US program to detect cyberattacks on companies, agencies: "The United States is launching a program to detect cyberattacks on private US companies and government agencies running critical infrastructure such as the electricity grid and nuclear power plants, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.
The newspaper, citing 'people familiar with the program,' known as 'Perfect Citizen,' said the surveillance would be carried out by the National Security Agency (NSA), the super secret US electronic monitoring agency.
It would rely on sensors deployed in computer networks for critical infrastructure that would be triggered by unusual activity suggesting an impending cyberattack, the Journal said."
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Airbus submits bid for US military mega-project
Airbus submits bid for US military mega-project: "European aerospace giant Airbus on Thursday submitted its bid for a 40-billion-dollar US military contract also eyed by bitter rival Boeing.
Hoping to snare the contract 'of the century,' executives from Airbus's parent firm EADS said their 8,819-page bidding document was submitted ahead of a Friday deadline.
The winning firm will build 179 aerial refueling tankers for the US Air Force."
Hoping to snare the contract 'of the century,' executives from Airbus's parent firm EADS said their 8,819-page bidding document was submitted ahead of a Friday deadline.
The winning firm will build 179 aerial refueling tankers for the US Air Force."
Defense.gov News Article: Coalition Makes Progress, Regains Momentum, General Says
Defense.gov News Article: Coalition Makes Progress, Regains Momentum, General Says: "Coalition forces are making steady progress in Afghanistan, and the coalition and government are regaining the momentum from the Taliban, the commander of the International Security Assistance Force Joint Command said today. Video
But Army Lt. Gen. David M. Rodriguez, who commands the corps-sized group, is not sanguine about the progress.
“The situation remains serious, and we still face a tough and resourceful insurgency,” he said in a teleconference with Pentagon reporters. “But the momentum is beginning to shift to the Afghan forces’ advantage.”
The influx of 40,000 more U.S. and coalition troops this year and the new strategy they’re pursuing are making a difference in the country, the general said, but it will take time for concrete gains to emerge. Rodriguez asserted that the Afghan people are gaining confidence and that the country is headed in the right direction.
The Afghan national security forces are doing better and are taking the lead in many areas, Rodriguez said, noting that a recent commanders’ conference in the Afghan capital of Kabul looked at ways that coalition and Afghan commanders can improve plans and communicate better.
Helmand and Kandahar provinces are the main battleground in Afghanistan, and civil-military cooperation is a key factor for winning in these areas, the general said. Afghanistan’s national and provincial governments are working with local leaders to expand the influence and deliver services to the citizens, he said.
“They’re instituting and expanding responsive governing processes and civil capacity where there was none six months ago,” the general told reporters. “The independent director of local governance is bringing together Kandahar’s senior leadership with the provincial council members, district elders, local ministry representatives and representatives from the central government in Kabul. They're building consensus on the way forward to keep improving governance and service delivery.”
Officials across the spectrum are trying to synchronize civil efforts with security efforts, Rodriguez said.
Afghan security forces increasingly are leading security planning, Rodriguez said. Security officials are working to secure polling places for the September elections and are providing security for a Kabul conference also planned for that month.
“About 85 percent of the Afghan National Army are now partnered with coalition forces,” Rodriguez said. “Those partnerships will keep building capacity of the Afghan national security forces and increasingly allow the police and army to take the lead.
“And that is exactly what they want to do,” he continued. “There’s no shortage of courage and commitment across the ranks of the good leaders in the Afghan national security forces.”"
But Army Lt. Gen. David M. Rodriguez, who commands the corps-sized group, is not sanguine about the progress.
“The situation remains serious, and we still face a tough and resourceful insurgency,” he said in a teleconference with Pentagon reporters. “But the momentum is beginning to shift to the Afghan forces’ advantage.”
The influx of 40,000 more U.S. and coalition troops this year and the new strategy they’re pursuing are making a difference in the country, the general said, but it will take time for concrete gains to emerge. Rodriguez asserted that the Afghan people are gaining confidence and that the country is headed in the right direction.
The Afghan national security forces are doing better and are taking the lead in many areas, Rodriguez said, noting that a recent commanders’ conference in the Afghan capital of Kabul looked at ways that coalition and Afghan commanders can improve plans and communicate better.
Helmand and Kandahar provinces are the main battleground in Afghanistan, and civil-military cooperation is a key factor for winning in these areas, the general said. Afghanistan’s national and provincial governments are working with local leaders to expand the influence and deliver services to the citizens, he said.
“They’re instituting and expanding responsive governing processes and civil capacity where there was none six months ago,” the general told reporters. “The independent director of local governance is bringing together Kandahar’s senior leadership with the provincial council members, district elders, local ministry representatives and representatives from the central government in Kabul. They're building consensus on the way forward to keep improving governance and service delivery.”
Officials across the spectrum are trying to synchronize civil efforts with security efforts, Rodriguez said.
Afghan security forces increasingly are leading security planning, Rodriguez said. Security officials are working to secure polling places for the September elections and are providing security for a Kabul conference also planned for that month.
