A new report examines how the U.S. Department of Defense can increase the capacity of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and other minority institutions to conduct defense and national security research.

To modernize the consumer price index — the most widely used measure of inflation in the U.S. — the Bureau of Labor Statistics should accelerate its use of new sources of data and develop price indexes based on different income levels, says a new report.

To enhance and coordinate its research on autoimmune diseases, the National Institutes of Health should create an Office of Autoimmune Disease/Autoimmunity Research and a plan that spans all institutes and centers to provide an overall NIH strategy for autoimmune disease research.

To meet its diversity and inclusion goals for competed mission leadership, NASA should invest in STEM career pathways, partner with historically Black colleges and universities and minority-serving institutions, and expand training and mentorship opportunities, among other actions.

The U.S. should establish a new coordinated research program to investigate the impacts of exposure to low doses of radiation on human health, says a new report estimating that $100 million in funding will be needed annually for the next 15 years to answer key research questions.

Ensuring that populations globally are actively engaged in society while living longer, healthier lives will require a multisector, all-of-society approach. A new NAM report provides a roadmap with recommendations for addressing the needs of older people in the next five years and other actions to improve healthy longevity by 2050.

The CDC’s Division of Global Migration and Quarantine should create an effective and innovative quarantine station model to confront new challenges in preventing the spread of infectious diseases in the U.S., and requires new investment and regulatory reforms to do so.

EPA should conduct an ecological risk assessment of ultraviolet filters used in sunscreens, given the evidence that aquatic ecosystems in the U.S. and possibly endangered species are exposed to these UV filters, and given the importance of these ingredients in skin cancer prevention.

Historic legislation has been enacted to boost U.S. competitiveness and security, spur innovation, and make real progress on climate change and human health, said the National Academies’ presidents in a statement. “The National Academies stand ready to mobilize the broader science, engineering, and medical and health communities to help inform and implement solutions.”

Among various sources of ocean oil pollution, oil in runoff — primarily from cities and vehicles — is the top source of oil entering the ocean, and is 20 times higher than it was 20 years ago. A new report recommends actions to better understand how oil reaches and affects ocean environments and to minimize oil pollution.

Coeur d’Alene Lake in northern Idaho is beginning to recover from nearly a century of mining in its watershed. A new report finds metal concentrations are slowly declining and the lake is not currently at risk of anoxia.

The EPA’s current framework for evaluating the scientific evidence used to set national air quality standards is effective, reliable, and scientifically defensible, according to a new National Academies report.

With renewed attention on mining gold at both new and historical sites in Virginia, the state’s regulations and practices should be updated to protect against the potential environmental and health impacts of gold mining — though the risk of adverse impacts cannot be eliminated completely, says a new report.

Congress should take action to facilitate the participation of all land-grant colleges and universities in multistate research projects, says a new report. Funding disparities have prevented many historically Black and tribal colleges and universities from fully collaborating with other land-grant institutions.

To reduce racial disparities in the U.S. criminal justice system, policymakers at all levels should explore ways to decrease police stops and searches, jail detention, prison admission, and long sentences through coordinated policy reforms.

As part of the shift to a net-zero carbon emissions economy, industry and government should begin planning for the deployment of carbon dioxide utilization systems to turn captured CO2 into useful products, such as aviation fuel and aggregates for construction.

The presidents of the U.S. National Academies warn that the Taliban’s decision to prevent Afghan women and girls from participating in higher education or attending secondary school ignores the scientific evidence on the benefits of education for women and could have “potentially disastrous consequences” for the future of Afghanistan.

Confucius Institutes are Chinese government-funded language and culture centers located worldwide. A new report proposes a set of criteria for the U.S. Department of Defense to consider in developing a waiver process that would potentially allow U.S. institutions of higher education to receive DOD funding while hosting a Confucius Institute.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, wastewater surveillance has provided advance indications of community-level outbreaks, sometimes weeks before other indicators. A new report says that wastewater surveillance is worthy of investment and outlines a vision for the future of a national system.

The insufficient supply of seeds from native plants is a major barrier to ecological restoration and other revegetation projects across the U.S., especially as climate change increases the possibility of extreme weather events that can damage natural areas.

Nobel Prize laureates and other esteemed experts and leaders will gather at “Truth, Trust and Hope” for a global dialogue on how to stop misinformation from eroding public trust in science. Hosted by NAS and the Nobel Foundation, the summit takes place May 24-26 in Washington, D.C., and virtually.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology’s facilities should be modernized to ensure that the agency can continue to deliver measurement science and standards that advance U.S. innovation and competitiveness on national technology priorities. Substandard facilities brought about through lack of investment have created ongoing problems that affect research.

