Bush Harnesses Science to Fight Terrorism

Bush Harnesses Science to Fight Terrorism

NewsMax.com
Tuesday, March 9, 2004

Looking to science to protect the nation from terrorist attacks, the Bush administration has ramped up a research-and-development enterprise that might span decades.

Involved are more than a dozen federal agencies managing thousands of scientists at hundreds of labs around the country.

All told, federal agencies are investing $3.5 billion in research and development and as much as $3.4 billion in high-tech spending for vaccine supplies and improvements to the public health system, says the report.

Included in the mix: more sophisticated sensors at the nation's ports that would detect attempts to smuggle nuclear weapons; population centers continuously monitored by remote detectors for a biological or chemical attack; and the nation's healthcare system equipped to handle mass epidemics spread by terrorists.

An early dividend of the research: scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory now believe they have found a way to identify victims of smallpox and other infectious diseases within hours of exposure.

Other aspects of the vast R and D project, according to the Times:

Robert H. Dunlop, program leader for prevention of nuclear proliferation, is working on better ways to find possible nuclear weapons inside shipping containers. Among other things, Dunlop envisions creating smart shipping containers that would carry sensors with wireless transmitters and global positioning system locators.

The military is spending $706 million on research to counter weapons of mass destruction this year and another $500 million on buying equipment.

The Energy Department has $232 million allocated to researching ways to detect signs of nuclear weapons production, part of $1.4 billion for controlling foreign nuclear weapons.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is spending $1.1 billion this year to upgrade state and local capability to detect and contain an attack.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is spending $3.4 billion in 2004 and 2005 to stockpile vaccines around the country in case of a bioterrorism event. The effort has already produced enough smallpox vaccine to inoculate every American.

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Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:

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