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AirKnight releases details of its bid for U.K.'s search and rescue helicopter
AirKnight — a consortium consisting of VT Group, British International Helicopters (BIH), and Lockheed Martin — announced it would use Eurocopter’s EC225 in its proposal for the future fleet of U.K.’s search and rescue helicopters
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South African ATMs fitted with pepper spray
The wave of robberies of ATM customers — and the ATMs themselves — has prompted South African banks to equip some ATMs with pepper spray
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SAIC acquires Atlan
Large federal contractor acquires McLean, Virginia-based Atlan, a specialist in cybersecurity product testing and certification of FIPS 140-2 and 201 for product vendors
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G8 leaders address food security
In last week’s meeting in Italy, leaders of the G8 pledged $15 billion over the next three years to increase food security in developing countries by investing in food production and distribution infrastructure
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Competition between Symantec, McAfee intensifies
With growing consumer awareness of cybersecurity threats, the competition between the two leading cybersecurity companies intensifies; McAfee has been lagging, but new leadership and willingness to take risks have improved its market position
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Swine flu vaccine strains grow very slowly, delaying vaccine production
The fastest-growing of all the wine flu vaccine strains tested so far grows only half as fast as ordinary vaccine viruses; if the current pandemic behaves like the last H1N1 pandemic in 1918, the next, possibly worse waves of infection could be long over by the time vaccine contracts are filled
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Autonomous submarine to patrol shallow waters
BAE show latest in its Talisman line — an autonomous underwater vehicle specializing in securing shallow waters near or inside ports, coastal waters, and rivers
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DHS to start trials of emergency radio
DHS is launching a trial of a software-defined radio handset from Thales which is designed to operate on all the frequencies used by the emergency services
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DARPA funds see-through vidspecs, war-graffiti project
Lockheed martin turns to Microvision to develop “daylight-readable, see-through, low-profile, ergonomic” color video specs; in addition, the final device should incorporate “voice and tactile command” interfaces, some sort of location system
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The Obama administration would require federal contractors to use E-Verify
The Obama administration said it would support a George Bush administration regulation that would only award federal contracts to employers who use E-Verify to check employee work authorization
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Israel orders first stealth F-35 squadron
Bolstering its military capabilities, Israel places an order with Lockheed Martin for its first squadron of F-35 stealth fighter jets; the first aircraft are scheduled to arrive in Israel in 2014
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Administration's cybersecurity spending would benefit commercial vendors
The United States expects to spend about $7.3 billion on cybersecurity in fiscal 2009; which firms would benefit from government spending increases? It is likely the commercial software vendors
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More tests in the U.S. for Tamiflu-resistant swine flu
A third patient has been infected with a Tamiflu-resistant strain of swine flu; U.S. health officials are stepping up testing of swine flu cases for Tamiflu resistance
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Soteria provides more details of search-and-rescue helicopter capabilities
The Soteria Consortium — consisting of RBS, Thales, and CHC — is competing with the AirKnight consortium for the lucrative contract to provide the U.K. government and localities with search-and-rescue helicopters
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Northrop wins U.S. Navy ray gun contract
Northrop Grumman is the maker of the first electric solid-state battle-strength ray gun module; the company is awarded $98 million to provide a demonstrator Maritime Laser system capable of being fitted to U.S. warships of frigate size and up
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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.