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New business model for researching, producing vaccines
Relying on venture capital-funded biotech research is problematic when it comes to vaccines for pandemics and bioterrorism; an expert proposes a private-public partnership within the HHS Biomedical Advance Research and Development Authority
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U.S. pays $31 million for development of smallpox treatment
Florida company awarded $31 million to to produce an inhaled version of an existing smallpox drug; Danish company in negotiations with the U.S. to develop a freeze-dried form of its smallpox vaccine
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FDA requires faster food safety reporting
FDA unveiled a new electronic database where manufacturers must notify the government, within 24 hours, if one of their products is likely to cause sickness or death in people or animals
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Developer of system to prevent ID theft forms joint venture
The new identity theft prevention system — software and countertop machines — would verify Social Security numbers when people do business at government agencies, banks, stores, and other businesses
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Fifth of jobs U.S. government will fill in 2010-2012 will be security related
In security and protection, there are 52,077 projected hires in areas of intelligence analysis, international relations, foreign affairs, and security administration
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Los Angeles councilman wants ATM "duress code" system
In the wake of Lily Burk’s slaying, Councilman Greig Smith urges citywide anti-robbery effort; under one system, ATM users could enter their PIN backward to covertly notify police that they were being robbed
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Voice biometrics have not yet caught on in the United States
Canada and Australia are further along than the United States in this regard, mostly because of U.S. critics spreading unnecessary fear and doubt about the technology
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Malmo, Sweden, installs new public toilet payment system
If you want to use public toilets in Malmo, Sweden, you must now call or text-message the city’s park service, receive a one-time numerical code, enter that code on the stall door’s touch pad, and have your credit card charged — or you cannot go in
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Businesses seek to delay implementation of E-Verify
A business coalition files suit to prevent DHS from implementing E-verify as of next Tuesday; E-Verify would require federal contractors to verify the legal status of their workers
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Trojan horse virus allows hackers, law enforcement, to eavesdrops on VoIP
A Trojan horse virus allows hackers, but also law enforcement, to record VoIP calls; law enforcement in the U.S. would presumably need a court order to surveil someone’s Skype calls, but the barriers to deploying the virus might be lower for intelligence agencies and authorities in other countries
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Purdue University, 21CSI to pursue homeland security opportunities
The two organizations will collaborate in implementing new decision support tools and processes at the federal, state, and local levels
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Boeing successfully tests airborne tactical laser
Silent death ray from the skies may usher in a new chapter in warfare: the laser may cause a cell tower to stop working, a vehicle’s fuel tank to suddenly explode, or a single person to inexplicably be incinerated — all completely silently and tracelessly, without anyone knowing they were ever there and not so much as a spent bullet left behind
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National Grid to use Swiss company's solution for SCADA/EMS
National Grid currently owns more than 4,000MW of contracted electricity generation capacity in the United States, delivering electricity to around 3.3 million customers; the company will use Swiss company ABB’s network management solution in its SCADA/EMS
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Pakistan to build own UAV
Under a program launched this month, Pakistan’s domestic version of the drone or unmanned aerial vehicle to be called Falco will be made in collaboration with Selex Galileo of Italy at the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex in Kamra in Punjab province
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Sanswire has lofty plans for airship
The Florida company has seen its ups and downs, but it now has a joint venture with TAO Technologies of Germany to develop and manufacture airships for use in war zones, border security, and for commercial purposes
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The long view
Are We Ready for a ‘DeepSeek for Bioweapons’?
Anthropic’s Claude 4 is a warning sign: AI that can help build bioweapons is coming, and could be widely available soon. Steven Adler writes that we need to be prepared for the consequences: “like a freely downloadable ‘DeepSeek for bioweapons,’ available across the internet, loadable to the computer of any amateur scientist who wishes to cause mass harm. With Anthropic’s Claude Opus 4 having finally triggered this level of safety risk, the clock is now ticking.”
A Brief History of Federal Funding for Basic Science
Biomedical science in the United States is at a crossroads. For 75 years, the federal government has partnered with academic institutions, fueling discoveries that have transformed medicine and saved lives. Recent moves by the Trump administration — including funding cuts and proposed changes to how research support is allocated — now threaten this legacy.
Bookshelf: Preserving the U.S. Technological Republic
The United States since its founding has always been a technological republic, one whose place in the world has been made possible and advanced by its capacity for innovation. But our present advantage cannot be taken for granted.
Critical Minerals Don’t Belong in Landfills – Microwave Tech Offers a Cleaner Way to Reclaim Them from E-waste
E-waste recycling focuses on retrieving steel, copper, aluminum, but ignores tiny specks of critical materials. Once technology becomes available to recover these tiny but valuable specks of critical materials quickly and affordably, the U.S. can transform domestic recycling and take a big step toward solving its shortage of critical materials.
Microbes That Extract Rare Earth Elements Also Can Capture Carbon
A small but mighty microbe can safely extract the rare earth and other critical elements for building everything from satellites to solar panels – and it has another superpower: capturing carbon dioxide.