Recent News

By Region: North America

Biosecurity board asked to review bird flu research

(USA TODAY) Federal officials have asked a biosecurity scientist panel to broadly review bird flu transmission research for public health concerns. The review follows the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity’s (NSABB) last month calling for withholding of details of two potentially-dangerous bird flu studies. An expert panel under the National Institutes of Health, the Read More »

January 11, 2012
| Filed under North America, Agents & Toxins, Policy & Initiatives, and Research
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Biological indecision

(Malcolm Dando | Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists) The December 2011 Seventh Review Conference of the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) in Geneva was widely expected to significantly strengthen international measures in the prohibition regime against weapons of mass destruction. After all, the review came after a series of constructive annual meetings in the second Intersessional Read More »

January 10, 2012
| Filed under Africa, Asia/Pacific, Europe, Middle East, North America, South America, South Asia, Biological Weapons, International, and Policy & Initiatives
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The nuclear, biological and climate threat – 2011 reviewed

(EurekAlert!) Gerald Epstein, director of the Center for Science, Technology, and Security Policy (CSIS) of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, says that 2011 saw progress on approaches to address biological threats posed by non-state groups at both the Seventh Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) Review Conference and the G8 Global Partnership Against the Read More »

January 9, 2012
| Filed under Africa, Asia/Pacific, Europe, Middle East, North America, South America, South Asia, Biological Weapons, Biotechnology, Bioterrorism, Countermeasures, International, and Policy & Initiatives
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An Engineered Doomsday

(New York Times) In the future, it is imperative that any such experiments be rigorously analyzed for potential dangers — preferably through an international review mechanism, but also by governmental funding agencies — before they are undertaken, not after the fact as is happening in this case. The most frightening research was done by scientists Read More »

January 9, 2012
| Filed under North America, Biological Weapons, Biotechnology, International, Policy & Initiatives, Public Health, and Research
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Experimenting with oversight with more bite?

(Practical Ethics) It was probably hard for the US National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB) to avoid getting plenty of coal in its Christmas stockings this year, sent from various parties who felt NSABB were either stifling academic freedom or not doing …