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Latest in nonlethal weapons: Poo-flinging catapult
A colorful English businessman, tired of his property and business being burglarized, used a catapult loaded with chicken excrement to deter burglars; the police said the smart-poo device was illegal because it could not be said to use “reasonable force”
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Protection from terrorism affects far reaches of Montana
When you think of terrorism and preparations for terrorist attacks, you think of big cities; the remote precincts of Montana, however, are not exempt; the local inhabitants, who foot the bill for local homeland security, want to know whether rural dams are really terrorist targets
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New curved laser beams may be used to lessen threats of thunderclouds
U.S. physicists have created the first curved laser beams; the laser’s plasma channels could be used to control lightning strikes by firing laser pulses into thunderclouds
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Cisco acquires Tidal Software for $105 million
Cisco buys Palo Alto-based Tidal Software to enhance the next-generation data centers it is building; Cisco is also planning on challenging IBM and Hewlett-Packard by building servers
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Germany is target of sustained cyberattacks from China
The German government is constantly the target of hackers seeking to insert spy programs into its computer systems; the attacks are becoming more and more sophisticated
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Seeing through concrete, clearly
Insurgents and terrorists fight from within civilian structures, making it difficult for soldiers and first responders to respond without injuring many civilians; DARPA wants a solution which would allow soldiers to look through concrete walls and give them a detailed picture of a building’s interior — right down to the fixtures
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£8.5 million in grants for innovative businesses in east England
U.K. regional development agency has £8.5 million in grants for research and development of hi-tech products and proof of concept; businesses may also benefit from funds available from the European Regional Development Fund
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CSIRO to lead effort to standardize sensor network information sharing
Sensors, and sensor networks, are the wave of the future (the wave is already here, in fact) in allowing remote monitoring of everything from machinery to buildings’ temperature to perimeter fences to water quality to patients’ health and much, much more; Aussie research organization now leads the effort to develop standards for sharing information collected by sensors and sensor networks over the Internet
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Manipulating Google searches as counter-terrorism tool
The U.K. government will train pro-West Islamic groups to game Google searches in order to fight the influence of radicals; search engine optimization techniques will make moderate Islamic groups come up first in Google searches
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Texas electrical grid's operator says he is on watch for hackers
Bob Kahn, CEO of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas: “We are constantly modifying and upgrading our protections as technology advances, business requirements change and new threats emerge”
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Canada focused on new cybersecurity strategy
Ottawa is developing a new cybersecurity strategy in light of repeated incursions into the country’s key computer networks
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Smart bandage tells doctors about state of wound healing
Dutch researchers develop a smart bandage which updates doctors about the wound healing process; bandage made of printed electronic sensors; the researchers’ next goal: add an antenna to transmit information about the patient’s health remotely to the attending physician
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SBAC to U.K. government: don't starve successful sectors
The Society of British Aerospace Companies tells government investment in defense and aerospace should be increased; more investment should go to science, technology, engineering, and maths education
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Metallic nanostructures make security and medical sensors possible
New sensors could be tailor-made instantly to detect the presence of particular molecules, for example poisons or explosives in transport screening situations, or proteins in patients’ blood samples, with high sensitivity
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Post-Ike ideas for defending Galveston include extending sea wall
Texas A&M oceanographer proposes extending Galveston’s seawall to the island’s West End, building a similar structure along Bolivar Peninsula, and constructing massive Dutch-like floodgates at the entry to Galveston Bay; oceanographer says his proposed wall and gate system could repel most surges
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The long view
Nuclear Has Changed. Will the U.S. Change with It?
Fueled by artificial intelligence, cloud service providers, and ambitious new climate regulations, U.S. demand for carbon-free electricity is on the rise. In response, analysts and lawmakers are taking a fresh look at a controversial energy source: nuclear power.
Huge Areas May Face Possibly Fatal Heat Waves if Warming Continues
A new assessment warns that if Earth’s average temperature reaches 2 degrees C over the preindustrial average, widespread areas may become too hot during extreme heat events for many people to survive without artificial cooling.
Exploring the New Nuclear Energy Landscape
In the last few years, the U.S. has seen a resurgence of interest in nuclear energy and its potential for helping meet the nation’s growing demands for clean electricity and energy security. Meanwhile, nuclear energy technologies themselves have advanced, opening up new possibilities for their use.