Infrastructure protection

Earthquake-resistant building structure developed
The system dissipates energy through the movement of steel frames that are situated around the building’s core or along exterior walls; the frames rock off their foundation under large earthquakes
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Corps asked to scrap floodgate plans in Belle Chasse, Louisiana
There is a debate in Louisiana about the best way to protect homes in the Jesuit Bend area: the Army Corps of Engineers wants to build a floodgate — but this would leave some 1,400 homes unprotected; residents prefer an 8-mile levee
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NRC moves to allow more heavily armed nuclear facility guards
The U.S. Nuclear regulatory Commission (NRC) has moved to allow guards at U.S. nuclear facilities to be equipped with more “enhanced weapons,” including machine guns, short-barreled shotguns, or short-barreled rifles
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Threat: short-circuiting the U.S. power grid
Researchers have worked out how attackers could cause a cascade of network failures in the U.S.’s west-coast electricity grid — cutting power to economic powerhouses Silicon Valley and Hollywood
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APMR checks stability of dikes
A Dutch company develops an instrument that can “look” into the ground and measure the amount of water in the soil under a dike, which is important when checking the stability of dams and dikes
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Using lasers in nuclear decommissioning
High-power lasers could remove contaminated surfaces of concrete and cut up metal pipework and process vessels inside nuclear reactors, or other contaminated environments
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Gravity tractor to steer asteroids away from Earth
There are thousands of asteroids in close proximity to Earth, and scientists believe it is inevitable that sooner or later an asteroid will come close enough to be a real threat; British aerospace company designs a gravity tractor to steer a menacing asteroids away
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Using waste to recover waste uranium
Researchers find that a combination of bacteria and inositol phosphate can be used to recover uranium from the polluted waters from uranium mines; method may be used to process nuclear waste
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Researchers develop steel Velcro
Researchers say that their “Metaklett” metallic hook-&-loop material could be used to hold together buildings, or to tape car parts to one another
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DHS' Cyber Storm III to test U.S. national cyber response plan
One objective of Cyber Storm III is to harmonize the various alert level systems used in government and the private sector so that all stakeholders at least speak the same language
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New Orleans storm pumps do not protect city
The Army Corps of Engineers quickly installed new storm control pumps in New Orleans in the months after Katrina; trouble is, these pumps do not protect the city, the the Corps could have saved $430 million in replacement costs by buying proven equipment
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Smith & Wesson gets further into security
With the acquisition of Universal Safety Response, a systems integrator and manufacturer of perimeter protection solutions, the venerable gun manufacturer is turning itself into a security solutions integrator
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BPSI shows new mobile trailer CBRN detection unit
Mobile Sentry One is a trailer-mounted system that incorporates chemical and radiological (optional biological detection is available) sensor technology with proprietary firmware and software to detect and identify an airborne toxic attack within seconds
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Universal Safety Response wins 2009 business awards
USR was acquired by Smith & Wesson for $26.2 million in cash and 9.7 million shares; Inc. 5,000 names USR as one of fastest-growing private companies in America
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Viz Lab, Defentech show perimeter security system
Defentect’s gamma radiation detection technology is used in a perimeter security system that can detect radiological materials
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