ExtremismMI5 Director: U.K. Faces Growing Threats from Russia, China, Iran—and Right-Wing Extremists Published 15 July 2021 The director-general of MI5, the U.K. domestic intelligence service, said the agency is doubling the resources it devotes to tackling threats from Russia, China and Iran, and shifting more resources to tackle the rapidly growing posed by right-wing extremists,

Coastal challengesMapping How Sea-Level Rise Adaptation Strategies Impact Economies, Floodwaters Published 15 July 2021 Sea levels are expected to rise by almost seven feet in the Bay Area by 2100. New research shows how traditional approaches to combating sea-level rise can create a domino effect of environmental and economic impacts for nearby communities. Communities trying to

Election securityGermany Fights Cyberattacks and Fraud Claims to Ensure Fair Election By Ben Knight Published 14 July 2021 Germany is in the middle of an election year that will see unprecedented use of mail-in ballots as well as hacker attacks against politicians. Election authorities reject claims of potential voter fraud. German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer has

BiometricsEvaluating Face Recognition Software’s Accuracy for Flight Boarding Published 14 July 2021 Recent tests show that the most accurate face recognition algorithms have demonstrated the capability to confirm airline passenger identities while making very few errors. Facial recognition is currently part of the onboarding process for international flights, both to confirm a passenger’s identity for

Photo encryptionEncrypting Photos on the Cloud to Keep Them Private Published 14 July 2021 The limited amount of data that smartphones hold, and the way in which they are vulnerable to accidental loss and damage, lead many users to store their images online via cloud photo services. However, these online photo collections are not just

Earthquakes early warningSmartphone Network Offers Inexpensive Earthquake Early Warning Published 14 July 2021 A new study demonstrates how Earthquake Early Warning using smartphone technology can be both inexpensive and effective for millions of people.  In late 2019, a research team assembled 82 smartphones, strapped them to walls and floors in buildings across Costa Rica and waited

InfrastructureMaking Infrastructure Pay Off By Peter Dizikes Published 14 July 2021 James M. Poterba, an MIT economist, advocates for cost-benefit analyses of projects, finds that repairing infrastructure often pays off more than new projects, and suggests that infrastructure user fees be considered as a source of financing for projects. He argues that the value in

China watchEU Agrees on Global Infrastructure Plan to Rival China’s Belt and Road Initiative By Jamie Dettmer Published 13 July 2021 On Monday the EU announced an ambitious global infrastructure plan which aims to counter China’s Belt and Road Initiative. Western governments fear that China’s project encourages countries to take on large Chinese loans which

DamsBipartisan Legislation Addresses Dams’ Safety, Hydropower Published 13 July 2021 There are more than 90,000 dams in the U.S., including 6,000 “high-hazard” dams with poor, unsatisfactory, or unknown safety ratings, posing threats to life and property. Hydropower is responsible for 6 percent of electricity production in the U.S.— and more than 90 percent of the

CybersecurityClosing the Skills Gap in the Cyber Workforce Published 13 July 2021 There are currently more than three million unfilled cybersecurity jobs globally, and, as high-profile incidents like the Solar Winds attack demonstrate, it is vital to address that shortage. But it is difficult for organizations to find and recruit the cyber talent they need. Gather