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Rio Grande levees offered as alternative to border fence
Rebuilding the Rio Grande levee system would cost about $200 million; building a 700-mile fence on parts of the U.S.-Mexico border would cost from $3 billion to $30 billion; Texans say restoring the levees would be more effective, too
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U.S. government to scrutinize 3Com deal
Bain Capital and Chinese company Huawei Technologies are set to acquire 3Com for $2.2 billion; Huawei is close to the Chinese government, and Chinese military hackers broke into Pentagon computers this summer; mitigation clauses may be imposed
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Bain's 3Com deal: More questions than answers
Bain is paying a premium for 3Com, hoping that its Chinese acquisition partner would help the 3Com make money in the Chinese market; here we hope that Huaweis’ 20% stake would give it enough of an incentive to help Bain do so — provided the U.S. government approves the deal
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Cyber attack exercise reveals power-grid vulnerability
A staged cyber attack on a power plant causes generator to self-destruct; experts fear that bigger, coordinated attacks could inflict widespread damage to U.S. electric infrastructure which may take months to fix; economic price tag price tag may reach $700 billion
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Climate change burdens insurance industry
Climate changes cause ever-more-severe fires, hurricanes, floods, and other natural disasters; these disasters accounted for 88 percent of all property losses paid by insurers from 1980 through 2005; it is only going to get worse, and insurance companies had better prepare
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Barrier offers protection against maritime attacks
California company develops sturdy protective barrier to protect navy ships and critical infrastructure assets such as liquid natural gas facilities, bridges, water intakes for desalinization plants, and more
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Shadowy Marxist groups poses threat to Mexican economy, state
The EPR has committed at least eighty-eight kidnappings in Mexico since 1999, collecting millions of dollars in ransom; the group is now using these funds in a terror campaign aimed to undermine the Mexcian economy and state
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October is national cybersecurity month
A consortium of government agencies and private industry sponsors have designated October 2007 as National Cyber Security Awareness Month
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Militants again threaten Nigeria's oil industry
Niger delta militants call off four-month cease fire after one of their leaders is arrested; bombings of oil facilities and abductions of foreigner workers have cut Nigeria’s oil production by 25 percent compared to two years ago
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First application for a new U.S. nuclear reactor in thirty years
NRG yesterday filed application to build two new nuclear reactors in Texas — first such application since 1979; with rising oil and gas prices, and worries about climate change, nuclear power appears attractive
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NRC outsources part of nuclear power plant permitting process
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission expects a flood of applications for new nuclear power plants in the United States; to cope with the extra work, agency outsources portions of application review process
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Live demonstration of satellite-based intelligence surveillance
Two companies join hands in live demonstration of satellite-based intelligence surveillance system; system sutiable for monitoring remote, difficult-to-access locations
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Israel's Ashdod port begins CSI operations
DHS makes the port of Ashdod, Israel, the 54th Container Security Initiative-certified port
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PDF files put Windows XP at risk
Cybersecurity researcher says vulnerabilities in popular Adobe file format allows hackers to seize control of computers; Adobe, Symantec work on solution
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DHS funds nuclear training
One-third of the current U.S. nuclear workforce will reach retirement in the next ten years; DHS joins with NSF to foster the training of the next generation of nuclear workers
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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.