• ThruVision shows T5000 T-ray security imaging system

    T-rays operate in the terahertz region of the electromagnetic spectrum; T-ray-based detection system can see through clothing of still or moving individuals at a distance of up to twenty-five meters to reveal hidden objects

  • U.S. water supply contaminated by pharmaceuticals

    There are 302 million people in the United States, but over the past five years, the number of U.S. prescriptions rose 12 percent to a record 3.7 billion, while nonprescription drug purchases reached 3.3 billion; ingredients of these medications find their way to, and contaminate, the U.S. water supply; federal, state, and local governments do not regulate medical discharges into drinking water

  • TSA tests ferry radiation sniffer at Galveston

    Tests began last Thursday; equipment was able to find small amounts placed in TSA vehicles; each sniffer costs $150,000, and are sensitive enough to detect the radiation in someone who has been injected with radioactive dye for a medical procedure two weeks after the injection

  • Canberra shows Falcon 5000 portable radiation detector

    The company has more than four decades of experience in radiation measurements of all kinds; the Falcon 5000, a portable radionuclide identifier for first responders, determines whether there is a radiation source present, the location of that source, and which isotopes are emitting the radiation

    • view counter

  • Innovators hitch a ride on drive for national security

    Three U.K. companies share their experience in penetrating the U.S. homeland security market; their advice: Identify the right market, build relationships with industry leaders, talk about your programs, and prepare your family for the long hours at the office

  • Abu Dhabi International Airport buys two CTX 9000 DSi EDS

    GE Security claims its EDS is the world’s most widely deployed inline checked baggage explosives screening solution; it is certainly popular at Middle East airports

    • view counter

  • Study: U.S. needs better ways to evaluate radiation detection systems

    Current radiation detectors placed at U.S. ports cost about $82,000 each and have a high false-alarm rate; DHS wants to buy 800 new detectors, at a cost of $360,000 each, but lawmakers and experts say that before this money is spent, there should be a better way to evaluate the effectiveness of the new systems

  • IAEA: More nuclear sleuths needed

    Two U.S. scientific associations recently concluded that the number of U.S. nuclear smuggling experts is dwindling to a point at which U.S. national security would be affected; the IAEA says the same is true for the world as a whole

  • ICx to develop battlefield biodetection device

    ICx will use the research and development capabilities of Mesosystems Technologies in New Mexico, a company it had acquired in 2005, to develop a biodetection system to be used on the battlefield; new device will be made for continuous air monitoring in outdoor settings

  • TSA lab's new concept in airport security: Tunnel of Truth

    Futuristic vision of airport security would see passengers stand on a conveyor belt moving under an archway as different sensors scan them for weapons, bombs, and other prohibited items; no need to take the shoes off; by the time they step out of the tunnel, they have been thoroughly checked out

  • Number of U.S. nuclear smuggling experts to shrink

    There are between 35 to 50 experts in the United States specializing in identifying smuggled nuclear materials and nuclear bomb components; trouble is, about half of them are set to retire in the next fifteen years, and the pipeline of young researchers who could replace them are nearly empty; scientific organizations call for action

  • Ahura Scientific shows handheld FTIR chemical identification device

    First responders — but also those in charge of chemical clean-ups, quality control, product verification, raw material inspection, pharmaceutical manufacturing, food production, petrochemical processing, and composite analysis — would welcome this small, light chemical identifier

  • T-rays make possible new generation of sensors

    Simple metallic surfaces are already being used to control T-ray propagation before, but these only weakly guide the radiation, which extends as a weak field many centimetres above the surface of the material, making it less effective for sensing; U.K., Spanish researchers show that a metamaterial surface draws T-rays close to it, creating a very strong field less than a millimeter above the surface, thus enhancing the absorption by molecules on the surface and making highly effective sensing techniques possible

  • New method for anthrax decontamination developed

    Yellow Jackets, SMD researchers develop an X-rays and UV-C light-based method for anthrax decontamination; it is rapid and nondisruptive, and also less expensive than currently available decontamination methods; it kills anthrax spores — even those hidden in crevices and cracks — within two to three hours without any lingering effects

  • UDT signs China distribution agreement

    Universal Detection Technology, developer of bioterror and infectious diseases detection technologies, signs up a Chinese distributor with good connection with the central and provincial governments