• NTT shows commercial RedTaction security system

    NTT shows Firmo, a Human Area Network (HAN)-based system which uses the surface of the human body for communication; the Firmo Kit is used as an alternative to short-range wireless security card entrance/exit systems

  • German invents radar-camouflaging paint

    A German amateur inventor invents radar-camouflaging paint; planes, vehicles, and buildings may be coated with the paint and made invisible to radar

  • Electronic "pets" to tackle identity theft problem

    Forget passwords, PINs, or even biometric security measures; a new, if futuristic, solution is offered for the problem of identity theft: Electronic pets; the pets would recognize their owners’ voiceprint, fingerprints, or walking style; researchers say it will be important for owners to bond with and nourish their electronic pets by playing with them

  • A shoebox-size chemical sensor to detect toxins, pollution

    Quantum cascade lasers were first demonstrated by Harvard’s Federico Capasso and colleagues in 1994; now Capasso is using the technology to develop a portable array of lasers to be used to monitor pollution and detect toxins

  • Developing miniature robots to increase situational awareness

    The military wants to increase the situational awareness of of its officers and soldiers, and an alliance of industry and academia is set up to develop advanced robotic equipment for use in urban environments and complex terrain, such as mountains and caves

  • Existence of new basic element for electronic circuits proven

    There are three fundamental elements to electronic circuits: resistor, capacitor, and inductor; nearly forty years ago, Leon Chua of the University of California at Berkeley theorized that there was a fourth element — memristor — which had properties that could not be duplicated by any combination of the other three elements; HP researchers have now proven the existence of memristors; facial recognition biometrics will benefit

  • Peace of mind at an affordable price

    An HSDW conversation on thermal cameras with Bill Klink, vice president of security business development, FLIR Systems

  • UAVs, UGVs operate and communicate with each other

    BAE Systems show how several unmanned air and ground vehicles operate simultaneously while communicating with each other and with their controllers

  • Europeans conduct final test of Galileo

    The EU wants to compete in the lucrative positioning market, and wants its Galileo system to compete with the U.S. GPS system; project has been hobbled by delays and shortfall of funds, but the EU soldiers on

  • UAVs on display at the Smithsonian

    As the scope and breadth of UAV deployments grow, so is the public interest in them; the Smithsonian put some of them on display; “UAVs are the future of combat air forces,” says the curator, himself a retired Air Force pilot

  • Advanced Nanotechnology Research, LANCER

    Lockheed Martin and Rice University launch strategic partnership to develop center which will develop new technologies for a broad range of applications in electronics, energy, and security

  • Straw power planned

    With more and more companies turning to biofuels as an alternative to fossil fuels, a debate has erupted over the food-energy trade-off involved; a Welsh company bypasses this debate by planning to generate energy from straw

  • Technological breakthrough in the fight to cut greenhouse gases

    New, efficient method found to convert waste carbon dioxide (CO2) into chemical compounds known as cyclic carbonates; researchers estimate that the technology has the potential to use up to 48 million tons of waste CO2 per year, reducing the U.K. emissions by about four percent

  • Modernizing the U.S. electrical grid

    The U.S. Department of Energy will invest $50 million in demonstration project aiming to improve efficiency in the U.S. electricity grid

  • Government scrapping virtual fence on Arizona-Mexico border

    Boeing’s Project 28 — showcasing advanced technologies to be used in making U.S. borders more secure — was hobbled from the start by technological glitches and delays; it delivered much less than what was promised, and DHS decides to scrap it