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Green endurance race across Africa
An endurance car race in Africa in January will pit different alternative energy technologies against each other
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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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IBM will spend $1.5 billion to improve computer security
IBM’s security initiative would double IBM’s security spending; company says its IT security is becoming more difficult because of collaborative business models, sophisticated criminal attacks, and increasingly complex infrastructures
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DARPA-funded UCSD research yields world's most complex phased array
Tritons researchers develop world’s most complex phased array; the 16-element chip is just 3.2 by 2.6 square millimeters, can send at 30-50 GHz
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States battle rise in copper thefts
New threat to U.S. infrastructure: Wave of copper theft; DOE estimates that losses to businesses hover around $1 billion; states pass tougher laws to stem the tide
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Honduran authorities detect Cesium-137 in container at port
Puerto Cortes, Honduras, was declared a safe port by the United States more than a year ago — and the designation proved correct: Last Sunday radiation detectors at the port detected high doses of radiation in a container (it turned out to be medical stuff used in sterilization of equipment)
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TWIC inches forward, but legislators criticize missed deadlines
Employees at Wilmington, Delaware port were the first to enroll in TWIC last month; this month, employees in eleven additional ports will begin enrollment; still, program delays are met with a bipartisan chorus of criticism on the Hill
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Maryland State Police to gather critical infrastructure data from air
Johns Hopkins’s APL develops new technology which allows officers to monitor critical infrastructure facilities digitally from the air and quickly locate, inspect important structures during patrols
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Vulnerability of infrastructure control systems is growing
Control networks of infrastructure facilities are becoming increasingly standardized and linked to other centralized systems; as a result they can be more easily breached; consequences may be dire
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Winners announced in two new-approach building competitions
The Solar Decathlon and Lifecycle Building Challenge aim to promote energy independence and better environment through greater reliance on alternative energy and better building design and materials
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EPA insists terrorism should be considered in decision over Indian Point
EPA breaks with NRC, saying the impact of terrorism should be considered in relicensing decision of Indian Point nuclear power plants, located 30 miles north of New York City
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Mubarak says Egypt to build nuclear power stations
President Mubarak of Egypt announces plans for civilian nuclear program; Egypt’s oil and gas reserves stand at 15.5 billion barrels of oil equivalent, enough for 34 years at current production rates
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Annual report gives so-so grades to IT security on college campuses
CDW Government released the results of its third annual report card on campus IT security; the grades are mostly Cs — gentleman’s Cs at that
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U.S. faces water shortage crisis
Government projects at least 36 states will face shortages within five years; “The last century was the century of water engineering. The next century is going to have to be the century of water efficiency,” one experts says
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NRC seeks public comments on reactor oversight
As interest in nuclear power is revived, more application for building reactors come in — after a lull of more than two decades nearly; the NRC wants the public to comment on reactor oversight
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The long view
Accelerating Clean Energy Geothermal Development on Public Lands
Geothermal energy is one of our greatest untapped clean energy resources on public lands. Replenished by heat sources deep in the Earth, geothermal energy generates electricity with minimal carbon emissions. Interior Department announces new leases and pioneering project approval, and proposes simplified permitting.
Efforts to Build Wildfire Resilience Are Heating Up
Stanford’s campus has become a living lab for testing innovative fire management techniques, from AI-powered environmental sensors to a firebreak-creating “BurnBot.”
Reducing Vulnerability to Sea-Level Rise in Virginia
As the climate changes and sea levels rise, there is concern that sinking coastlines could exacerbate risks to infrastructure, as well as human and environmental health in coastal communities. The Virginia Coastal Plain is one of the fastest-sinking regions on the East Coast.
The Fate of Thousands of U.S. Dams Hangs in the Balance, Leaving Rural Communities with Hard Choices
Dams across the country are aging and facing intensifying floods wrought by climate change. But the price tag to fix what’s broken is estimated in the hundreds of billions of dollars.
Climate Change Threatens Bridges, Roads: Research Helps Engineers Adapt Infrastructure
Across America, infrastructure built to handle peak stormwater flows from streams and rivers have been engineered under the assumption that rainfall averages stay constant over time. As extreme weather events become more frequent, these systems could be in trouble.