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Strong future for independent research
Despite the current economic downturn, independent research organizations remain optimistic; many areas of research and development — chief among them energy security, energy conversion, and defense — already see bipartisan support for increased funding
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Random antenna arrays boost emergency communications
When first responders rush to a disaster scene, they are often met with large amount of rubble; the vast amount of metal and steel-reinforced concrete in buildings and rubble often interferes with or blocks radio signals; a new antenna array solves this problem
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New facial, gait recognition software to be integrated in CCTVs
BAE Systems and OmniPerception work on developing a gait and facial behavior recognition to be integrated into street corner CCTVs; it will make identifying known criminals easier
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Lab-on-a-chip detects pollutants, disease, and biological weapons
Researchers develop nano-sized laboratory, complete with a microscopic workbench, to measure water quality in real time; breakthrough will help keep water safe from pollution and bioterrorist threats
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TSA wants to screen your baggage -- emotional baggage, that is
To improve on X-ray and millimeter-wave scanning and go beyond group profiling, some suggest screening passengers for hostile intentions
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Calculations show Iran's 2 February launch used beefed-up rocket
Calculations show that Iran’s 2 February missile launch involved a more sophisticated and powerful rocket than had been initially thought; this two-stage vehicles, with more powerful fuel, are capable of lifting a nuclear warhead farther; Europe — but not yet the United States — is now within Iranian missile range
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Iran says it has built long-distance UAV
Iran says it has developed a UAV with a range of more than 950 kilometers; it is not yet clear what electronic and other capabilities Iran has mounted on the drone
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BriefCam video synopsis integrated in Pelco's DVR
BriefCam’s technology integrated with Pelco’s DX8100 series of digital video recorders; solution allows for one day of surveillance camera footage to be summarized into as little as a few minutes
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Unisys: Technology "consumerization," mobility risks key drivers of security investments
A Unisys briefing says that the growing pervasiveness of technology consumerization and mobility opens businesses to new risks across a broader spectrum; economy compels greater need for collaboration, more intelligent systems, and better fraud prevention; biometric use and acceptance also to increase
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U.S. Army, law enforcement agencies, working on EMP grenades
Electromagnetic pulse, or EMP, has been typically associated with high-altitude nuclear explosions — explosions which disable electronic devices hundreds of miles away from the explosion; militaries and law enforcement want a hand-grenade-size EMP device for use in war and crime-fighting
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Flying stretcher can keep four patients and a medic aloft for hours
The flying stretcher is a combination of a car and a helicopter, allowing for four wounded soldiers and a medic to be carried; it has an enclosed fan which allows for a vertical takeoff in areas tighter than a helicopter can manage
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DARPA can help slumping U.S. economy
Expert: DARPA should be used in expanded ways to help the U.S. economy and American society
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DARPA wants shrink-blade helicopters
DARPA is looking at a helicopter — or “morphcopter” — with shrinking blades; adjustable shrinking blades would offer performance benefits and options such as whisper mode for easier operations in confined spaces
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Stimulus package offers billions for scientific research
Both House and Senate versions of the economic stimulus package direct billion of dollars toward scientific research; biomedical research is among the big winners, while physics appears to be among the losers
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Iran's rocket more advanced than initially thought
Iran used a Safir-2 rocket to launch a satellite into space last week; it now emerges that the rocket used a cryogenic fuel system involving liquid oxygen; this means that Iran has made an important step toward acquiring the ability to launch astronauts into space — and deliver nuclear weapons on Europe, Israel, and other targets of choice
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More headlines
The long view
Autonomous Vehicle Technology Vulnerable to Road Object Spoofing and Vanishing Attacks
Researchers have demonstrated the potentially hazardous vulnerabilities associated with the technology called LiDAR, or Light Detection and Ranging, many autonomous vehicles use to navigate streets, roads and highways. The researchers have shown how to use lasers to fool LiDAR into “seeing” objects that are not present and missing those that are – deficiencies that can cause unwarranted and unsafe braking or collisions.
Tantalizing Method to Study Cyberdeterrence
Tantalus is unlike most war games because it is experimental instead of experiential — the immersive game differs by overlapping scientific rigor and quantitative assessment methods with the experimental sciences, and experimental war gaming provides insightful data for real-world cyberattacks.
Prototype Self-Service Screening System Unveiled
TSA and DHS S&T unveiled a prototype checkpoint technology, the self-service screening system, at Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas, NV. The aim is to provide a near self-sufficient passenger screening process while enabling passengers to directly receive on-person alarm information and allow for the passenger self-resolution of those alarms.
Falling Space Debris: How High Is the Risk I'll Get Hit?
An International Space Station battery fell back to Earth and, luckily, splashed down harmlessly in the Atlantic. Should we have worried? Space debris reenters our atmosphere every week.
Testing Cutting-Edge Counter-Drone Technology
Drones have many positive applications, bad actors can use them for nefarious purposes. Two recent field demonstrations brought government, academia, and industry together to evaluate innovative counter-unmanned aircraft systems.
Strengthening the Grid’s ‘Backbone’ with Hydropower
Argonne-led studies investigate how hydropower could help add more clean energy to the grid, how it generates value as grids add more renewable energy, and how liner technology can improve hydropower efficiency.
The Tech Apocalypse Panic is Driven by AI Boosters, Military Tacticians, and Movies
From popular films like a War Games or The Terminator to a U.S. State Department-commissioned report on the security risk of weaponized AI, there has been a tremendous amount of hand wringing and nervousness about how so-called artificial intelligence might end up destroying the world. There is one easy way to avoid a lot of this and prevent a self-inflicted doomsday: don’t give computers the capability to launch devastating weapons.
The Tech Apocalypse Panic is Driven by AI Boosters, Military Tacticians, and Movies
From popular films like a War Games or The Terminator to a U.S. State Department-commissioned report on the security risk of weaponized AI, there has been a tremendous amount of hand wringing and nervousness about how so-called artificial intelligence might end up destroying the world. There is one easy way to avoid a lot of this and prevent a self-inflicted doomsday: don’t give computers the capability to launch devastating weapons.