Short Takes – 11-14-22

How the cyber agenda would shift if the GOP takes over Congress. TheHill.com article. Pull quote: “However, Jaffer warned that if Republicans win majorities in the House or Senate, they will likely push for less government regulation and instead advocate for market incentives designed to encourage the private sector to invest in cybersecurity.

Logistics: The War On Russian Railroads In Ukraine. Partisan operations. Pull quote: “Three months into the war these civilian railroad saboteurs were getting in touch with one another via encrypted Internet apps. Many of these local groups learned what to sabotage by searching the Internet for information, especially about how Ukrainian and Russian partisans sabotaged German rail traffic during World War II. Employees of the Ukrainian railroad were soon on these Internet groups, explaining post-World War II equipment improvements and how to sabotage them.”

Pharma goes to space. CEN.acs.org article. Pull quote: “At the same time, the rising demand for the unique environment of microgravity is encouraging commercial entities to provide relevant services for accessing low-Earth orbit. The ISS is scheduled to retire in less than a decade, but a boom of private space providers is emerging to mark a new era for science in space, one in which companies are betting that even drug manufacturing in space can be scalable and cost effective.”

Chemists create an 'artificial photosynthesis' system ten times more efficient than existing systems. Phys.org article. Not efficient enough for fuel production, but may be useful in lower volume, high value chemical manufacturing. Pull quote: “A Nature Catalysis study [link added] from six chemists at the University of Chicago shows an innovative new system for artificial photosynthesis that is more productive than previous artificial systems by an order of magnitude. Unlike regular photosynthesis, which produces carbohydrates from carbon dioxide and water, artificial photosynthesis could produce ethanol, methane, or other fuels.”

Cybercrime insurance is making the ransomware problem worse. TheConversation.com article. Lots of declarative statements with little support. Pull quote: “Businesses are turning to cyberinsurance companies in desperation to protect themselves from attack. But the growth of the cyberinsurance market is only encouraging criminals to target companies that have extortion insurance.”