Laboratory researcher using a light microscope to examine stem cells in a culture jar. At right are a pipette, samples and DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) helix to illustrate genetic editing and research. Photo Credit: SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY via AP Images. By: Roxanne Heston, Columnist Biosecurity is the field working to mitigate the risks of natural pandemics, … Continue reading Biosecurity and the National Security Community
Author: Roxanne Heston
How Cryptography Could Enable Privacy-Preserving Surveillance
An Enigma machine. Photo Credit: Wikimedia By: Roxanne Heston, Columnist Imagine a clunky metal typewriter with a bizarre keyboard. In the 1940s, this machine was highly sophisticated — the linchpin, and ultimate downfall, of its dependents’ plan. They are called Enigma machines, and they were used by Nazi Germany during World War II for secret … Continue reading How Cryptography Could Enable Privacy-Preserving Surveillance
What Quantum Technology Is and Why It Matters
Photo Credit: parliament.uk By: Roxanne Heston, Columnist “Quantum technology” offers nuanced opportunities and challenges to the United States in domains like cybersecurity, scientific research, and reconnaissance.[i] Although the technology is difficult to understand, it is worthwhile for policymakers to grasp its fundamentals and implications. Fortunately, unlike the quantum property of particles themselves, the technology’s potential … Continue reading What Quantum Technology Is and Why It Matters
AI and National Security: Is the United States Doing Enough?
By: Roxanne Heston Photo Credit: Getty Images In recent years, the field of artificial intelligence (AI), a broad term used to discuss computer programs that can perform typically human functions, has emerged as a leading issue in the national security community. Newly piqued interest has prompted a flurry of activity on the topic, including a … Continue reading AI and National Security: Is the United States Doing Enough?