched missiles and its own communications and power; it is generally light enough to be driven about by a Humvee or similar, parachuted down from a transport plane, dropped off by helicopter, tied down on the deck of a ship or barge; the missiles are launched by remote control

  • Boeing eyes energy sector amid defense cuts

    Boeing, the U.S. second largest military contractor, cites its expertise as it bids on slices of the $20 billion U.S. power-grid market; to compensate for cuts in funds for defense programs in which it was traditionally involved, the company is also moving into the helicopters, UAV, cyber-security, and intelligence businesses

  • Lockheed Martin stumbles but outlook for other defense contractors is good

    Analyst downgrades Lockheed Martin shares on weak earnings outlook for next year; outlook for the broader industry has not changed, with low to mid-single digit revenue growth, greater strength in intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems, and support for ground forces as the war in Afghanistan ramps up

  • Kansas officials confident that BioLab project will not be derailed

    Congress has allocated $32 million for the design of the Manhattan, Kansas biolab which will replace the aging Plum Island facility; Congress conditioned the release of the rest of the money on the result of studies examining the risks involved in building a biolab in “Tornado alley”; other states that wanted the lab have been slow to give up the fight

  • NRC rejects Westinghouse's new nuclear reactor design

    In what must be seen as a setback for the nuclear power industry, the NRC said that a key component of Westinghouse’s new reactor design might not withstand events like earthquakes and tornadoes

  • New Dutch project helps U.S. security companies find European clients

    The Dutch government launched its Public Security Innovation Center (PSIC); PSIC will work to match foreign companies selling proven security technologies with interested customers, such as governments, voluntary organizations, and other companies from across the world

  • A-T Solutions acquires anti-terrorism firm

    Trancite software products help with crime and accident scene investigations; other products help with site inspections and surveys; the company also has tools for investigating and analyzing terrorist attacks; this is A-T Solutions’ second acquisition in four months

  • Reveal Imaging awarded $3.9 million for personnel inspection system

    The company said it plans to use multiple sensor technologies and automation to avoid the need for human operators to separate threats from harmless objects using multiple monitors

  • iPhones, social networking add to IT security woes

    The security staff at private and government organizations have new security problems to contend with: smartphones and social networking