“About 85 percent of the Afghan National Army are now partnered with coalition forces,” Rodriguez said. “Those partnerships will keep building capacity of the Afghan national security forces and increasingly allow the police and army to take the lead.
“And that is exactly what they want to do,” he continued. “There’s no shortage of courage and commitment across the ranks of the good leaders in the Afghan national security forces.”"
Defense.gov News Article: Rodriguez Describes Changes to Operations in Afghanistan
Defense.gov News Article: Rodriguez Describes Changes to Operations in Afghanistan: "The commander of the International Security Assistance Force Joint Command in Afghanistan has made changes to improve command and control in the key province of Helmand.
Army Lt. Gen. David M. Rodriguez also spoke about the civil-military cooperation and lessons learned from the Marja campaign in Helmand.
A Marine battalion will replace British forces in the strategic town of Sangin along the Helmand River, Rodriguez said during a teleconference with Pentagon reporters today.
“The British are committing their theater reserve for the next several months into the central Helmand River valley to increase the security zones in the central Helmand River valley,” he said. A Georgian battalion -- a new addition to the ISAF coalition -- also is moving into the area, the general added.
“This is done to clean up the command and control [situation],” the general said. When all is done, U.S. Marines will be in the northern and southern parts of the province, the British will be concentrated in central Helmand, and the Georgian battalion will be in the west.
Rodriguez told reporters that there has been progress in and around Marja – an agricultural city that had been occupied by the Taliban for three years. “The critical things down in the districts are the delivery of services from the government and the security provided by the police, supported by the army,” he said.
The population is becoming more involved with their local governments and representative councils, Rodriguez said.
“As security grows and as the confidence of the people grows, it will become more representative of the whole district of Marja,” he said. “They are on an upward trajectory to move to that now, but they do not have a fully representative council yet. But they are participating in the council meetings and the shura meetings. … And we look forward to that continual growing confidence as they improve the security.”
It is a hard fight in the region. The Taliban have launched a murder and intimidation campaign to kill the community leaders. Patience is needed to effect change in the region, Rodriguez said, adding that the command and the Afghan government learned lessons from the fight in Marja that can be applied to the larger campaign in and around Kandahar – Afghanistan’s second-largest city and the spiritual home of the Taliban.
The Afghan government also learned many lessons from the experience, he added.
“Most of them had to do with prior planning, preparation, setting the political context and communicating early with the people,” Rodriguez said. “When we went into Marja, … we had not planned long enough in advance. We had done it kind of in a sequence, versus a parallel effort, so it was a little bit slower to get the government services and the development in there that we wanted.”
He said the experience caused the government to begin the political engagement and the consultations with the people much earlier in Kandahar province.
“The president of Afghanistan has already been down there twice, and is going there again shortly,” he said. “And the involvement of the people and the preparations of the Afghan government to best support the people of Kandahar are way ahead of what they were in central Helmand River valley, because of the lessons learned from all during those operations.”
It remains a hard fight in Afghanistan, the general acknowledged, and allied casualties have risen. June was the deadliest month for coalition troops since the war began.
“The soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines … are incredibly committed to what they’re doing,” Rodriguez said. “They’re incredibly committed to each other, to take care of each other and take care of the mission. And their morale remains high as they go into some of the toughest places and the toughest fights that we’ve been in because of going right at the Taliban support bases. So their morale continues to be high.”"
Army Lt. Gen. David M. Rodriguez also spoke about the civil-military cooperation and lessons learned from the Marja campaign in Helmand.
A Marine battalion will replace British forces in the strategic town of Sangin along the Helmand River, Rodriguez said during a teleconference with Pentagon reporters today.
“The British are committing their theater reserve for the next several months into the central Helmand River valley to increase the security zones in the central Helmand River valley,” he said. A Georgian battalion -- a new addition to the ISAF coalition -- also is moving into the area, the general added.
“This is done to clean up the command and control [situation],” the general said. When all is done, U.S. Marines will be in the northern and southern parts of the province, the British will be concentrated in central Helmand, and the Georgian battalion will be in the west.
Rodriguez told reporters that there has been progress in and around Marja – an agricultural city that had been occupied by the Taliban for three years. “The critical things down in the districts are the delivery of services from the government and the security provided by the police, supported by the army,” he said.
The population is becoming more involved with their local governments and representative councils, Rodriguez said.
“As security grows and as the confidence of the people grows, it will become more representative of the whole district of Marja,” he said. “They are on an upward trajectory to move to that now, but they do not have a fully representative council yet. But they are participating in the council meetings and the shura meetings. … And we look forward to that continual growing confidence as they improve the security.”
It is a hard fight in the region. The Taliban have launched a murder and intimidation campaign to kill the community leaders. Patience is needed to effect change in the region, Rodriguez said, adding that the command and the Afghan government learned lessons from the fight in Marja that can be applied to the larger campaign in and around Kandahar – Afghanistan’s second-largest city and the spiritual home of the Taliban.
The Afghan government also learned many lessons from the experience, he added.
“Most of them had to do with prior planning, preparation, setting the political context and communicating early with the people,” Rodriguez said. “When we went into Marja, … we had not planned long enough in advance. We had done it kind of in a sequence, versus a parallel effort, so it was a little bit slower to get the government services and the development in there that we wanted.”
