Recent News

By Region: North America

Talk of Food Safety Consolidation Takes Bipartisan Turn

(Food Safety News) U.S. Rep. Cynthia Lummis, a conservative Republican from Wyoming, is starting to sound a lot like her colleague Rep. Rose DeLauro, a liberal Democrat from Connecticut — at least when it comes to fixing the nation’s fragmented food safety system. Citing a Government Accountability Office report on the issue, Rep. Lummis argued Read More »

March 16, 2012
| Filed under North America, Agriculture, Policy & Initiatives, and Public Health
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Pentagon Could Expand WMD Response Command Roles

(Global Security Newswire) The military’s “response enterprise” for handling chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents “will reach full operational capability” on Oct. 1, with more than 18,000 active-duty federal, reserve and National Guard forces, he said. “These forces are focused on lifesaving and are trained and equipped to provide critical search and rescue, decontamination, emergency Read More »

March 16, 2012
| Filed under North America, Biological Weapons, and Policy & Initiatives
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Killer silk: Making silk fibers that kill anthrax and other microbes in minutes

(Canada Free Press) A simple, inexpensive dip-and-dry treatment can convert ordinary silk into a fabric that kills disease-causing bacteria — even the armor-coated spores of microbes like anthrax — in minutes, scientists are reporting in the journal ACS Applied …

March 15, 2012
| Filed under North America, Countermeasures, and Research
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The Societal Impacts of Synthetic Biology

(Synthetic Biology Project) A new online survey seeks public opinion about the most pressing ethical, legal, and social implications of synthetic biology. The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars is soliciting public opinion on the most critical ethical, legal, and social implications (ELSI) for synthetic biology in a new online survey, which will provide guidance Read More »

March 15, 2012
| Filed under Europe, North America, Biotechnology, International, Policy & Initiatives, and Research
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Powder Sent to Lawmakers ID’d as Celery Salt, Corn Starch

(Global Security Newswire) The suspicious powder contained in scores of envelopes sent to news organizations and U.S. lawmakers was a blend of harmless corn starch and celery salt, the Associated Press reported on Wednesday. Christopher Lee Carlson, 39, faces separate charges of sending threatening statements to a U.S. lawmaker and mailing a letter threatening to Read More »