News
Senate health committee begins reapproval process for nation’s hazards preparedness law
Public health, when threatened not by Obamacare but by exposure to infectious diseases, natural disasters or chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear (CBRN) agents, is an area where members of Congress have been able to build bipartisanship. Continuing such cross-party work will be... Read More »
InterLink Corp. tapped to improve search functionality of cyber-risk research portal
InferLink Corp. will develop advanced search functionality for a cybersecurity research portal known as the Information Marketplace for Policy and Analysis of Cyber-risk and Trust (IMPACT) under a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) contract awarded on Tuesday. The $750,000 contract will be... Read More »
Researchers identify potential drug cure to West Nile-induced memory loss
Though the discovery comes with some worrisome caveats, researchers have begun the journey to reversing the memory loss effects of West Nile virus through the use of a drug. In a study focused on mice, scientists identified the potential cause of the neurological issues: unresolved inflammation... Read More »
DHS S&T, Israel Ministry of Public Security seeking proposals for advanced first responder technologies
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) announced Tuesday that it is accepting proposals for advanced first responder technologies in partnership with the Israel Ministry of Public Security (MOPS). The request is part of the NextGen First... Read More »
FDA, DoD launch joint program to expedite development of needed medical products, treatments for military personnel
A joint program launched by the FDA and Department of Defense (DoD) on Tuesday will prioritize the development of medical products that can help save the lives of military personnel. Using expanded authorities granted under a provision of the fiscal year 2017 National Defense Authorization Act,... Read More »
Experts tell Congress China is best avenue for North Korea intervention
A panel of international policy experts told lawmakers Wednesday the best way to help rein in the nuclear ambitions of North Korea is through the intervention of the Chinese government, though none of the panelists expressed much optimism in Chinese assistance any time soon. “I think getting... Read More »
Biodefense panel convenes to address state and local cooperation in midst of major health disasters
In order to respond accordingly in the midst of large-scale biological events such as a terrorist attack or natural disaster, public and private organizations need to coordinate, but on Wednesday public health experts at a Blue Ribbon Study Panel on Biodefense meeting cited obstacles that highlight... Read More »
Sens. Rubio, Van Hollen introduce bill to defend against foreign interference in US elections
U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) introduced legislation Tuesday designed to prevent foreign actors from interfering in U.S. elections. The Defending Elections from Threats by Establishing Redlines (DETER) Act would implement measures such as sanctions and blocking... Read More »
International team of researchers identify new drug targets, resistance genes in malaria
Through genome analysis and chemogenetics, researchers at the University of California (UC) San Diego School of Medicine, along with national and international associates, have confirmed genetic modifications that have led to malaria’s drug resistance and revealed new drug targets contained... Read More »
Participants complete Phase 1 of International Partnership for Nuclear Disarmament Verification
Participants in the International Partnership for Nuclear Disarmament Verification (IPNDV) recently gathered in Buenos Aires, Argentina, for the fifth plenary meeting of the initiative, marking the completion of Phase 1 of the IPNDV. Representatives more than 25 countries both with and without... Read More »
NTI’s Moniz warns policy of deterrence not enough to prevent use of nuclear weapons
Seventy-five years after the first controlled nuclear chain reaction, Ernest Moniz, co-chair and CEO of the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), recently warned that the United States faces “a different nuclear age” with miscalculation, diplomatic tensions, terrorism, technological advancements and... Read More »Regents of U-M, Duke University Hospital appointed centers of excellence by IDSA
Regents of the University of Michigan (U-M) and the Duke University Hospital now share a distinction among infectious disease and antimicrobial experts with their recent designation of Antimicrobial Stewardship Centers of Excellence by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA). The... Read More »
Study provides insight into Dengue virus reproduction
Duke University researchers recently conducted a study that showed how the Dengue virus reproduces in an infected individual without triggering the body’s normal defense mechanisms. According to the study, the virus slowly takes over the endoplasmic reticulum, an accordion-shaped structure in... Read More »
House advances 12 bills to strengthen defenses against terrorism
The House of Representatives recently advanced 12 legislative proposals derived from recommendations from the Homeland Security Committee’s Task Force on Denying Terrorists Entry to the United States final report. The legislation included various initiating designed to prevent terrorists from... Read More »
CBP officers seize more than $1 million in drugs
In two law enforcement actions, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers recently seized more than $1.04 million in marijuana and crystal methamphetamine. The first seizure occurred Jan. 9 at the Juarez-Lincoln International Bridge between Mexico and Laredo, Texas. A non-intrusive... Read More »
VUMC partners with DARPA on five-year effort to fight pandemics
A five-year partnership agreement has been reached between the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC), representing a $28 million investment in the fight against viral outbreaks. DARPA’s Pandemic Protection Platform will be... Read More »
Sandia Labs scientist presents results of balloon-borne infrasound sensor array experiment
Sandia National Laboratories geophysicist Danny Bowman recently presented at the American Geophysical Union conference the results of an experiment in which he launched a fleet of five solar-powered balloons he built to detect the infrasound from a test explosion. The results, which could have... Read More »
