Research
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 »
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 »
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 »
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 »
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 »
The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) recently awarded nearly $3.5 million to three new research and development projects, which will examine ways improve the threat detection capabilities of current X-ray technologies for checked baggage... Read More »
Mosquitoes could be responsible for the outbreak of yet another disease in North America, according to five researchers from Kansas State University studying the emerging pathogen known as Usutu virus.
That virus has been responsible for the spread of neurological disorders -- such as brain... Read More »
Protect the Force, Inc. was awarded $199,260 this week by the Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), for their efforts to create energy harvesting fabrics.
The photovoltaic (PV) materials generate electricity through exposure to light, taking it... Read More »
Raytheon researchers, in conjunction with the Defense Research Project Agency's (DARPA) Explainable Artificial Intelligence program (XAI), are developing a network designed to enhance the spectrum of artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities.
Raytheon officials said the technology firm is... Read More »
As climate change fuels the spread of mosquitoes worldwide, scientists at Stanford University have created a new model that predicts how temperature will affect the spread of the mosquito-driven Ross River virus.
"Scientists are realizing that warmer temperatures mean longer mosquito seasons and... Read More »
An Emergency Nurses Association (ENA) survey has determined active shooter training and simulations are essential to ensuring staff is equipped to respond effectively during an act of violence.
Findings published online in the Journal of Emergency Nursing showed out of 202 emergency nurses and... Read More »
University scientists, working in conjunction with the government of Sierra Leone, have made progress on the PREDICT Ebola Host Project, with the discovery of an Ebola species in Sierra Leone’s bats before human or other animal infection.
It marks the first time scientists have discovered a... Read More »
Scientists from Imperial College London have riddled out the cause of one of the most pervasive viruses on earth: the enterovirus.
"There are many different types of enteroviruses that infect humans,” Dr. Margarita Pons-Salort, co-author of the research from Imperial's School of Public... Read More »
In an article written for the New England Journal of Medicine, field researchers from Central Africa pointed to rapid development as fueling disease outbreaks, due to a growing need for a robust, matching health care infrastructure.
While on the whole, such growth has been beneficial to the... Read More »
The strategy and national security development underway at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) will now be lead by Chris Deeney, who joined the organization as its chief science and technology officer for national security matters.
A noted researcher and innovator in scientific... Read More »
A University of Texas--Arlington (UTA) researcher recently won a national grant award to continue his research on “superbugs” through mitochondria, discovering their defense mechanisms as well as new ways to boost immunity and improve infection resistance.
Over the next five years, UTA... Read More »
In an article published in Eurosurveillance, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) determined that while listeria outbreaks are clustering with many cases going undetected, implementing a whole genome sequencing method could speed up the detection process.
In a study... Read More »
Researchers from Sandia National Laboratories and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have modeled the workings of a bacterial pump mechanism that aids in the resistance to antibiotics.
These pumps spit out antibiotics before they can do any harm to the offending bacteria. The pump... Read More »
DataRobot received Monday a $200,000 grant from the Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) to begin testing a machine learning platform for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Global Travel Assessment System.
DataRobot, based in Tysons Corner, Va.,... Read More »
Over the last 40 years, the parasite-driven disease Chagas has breached the borders of what was once its traditional territory, spreading from Latin America into the United States and Europe, according to a new report from the American Heart Association (AHA).
There are an estimated 300,000... Read More »
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) review of its Robotic Servicing of Geosynchronous Satellites (RSGS) program showed that it is on track to fulfill its mission of servicing at least 20 commercial and government spacecraft in geosynchronous orbit (GEO).
There are... Read More »
A new trial underway from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, is currently working towards a universal vaccine that would target both Zika and Dengue viruses.
The trial will consist of 28 non-pregnant adults between 18... Read More »
Profectus BioSciences, Inc. and Emergent BioSolutions Inc. acquired a contract for up to $36 million from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) this week to drive the creation of a Lassa virus vaccine.
The three parties are operating under a Framework Partnering Agreement... Read More »
Experts in the fields of biological weapons and related security, along with government officials from around the world, gathered in Geneva, Switzerland, this week for the 2018 Biological Weapons Convention Meeting of Experts.
Their attentions were focused on evolving global preparedness and... Read More »
Tuberculosis (TB) is becoming more resistant to antibiotics over time through genetic changes, but researchers at Colorado State University have discovered that a single mutation may affect strains of TB bacteria in different ways.
Specifically, this applies to isoniazid, one of the first-line... Read More »
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently began testing technology that can detect weapon and explosive device security threats, including suicide vests.
The portable technology, called a stand-off explosive detection unit, connects to a laptop and works by identifying objects... Read More »
The U.S. Air Force awarded this week a contract to Lockheed Martin Missiles & Fire Control for the development of a second hypersonic weapon prototype.
The weapon’s review, testing, and production readiness support will all be provided by Lockheed Martin, as part of the Air Force’s... Read More »
In an article published in The Lancet, experts from an international Ebola research consortium known as the Partnership for Research on Ebola Vaccination (PREVAC) have assessed the current Ebola vaccine candidates across the world, and what remains to be achieved for viability.
PREVAC is... Read More »
The U.S. Air Force recently provided an update on Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein’s initiative to revitalize squadrons.
A task force, comprised of Total Force Airmen from diverse backgrounds, conducted an Air Force-wide review of survey data and gathered feedback from nearly... Read More »
Researchers are still a decade away from seeing a Valley Fever vaccine realized for humans, who are in recent years being infected at a greater degree with the fungal spores that cause the disease. The illness primarily affects people living in the Southwestern United States.
Federal officials... Read More »