Public Health Assessment of Potential Biological Terrorism Agents
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Pandemic Disease, Biological Weapons, and War
Georgetown University Law Center Scholarship @ GEORGETOWN LAW 2014 Pandemic Disease, Biological Weapons, and War Laura K. Donohue Georgetown University Law Center, [email protected] This paper can be downloaded free of charge from: https://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/facpub/1296 http://ssrn.com/abstract=2350304 Laura K. Donohue, Pandemic Disease, Biological Weapons, and War in LAW AND WAR: (Sarat, Austin, Douglas, Lawrence, and Umphrey, Martha Merrill, eds., Stanford University Press, 2014) This open-access article is brought to you by the Georgetown Law Library. Posted with permission of the author. Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/facpub Part of the Defense and Security Studies Commons, Military and Veterans Studies Commons, Military, War, and Peace Commons, and the National Security Law Commons PANDEMIC DISEASE , BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS , AND WAR Laura K. Donohue * Over the past two decades, concern about the threat posed by biological weapons has grown. Biowarfare is not new. 1 But prior to the recent trend, the threat largely centered on state use of such weapons. 2 What changed with the end of the Cold War was the growing apprehension that materials and knowledge would proliferate beyond industrialized states’ control, and that “rogue states” or nonstate actors would acquire and use biological weapons. 3 Accordingly, in 1993 senators Samuel Nunn, Richard Lugar, and Pete Dominici expanded the Cooperative Threat Reduction Program to assist the former Soviet republics in securing biological agents and weapons knowledge. The Defense Against Weapons of Mass Destruction Act gave the Pentagon lead agency responsibility. 4 Senator Lugar explained, “[B]iological weapons, materials, and know-how are now more available to terrorists and rogue nations than at any other time in our history.”5 The United States was not equipped to manage the crisis. -
In Defense of Cyberterrorism: an Argument for Anticipating Cyber-Attacks
IN DEFENSE OF CYBERTERRORISM: AN ARGUMENT FOR ANTICIPATING CYBER-ATTACKS Susan W. Brenner Marc D. Goodman The September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States brought the notion of terrorism as a clear and present danger into the consciousness of the American people. In order to predict what might follow these shocking attacks, it is necessary to examine the ideologies and motives of their perpetrators, and the methodologies that terrorists utilize. The focus of this article is on how Al-Qa'ida and other Islamic fundamentalist groups can use cyberspace and technology to continue to wage war againstthe United States, its allies and its foreign interests. Contending that cyberspace will become an increasingly essential terrorist tool, the author examines four key issues surrounding cyberterrorism. The first is a survey of conventional methods of "physical" terrorism, and their inherent shortcomings. Next, a discussion of cyberspace reveals its potential advantages as a secure, borderless, anonymous, and structured delivery method for terrorism. Third, the author offers several cyberterrorism scenarios. Relating several examples of both actual and potential syntactic and semantic attacks, instigated individually or in combination, the author conveys their damagingpolitical and economic impact. Finally, the author addresses the inevitable inquiry into why cyberspace has not been used to its full potential by would-be terrorists. Separately considering foreign and domestic terrorists, it becomes evident that the aims of terrorists must shift from the gross infliction of panic, death and destruction to the crippling of key information systems before cyberattacks will take precedence over physical attacks. However, given that terrorist groups such as Al Qa'ida are highly intelligent, well-funded, and globally coordinated, the possibility of attacks via cyberspace should make America increasingly vigilant. -
Pathogens As Weapons Gregory Koblentz the International Security Implications of Biological Warfare
Pathogens as Weapons Pathogens as Weapons Gregory Koblentz The International Security Implications of Biological Warfare Biological weapons have become one of the key security issues of the twenty-ªrst century.1 Three factors that ªrst emerged in the 1990s have contributed to this phenomenon. First, revelations regarding the size, scope, and sophistication of the Soviet and Iraqi biological warfare programs focused renewed attention on the prolifera- tion of these weapons.2 Second, the catastrophic terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, and the anthrax letters sent to media outlets and Senate ofªces in the United States during the following month, demonstrated the desire of terror- ists to cause massive casualties and heightened concern over their ability to employ biological weapons.3 Third, signiªcant advances in the life sciences have increased concerns about how the biotechnology revolution could be ex- ploited to develop new or improved biological weapons.4 These trends suggest that there is a greater need than ever to answer several fundamental questions about biological warfare: What is the nature of the threat? What are the poten- tial strategic consequences of the proliferation of biological weapons? How ef- Gregory Koblentz is a doctoral candidate in Political Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. I would like to thank Robert Art, Thomas Christensen, Linda Fu, Jeanne Guillemin, Kendall Hoyt, Milton Leitenberg, John Ellis van Courtland Moon, Julian Perry Robinson, Harvey Sapolsky, Mar- garet Sloane, Jonathan Tucker, and Stephen Van Evera for their support and discussion of previous drafts. I am also grateful for comments from the participants in seminars at the Massachusetts In- stitute of Technology’s Security Studies Program, Harvard University’s John M. -
