• Hunt for Answers Continues Over Chinese Ship's Suspected Role In Damaging Baltic Pipeline

    A Chinese ship suspected of damaging an underwater gas pipeline and two telecom cables in the Baltic Sea is returning to China through the Russian Arctic as Finnish investigators continue to search for answers about the vessel’s role in the incident.

  • Options for Strengthening South Korea’s Nuclear Assurance

    What are the major nuclear weapon threats to ROK security? What policy and strategy options might strengthen ROK nuclear assurance? What nuclear employment planning and execution options might strengthen ROK nuclear assurance? What nuclear weapon force options might strengthen ROK nuclear assurance? How can they be designed to minimize political difficulties with the ROK and with ROK neighbors?

  • Sandia Marks 20-year Partnership with DHS

    In response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the Department of Homeland Security was created and began operations in 2003. Sandia has been involved with the homeland security mission from the department’s inception.

  • Protecting Critical Infrastructure During Uncertain Times

    Throughout November, the Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) will commemorate Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience Month. The timing of this year’s monthlong spotlight on our nation’s critical infrastructure is especially significant. Between ongoing severe weather events affecting the nation (and our neighbors to the south), a resurgence of COVID-19, the looming threat of a government shutdown, and more, now is the time to turn research into action. 

  • Al-Aqsa Storm Heralds the Rise of Non-state Special Operations

    The surprise, brutal 7 October attack by Hamas has sent shockwaves around the world. Israel’s surprise was deeper than a combined intelligence and operational surprise. Leo Blanken, Ian Rice, and Craig Whiteside write that “It was failure of imagination.” What Israel missed “is the growing democratization of technology, which is rapidly providing new and dangerous capabilities to non-state actors.”

  • Want to Prevent Misinformation? Present Data with an Interactive Visual

    Getting readers of a news story interested in numbers can be a challenge. But the benefits of engaging readers in data can lead to a better understanding, preventing misinformation, and misrepresentation in the news. New research explores a solution using interactive data visualization to inform and engage readers.

  • AI Should Be Better Understood and Managed – New Research Warns

    AI and algorithms are not just tools deployed by national security agencies to prevent malicious activity online, but can be contributors to polarization, radicalism and political violence - posing a threat to national security.

  • Biden Administration Executive Order Tackles AI Risks, but Lack of Privacy Laws Limits Rach

    The comprehensive, even sweeping, set of guidelines for artificial intelligence that the White House unveiled in an executive order on Oct. 30, 2023, show that the U.S. government is attempting to address the risks posed by AI. The order is only a step, however, and it leaves unresolved the issue of comprehensive data privacy legislation.

  • What the Israel Defense Forces Can Expect When It Enters the ‘Gaza Metro’ Tunnel System

    Israel’s military commanders will know that this is unlikely to be a simple operation. Among the factors complicating their mission of eliminating Hamas is the “Gaza Metro”, a vast network of interconnected tunnels within the region. Having invested heavily in subterranean infrastructure over the years, Hamas is counting on this network to aid its survival in the coming weeks. These tunnels are defended, booby-trapped and likely to be populated with human shields and hostages as well as fighters, they will be challenging for even a well-equipped and capable attacking force.

  • Monitoring Nuclear Weapons Stockpiles with Radio Waves

    Monitoring whether states are complying with disarmament treaties is not an easy task. An international team has been exploring remote monitoring with the help of two antennas and a couple of mirrors.

  • Israel: Beyond Deterrence

    The logic of nuclear deterrence does not apply to deterring organizations such as Hamas and Hezbollah. It is this different type of deterrence that failed on 7 October 2023 and which may now never be restored. Israel now has been forced to look beyond deterrence. It has now concluded that it is dealing with an entity that has never truly been deterred and can’t be deterred in the future. This is where the other flaw in Israel’s past deterrence strategy becomes painfully evident. It has not been accompanied by a more positive political strategy.

  • How to Deal with Visual Misinformation Circulating in the Israel-Hamas War and Other Conflicts

    In the three weeks since war began between Israel and Hamas, social media has been taken over with images and stories of attacks, many of which proved false. I have, of late, been studying the ethics of viewing photos and videos of war and atrocities in situations where falsification of imagery is widespread. A principal lesson of this research is that users of social media have significant power to influence the content they receive and thus bear some responsibility when they consume and share false information.

  • Semiconductor War: Assessing the Strategies and Impact of US Led Technology Decoupling

    The United States and its allies have taken significant policy measures including sweeping export control regulations to make it hard for China to obtain advanced chips and chip making equipment. China though continues to be an important player in the globalized supply chain. China is directing its efforts towards manufacturing cutting-edge processors as also attempting to become competitive in legacy chip manufacturing. India is also seeking to build a vibrant semiconductor and display design and innovation ecosystem.

  • Governing Artificial Intelligence: A Conversation with Rumman Chowdhury

    Artificial intelligence, and its risks and benefits, has rapidly entered the popular consciousness in the past year. Kat Duffy and Dr. Rumman Chowdhury discuss how society can mitigate problems and ensure AI is an asset.

  • Biden’s $8 Billion Quest to Solve America’s Groundwater Crisis

    A looming depletion of groundwater across the U.S. has drawn nationwide attention in recent years, as local officials in states from Kansas to Arizona struggle to manage dwindling water resources even as homes and farms get thirstier. With little fanfare, the administration is using infrastructure funding to revive dormant plans for pipelines and reservoirs in rural areas across the U.S. West.