The Homeland Defense (HD) Digest is a curated bi-weekly news summary from worldwide sources, showing headlines of innovative, emerging technologies in HDIAC's eight focus areas.

HDIAC ANNOUNCEMENTS:

HDIAC Webinar, Wednesday, Feb 26th @ 1200 EST: Critical Infrastructure Resilience through Communication, Coordination, and Collaboration - HDIAC

This presentation focuses on the role of communication, coordination, and collaboration for critical infrastructure resilience. The webinar will discuss the increasing importance of multi-stakeholder partnerships - across the public, private, and academic sectors - in promoting resilience within and across the four major increasingly interdependent critical infrastructure systems: energy, transportation, water, and communications.

In Case You Missed It – HDIAC Webinar: Historical Significance of Endemic Infectious Diseases and Loss of Warfighter Combat Effectiveness - HDIAC

In this presentation, a historical review of infectious disease-related combat injuries and deaths will be presented with an emphasis on the 1918 Influenza Pandemic during WWI, dengue and US Marine Forces in Saipan during WWII, dengue and US Forces Haiti and Somalia, malaria outbreak in US Marines deployed to Monrovia, and leishmaniasis and multi-drug resistant bacteria in US Forces during Persian Gulf War II. Lessons learned for future deployments will also be discussed.

RECENT HEADLINES:

Modifying Hurricane Relief Strategies - Homeland Security

Alleviating suffering more effectively in the wake of hurricanes may require a shift in relief strategies. In the immediate aftermath, relief agencies rush in survival supplies like water, food, medicine, and blankets. But instead of prioritizing and maintaining the relief supply chains, a transition to restoring a place's normal supply infrastructure could help more people more quickly.

Siri Users Consent Before Enrolling Voice Biometrics, Apple Argues Seeking BIPA Suit Dismissal - BiometricUpddate

Apple has asked a circuit court judge to dismiss a potential class action lawsuit filed against it under the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) of Illinois, on grounds that its virtual assistant Siri captures and stores biometric "voiceprints" of users only with their voluntary and intentional participation in an optional process, the Cook County Record reports.

Snapshot: S&T and FEMA Social Media Planning Tool Supports Enhanced Emergency Management Operations and Communications Nationwide - Homeland Security

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) recently collaborated with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Office of Response and Recovery (ORR), External Affairs, and the Emergency Management Institute (EMI), as well as various public safety and emergency management practitioners, to develop, pilot, and launch a single page web application called the Social Media for Emergency Managers (SMEM) Guidance Tool. The SMEM Guidance Tool will increase first responder and emergency managers' ability to deliver messages to the public before, during, and after an incident by providing social media planning templates, resources, and best practices to first responders, emergency managers, and public information officers (PIO) looking to develop effective social media emergency operations programs and better reach their community where they are.

Army’s New Fabric Works to Destroy Nerve Agents - ArmyTimes

Nerve agents are some of deadliest substances on the planet. From Sarin gas, which turns the human nervous system against itself, to mustard gas, which burns on contact and disrupts respiratory function, these often unseen chemicals are ones the Army sees as not only worth protecting against, but working to destroy.

Lasers Etch a ‘Perfect’ Solar Energy Absorber - ScienceDaily

Researchers demonstrate how laser etching of metallic surfaces creates the "perfect solar energy absorber." This not only enhances energy absorption from sunlight, but also reduces heat dissipation at other wavelengths. The researchers also demonstrate solar energy harnessing with a thermal electric generator.

Safe Potassium-ion Batteries - ScienceDaily

Scientists have developed a nonflammable electrolyte for potassium and potassium-ion batteries, for applications in next-generation energy-storage systems beyond lithium technology. Scientists explain that the novel electrolyte based on an organic phosphate makes the batteries safer and also allows for operation at reduced concentrations, which is a necessary condition for large-scale applications.

Preparing for the Big One: Oregon to Fund ShakeAlert - Homeland Security

With a vision for preparing the state for a large Cascadia earthquake, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced on Monday a resiliency agenda for the upcoming legislative session that would include $7.5 million in funding to the University of Oregon to build out the ShakeAlert earthquake early warning system.

Anti-solar Cells: A Photovoltaic Cell that Works at Night - ScienceDaily

What if solar cells worked at night? That's no joke. In fact, a specially designed photovoltaic cell could generate up to 50 watts of power per square meter under ideal conditions at night, about a quarter of what a conventional solar panel can generate in daytime, according to a recent concept article.

Proclamation on Suspension of Entry as Immigrants and Non-immigrants of Persons who Pose a Risk of Transmitting 2019 Novel Coronavirus - The White House

The United States has confirmed cases of individuals who have a severe acute respiratory illness caused by a novel (new) coronavirus ("2019-nCoV") ("the virus") first detected in Wuhan, Hubei Province, People's Republic of China ("China").  The virus was discovered in China in December 2019.  As of January 31, 2020, Chinese health officials have reported approximately 10,000 confirmed cases of 2019-nCoV in China, more than the number of confirmed cases of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) during its 2003 outbreak.  An additional 114 cases have been confirmed across 22 other countries; in several of these cases, the infected individuals had not visited China.  More than 200 people have died from the virus, all in China.

Protecting the U.S. Wind Energy Infrastructure - Homeland Security

As the planet becomes more reliant on computers and more connected via the internet, our nation's critical infrastructure is increasingly vulnerable to cyber-attacks. This is especially true for power utilities and the electric grid, which offer tempting targets to hostile actors due to the ability to cause widespread power outages or other disruptions. Indeed, cyber criminals have already infiltrated the nation's power infrastructure, and experts say now is the time to protect these vital assets.

Despite Defeats, the Islamic State Remains Unbroken and Defiant Around the World - Homeland Security

In a series of bloody campaigns from 2014 to 2019, a multinational military coalition drove the Islamic State group, often known as ISIS, out of much of the Iraqi and Syrian territory that the strict militant theocracy had brutally governed. But the Pentagon and the United Nations both estimate that the group still has as many as 30,000 active insurgents in the region. Thousands more IS-aligned fighters are spread across Africa and Asia, from the scrublands of Mali and Niger to the deserts of Iraq and mountains of Afghanistan, to the island jungles of the Philippines.

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