Mitchell & Kilner
THE NEWSLETTER VOLUME 9 OF THE CENTER NUMBER 3 FOR BIOETHICS AND SUMMER 2003 HUMAN DIGNITY Inside: Remaking Humans: The New Utopians Versus a Truly Human Future1 Remaking Humans: The New Utopians Versus a Truly Human C. Ben Mitchell, Ph.D., Senior FeIIow,The Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity 1 John F. Kilner, Ph.D., President,The Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity Future If the nineteenth century was the age of the mentally by making use of reason, science, The Genetics of Mice and Men: machine and the twentieth century the infor and technology. In addition, respect for the Can—and Should—We mation age, this century is, by most accounts, rights of the individual and a belief in the 2 the age of biotechnology. In this biotech cen power of human ingenuity are important ele Intervene? tury we may witness the invention of cures for ments of transhumanism. Transhumanists genetically linked diseases, including also repudiate belief in the existence of super Movie Review natural powers that guide us. These things 4 Alzheimer’s, cancer, and a host of maladies News from the Field that cause tremendous human suffering. We together represent the core of our philosophy. may see amazing developments in food pro The critical and rational approach which duction with genetically modified foods that transhumanists support is at the service of the 6 Book Review actually carry therapeutic drugs inside them. desire to improve humankind and humanity in all their facets.” Bioterrorism and high-tech weaponry may 7 Center Resources also be in our future. Some researchers are even suggesting that our future might include Again, the idea of improving society through the remaking of the human species. -
Agroterrorism: Threats and Preparedness
Order Code RL32521 Agroterrorism: Threats and Preparedness Updated March 12, 2007 Jim Monke Analyst in Agricultural Policy Resources, Science, and Industry Division Agroterrorism: Threats and Preparedness Summary The potential for terrorist attacks against agricultural targets (agroterrorism) is increasingly recognized as a national security threat, especially after the events of September 11, 2001. Agroterrorism is a subset of bioterrorism, and is defined as the deliberate introduction of an animal or plant disease with the goal of generating fear, causing economic losses, and/or undermining social stability. The goal of agroterrorism is not to kill cows or plants. These are the means to the end of causing economic damage, social unrest, and loss of confidence in government. Human health could be at risk if contaminated food reaches the table or if an animal pathogen is transmissible to humans (zoonotic). While agriculture may not be a terrorist’s first choice because it lacks the “shock factor” of more traditional terrorist targets, many analysts consider it a viable secondary target. Agriculture has several characteristics that pose unique vulnerabilities. Farms are geographically disbursed in unsecured environments. Livestock are frequently concentrated in confined locations, and transported or commingled with other herds. Many agricultural diseases can be obtained, handled, and distributed easily. International trade in food products often is tied to disease-free status, which could be jeopardized by an attack. Many veterinarians lack experience with foreign animal diseases that are eradicated domestically but remain endemic in foreign countries. In the past five years, “food defense” has received increasing attention in the counterterrorism and bioterrorism communities. Laboratory and response capacity are being upgraded to address the reality of agroterrorism, and national response plans now incorporate agroterrorism. -
Bioterrorism, Biological Weapons and Anthrax
Bioterrorism, Biological Weapons and Anthrax Part IV Written by Arthur H. Garrison Criminal Justice Planning Coordinator Delaware Criminal Justice Council Bioterrorism and biological weapons The use of bio-terrorism and bio-warfare dates back to 6th century when the Assyrians poisoned the well water of their enemies. The goal of using biological weapons is to cause massive sickness or death in the intended target. Bioterrorism and biological weapons The U.S. took the threat of biological weapons attack seriously after Gulf War. Anthrax vaccinations of U.S. troops Investigating Iraq and its biological weapons capacity The Soviet Union manufactured various types of biological weapons during the 1980’s • To be used after a nuclear exchange • Manufacturing new biological weapons – Gene engineering – creating new types of viruses/bacteria • Contagious viruses – Ebola, Marburg (Filoviruses) - Hemorrhagic fever diseases (vascular system dissolves) – Smallpox The spread of biological weapons after the fall of the Soviet Union •Material • Knowledge and expertise •Equipment Bioterrorism and biological weapons There are two basic categories of biological warfare agents. Microorganisms • living organic germs, such as anthrax (bacillus anthrax). –Bacteria –Viruses Toxins • By-products of living organisms (natural poisons) such as botulism (botulinum toxin) which is a by- product of growing the microorganism clostridium botulinum Bioterrorism and biological weapons The U.S. was a leader in the early research on biological weapons Research on making -
