-
Researchers develop portable lab on a chip to identify WMD contamination
Soldiers and first responders are exposed to chemical and biological threats, so there is a need to develop a quick and accurate technology to identify dangerous exposure — a technology, moreover, which can be carried easily into the field or the urban disaster area to perform on-the-spot contamination checks; researchers affiliated with MIT have developed such a technology
-
-
Laser powered by recycled fuel tested
Here is a useful idea which would go a long way toward solving the logistical problems associated with operating laser weapons in the field: Use hydrogen peroxide and chlorine regenerated from waste products from prior laser operations
-
-
EST to test zNose technology in Iraq
After testing in a simulated Iraqi village, the explosives detection system is ready to be used for checkpoint inspections and for “interrogating buildings” for bomb materials; wartime appplication just one for this versatile technology
-
-
Raytheon shipping microwave nonlethal weapon systems
Militaries and law enforcement units have been intrigued by non-lethal weapons — weapons occupying the territory between shoot and shout — for more than four decades, but with few exceptions (taser guns, stun grenades) these weapons have not been widely deployed; Raytheon hopes that its microwave-based Silent Guardian will prove to be the exception
-
-
South Korea unveils armed guard robot for border, critical infrastructure sentry missions
Wait ‘til Representatives Steve King and Tom Tancredo hear about this: A South Korean consortium develops an armed robot for guard mission along border and around critical infrastructure facilities; the robot can identify moving targets from as far as a mile, and it has ‘ears” which understand passwords
-
-
Lockheed Martin to develop stratospheric airship fabric
It’s not your father’s Hindenburg; dirigibles — in their traditional, lighter-than-air configuration or in hybrid form — are gaining popularity as intelligence observation posts high in the sky (Israel, for example, has one parked high above the Gaza Strip, and a couple in the north, keeping an eye on the goings on inside Lebanon); the Pentagon wants airships for intelligence, too, but it is also considering the craft for transporting troops and equipment; oil and gas companies want to use them to ferry supplies and equipment to remote locations, and other commercial entities show interest as well
-
-
SecureRF shows new, more efficient security algorithm for RFIDs
RFID technology is gaining adherents in more and more sectors, so it is good to see a technology which promises to enhance to security and economy of the tags receiving the recognitions it deserves
-
-
DHS installs first RFID e-passport readers; will meet Congress’s 26 October deadline
he first RFID readers have been installed at SFI for the purpose of reading biometric information off passports from U.S. and visa waiver program countries; DHS will roll out readers to all major U.S. ports of entry
-
-
Computers to tell fact from opinion in newspaper articles
Inquiring minds want to know whether what people say about the U.S. is based on fact or is mere opinion; DHS has allocated $2.4 million to a consortium of three universities to develop machine-learning algorithms which computers will use to engage more effectively and accurately in information extraction
-
-
IBM, University of Georgia to study the secret of business success
IBM gives the University of Georgia money to study the secrets behind IBM’s success, and draw broader lessons from these successes so that technology companies would more effectively implement business strategies which enhance the chances of success in bringing innovative technology to market
-
-
Maryland agencies team up for homeland security business plan competition
First-in-the-nation Chesapeake Innovation Center teams up with state Department of Business and Economic Development to offer $50,000 homeland security prize; companies have until 15 November to submit appliications
-
-
DHS to encourage development of liquid explosives detection technology
New DHS technology chief says developing technologies to detect liquid explosives is the department’s priority, and that companies offering devices that do that will be accelerated through the process of granting their products liability protection
-
-
EOIR receives $7.8 in additional Army contracts
Work for the U.S. Army’s Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate to focus on new sensor technology; company will develop countermine and EO/IR components and ATR-signal processing schemes
-
-
Icuiti to provide goggle-mounted displays to the Pentagon
Made in the USA: Bucking the outsourcing trend, an upstate New York technology company proudly proclaims that it will rely on local vendors to manufacture the various components of its sophisticated high-resolution goggle-mounted SVGA display
-
-
SecureRF announces new breakthrough in RFID cryptography
Algebraic Eraser algorithms rely on a large quantity of small numbers to stop digital pick-pocketing; technique increases processing speed without compromising security
-
More headlines
The long view
Autonomous Vehicle Technology Vulnerable to Road Object Spoofing and Vanishing Attacks
Researchers have demonstrated the potentially hazardous vulnerabilities associated with the technology called LiDAR, or Light Detection and Ranging, many autonomous vehicles use to navigate streets, roads and highways. The researchers have shown how to use lasers to fool LiDAR into “seeing” objects that are not present and missing those that are – deficiencies that can cause unwarranted and unsafe braking or collisions.
Tantalizing Method to Study Cyberdeterrence
Tantalus is unlike most war games because it is experimental instead of experiential — the immersive game differs by overlapping scientific rigor and quantitative assessment methods with the experimental sciences, and experimental war gaming provides insightful data for real-world cyberattacks.
Prototype Self-Service Screening System Unveiled
TSA and DHS S&T unveiled a prototype checkpoint technology, the self-service screening system, at Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas, NV. The aim is to provide a near self-sufficient passenger screening process while enabling passengers to directly receive on-person alarm information and allow for the passenger self-resolution of those alarms.
Falling Space Debris: How High Is the Risk I'll Get Hit?
An International Space Station battery fell back to Earth and, luckily, splashed down harmlessly in the Atlantic. Should we have worried? Space debris reenters our atmosphere every week.
Testing Cutting-Edge Counter-Drone Technology
Drones have many positive applications, bad actors can use them for nefarious purposes. Two recent field demonstrations brought government, academia, and industry together to evaluate innovative counter-unmanned aircraft systems.
Strengthening the Grid’s ‘Backbone’ with Hydropower
Argonne-led studies investigate how hydropower could help add more clean energy to the grid, how it generates value as grids add more renewable energy, and how liner technology can improve hydropower efficiency.