• Microwave: Nondestructive imaging technology of the future?

    Microwaves on a chip may replace X-rays for medical imaging and security

  • Pentagon wants laser attack warnings for satellites

    The U.S. economy and military capabilities are dependent on satellites for communication and information gathering; growing anti-satellite warfare capabilities — for example, by China — lead Pentagon to seek a measure of protection for space-based assets

  • Cheap carbon trap cleans up power station emissions

    Sequestering CO2 is a good way to fight global warming, but only about 10 percent of the gas produced in the process of burning fossil fuels is CO2; most of the rest is nitrogen, which is not a greenhouse gas; there is a new, inexpensive way to separate the two

  • IAEA: Iran evasive about its nuclear program

    Iran’s march toward the bomb continues unabated; the U.S. intelligence community may have concluded that Iran had “halted” its nuclear weapons program in 2003, but a UN atomic agency says indications are to the contrary

  • But will it work, Sir?

    There are many different combat and defensive techniques, and each has some merit, some application, some innovation; the question that must be asked is: will this technique work when the ultimate test arrives and it must be used in real time?

  • Torrefaction treatment for biomass

    Torrefaction is increasingly seen as a desirable treatment for biomass because it creates a solid product which is easier to store, transport, and mill than raw biomass

  • Megawatt tidal turbine completed

    U.K. maritime energy specialist completes installation of 1.2 MW tidal energy system off the shore of Northern Ireland; system to provide clean electricity equivalent to that used by 1,000 homes

  • Qinetiq in $400 million TALON robot contract

    There are more than 2,000 TALON robots deployed around the world, mostly in Iraq and Afghanistan; they have been used in more than 80,000 counter-IED missions to date; DoD wants more of this useful system

  • Turning buses into mobile sensing platforms

    Modern buses could be used as mobile sensing platforms, sending out live information that can be used to control traffic and detect road hazards, according to European researchers

  • New grants to create fabrics which render toxic chemicals harmless

    New fabrics made of functional nanofibers would decompose toxic industrial chemicals into harmless byproducts; potential applications include safety gear for soldiers and first responders —and filtration systems for buildings and vehicles

  • Super-sensitive spray-on explosive detector

    A new explosive detection system: A spray detects the presence of just a billionth of a gram of explosive, and shows the difference between nitrate esters, such as trinitroglycerin, and nitroaromatic explosives, such as TNT

  • Nanotechnology-based biosensor

    NASA develops nanotechnology-based biosensor that can detect trace amounts of specific bacteria, viruses, and parasites; New York-based Early Warning, Inc. will initially market the sensor to water treatment facilities, food and beverage companies, industrial plants, hospitals, and airlines

  • Boston biolab: Panel urges review of possible lab threats

    As community opposition to the almost-complete Boston University biolab continues, a panel of experts says neighborhood’s concerns — and safety — should not be excluded from consideration of final approval for lab opening

  • CDC biolab not ready after 2 1/2 years

    A new CDC biosafety lab was supposed to open in the fall of 2005; it is still not open, and legislators begin to wonder why; they note that at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, it took less than seven months for its BSL-4 lab to become operational after construction was finished

  • Boeing Hummingbird breaks heavy UAV endurance record

    Boeing’s unmanned rotorcraft breaks endurance record: it flies for nearly 19 hours, carrying a 300-pound internal payload at altitudes up to 15,000 feet, and landing with more than 90 minutes worth of fuel in reserve