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By Category: Research

USDA secretary touts importance of NBAF project

(Wall Street Journal) U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said Tuesday that construction of the National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility near Kansas State University should move forward and not be considered a “parochial” issue relevant only to Kansas. After a Landon Lecture Tuesday, Vilsack said having the proposed $650 million research facility was important to ensure Read More »

April 11, 2012
| Filed under North America, Agriculture, Policy & Initiatives, and Research
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Analysis of 15 Failed Terrorist Plots Against Surface Transportation Provides … – MarketWatch (press release)

Analysis of 15 Failed Terrorist Plots Against Surface Transportation Provides …MarketWatch (press release)For example, four of the plots involved chemical or biological substances – poison gas or ricin. It seems highly likely that the plotters in these cases had in mind the 1995 sarin attack in Tokyo, where terrorists dispersed nerve gas in subways, …and Read More »

April 10, 2012
| Filed under Research
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Fast-Acting Bioagent Detector Developed in Wales

(Global Security Newswire) The Welsh branch of a Germany security company has led development of a portable device that within minutes could reveal a bioterror agent that had been introduced into drinking water, the Cardiff Western Mail reported on Saturday. “Growing concern about drinking water safety and the highly distributive nature of water supplies highlights Read More »

April 10, 2012
| Filed under Europe, Biotechnology, Bioterrorism, Countermeasures, Public Health, and Research
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Beyond the breach: Officials look back at safety and security a decade after anthrax scare

(FrederickNewsPost.com) Ten years ago today, a leaking flask of anthrax set off a series of events that led scientist Bruce Ivins to an unsettling discovery: Anthrax spores had made their way outside a containment lab, contaminating several areas and renewing fears that the community at large was at risk for possible exposure. Army investigators never Read More »

April 10, 2012
| Filed under North America, Biosafety, Bioterrorism, Policy & Initiatives, and Research
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Government Acts On Biosecurity

(The Biological SCENE) A long-awaited federal policy on oversight of dual-use research in the life sciences was issued on March 29 on a somewhat obscure government website (oba.od.nih.gov). The policy comes in the midst of controversy over the conduct and publication of two recent H5N1 avian flu experiments. The policy document was quickly followed by Read More »