Countermeasures
Tuberculosis (TB) has been successfully treated in animals utilizing a non-antibiotic drug, according to scientists at the University of Manchester.
The success makes the drug the first non-antibiotic to successfully treat TB -- a disease that kills around 1.7 million people worldwide each year.... Read More »
Cocaine valued at more than $25 million was seized last month during a Joint Interagency Task Force South interception of a low-profile vessel moving in the international waters of the Eastern Pacific Ocean.
In all, nearly a ton of cocaine was pulled from the vessel after it was spotted by a... Read More »
Raytheon Co.'s intelligence, information and service business recently allied with HawkEye 360 to focus on providing innovative commercial technologies and precision data to the government.
The alliance includes investment in HawkEye 360 and gives Raytheon access to data that will enhance its... Read More »
As Hurricane Florence, a category 4 storm, bears down on the Carolinas, the Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) is warning about the potential for public health threats in the storm’s aftermath.
IDSA points out that with over 1 million people being evacuated from their homes, shelters... Read More »
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), in conjunction with the Duke University School of Medicine, has begun enrolling for a Phase 1 clinical trial of a new antimalarial drug and its efficacy in humans.
This early stage trial is being led by Dr. Michael... Read More »
Boeing gained a $2.9 billion contract from the United States Air Force this week, making them responsible for the fourth production lot of KC-46A tanker aircraft and all associated equipment.
The KC-46A is a tanker with multiple roles, able to refuel allied and coalition military aircraft, as... Read More »
The U.S. Air Force recently conducted an operational safety review and identified several areas of focus.
The findings have been released to field, flying and maintenance leaders at every level, so they can address the issues, facilitate safety review discussions and make more informed... Read More »
U.S. Rep. John Katko (R-NY) introduced the Protecting our Communities and Rights Act of 2018 this week, which would establish a process to allow law enforcement to confiscate guns from individuals who are dangerous or unfit to have them.
It is a federal version of “red flag” laws that have... Read More »
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has deployed a 3-D imaging scanner at a security checkpoint in Oakland International Airport (OAK) to counter explosives smuggling and other threats to flights.
The utilized technology is known as computed tomography (CT), and its deployment at... Read More »
The United States Marine Corps (USMC) has put out a call to industry for hearing enhancement devices that could help soldiers in combat and in training with situational awareness.
“Marines have the earplugs and they do provide protection, but sometimes they choose not to wear them because they... Read More »
Twenty-seven Massachusetts fire departments recently were awarded nearly $4.5 million in grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Twenty-four fire departments received funding through the Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) program and two received funding through the... Read More »
The Department of Defense’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced a $2 billion investment in developing artificial intelligence with the launch of a program called AI Next.
“With AI Next, we are making multiple research investments aimed at transforming computers from... Read More »
Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) is seeking federal assurances designed to enhance security and efficiency at the state’s airports.
The senator recently participated in a Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation hearing and used the forum to address concerns with Transportation... Read More »
At a meeting of the International Partnership for Nuclear Disarmament Verification (IPNDV) Joint Working Group in Seoul earlier this summer, experts announced their intentions to take ideas for the nuclear dismantlement lifecycle into exercises and technology demonstrations.
This second phase is... Read More »
An international team of researchers published a report last week that analyzed economic and public health data to determine factors that lead to curbing antibiotic resistance throughout the world.
The researchers, which included experts from the Center of Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy... Read More »
A cooperative agreement will join Bell Helicopter, Textron Systems, Xwing and the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s Center with NASA for a flight demonstration of unmanned aircraft systems in the National Airspace System (NAS).
The drone in question will utilize vertical take-off and... Read More »
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently released three recommendations to improve the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) risk-based grant assessment model.
Risk models are used to determine how to allot preparedness grants. States and urban areas considered higher... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Kamala Harris (D-CA) are asking the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) along with leading mobile providers to guarantee service to first responders during emergencies.
