Governance of Dual-Use Technologies: Theory and Practice

The term dual-use characterizes technologies that can have both military and civilian applications. What is the state of current efforts to control the spread of these powerful technologies—nuclear, biological, cyber—that can simultaneously advance social and economic well-being and also be harnessed for hostile purposes? What have previous efforts to govern, for example, nuclear and biological weapons taught us about the potential for the control of these dual-use technologies? What are the implications for governance when the range of actors who could cause harm with these technologies include not just national governments but also non-state actors like terrorists? These are some of the questions addressed by Governance of Dual-Use Technologies: Theory and Practice, the new publication released today by the Global Nuclear Future Initiative of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. The publication's editor is Elisa D. Harris, Senior Research Scholar, Center for International Security Studies, University of Maryland School of Public Affairs. Governance of Dual-Use Technologies examines the similarities and differences between the strategies used for the control of nuclear technologies and those proposed for biotechnology and information technology. The publication makes clear the challenges concomitant with dual-use governance. For example, general agreement exists internationally on the need to restrict access to technologies enabling the development of nuclear weapons. However, no similar consensus exists in the bio and information technology domains. The publication also explores the limitations of military measures like deterrence, defense, and reprisal in preventing globally available biological and information technologies from being misused. Some of the other questions explored by the publication include: What types of governance measures for these dual-use technologies have already been adopted? What objectives have those measures sought to achieve? How have the technical characteristics of the technology affected governance prospects? What have been the primary obstacles to effective governance, and what gaps exist in the current governance regime? Are further governance measures feasible? In addition to a preface from Global Nuclear Future Initiative Co-Director Robert Rosner (University of Chicago) and an introduction and conclusion from Elisa Harris, Governance of Dual-Use Technologiesincludes:On the Regulation of Dual-Use Nuclear Technology by James M. Acton (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace)Dual-Use Threats: The Case of Biotechnology by Elisa D. Harris (University of Maryland)Governance of Information Technology and Cyber Weapons by Herbert Lin (Stanford University

Muon Capture on Deuteron and 3He: A Personal Review

The present status of theoretical and experimental studies of muon capture reactions on light nuclei is reviewed. In particular, the recent results for the two reactions 2H(\mu^-,\nu_\mu)nn and 3He(\mu^-,\nu_\mu)3H are presented, and the unresolved discrepancies among different measurements and calculations, open problems, and future developments are discussed.Comment: 19 pages, submitted to International Journal of Modern Physics

Ligand regulation of the quaternary organization of cell surface M3 muscarinic acetylcholine receptors analyzed by fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) imaging and homogenous time-resolved FRET

Flp-In T-REx 293 cells expressing a wild type human M muscarinic acetylcholine receptor construct constitutively and able to express a Receptor Activated Solely by Synthetic Ligand (RASSL) form of this receptor on demand maintained response to the muscarinic agonist carbachol but developed response to clozapine-N-oxide only upon induction of the RASSL. The two constructs co-localized at the plasma membrane and generated strong ratiometric fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) signals consistent with direct physical interactions. Increasing levels of induction of the FRET-donor RASSL did not alter wild type receptor FRET-acceptor levels substantially. However, ratiometric FRET was modulated in a bell-shaped fashion with maximal levels of the donor resulting in decreased FRET. Carbachol, but not the antagonist atropine, significantly reduced the FRET signal. Cell surface homogenous time-resolved FRET, based on SNAP-tag technology and employing wild type and RASSL forms of the human M receptor expressed stably in Flp-In TREx 293 cells, also identified cell surface dimeric/oligomeric complexes. Now, however, signals were enhanced by appropriate selective agonists. At the wild type receptor large increases in FRET signal to carbachol and acetylcholine were concentration-dependent with EC values consistent with the relative affinities of the two ligands. These studies confirm the capacity of the human M muscarinic acetylcholine receptor to exist as dimeric/oligomeric complexes at the surface of cells and demonstrate that the organization of such complexes can be modified by ligand binding. However, conclusions as to the effect of ligands on such complexes may depend on the approach used

The Killers in the Lab

New York Times Op-EdIn order to combat the threat of biological weapons, more than $20 billion has been spent on bio-defense research since 2001.This has led to a an increase of research facilities as well as the number of people who have access to the materials. However, the 2001 anthrax mailings were conducted by a top Army bio-defense scientist, Dr Bruce Ivins and the anthrax powder originated from the Army bio-defense research center at Fort Detrick, MD. This suggest that the bio-defense program risks creating the very threat it is meant to fight. Elisa D. Harris recommends that a full public examination of all the governments evidence in the 2001 anthrax mailings should occur in order to determine what went wrong. Then the overall bio-defense research strategy must be re-examined, along with the setting of clear priorities, strengthening safety, and ensuring security and oversight of laboratories working with dangerous agents. Harris suggests that the probability of an attack on the American public is low, but any such attack would be devastating. Therefore, the US cannot meet the threat safely or effectively with a strategy that puts bio-weapons agents in more and more people’s hands

Effect of modified-release methylphenidate on cognition in children with ADHD: evidence from a temporal preparation task

ADHD is associated with various cognitive deficits, including general performance decrements and specific impairments, for instance in temporal processing. However, time preparation under uncertain conditions has been under-investigated in this population. We aimed at filling this gap. We administered a variable foreperiod paradigm to children with ADHD before and after a one-month treatment with modified-release methylphenidate. Age-matched ADHD children with no treatment and healthy children were also tested as control groups with the same time-schedule. Children with ADHD had general performance deficits (longer and more variable response times), which disappeared in the experimental group after pharmacological intervention. Moreover, ADHD children showed a marked dependency on sequential foreperiod effects (i.e., slower responses for longer preceding foreperiods), especially at short current foreperiods, which were not modulated by the pharmacological treatment. In conclusion, the present findings show that methylphenidate enhances general motor processes rather than more specific time preparation processes, some of which appear deviant in ADHD

Neural Relax

We present an algorithm for data preprocessing of an associative memory inspired to an electrostatic problem that turns out to have intimate relations with information maximization