As U.S. life expectancy falls and the nation struggles to achieve health outcomes on par with other high-income countries, the VA and HHS should collaborate to create a national Center for Whole Health Innovation to support, scale, and spread whole health care nationally across health systems.

The U.S. should renew its investments in high energy density science facilities and workforce capacity and improve collaboration, in order to achieve advances in areas such as fusion power and materials science and help address significant national needs.

Race, ethnicity, and ancestry labels are often used in genomics and genetics research to describe human genetic differences, which is misleading and inaccurate. Researchers and scientists who utilize genetic and genomic data should rethink and justify how and why they use these descriptors in their work.

Registration is now open for the Nobel Prize Summit “Truth, Trust and Hope,” a global conversation on how to stop misinformation from eroding public trust in science. Hosted by NAS and the Nobel Foundation, the summit takes place May 24-26 in Washington, D.C., and virtually.

The methodology used by the Census Bureau to calculate the Supplemental Poverty Measure should be updated to reflect households’ basic needs and resources to meet those needs more accurately. A new report recommends changes to better account for families’ health care, child care, and housing expenses.

The National Nuclear Security Administration needs to fundamentally rethink the strategy for its next generation of high-performance computing and cannot continue with ‘business as usual’ through shifting technical and geopolitical landscapes. Advanced computing capabilities help the NNSA ensure that the U.S. maintains a safe, secure, and reliable nuclear stockpile.

To mark Earth Day, the National Academies are highlighting a selection of our projects and activities aimed at addressing climate change, protecting the environment and natural resources, and advancing progress toward a more sustainable planet for everyone.

New nuclear reactor concepts could help the U.S. meet its long-term climate goals, but a range of technical, regulatory, economic, and societal challenges must first be overcome. A new report provides recommendations to start laying the foundation required for advanced reactors to become a viable part of the U.S. energy system.

Research funded by NIH that uses nonhuman primates is critical to the nation’s ability to respond adequately to public health emergencies and carry out high-impact biomedical research, but gaps in the systems that support research using these animal models are undermining national health emergency readiness.

Blanket bans on ransomware payments are a much-debated topic in cybersecurity and policy circles. What are the implications of outlawing the payments, and would the ban be effective?

ESET researchers have discovered threats abusing the success of the Hamster Kombat clicker game

Attackers abusing the EvilVideo vulnerability could share malicious Android payloads via Telegram channels, groups, and chats, all while making them appear as legitimate multimedia files

Android malware discovered by ESET Research relays NFC data from victims’ payment cards, via victims’ mobile phones, to the device of a perpetrator waiting at an ATM

The world of Android threats is quite vast and intriguing. In this episode, Becks and Lukáš demonstrate how easy it is to take over your phone, with some added tips on how to stay secure

The discovery of the NGate malware by ESET Research is another example of how sophisticated Android threats have become

ESET Research has conducted a comprehensive technical analysis of Gamaredon’s toolset used to conduct its cyberespionage activities focused in Ukraine

Keep your cool, arm yourself with the right knowledge, and other tips for staying unshaken by fraudsters’ scare tactics

The average time it takes attackers to weaponize a vulnerability, either before or after a patch is released, shrank from 63 days in 2018-2019 to just five days last year

Jiro's Pick this week is Happy Pi Day by Zhaoxu Liu / slandarer. I'm a couple of days late, but I wanted to highlight this set of cool visualizations by Zhaoxu for Pi Day. It's amazing to see so... read more >>

The active internet user base aged 12 years and older has grown more than 20% year-on-year to reach 595 million in 2022.

“Earlier, there used to be the largest companies who were there to solve the customers’ problems. But now there are hundreds of startups that are coming up. We need to make sure we work together with them and build an ecosystem with them. We share with them our issues, and they come back and build the products with us together. And then we help them scale,” he said.

Amongst the areas that Ericsson and Intel have identified for collaboration is the joint development of enterprise use cases in selected verticals such as manufacturing, transport and logistics.

At its fiscal fourth quarter earnings call Thursday, Indus' top management said that while Vi has started clearing 90-100% of current dues, the tower company is closely monitoring the telco's payment patterns and its funding situation to recover its accumulated past dues as per the agreed schedule.

Flipkart has not only maintained its position as a retail giant but also evolved into a data-driven juggernaut.

Employees want workplace flexibility, a greater emphasis on diversity, and impartial hiring processes, while companies are eager to provide fair, engaging and streamlined candidate experiences to attract and retain top talent, according to experts.

Cisco’s new facility at Chennai will manufacture Network Convergence System (NCS) 540 Series of routers.

In this new role, he will focus on advancing AI and cloud technologies, leveraging his extensive experience to drive innovation within the organization.