The California senators also asked the mobile service providers – specifically... Read More »
House lawmakers advanced this week a measure designed to bolster protections against state-sponsored cyber activity threats aimed at the United States.
The Cyber Deterrence and Response Act of 2018 protects the nation’s economy, elections, and infrastructure from cyber activity by establishing... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Cory Gardner (R-CO), Ed Markey (D-MA), and Bob Menendez (D-NJ) introduced legislation this week that demands a U.S. strategy to bolster Taiwan’s diplomatic standing around the world.
The Taiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement Initiative (TAIPEI)... Read More »
Investigators from the Baylor College of Medicine began phase 1 clinical trials this week for a topical cream designed to enhance immune response granted by an influenza vaccine.
The cream, known as imiquimod, is more commonly known for its use on genital warts and skin cancers because of its... Read More »
In a joint operation with the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations (CBP/AMO) intercepted a low profile vessel last month which led to more than 2 tons of cocaine seized.
The estimated street value of the cocaine seized is approximately $54,938,000. Its... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) recently participated in a demonstration of the New York Police Department’s FIDO X-3 Explosive Trace Detection (ETD) system.
The demonstration was part of an event, funded by the National Institute of... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives advanced a bill this week to improve border security and prevent potential terrorists and dangerous criminals from entering the country.
The Biometric Identification Migration Alert Program (BITMAP) Authorization Act of 2018 (H.R. 6439) would fully authorize... Read More »
Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, released Tuesday its latest report documenting terror threats from Islamist terrorists, noting the efforts are growing.
McCaul presented the September Terror Threat Snapshot as part of an ongoing effort to highlight... Read More »
Concern over the neurologically disastrous -- and sometimes fatal -- effects of the Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) has prompted the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to invest $2.5 million into a related, five-year research grant.
Leading the team is Kylene Kehn-Hall, an associate... Read More »
Despite the deadly reach of diseases like tuberculosis (TB), HIV and malaria, the world is not likely to develop vaccines to fight them, according to a financial analysis of the current research and development pipeline.
The analysis was conducted by Duke University’s Center for Policy Impact... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently issued recommendations regarding the U.S. Coast Guard’s and Navy’s plan to invest up to $9.8 billion to build and maintain three heavy polar icebreakers.
The ships would be used to conduct missions in the Arctic and Antarctic, and a... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives advanced a bill this week to codify the continuous diagnostics and mitigation (CDM) program at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The bill, the Advancing Cybersecurity Diagnostics and Mitigation Act (H.R. 6443), would require the development of... Read More »
Law enforcement officials said the arrests of more than 20 individuals associated with the California-based Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang on assault and drug charges also yielded a cache of weapons.
Officials said the recent arrests in Mendota and Los Angeles, California, were issued on the... Read More »
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Small Vessel Reporting System (SVRS) is is no longer in service, leaving boaters to turn to the new Reporting Offsite Arrival-Mobile (ROAM) app.
While float plans will no longer be accepted, existing SVRS numbers are still valid. They can be entered... Read More »
Scientists across the world are struggling to find ways to combat the spread of antibiotic resistance among bacteria, but rather than make something new, UCLA biologists say the solution could be in combining four or five existing medications.
The UCLA study starkly contrasts the traditionally... Read More »
A ceremony at mission headquarters in Kabul, Afghanistan, recently commemorated the change in command from General John ''Mick'' Nicholson to General Austin Scott Miller.
Miller will oversee NATO’s and its operational partners’ efforts to develop effective and sustainable Afghan security... Read More »
Lockheed Martin recently won a $500 million, seven-year contract from the U.S. Navy to build more than 200 electronic Consolidated Automated Support Systems (eCASS) to maximize aircraft readiness.
eCASS provides maintenance and repair capabilities for all naval aircraft, ship and submarine... Read More »
The U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) showed off a host of new technologies deployed to the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) this week, from computed tomographic (CT) scanners to photo ID scan verifications.
The technologies are being tested at the airport’s Terminal 1... Read More »
