-
GAO: TSA lax on U.S. security of commercial trucking, buses
Billions of dollars have been invested in improving air travel security; critics charge that ground transportation security has been treated as an after thought; there are more than a million U.S. companies which help transport 65 percent of the daily freight across the United States; busing companies carry 775 million passengers a year, more than the airline industry; GAO says both trucks and buses operate virtually free of security restrictions
-
-
New Madrid fault system may be shutting down
Researchers find that the New Madrid fault system, which includes parts of Illinois, Indiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, and Kentucky, is shutting down; major earthquake in the region may be avoided
-
-
Beads behavior may help in avalanche prediction
Scientists blame the seeming impossibility of predicting the next big avalanche or earthquake on the inherent unpredictability of complex systems; a unique experiment, however, suggests that this idea may be wrong
-
-
Human vaccine against bird flu a reality with new discovery
Aussie researchers added a compound, known to increase immunity, to the flu vaccine in an animal model; the addition of this compound promoted significant generation of potent killer T cell immunity and provided protection from infection
-
-
Innovative pandemic flu vaccine effective against H5N1 in mice
The current method of growing seasonal influenza vaccines in chicken eggs is slow and inefficient; Emory University scientists have developed an alternative: virus-like particles, empty shells that look like viruses but do not replicate
-
-
President's proposed 2010 budget shows DHS priorities
Proposed budget increase DHS budget by 6 percent; priorities include cyber security, helping TSA screen travelers, increase bomb disposal and counter-IED capabilities, border security, emergency response
-
-
NASA study predicted outbreak of deadly virus
Predictive tool is a blend of NASA and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration measurements of sea surface temperatures, precipitation, and vegetation cover to predict when and where an outbreak would occur
-
-
India to see a large, broad growth in expenditures on domestic security
A series of terrorist attacks, culminating in the coordinated attack in Mumbai last month, convinced both government and industry in India that more security — much more security — is required to cope with mounting threats to domestic peace; business opportunities abound for companies in IT security, biometric, surveillance, detection, situational awareness, and more
-
-
Asia at risk of era of mega-disasters
Asian countries are heading toward an era of mega-disasters; cities in the Himalayan belt, China, Indonesia, and the Philippines could experience earthquakes where the death toll could top one million
-
-
Bush administration meticulous about power handoff
The transfer of power from the Bush administration to the Obama administration will be the first handoff since 9/11; the Bush administration is taking unprecedented measures to make sure the incoming administration is ready from day one
-
-
Devolution of risk management
In response to the savings and loan scandal of two decades ago, the United States has enhanced the regulatory and compliance regime (FDICIA, SOX); problem is, compliance or regulation is necessarily historically based — it addresses the sins of the past and is not designed to anticipate the future
-
-
Making cloud computing safer
As the cost and other benefits of cloud computing become apparent, more and more companies move parts of their infrastructure out of their data centers; there is a need, though, to think long and hard about disaster-proofing the cloud
-
-
Experts call for establishing near-earth asteroid surveillance network
Scientists have identified almost 6,000 near-earth objects (NEOs) whose orbits intersect with the Earth’s; five-hundred to 1,000 NEOs have a diameter of over 150 kilometers
-
-
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
-
-
Report: Private sector can better prepare for cyber attack risks
New expert panel report suggests shifting control of corporate cyber infrastructures from IT departments to chief financial officers
-
More headlines
The long view
Evaluating U.S. Readiness to Prevent, Counter, and Respond to WMD
Two new reports review the adequacy of U.S. strategies to prevent, counter, and respond to the threat of nuclear and chemical terrorism and highlight the strengths and limitations of U.S. efforts to prevent and counter threats from weapons of mass destruction (WMD), particularly in a changing terrorism threat landscape.