Infrastructure protection

Can China's future earthquakes be predicted?
To predict earthquakes, China relied on GPS data, which showed movements of two millimeters per year in certain areas of Szechwan province where a May 2008 earthquake killed 70,000 people (20,000 are still missing) and destroyed more than eight million homes; scientists examine a better way to predict disasters
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Briefly noted
Obama administration looks to fill more than 300 IT positions… Larger inmate population is boon to private prisons… More attacks on critical infrastructure?
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Energy industry likely prime cyber attack target
Critical infrastructure insiders say the energy industry is also the most vulnerable to cyber attacks and would have the most detrimental breach
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Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository too small
Congress has placed a 77,000-ton limit on the amount of nuclear waste that can be buried in Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository (the repository will open in 2020 at the earliest); trouble is, the 104 active U.S. nuclear reactors, together with the Pentagon, produce that amount of waste in two years
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DHS releases FY2009 guidance for $3 billion worth of grants
FEMA requests applications for 14 programs for which it has allocated $3 billion; funded programs concentrate on state and local governments and strengthening community preparedness
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New bridge-inspection software contributes to bridge security
Inspecting a bridge for hairline cracks, flaking concrete, and rust has been a manual process — inspectors have always examined bridges for visible damage directly on site; German researchers develop software which allows digital inspection of bridges and other structures
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Good code, bad computations: A computer security vulnerability
Beware of return-oriented programming — that is, if you want to make sure your computer or server is not tricked into undertaking malicious or undesirable behavior
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Cyberattacks target U.K. national infrastructure
The computer systems of critical businesses in the United Kingdom, such as power companies and large financial institutions, are being repeatedly probed to steal information or uncover weaknesses that could take them down
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Earthquake's trampoline effect
During earthquakes the ground not only shakes from side to side, but also bounces up and down; this has important implications for designing quake-proof structures
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Briefly noted
Australia opens national tsunami warning center… Document requirements announced for visitors to international peace garden… European data breach laws could land in 2011… Aberdeen: Unified threat management can shave IT costs
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Using laptops to detect earthquakes
Laptops have a small accelerometer chip built into them in order to protect the delicate moving parts of the hard disk from sudden jolts; same chip is a pretty good earthquake sensor, too
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Energy companies targeted by Web-borne malware
New report says the energy companies experienced more Web-based malware attacks than any other vertical market in the third quarter of this year, with an increased rate of exposure of 189 percent
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New reactor design lessens risk of weapon proliferation
Nuclear materials for power reactors cannot be stolen by those interested in using it for nuclear weapons while the material is in the reactor — it is too hot to handle; the risks of diversion are during the enrichment process, and while the material is being transported; to lessen the risk, researchers offer innovative reactor design
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Closed Maine suspension bridge used for anti-terror testing
DHS is using a closed Maine bridge for tests on how to fortify bridges against terrorist attacks
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GE shows a chemical sensor that does not need batteries
Researchers develop a chemical sensor that can detect minute quantities of chemicals in the air or water; it has no batters: it receives its power wirelessly from a sensor reader
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