Agricultural Bioterrorism
From the pages of Recent titles Agricultural Bioterrorism: A Federal Strategy to Meet the Threat Agricultural in the McNair MCNAIR PAPER 65 Bioterrorism: Paper series: A Federal Strategy to Meet the Threat 64 The United States ignores the The Strategic Implications of a Nuclear-Armed Iran Agricultural potential for agricultural bioter- Kori N. Schake and rorism at its peril. The relative Judith S. Yaphe Bioterrorism: ease of a catastrophic bio- weapons attack against the 63 A Federal Strategy American food and agriculture All Possible Wars? infrastructure, and the devastat- Toward a Consensus View of the Future Security to Meet the Threat ing economic and social conse- Environment, 2001–2025 quences of such an act, demand Sam J. Tangredi that the Nation pursue an aggres- sive, focused, coordinated, and 62 stand-alone national strategy to The Revenge of the Melians: Asymmetric combat agricultural bioterrorism. Threats and the Next QDR The strategy should build on Kenneth F. McKenzie, Jr. counterterrorism initiatives already underway; leverage exist- 61 ing Federal, state, and local pro- Illuminating HENRY S. PARKER grams and capabilities; and Tomorrow’s War Martin C. Libicki involve key customers, stake- PARKER holders, and partners. The U.S. 60 Department of Agriculture The Revolution in should lead the development of Military Affairs: this strategy. Allied Perspectives Robbin F. Laird and Holger H. Mey Institute for National Strategic Studies National Defense University About the Author NATIONAL DEFENSE UNIVERSITY President: Vice Admiral Paul G. Gaffney II, USN Henry S. Parker is National Program Leader for Aquaculture at the Vice President: Ambassador Robin Lynn Raphel Agricultural Research Service in the U.S. -
Efficient Responses to Catastrophic Risk Richard A
University of Chicago Law School Chicago Unbound Journal Articles Faculty Scholarship 2006 Efficient Responseso t Catastrophic Risk Richard A. Posner Follow this and additional works at: https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/journal_articles Part of the Law Commons Recommended Citation Richard A. Posner, "Efficient Responseso t Catastrophic Risk," 6 Chicago Journal of International Law 511 (2006). This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Faculty Scholarship at Chicago Unbound. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal Articles by an authorized administrator of Chicago Unbound. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Efficient Responses to Catastrophic Risk Richard A. Posner* The Indian Ocean tsunami of December 2004 has focused attention on a type of disaster to which policymakers pay too little attention-a disaster that has a very low or unknown probability of occurring but that if it does occur creates enormous losses. Great as the death toll, physical and emotional suffering of survivors, and property damage caused by the tsunami were, even greater losses could be inflicted by other disasters of low (but not negligible) or unknown probability. The asteroid that exploded above Siberia in 1908 with the force of a hydrogen bomb might have killed millions of people had it exploded above a major city. Yet that asteroid was only about two hundred feet in diameter, and a much larger one (among the thousands of dangerously large asteroids in orbits that intersect the earth's orbit) could strike the earth and cause the total extinction of the human race through a combination of shock waves, fire, tsunamis, and blockage of sunlight wherever it struck. -
From Voodoo to Viruses: the Evolution of the Zombie in Twentieth Century Popular Culture
From Voodoo to Viruses: The Evolution of the Zombie in Twentieth Century Popular Culture By Margaret Twohy Adviser: Dr. Bernice Murphy A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the Degree of Master’s of Philosophy in Popular Literature Trinity College Dublin Dublin, Ireland October 2008 2 Abstract The purpose of this thesis is to explore the evolutionary path the zombie has followed in 20th Century popular culture. Additionally, this thesis will examine the defining characteristics of the zombie as they have changed through its history. Over the course of the last century and edging into the 21st Century, the zombie has grown in popularity in film, videogames, and more recently in novels. The zombie genre has become a self-inspiring force in pop culture media today. Films inspired a number of videogames, which in turn, supplied the film industry with a resurgence of inspirations and ideas. Combined, these media have brought the zombie to a position of greater prominence in popular literature. Additionally, within the growing zombie culture today there is an over-arcing viral theme associated with the zombie. In many films, games, and novels there is a viral cause for a zombie outbreak. Meanwhile, the growing popularity of zombies and its widening reach throughout popular culture makes the genre somewhat viral-like as well. Filmmakers, authors and game designers are all gathering ideas from one another causing the some amount of self- cannibalisation within the genre. 3 Table of Contents Introduction 4 Chapter One 7 Evolution of the Dead Chapter Two 21 Contaminants, Viruses, and Possessions—Oh my! Chapter Three 34 Dawn of the (Digital) Dead Chapter Four 45 Rise of the Literary Zombie Conclusion 58 Bibliography 61 4 Introduction There are perhaps few, if any fictional monsters that can rival the versatility of the humble zombie (or zombi)1. -
