National Security And Arms Control In The Age Of Biotechnology

This book accessibly and expertly details the history and implications of the BWC—the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention—a controversial arms control agreement drafted in the 1970’s meant to supplement the Geneva protocol for warfare from decades earlier. That treaty banned the use of biological weapons in modern warfare, but failed to ban their development, transport or trafficking, holes the BWC aimed to fill, but are still contested to this day. Daniel M. Gerstein, a former Army Colonel and current Under Secretary in the Department of Homeland Security, traces the origins of the treaty and its many complications, past and present, while prescribing a way for the world’s military leaders to move forward with regards to (what Gerstein sees will be and already is) “the most important arms control treaty of the 21st Century.” The strength and enforcement of the treaty are at a crossroads, and it is important for both professionals and students of the military and international affairs to know exactly what a failure to honor, improve and uphold the BWC would mean for international security.

In recent years much has happened to justify an examination of biological research in light of national security concerns. The destructive application of biotechnology research includes activities such as spreading common pathogens or transforming them into even more lethal forms. Policymakers and the scientific community at large must put forth a vigorous and immediate response to this challenge. This new book by the National Research Council recommends that the government expand existing regulations and rely on self-governance by scientists rather than adopt intrusive new policies. One key recommendation of the report is that the government should not attempt to regulate scientific publishing but should trust scientists and journals to screen their papers for security risks, a task some journals have already taken up. With biological information and tools widely distributed, regulating only U.S. researchers would have little effect. A new International Forum on Biosecurity should encourage the adoption of similar measures around the world. Seven types of risky studies would require approval by the Institutional Biosafety Committees that already oversee recombinant DNA research at some 400 U.S. institutions. These "experiments of concern" include making an infectious agent more lethal and rendering vaccines powerless.

Despite the vital importance of the emerging area of biotechnology and its role in defense planning and policymaking, no definitive book has been written on the topic for the defense policymaker, the military student, and the private-sector bioscientist interested in the "emerging opportunities market" of national security. This edited volume is intended to help close this gap and provide the necessary backdrop for thinking strategically about biology in defense planning and policymaking. This volume is about applications of the biological sciences, here called "biologically inspired innovations," to the military. Rather than treating biology as a series of threats to be dealt with, such innovations generally approach the biological sciences as a set of opportunities for the military to gain strategic advantage over adversaries. These opportunities range from looking at everything from genes to brains, from enhancing human performance to creating renewable energy, from sensing the environment around us to harnessing its power.

Written by an award-winning historian of science and technology, Planet in Peril describes the top four mega-dangers facing humankind – climate change, nukes, pandemics, and artificial intelligence. It outlines the solutions that have been tried, and analyzes why they have thus far fallen short. These four existential dangers present a special kind of challenge that urgently requires planet-level responses, yet today's international institutions have so far failed to meet this need. The book lays out a realistic pathway for gradually modifying the United Nations over the coming century so that it can become more effective at coordinating global solutions to humanity's problems. Neither optimistic nor pessimistic, but pragmatic and constructive, the book explores how to move past ideological polarization and global political fragmentation. Unafraid to take intellectual risks, Planet in Peril sketches a plausible roadmap toward a safer, more democratic future for us all.

Selected for the 2019 Commandant's Professional Reading List, Assignment: Pentagon takes the reader on an insider's tour of the Pentagon, describing how the headquarters for the world's largest multinational "corporation" functions. The reader gains insights into how this bureaucracy functions as well as the stresses and strains inherent to such a complex organization. Now in its fifth edition, Assignment: Pentagon remains the best practical guide for anyone who works for the Pentagon or any other large bureaucracy. Eminently readable, Assignment: Pentagon is the essential guide for the newly assigned military person, fresh civilian, or interested outsider to the Pentagon's informal set of arrangements, networks, and functions that operate in the service and joint service world. With updated information about jobs and Pentagon vernacular, this fifth edition delivers a wealth of practical advice and helpful hints about surviving the challenges of working in "the Building." If you've been assigned to the Pentagon or are starting work for any large company, you need to read Assignment: Pentagon.

This first volume of a two-volume set describes general aspects, such as the historical view on the topic, the role of information distribution and preparedness of health-care systems and preparedness in emergency cases. Part two describes and discusseses in detail the pathogens and toxins that are potentially used for biological attacks. As such, the book is a valuable resource for faculties engaged in molecular biology, genetic engineering, neurology, biodefense, biosafety & biosecurity, virology, and infectious disease programs, as well as professional medical research organizations.

The Yearbook contains documentary materials of a legal character concerning the United Nations and related intergovernmental organizations (IGOs). The present volume covers activities in 2013 and contains: legislative texts and treaties, or provisions thereof, concerning the legal status of the UN and related IGOs; a general overview of the legal activities of the UN and related IGOs; selected treaties concerning international law concluded under the auspices of the organizations concerned; selected decisions of administrative tribunals of the UN and related IGOs; selected legal opinions of the UN and related IGOs; a list of judgments, advisory opinions and selected decisions rendered by international tribunals; selected decisions of national tribunals relating to the work of the UN and related IGOs.

Whether one is interested in learning about anthrax, sarin, the neutron bomb—or any other weapon of mass destruction—this thorough and detailed reference is the place to find answers. The threat posed by weapons of mass destruction (WMD), whether nuclear, radiological, chemical, or biological, is the number-one topic of concern for the intelligence community, first responders, policymakers, and myriad non-governmental organizations—and many members of the general public. This authoritative reference will serve all of those parties by covering the full spectrum of mass-casualty weapons. The guide will not only enable people to educate themselves, but also to separate the truth from the spurious information that abounds. The book offers an A-to-Z listing of major topics, making finding information about concepts, scientific theories, and realities of WMD fast and easy. While the framework of WMD goes back centuries, the major focus of this reference is on weapons that date from the use of chemical warfare in World War I. The book also covers WMD from the early nuclear era (World War II), the Cold War, and the present (Syria, North Korea, etc.). Each entry is written in a clear, accessible style and includes crucial background information, making this book an essential resource for both lay readers and specialists. Armed with this portable database, readers will have the confidence to deal with, discuss, or write about WMD of all kinds based on an understanding of relevant concepts, policies, and scientific fundamentals.