Protecting Building Occupants and Operations from Biological and Chemical Airborne Threats

Protecting Building Occupants and Operations from Biological and Chemical Airborne Threats
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 152
Release: 2007-08-10
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 0309179270

Protecting buildings and their occupants from biological and chemical attacks to ensure continuous building operations is seen as an urgent need in the Department of Defense, given recent technological advances and the changing threats. Toward this end, the Department of Defense established the Immune Building Program to develop protective systems to deter biological and chemical attacks on military facilities and minimize the impacts of attacks should they occur. At the request of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, the National Research Council convened a committee to provide guiding principles for protecting buildings from airborne biological or chemical threat agents and outline the variables and options to consider in designing building protection systems. This report addresses such components of building protection as building design and planning strategies; heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning systems; filtration; threat detection and identification technologies; and operational responses. It recommends that building protection systems be designed to accommodate changing building conditions, new technologies, and emerging threats. Although the report's focus is on protection of military facilities, the guiding principles it offers are applicable to protection of public facilities as well.

Detection and Intelligent Systems for Homeland Security

Detection and Intelligent Systems for Homeland Security
Author: John G. Voeller
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 196
Release: 2014-01-16
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 1118787420

Detection and Intelligent Systems for Homeland Security features articles from the Wiley Handbook of Science and Technology for Homeland Security covering advanced technology for image and video interpretation systems used for surveillance, which help in solving such problems as identifying faces from live streaming or stored videos. Biometrics for human identification, including eye retinas and irises, and facial patterns are also presented. The book then provides information on sensors for detection of explosive and radioactive materials and methods for sensing chemical and biological agents in urban environments.

Aerosols

Aerosols
Author: Igor Agranovski
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 505
Release: 2011-05-16
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 3527632085

This self-contained handbook and ready reference examines aerosol science and technology in depth, providing a detailed insight into this progressive field. As such, it covers fundamental concepts, experimental methods, and a wide variety of applications, ranging from aerosol filtration to biological aerosols, and from the synthesis of carbon nanotubes to aerosol reactors. Written by a host of internationally renowned experts in the field, this is an essential resource for chemists and engineers in the chemical and materials disciplines across multiple industries, as well as ideal supplementary reading in graduate level courses.

Applications of Toxicogenomic Technologies to Predictive Toxicology and Risk Assessment

Applications of Toxicogenomic Technologies to Predictive Toxicology and Risk Assessment
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 300
Release: 2007-11-19
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0309178894

The new field of toxicogenomics presents a potentially powerful set of tools to better understand the health effects of exposures to toxicants in the environment. At the request of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, the National Research Council assembled a committee to identify the benefits of toxicogenomics, the challenges to achieving them, and potential approaches to overcoming such challenges. The report concludes that realizing the potential of toxicogenomics to improve public health decisions will require a concerted effort to generate data, make use of existing data, and study data in new waysâ€"an effort requiring funding, interagency coordination, and data management strategies.

Sensor Systems for Biological Agent Attacks

Sensor Systems for Biological Agent Attacks
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 209
Release: 2005-12-11
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 030909576X

Over the last ten years, there has been growing concern about potential biological attacks on the nation's population and its military facilities. It is now possible to detect such attacks quickly enough to permit treatment of potential victims prior to the onset of symptoms. The capability to "detect to warn", that is in time to take action to minimize human exposure, however, is still lacking. To help achieve such a capability, the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) asked the National Research Council (NRC) to assess the development path for "detect to warn" sensors systems. This report presents the results of this assessment including analysis of scenarios for protecting facilities, sensor requirements, and detection technologies and systems. Findings and recommendations are provided for the most probable path to achieve a detect-to-warn capability and potential technological breakthroughs that could accelerate its attainment.

Advanced Technology for Smart Buildings

Advanced Technology for Smart Buildings
Author: James Sinopoli
Publisher: Artech House
Total Pages: 217
Release: 2016-07-31
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 1630813729

Authored by an accredited expert in the field, this timely new resource introduces technologies that can be used for advanced smart buildings, including renewable power, communications, indoor positioning, security management, and control systems. This book speaks to the innovation of advanced technology, particularly information technology within the building industry today and explores the potential benefits and issues with advanced technology and its applications and presents practical real-world case studies. This book demonstrates that the penetration of information technology in the building industry is a long term, major development that will affect homes, offices, and other buildings. Smart technology will impact the automation and communications in existing and new building systems.

