• Russia’s Energy Role in Europe: What Is at Stake with the Ukraine Crisis

    The prospect of a major Russian offensive in Ukraine has brought European dependence on Russian energy into sharp relief and set off a scramble for alternatives.

  • Can the U.S. Find Enough Natural Gas Sources to Neutralize Russia’s Energy Leverage Over Europe?

    The prospect of conflict between Russia and NATO countries over Ukraine has raised fears of an energy crisis in Europe. To weaken Russia’s leverage, the Biden administration is working to secure additional gas shipments to Europe from other sources. “Putin may be willing to bet that an energy pricing crisis in Europe will sow popular discontent, scotch the energy transition and help Russia win concessions on NATO’s positioning of troops and missiles. But there is little evidence that Europe will react that way,” says an energy expert.

  • Employment Fears May Explain rise of Extremist Parties in Europe

    Fears over job security and quality of work for a new class of disaffected citizens – the ‘precariat’ – could explain the rise of popular extremist parties across Europe, according to a new study. Rsearchers discovered a link between electoral support for radical populist parties of both the right and left and ‘precarity’ – a lack of economic security and stable occupational identities.

  • Two Things to Know about the U.S.-China Competition

    A debate about China’s “inexorable” rise has been occupying the op-ed pages of leading newspapers and the conference rooms of leading think tanks for some time now. China’s rise is real, but the U.S. has the means to keep it in check. The U.S. boasts 24 percent of global GDP and almost half of business worldwide. It is already the leading power by these metrics alone. Two more data points demonstrate the United States has an opportunity to keep its competitive advantage provided Congress is willing to reduce defense procurement regulations.  

  • $3.5 Million NSF Grant to Fund Cybersecurity Scholarships

    A $3.5 million grant will fund new scholarships at Binghamton University over the next five years for two dozen students who plan to join the workforce as cybersecurity professionals. The NSF’s CyberCorps Scholarship for Service program trains the next generation of information technology experts and security managers.

  • Demand for Rare Minerals and Metals Creates Eco-Dilemma

    The world is crying out for rare minerals for the manufacture of electric cars, wind turbines and other technologies that we simply need more of. But how can we guarantee access to these resources without threatening the natural world and mankind as we know it?

  • Nord Stream 2 Will Not Move Forward If Russia Invades Ukraine

    U.S. said it would work with Germany to ensure that the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline between Russia and Germany does not begin operations if Russia invades Ukraine. Chancellor Olaf Scholz called the pipeline a “private sector project,” as did his predecessor Angela Merkel, but he has hardened his position in the past few days.

  • Israeli Police: From Warrantless Cellphone Searches to Controversial Misuse of Spyware

    Israel’s rules governing privacy and related laws have experienced a dramatic past few weeks, capped by an explosive journalistic expose revealing that Israeli police have been using NSO Group spyware allegedly without warrants or explicit statutory authorization.

  • Addressing the Microchip Shortage

    The U.S. semiconductor chip shortage is likely to continue well into 2022, and experts predict that the U.S. will need to make major changes to the manufacturing and supply chain of these all-important chips in the coming year to stave off further effects. That includes making more of these chips here at home. 

  • How 5G Puts Airplanes at Risk – an Electrical Engineer Explains

    In 2021 the U.S. government auctioned part of the C-band spectrum to wireless carriers in 2021 for $81 billion. The carriers are using C-band spectrum to provide 5G service at full speed, 10 times the speed of 4G networks. The C-band spectrum is close to the frequencies used by key electronics that aircraft rely on to land safely. Here’s why that can be a problem.

  • Urban Britain’s Potential as a “Grow Your Own” Nation

    Britain’s towns and cities have the potential to support an urban agricultural revolution that would help meet the dietary needs of a growing population, boost the nation’s health and wellbeing, as well as reduce reliance on imports.Britain’s towns and cities have the potential to support an urban agricultural revolution that would help meet the dietary needs of a growing population, boost the nation’s health and wellbeing, as well as reduce reliance on imports.

  • Lockdowns During Early Pandemic Saved Lives, but Not a Go-To Strategy Moving Forward: Study

    The U.S. pandemic lockdown in 2020 caused a $2.3 trillion economic downturn and split the nation politically, and now some European nations are locking down again as Omicron surges through the global population. But do these drastic measures save lives? Are they worth massive job and income losses?

  • Reasserting U.S. Leadership in Microelectronics

    The global semiconductor shortage has grabbed headlines and caused a cascade of production bottlenecks that have driven up prices on all sorts of consumer goods, from refrigerators to SUVs. The chip shortage has thrown into sharp relief the critical role semiconductors play in many aspects of everyday life. But years before the pandemic-induced shortage took hold, the United States was already facing a growing chip crisis. MIT researchers lay out a strategy for how universities can help the U.S. regain its place as a semiconductor superpower.

  • Home for the Holidays? The Global Implications of a State-Level Cyberattack

    The 4 December 2021 cyberattack on the Maryland Department of Health (MDH) appeared, at first blush to be a local-to-Maryland problem. Maggie Smith writes, however, that “the MDH hack points to a concerning development at the nexus of cybercrime and data supply chains,” as it “shows how fragile data supply chains can be and signals how easy it is to disrupt even the most critical data flows by stopping the upstream flow of data that provides the insights and statistics on which the nations’ decision-makers rely.”  

  • Expanding America’s Marine Highways 

    The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) awarded $12.6 million in grants to nine marine highway projects across the United States, saying the  under the America’s Marine Highway Program (AMHP). DOT says that the funding will help address supply chain disruptions, enhance the movement of goods along the U.S. navigable waterways, and expand existing waterborne freight services.