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This product description will self-destruct
Huskies researchers develop a tool to make online personal data vanish; after a set time period, electronic communications such as e-mail, Facebook posts, and chat messages would automatically self-destruct, becoming irretrievable from all Web sites, inboxes, outboxes, backup sites, and home computers
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Widespread privacy failings in online social networks
A Cambridge University study finds serious privacy weaknesses in the way social networking sites are run; those who join such site are often unaware of these weaknesses
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Future of water in U.S. west threatened
New study says there is a one-in-two chance of fully depleting all of the Colorado River reservoir storage system by mid-century assuming current management practices continue on course
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U.S. halts uranium mining at Grand Canyon
The Interior Department has barred the filing of new mining claims, including for uranium, on 1 million acres near the Grand Canyon
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U.S. gives $47 million for smart grid trials
The Department of Energy is directing $47 million of the stimulus package to speed up work on several smart grid technology test sites
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DARPA awards Cobham $15 million for wireless network
DARPA awards Cobham a contract calling for the company to develop low-cost wireless network nodes which support adaptation by means of distributed network processing
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Google, Microsoft promise new age in cyber-security
Security-conscious consumers are in the habit of regularly updating their antivirus software; this will soon be unnecessary — this, at least, is the promise of both Microsoft and Google; the two companies’ new operating systems will include built-in, continuously updated defenses against viruses and malware
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Trend: Businesses increasingly rely on SAS for security
More and more companies have gravitated toward the idea of “software as a service” (SAS) — using software that is delivered remotely instead of hosted on in-house servers; more and more companies are now offering security products as services — but is it the best approach to security?
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Raytheon wins $155 million wireless contract
DARPA awards Raytheon $155 million to provide a military wireless network interoperable gateway
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New distance record for quantum encryption
Quantum encryption (or quantum key distribution [QKD]) holds the promise of unbreakable communication encryption; the technology has a weakness, though: the short distance of key distribution; researchers break distribution distance record by distributing keys over a distance of 250 kilometers (it may not look like much, but back in 1992 the record was 32 centimeters)
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Houston computer forensics lab accredited
Newly accredited Houston lab expands Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory Network (RCFL), a national network of sixteen FBI-sponsored digital forensics laboratories and training centers devoted entirely to the scientific examination of digital evidence in support of criminal investigations
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GSA adds more cybersecurity software to SmartBuy program
GSA estimates the contracts could be worth $20 million over five years
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Congress wants FCC cyber security updates
FCC among a list of eleven agencies which may have been affected by a 4 July service attack
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Questions raised about cost of, need for new electricity grid
A new national grid system for the United States would involve stringing 19,000 miles of high-voltage lines at a cost of$60 billion; some experts say this is too expensive — and unnecessary
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Glass fibers can make a building sturdier
Conventional means to reinforce concrete involve the use of steel bars; the use of fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) is emerging as a valuable option, owing to its natural resistance to corrosion, its high strength, light weight, transparency to electrical and magnetic fields and ease of manufacturing and installment
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The long view
Water Wars: A Historic Agreement Between Mexico and US Is Ramping Up Border Tension
As climate change drives rising temperatures and changes in rainfall, Mexico and the US are in the middle of a conflict over water, putting an additional strain on their relationship. Partly due to constant droughts, Mexico has struggled to maintain its water deliveries for much of the last 25 years, deliveries to which it is obligated by a 1944 water-sharing agreement between the two countries.
Trump Is Fast-Tracking New Coal Mines — Even When They Don’t Make Economic Sense
In Appalachian Tennessee, mines shut down and couldn’t pay their debts. Now a new one is opening under the guise of an “energy emergency.”
Smaller Nuclear Reactors Spark Renewed Interest in a Once-Shunned Energy Source
In the past two years, half the states have taken action to promote nuclear power, from creating nuclear task forces to integrating nuclear into long-term energy plans.
Keeping the Lights on with Nuclear Waste: Radiochemistry Transforms Nuclear Waste into Strategic Materials
How UNLV radiochemistry is pioneering the future of energy in the Southwest by salvaging strategic materials from nuclear dumps –and making it safe.
Model Predicts Long-Term Effects of Nuclear Waste on Underground Disposal Systems
The simulations matched results from an underground lab experiment in Switzerland, suggesting modeling could be used to validate the safety of nuclear disposal sites.