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U.S. power grid remains vulnerable
As was the case with the chemical industry, the lobbyists for the utilities have blocked meaningful reform and left the North American power grid exceedingly vulnerable
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More questions than answers in South Africa's nuclear facility attack
What was the purpose of the two coordinated, “military-style” attacks on South Africa’s Pelindaba nuclear facility last week? The answer may lie in the facility’s history: Two decades ago the apartheid regime used it to produce six operational nuclear bombs; were the intruders after bomb-making records, blueprints, and computer files?
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Britain launches broad homeland defense plan
Gordon Brown offers details of new homeland defense initiative, increasing the security budget from £2.5 billion to £3.5 billion by 2011, placing emphasis on protecting venues where crowds gather; budget includes £400 million for fighting radicalization abroad
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Major conference on illicit nuclear trafficking to open next week
The IAEA next week will hold a major conference on illegal possession and illicit trafficking of nuclear materials; in 1995 the IAEA established the Illicit Trafficking Database; to date, it has received reports on approximately 1,250 incidents
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Teenager drills a hole in ammonia pipeline, forcing evacuation
Three teenagers believed money was hidden in 6-inch-diameter ammonia pipeline, so they drilled a hole in it; cloud of amonia forces evacuation, road closure
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White House plans to weaken CFIUS security review powers
DHS, Justice, the Pentagon, and the U.S. intelligence community oppose the merger of 3Com and Huawei Technology, arguing it will bolster Chinese military computer network attack operations; the White House plans to issue presidential order which would undermine the law designed to tighten security review of foreign companies, thus allowing the merger to go through
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North Korea argues it had no plan to enrich uranium for weapons
Another potential embarrassment for U.S. intelligence: North Korea says it will prove that it never had the plans or the means to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons
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FLIR expanding Gulf presence
FLIR’s sensor technology, used in border protection and perimeter defense, among other applications, has won the company several hefty contracts in the Gulf region; company eager to build on its success
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New York contests power transmission corridor ruling
In April the Department of Energy designated a large swath of New York State part of a National Interest Electric Transmission Corridor; the state government challenges the designation
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Book shows importance of geospatial technology in homeland security
Geographic information system (GIS) technology proves to be of growing importance in protecting the nation from natural disasters, diseases, and terrorist threats
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More tools for preplanning, premapping emergency response
Emergency preparedness software gives first responders a better view of the rescue scene with new mapping technologies
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FitzPatrick nuclear power station
Upstate New York nuclear power plant shut down for the third time in two months owing to wind blowing debris into the plant’s water intake
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DHS relaxes chemical plant reporting rules
In April DHS issues a list of 344 hazardous chemicals which businesses would have to track and disclose to the department through an online reporting system; under pressure from several industries, the list is reduced to 300, and reporting threshold of many chemicals of highest security concern raised
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North Korea to dismantle nuclear weapon capability
U.S. nuclear experts today begin supervising the North’s main nuclear complex at Yongbyon
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Bush administration's nuclear waste reprocessing plan criticized
Reprocessing spent nuclear fuel creates more fuel for nuclear plants, and reduces the need for nuclear waste storage; trouble is, reprocessing also creates weapons-grade plutonium; Bush administration believes there is a new, safer reprocessing method, but a panel of scientists says there is not, and until there is, the U.S. should continue to oppose reprocessing
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The long view
From Iron Dome to Cyber Dome: Defending Israel’s Cyberspace
In response to growing attacks against its infrastructure by formidable adversaries like Iran and its proxies, Israel recently announced that they are building a ‘cyber-dome’ or a digital ‘Iron Dome’ system to protect Israel’s cyberspace to defend against online attacks.
The Case for Climate-Resilient Infrastructure
Climate change is making weather harder to predict, and creating new risks in places that never faced them before. And as hurricanes, floods, extreme heat and wildfires intensify, most infrastructure will need to be retrofitted or designed and built anew for future climate resilience.
Nationwide Flood Models Poorly Reflect Risks to Households and Properties, Study Finds
Government agencies, insurance companies and disaster planners rely on national flood risk models from the private sector that aren’t reliable at smaller levels such as neighborhoods and individual properties.
Emerging Threats to the U.S. Financial System
In early 2021, a freewheeling, freethinking group of investors on Reddit plowed their money into GameStop, a video game retailer that several big hedge funds had bet against. The stock price shot up, some people made millions—and, to the delight of those on Reddit, the hedge funds had some very bad days. Researchers saw the GameStop story as a cautionary tale. If investors on Reddit could work together to move the markets like that, what could an adversary like China do?