Singularity Warfare: a Bibliometric Survey of Militarized Transhumanism
A peer-reviewed electronic journal published by the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies ISSN 1541-0099 16(1) – June 2007 Singularity Warfare: A Bibliometric Survey of Militarized Transhumanism Woody Evans Tarrant County College ([email protected] ) http://jetpress.org/v16/evans.html Abstract This paper examines a number of terms related to transhumanism, and their prevalence in military and government publications. Transhumanism and the technologies attendant to the movement have clear implications for militaries and insurgencies. Although strategists in all camps must begin to plan for the possible impacts of such technologies if they wish to stay relevant and ready on a global scale, the impact of transhuman values is all but nonexistent in the military literature. This paper concludes that the lack of transhuman terms in military journals illustrates an ignorance of transhumanism amongst military thinkers and policy makers. 1. Introduction Transhumanism, the philosophical movement which employs advanced technologies to further rational humanism (Bostrom, 2005, 2), has something to say about many fields of human inquiry and activity, including medicine, information science, sociology, and, even military science. In the United States, spending on military and defense is very large – over $400 billion dollars in 2005 (Office of Management and Budget, 2006). Indeed, research and development funds for defense have been increased by over 50% since 2001 (OMB, 2006). The connection between technology and the military is clear; the relationship between transhuman terms and military science may reveal, more broadly, the military’s attitude toward transhuman thought. As we shall show, transhumanism does not strongly impact military or defense literature. -
Preparing for and Responding to Bioterrorism Information for the Public Health Workforce
Instructor’s Manual 1 Preparing for and Responding to Bioterrorism Information for the Public Health Workforce Introduction to Bioterrorism Developed by Jennifer Brennan Braden, MD, MPH Preparing for and Responding to Bioterrorism: Information for the Public Health Workforce Introduction to Bioterrorism Developed by Jennifer Brennan Braden, MD, MPH Northwest Center for Public Health Practice University of Washington Seattle, Washington *This manual and the accompanying MS Powerpoint slides are current as of December 2002. Please refer to http://nwcphp.org/bttrain/ for updates to the material. Last Revised December 2002 Acknowledgements This manual and the accompanying MS PowerPoint slides were prepared for the purpose of educating the public health workforce in relevant aspects of bioterrorism preparedness and response. Instructors are encouraged to freely use portions or all of the material for its intended purpose. Project Coordinator Patrick O’Carroll, MD, MPH Northwest Center for Public Health Practice, University of Washington, Seattle, WA Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Atlanta, GA Lead Developer Jennifer Brennan Braden, MD, MPH Northwest Center for Public Health Practice, University of Washington, Seattle, WA Design and Editing Judith Yarrow Health Policy Analysis Program, University of Washington, Seattle, WA The following people provided technical assistance or review of the materials: Jeffrey S. Duchin, MD: Communicable Disease Control, Epidemiology and Immunization Section, Public Health – Seattle & King County -
FY 2005 LDRD Report to Congress
United States Department of Energy Laboratory, Plant or Site Directed Research and Development Report Project List -- Fiscal Year 2005 ANL - Argonne National Lab Project ID Project Name FY Total P/ANL2003-336 Multidisciplinary Theory $298000 P/ANL2003-337 The Use of Synchrotron Radiation Sources for Homeland Security - Terahertz $241600 and X-Ray Radiation P/ANL2003-338 Modeling Near-Field Atmospheric Dispersion and the Potential Health and $218500 Economic Impacts from Terrorism Scenarios Involving "Dirty Bombs" or Similar Devices P/ANL2003-340 Core-Shell Nanocrystal Spring Magnets $60400 P/ANL2003-341 Simulation and Modeling of Reactivity in Nanoporous Materials $46700 P/ANL2004-002 Development of Germanium Double Sided Strip Detectors for Nuclear Imaging $112200 Applications P/ANL2004-009 Ultrafast Laser/X-Ray Interactions $67100 P/ANL2004-014 Development of Cross-Polarization Confocal Microscopy for Measurement of $86400 Subsurface Microstructure P/ANL2004-018 Fundamental and Applied Studies of Novel Intermetallic Thin Films for Lithium $130300 Ion Battery Anodes P/ANL2004-019 Multiphase CFD Analysis of Vascular Lesion Formation $118500 P/ANL2004-026 Science and Technology of a New TiAlO Alloy Oxide and Its Application to a $86600 New Generation of Integrated Circuit Gate Dielectric P/ANL2004-038 Time-Resolved Studies of Magnetization Dynamics in Nanostructured $105000 Materials P/ANL2004-041 Site-Specific Magnetism in Crystals $74800 P/ANL2004-044 Palladium/Semiconductor Nanohybrids as Hydrogen Sensors for Fuel Cell $126300 Applications