Review of the Scientific Approaches Used During the FBI's Investigation of the 2001 Anthrax Letters

Review of the Scientific Approaches Used During the FBI's Investigation of the 2001 Anthrax Letters
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 191
Release: 2011-07-01
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0309187192

Less than a month after the September 11, 2001 attacks, letters containing spores of anthrax bacteria (Bacillus anthracis, or B. anthracis) were sent through the U.S. mail. Between October 4 and November 20, 2001, 22 individuals developed anthrax; 5 of the cases were fatal. During its investigation of the anthrax mailings, the FBI worked with other federal agencies to coordinate and conduct scientific analyses of the anthrax letter spore powders, environmental samples, clinical samples, and samples collected from laboratories that might have been the source of the letter-associated spores. The agency relied on external experts, including some who had developed tests to differentiate among strains of B. anthracis. In 2008, seven years into the investigation, the FBI asked the National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to conduct an independent review of the scientific approaches used during the investigation of the 2001 B. anthracis mailings. Review of the Scientific Approaches Used During the FBI's Investigation of the Anthrax Letters evaluates the scientific foundation for the techniques used by the FBI to determine whether these techniques met appropriate standards for scientific reliability and for use in forensic validation, and whether the FBI reached appropriate scientific conclusions from its use of these techniques. This report reviews and assesses scientific evidence considered in connection with the 2001 Bacillus anthracis mailings.

Risk Management Series: Incremental Protection for Existing Commercial Buildings from Terrorist Attack

Risk Management Series: Incremental Protection for Existing Commercial Buildings from Terrorist Attack
Author: Federal Emergency Agency
Publisher: FEMA
Total Pages: 170
Release: 2013-01-27
Genre:
ISBN:

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) developed FEMA 459, Incremental Protection for Existing Commercial Buildings from Terrorist Attack, to provide guidance to owners of existing commercial buildings and their architects and engineers on security and operational enhancements to address vulnerabilities to explosive blasts and chemical, biological, and radiological hazards. It also addresses how to integrate these enhancements into the ongoing building maintenance and capital improvement programs. These enhancements are intended to mitigate or eliminate long-term risk to people and property. FEMA's Risk Management Series publications addressing security risks are based on two core documents: FEMA 426, Reference Manual to Mitigate Potential Terrorist Attacks Against buildings, and FEMA 452, Risk Assessment: A How-To Guide to Mitigate Potential Terrorist Attacks Against Buildings. FEMA 426 provides guidance to the building science community of architects and engineers on reducing physical damage caused by terrorist assaults to buildings, related infrastructure, and people. FEMA 452 outlines methods for identifying the critical assets and functions within buildings, determining the potential threats to those assets, and assessing the building's vulnerabilities to those threats. This assessment of risks facilitates hazard mitigation decision-making. Specifically, the document addresses methods for reducing physical damage to structural and nonstructural components of buildings and related infrastructure and reducing resultant casualties during conventional bomb attacks, as well as attacks involving chemical, biological, and radiological agents. FEMA 459 can be used in conjunction with FEMA 452. This manual presents an integrated, incremental rehabilitation approach to implementing the outcomes of a risk assessment completed in accordance with FEMA 452, Risk Assessment: A How-To Guide to Mitigate Potential Terrorist Attacks Against Building. This approach is intended to minimize disruption to building operations and control costs for existing commercial buildings. The integrated incremental approach to risk reduction in buildings was initially developed in relation to seismic risk and was first articulated in FEMA's Risk Management Series in the widely disseminated FEMA 395, Incremental Seismic Rehabilitation of School Buildings (K-12), published in June 2003. In 2004 and 2005, FEMA also published Incremental Seismic Rehabilitation manuals (FEMA 396-400) for hospitals, office buildings, multifamily apartments, retail buildings, and hotels and motels. This manual outlines an approach to incremental security enhancement in four types of existing commercial buildings: office buildings, retail buildings, multifamily apartment buildings, and hotel and motel buildings. It addresses both physical and operational enhancements that reduce building vulnerabilities to blasts and chemical, biological, and radiological attacks, within the constraints of the existing site conditions and building configurations.

Book Review Index - 2009 Cumulation

Book Review Index - 2009 Cumulation
Author: Dana Ferguson
Publisher: Book Review Index Cumulation
Total Pages: 1304
Release: 2009-08
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9781414419121

Book Review Index provides quick access to reviews of books, periodicals, books on tape and electronic media representing a wide range of popular, academic and professional interests. The up-to-date coverage, wide scope and inclusion of citations for both newly published and older materials make Book Review Index an exceptionally useful reference tool. More than 600 publications are indexed, including journals and national general interest publications and newspapers. Book Review Index is available in a three-issue subscription covering the current year or as an annual cumulation covering the past year.