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FDA hires 1,300 new doctors and scientists
Staffing drive, launched just five months ago, will result in an estimated 10 percent increase in the FDA’s work force
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Drug-resistant plague may be a bioterrorism concern
Researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College have located a gene that could mutate to make Yersinia pestis resistant to many common drugs; the bacteria might be used as a potential bioterrorism agent
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Xoma in $65 million anti-botulism drug development contract
First human monoclonal antibody drug program to target multiple botulinum toxins
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Russian army adopts new reconnaissance drones
The Russian army has ordered a large number of Tipchak UAV systems from Vega Radio Engineering Corp.; the UAVs will serve in intelligence gathering, but company president says: “Our next project is the development of an attack drone based on the current design”
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Flame-retardant grenades help firefighters, first responders
Most hand-held fire extinguishers are pressurized with nitrogen or carbon dioxide to propel powdery potassium bicarbonate, liquid water, or a fluorocarbon at a fire; new device, using potassium carbonate, quells blazes with less risk to firefighters
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Yucca Mountain project clears another hurdle
The Yucca Mountain nuclear storage project moves forward, as NRC says it would conduct an in-depth review of the government plans
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U.S. start-up develops uncloneable RFID chips
Silicon Valley start-up says it has developed RFID chips which cannot be cloned; the company uses technology called Physically Unclonable Functions (PUF) which was developed by researchers at MIT
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L-3's millimeter wave scanning technology tested at ten U.S. airports
Two technologies — backscatter X-rays and millimeter wave — compete in the airport security scanning market; TSA is currently testing millimeter wave at ten airports, and the fact that the technology is faster than its rival may make it the scanning technology of choice
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Blumenthal: Impact statement regarding Plum Island seriously flawed
Connecticut’s attorney general: “[DHS’s] draft environmental impact statement is profoundly flawed — factually deficient, and legally insufficient — mis-assessing the monstrous risks of siting a proposed national bio- and agro-defense facility on Plum Island”
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New York officials want Plum Island to remain a Level-3 BioLab
DHS is considering upgrading the Plum Island BioLab from Level-3 to Level-4 so it could conduct research into the deadliest diseases; the department argues that Plum Island’s relative isolation would make an accidental pathogen release less costly relatively to such release from a mainland-based lab; New York officials strongly disagree
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Scarcity of science, technology students worries military IT officials
Pentagon information technology officials: The dearth of Americans being trained in science and technology is one of the greatest threats to the U.S. military’s future
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Raytheon in $111 million War on Terror contract
U.S. Army orders additional “fire and forget” missile systems from Raytheon
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New chemical radar among national security innovations in ACS podcast
The American Chemical Society wants to do its share to bolster societal safety — and a new series of an the organization-sponsored podcasts describe an array of technologies to help assure personal safety and national security
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Anti-invisibility cloak would render invisible objects visible again
A perfect invisibility cloak guides rays so effectively that none reaches the cloaked object within, keeping it in total darkness — a disadvantage if invisibility cloaks are ever to be used to shield tanks, steer microwaves in space, or hide humans; scientists find a solution
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Scientists use bacteria to pinpoint chloride toxins
Chloride toxins are carcinogens and dangerous to the environment; they may contaminate food, or used to poison people intentionally (as was the case with Ukrainian president Viktor Yuschenko in 2004; the Russian secret service is suspected of trying to kill him); scientists are using the sensor with which bacteria detect chloride compounds to devise an early detection system
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The long view
Entity Resolution: The Security Technology You Probably Haven’t Heard Of
The concept “entity resolution” (ER) is probably unfamiliar, but it underpins much of the world’s security—in telecommunications, banking and national security.
“DeepSeek Is in the Driver’s Seat. That’s a Big Security Problem”
Democratic countries have a smart-car problem. For those that don’t act quickly and decisively, it’s about to become a severe national security headache.
There’s Little Evidence Tech Is Much Help Stopping School Shootings
Different security technologies appeal to institutions struggling to protect their communities, and are marketed aggressively as the future of school shooting prevention. I’m a criminologist who studies mass shootings and school violence. In my research, I’ve found that there’s a lack of evidence to support the effectiveness of these technological interventions.
Mexico and U.S. Look for New Deal in Long-Running Battle Over 80-year Old Water Treaty
Mexico and the US’s growing dispute over water rights further complicates an already strained relationship that must tackle existing challenges related to drug trafficking, security, migration and trade wars. Water is just the latest issue to rise to the top of the tension table.