Countering bioweapons

The Center for Responsible Nanotechnology talks about some discussion by Kofi Annan about safegaurds against biological terrorism Annan talks about sronger rules and treaties. Rules for scientists and treaties will be mostly useless.

Unlike nuclear technology there are few bottlenecks to getting biological technology capabilities. As I noted in a prior post biotech labs and biotech work is widespread

We need to improve each of the layers of detection and defense. We cannot put all of our hopes and lives on paper treaties and promises.

We have to develop and deploy better sensors such as the laser detection of viruses

The public health system needs to be revamped. Diseases natural and artificial need to be detected and tracked in real time with dispersion projections.

We need to use gene therapy, RNA activation, RNA interference and other technology to boost human immune systems.

We can measure when real progress is being made by seeing how well we are able to defend against the normal diseases we face such as flu which kills 250,000-500,000.

Cheaper controlled and segregated biosystems both temporary and permanent need to be produced. Closed ecological systems could be used to create firewalls for civilization against biological weapon, environmental and natural disease catastrophes. Temporary underwater enclosed systems like submarines and development of large scale space colonization.

There needs to be zero tolerance for rogue states. This will take a lot of time and will be made possible by pushing ahead with transformational technologies.

The good guys need to push ahead with better technologies and policies. It also means that we have to more efficient with our budgets and stop wasting money on useless or ineffective technologies and plans. More use of results based prizes to spur successful innovation.

We need to not holding back the powerful technologies that would definitely transform the technological and political landscape. We are spending about 100 billion for a space station that is being launched with chemical rockets. Since the 1960’s we have known a better way which is nuclear rockets.

Some of the new technologies that should be pursued are molecular nanotechnology, synthetic biology, quantum computers, thorium nuclear fission reactors, new nuclear fusion other than tokomaks, superconductors and previously mentioned new sensor and monitoring technologies.

Pictures of project orion nuclear spaceships which could be used to colonize space The science of project Orion works and we have the fusion bombs for war but not for space colonization. A fusion Orion could launch an 8 million ton space ship anywhere in the solar system. We could take 3 million tons of payload which is enough to launch 100,000 people and all of their supplies and equipment. A bigger launch makes it simpler to make a sustainable colony. Load up 14 ton shipping container after 14 ton shipping container with equipment and supplies.

Minimag Orion

How efficient project Orion would be

A collection of information about space colonization