OPCW director-general commends destruction of Libya’s chemical weapon stockpile
The Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), Ambassador Ahmet Üzümcü, applauded the complete destruction of Libya’s stockpile of Category 2 chemical materials at a ceremony held recently in Munster, Germany. The remainder of the country’s... Read More »
FBI Director Wray says FBI is evolving to face cybersecurity challenges
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is focused on bolstering its efforts to stop cybercriminals and hackers, said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “Today, we live much of our lives online, and we're in a situation where just about everything that is important to us lives on the Internet.... Read More »
Bill will modernize department’s fire-fighting equipment
U.S. Sens Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Cory Gardner (R-CO) recently introduced the Wildfire Management Technology Advancement Act of 2017, which seeks to modernize fire departments by requiring the Forest Service and the Department of the Interior to provide GPS locators for crews fighting... Read More »
GAO report finds CBP has failed to guarantee proper licensing of all imported radiological materials
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently announced that the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has failed to verify some licenses for radiological shipments through U.S. airports. Warning that such material as contained within these shipments could be used by terrorists to make... Read More »
Experimental MERS treatment well tolerated in Phase 1 trial
National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientists recently conducted a small clinical trial at the NIH Clinical Center of an experimental treatment for Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) coronavirus infection in which the treatment was well tolerated by healthy volunteers. SAB Biotherapeutics... Read More »
House immigration bill would authorize border wall, modernize ports of entry
A bill introduced in the House of Representatives Wednesday would authorize construction of a border wall, invest in new technology and expand ports of entry, and add 5,000 Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agents. The Securing America's Future Act would also require the use of a biometric... Read More »
Smiths Detection to supply scanners at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport
Smiths Detection announced Wednesday that it will supply a full range of security scanners, a total of 91 X-ray inspection systems, for the new passenger Terminal B and Cargo Complex LLC at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport. The airport is building the new facilities to help handle... Read More »
Researchers discover how antibodies neutralize Marburg virus, close relative of Ebola
Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) recently gleaned new understanding into how an antibody neutralizes the Marburg virus, a pathogen with no known treatment that holds the same pandemic potential as the Ebola virus. Previous research indicated that an antibody known as MR191... Read More »NNSA, USAID simulate natural disaster, nuclear incident in field training exercise
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) took part in a field training exercise earlier this month with the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) to test the agencies’ response to radiological or nuclear incidents. If an... Read More »
Undocumented aliens intercepted attempting to enter Puerto Rico
U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), and the Puerto Rico Police Department (PRPD) recently intercepted two vessels carrying 40 undocumented aliens from the Dominican Republic and Haiti attempting to illegally enter Puerto Rico near the island’s west coast. “Sustained collaborations... Read More »GAO recommends FCC actions to bolster network resilience
The number of wireless network outages increased from 189 in 2009 to 1,079 in 2016, making safety-related communications like calling 911 and receiving weather alerts increasingly unavailable to the public, a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) review found. The increase in wireless... Read More »
Battelle to develop biotech threat assessment software
The government’s Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) recently awarded a contract to Battelle to develop software to evaluate threats posed by the creation of dangerous organisms through synthetic biology and genetic engineering. Thanks to recent advances in biotechnology,... Read More »
House approves bill aiming to bolster domestic breeders of bomb detecting dogs
A working group consisting of government officials, private-sector representatives, academics, and veterinarians would be formed to develop standards for breeding and training dogs to detect explosives under a bill that the House of Representatives approved on Tuesday. The Domestic Explosives... Read More »
House bill calls for drafting traveler vetting best practices, international collaboration
The Department of Homeland Security would be directed to draft best practices for using biographic traveler information and information about reservations and itineraries for counterterrorism screening under a bill introduced in the House of Representatives on Tuesday. The Screening and Vetting... Read More »
WHO calls for $4 million to end plague threat in Madagascar
During a visit to the plague-shaken nation of Madagascar, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), called for a $4 million investment to effectively combat the biological threat. The most recent outbreak of pneumonic and bubonic plague in-country left... Read More »
Customs and Border Patrol agents seize largest cocaine load in Philadelphia in 10 years
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers from the Area Port of Philadelphia recently seized 709 pounds of cocaine, the largest local cocaine load in 10 years, which they found concealed inside cabinets shipped from Puerto Rico. The cocaine load, which has an estimated street value of... Read More »
DARPA taps Raytheon Company to complete development of collaborative autonomy software for UAS
The Defense Advanced Research Agency (DARPA) selected Tucson-based Raytheon Company Monday to complete development of software that enables unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) to leverage collaborative autonomy to perform long-distance engagements in contested battle spaces. After successful flight... Read More »