He said the experience caused the government to begin the political engagement and the consultations with the people much earlier in Kandahar province.
“The president of Afghanistan has already been down there twice, and is going there again shortly,” he said. “And the involvement of the people and the preparations of the Afghan government to best support the people of Kandahar are way ahead of what they were in central Helmand River valley, because of the lessons learned from all during those operations.”
It remains a hard fight in Afghanistan, the general acknowledged, and allied casualties have risen. June was the deadliest month for coalition troops since the war began.
“The soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines … are incredibly committed to what they’re doing,” Rodriguez said. “They’re incredibly committed to each other, to take care of each other and take care of the mission. And their morale remains high as they go into some of the toughest places and the toughest fights that we’ve been in because of going right at the Taliban support bases. So their morale continues to be high.”"
Military points East for aid with Gulf War illness - BostonHerald.com
Military points East for aid with Gulf War illness - BostonHerald.com: "At first glance, it seems like the oddest of couplings: The New England School of Acupuncture and the U.S. Department of Defense, working on a project together?
But the collaboration has been great, said the school’s chief researcher, Lisa Conboy, who is heading up a six-month study of acupuncture’s impact on Gulf War illness.
Still, the acupuncture school’s $1.2 million Department of Defense grant marks the first time that the military has earmarked funds to study the still mysterious therapy’s impact on people with Gulf War illness.
The complex diagnosis impacts the lives of about some 100,000 Gulf War veterans, and sufferers say the symptoms can linger for years.
"
But the collaboration has been great, said the school’s chief researcher, Lisa Conboy, who is heading up a six-month study of acupuncture’s impact on Gulf War illness.
Still, the acupuncture school’s $1.2 million Department of Defense grant marks the first time that the military has earmarked funds to study the still mysterious therapy’s impact on people with Gulf War illness.
The complex diagnosis impacts the lives of about some 100,000 Gulf War veterans, and sufferers say the symptoms can linger for years.
"
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
General says Iraq may need U.N. force | Philadelphia Inquirer | 07/07/2010
General says Iraq may need U.N. force | Philadelphia Inquirer | 07/07/2010: "The top U.S. military commander in Iraq said Tuesday that U.N. peacekeeping forces may need to replace departing U.S. troops in the nation's oil-rich north if a simmering feud between Arabs and minority Kurds continues through 2011.
A U.N. force might offer both the Iraqi leadership and President Obama a politically palatable alternative to a continued U.S. presence to prevent ethnic tensions from descending into war. Although occasional bombings by Sunni extremists on Shiite targets grab the headlines, many observers believe the Kurdish-Arab dispute is the biggest fault line in Iraq today.
Gen. Ray Odierno brought up the possibility of a U.N. force during an interview with the Associated Press. He observed that there is no immediate end in sight to the years-long dispute between Arabs and Kurds, who have managed an uneasy political dance under American supervision since the fall of Saddam Hussein.
'That's something that has to be worked out,' Odierno said, discussing potential options to defuse hostilities if a pilot program to bring Kurdish troops into the Arab-dominated Iraqi army fails."
A U.N. force might offer both the Iraqi leadership and President Obama a politically palatable alternative to a continued U.S. presence to prevent ethnic tensions from descending into war. Although occasional bombings by Sunni extremists on Shiite targets grab the headlines, many observers believe the Kurdish-Arab dispute is the biggest fault line in Iraq today.
Gen. Ray Odierno brought up the possibility of a U.N. force during an interview with the Associated Press. He observed that there is no immediate end in sight to the years-long dispute between Arabs and Kurds, who have managed an uneasy political dance under American supervision since the fall of Saddam Hussein.
'That's something that has to be worked out,' Odierno said, discussing potential options to defuse hostilities if a pilot program to bring Kurdish troops into the Arab-dominated Iraqi army fails."
Super-High Pressures To Create Super Battery
Super-High Pressures To Create Super Battery: "Using super-high pressures similar to those found deep in the Earth or on a giant planet, Washington State University researchers have created a compact, never-before-seen material capable of storing vast amounts of energy.
'If you think about it, it is the most condensed form of energy storage outside of nuclear energy,' says Choong-Shik Yoo, a WSU chemistry professor and lead author of results published in the journal Nature Chemistry.
The research is basic science, but Yoo says it shows it is possible to store mechanical energy into the chemical energy of a material with such strong chemical bonds. Possible future applications include creating a new class of energetic materials or fuels, an energy storage device, super-oxidizing materials for destroying chemical and biological agents, and high-temperature superconductors."
'If you think about it, it is the most condensed form of energy storage outside of nuclear energy,' says Choong-Shik Yoo, a WSU chemistry professor and lead author of results published in the journal Nature Chemistry.
The research is basic science, but Yoo says it shows it is possible to store mechanical energy into the chemical energy of a material with such strong chemical bonds. Possible future applications include creating a new class of energetic materials or fuels, an energy storage device, super-oxidizing materials for destroying chemical and biological agents, and high-temperature superconductors."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)