Monday, September 25, 2017

Tech Digest - DARPA, Hurricanes, and the Zika Virus - btbirkett@gmail.com - Gmail

CORRECTION: Tech Digest - DARPA, Hurricanes, and the Zika Virus - btbirkett@gmail.com - Gmail



... 2017 marks the end of a record 12-year break during which no Category 3–5 hurricanes hit the US mainland. The longest previous record was an 8-year period between 1860 and 1869.
I think it’s unlikely that 2017 will be an anomaly. Hurricanes have historically come in cycles. Ten Category 4 or 5 storms made landfall on the US in the 50 years between 1920–1969. Only three have come onshore in the 46-year period since then. Clearly, we’re overdue for more.
...DARPA’s main function is only to identify and nurture scientific breakthroughs that offer solutions to natural and manmade threats. So it can fund early research and trials, but it can’t take a drug all the way through the costly clinical trial process.
For those interested in seeing cures for the big killers, DARPA is an important resource. If you’d like to follow some the agency’s work in biotech and other fields, much of DARPA’s research is online here.

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