Category: KB

  • MIL-OSI Security: Raleigh County Man Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering

    Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime News

    BECKLEY, W.Va. – James E. Monroe Jr., 59, of Daniels, pleaded guilty today to money laundering.

    According to court documents and statements made in court, on February 25, 2022, Monroe filed a petition for personal bankruptcy. Monroe knew he was required to submit true and correct schedules listing his assets and a statement detailing his financial affairs as part of the bankruptcy process. Monroe admitted that he sold his collection of over 10,000 sports trading cards after filing for bankruptcy and without disclosing its existence or its post-petition sale in the bankruptcy filings as required. Monroe further admitted that he sold the collection to a friend online to convert the collection into cash and disguise the nature of the resulting proceeds.

    Monroe admitted that his asset schedules and statement of financial affairs also did not disclose the December 2021 sale of his marital home in the Glade Springs residential development for $525,000, or the existence of a retirement account, two loans he obtained by using the equity associated with his whole-life insurance policy as collateral, and a storage unit he rented in the Shady Spring area that contained property belonging to the bankruptcy estate. Monroe further admitted that his schedules falsely stated that his then-minor daughter lived with him and was his dependent when neither was true.

    Monroe is scheduled to be sentenced on May 15, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a $500,000 fine.

    United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The United States Trustee’s Charleston field office, which serves West Virginia, made the criminal referral of this case to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The United States Trustee Program is a component of the Department of Justice whose mission is to promote the integrity and efficiency of the bankruptcy system for the benefit of all stakeholders — debtors, creditors and the public.

    United States Magistrate Judge Omar J. Aboulhosn presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan T. Storage is prosecuting the case.

    A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:24-cr-121.

    ###

     

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI: Results of refinancing – Nykredit Realkredit A/S

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    To        Nasdaq Copenhagen
            and the Press

    Results of refinancing

    The Nykredit Group has completed the auctions in connection with the refinancing of ARMs based on the “refinancing price” principle. The interest rates will be reset on 1 April 2025.

    The interest rate reset results in the following cash rates:

      ARMs funded by 1Y SDO
    (April 2026)
    DKK
    ARMs funded by 3Y RO
    (April 2028)
    DKK
    ARMs funded by 5Y RO
    (April 2030)
    DKK
    Cash rate 2.42% 2.38% 2.52%

    For detailed information on the auction results, please refer to nykredit.dk and totalkredit.dk. For information on the bond sales, please refer to nykredit.com/ir.

    Enquiries may be addressed to Morten Søby Willendrup, Group Treasury, 
    tel +45 44 55 19 62 or Corporate Communications, tel +45 44 55 14 50.

    Attachment

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: Results of refinancing – Totalkredit A/S

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    To        Nasdaq Copenhagen
            and the Press

    Results of refinancing

    The Nykredit Group has completed the auctions in connection with the refinancing of ARMs based on the “refinancing price” principle. The interest rates will be reset on 1 April 2025.

    The interest rate reset results in the following cash rates:

      ARMs funded by 1Y SDO
    (April 2026)
    DKK
    ARMs funded by 3Y RO
    (April 2028)
    DKK
    ARMs funded by 5Y RO
    (April 2030)
    DKK
    Cash rate 2.42% 2.38% 2.52%

    For detailed information on the auction results, please refer to nykredit.dk and totalkredit.dk. For information on the bond sales, please refer to nykredit.com/ir.

    Enquiries may be addressed to Morten Søby Willendrup, Group Treasury, 
    tel +45 44 55 19 62 or Corporate Communications, tel +45 44 55 14 50.

    Attachment

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: Freedom Holding Corp. Reports Strong Revenue Growth in Q3 2025 Fiscal Year, Driven by Brokerage and Banking Segments

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, Feb. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Freedom Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: FRHC), a U.S.-based financial services company, has announced its financial results for the quarter ended December 31, 2024. The holding company reported a 57% increase in total revenue, with revenues reaching $655.2 million compared to $418.6 million in the same quarter of 2023. Total assets increased to $9.1 billion from $8.3 billion as of March 31, 2024.

    The company’s revenue has surged due to the increase of net gain on trading securities, which has risen from a $5.1 million loss to a $89.6 million gain. Additionally, company’s performance was significantly bolstered by its insurance underwriting income, which surged by 125% to $177.5 million, reflecting the expansion of pension annuities and accident insurance operations. The banking segment also demonstrated robust growth, with a 47% increase in revenue compared to the same period last year.

    “In the era of globalization, we are building the Freedom ecosystem as a unified platform where diverse business segments — ranging from banking and insurance to lifestyle services — seamlessly interact to serve over 7 million clients. Recently, the holding’s revenue has become significantly more diversified; while brokerage was once the primary income driver, revenue is now evenly distributed across the insurance and banking segments, creating a more stable and balanced ecosystem,” Timur Turlov, the founder of Freedom Holding, said.

    Segment Performance

    Brokerage: Revenue increased by 29% to $213.3 million, driven by an increase in net gains on trading securities and fee and commission income.

    Banking: Revenue rose by 47% to $206.4 million, supported by net gains on trading securities and derivatives.

    Insurance: Revenue doubled to $197.8 million, reflecting strategic growth in insurance underwriting income.

    Other Segments: Revenue grew by 120% to $37.7 million, largely due to net gains on foreign exchange operations.

    Despite strong revenue growth, the company’s net income declined by 19% to $78.1 million, compared to $96.1 million in the previous year’s quarter. This was due to increased fees and commission expenses, general and administrative expenses, payroll and bonuses, advertising costs and stock-based compensation expenses. Total expenses for the quarter amounted to $556.9 million, up from $307.0 million in Q3 2024 fiscal year.

    During the same period, fee and commission income increased from $120.2 million to $143.4 million.

    Freedom Holding Corp. remains committed to expanding its product portfolio, improving operational efficiencies, capitalizing on emerging market opportunities, and considering selective acquisitions. In October 2024, the company acquired EliteCom, a telecommunications services company, for $3 million. The acquired licenses and assets will be used to develop Freedom Holding’s own telecommunications business.

    About Freedom Holding Corp.

    Freedom Holding Corp. is an international financial and investment services group specializing in capital markets, asset management, and brokerage services.

    Freedom Holding Corp.’s common shares are registered with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and trade on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol FRHC. The Company has its principal market of operation in Kazakhstan and operates through its subsidiaries in 22 countries. With a strong presence in Central Asia, Europe, and the U.S., the company is committed to delivering innovative financial products to individual and institutional investors.

    For more information, visit www.freedomholdingcorp.com

    Natalia Kharlashina

    PR Department

    Freedom Holding Corp.

    prglobal@ffin.kz

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Overall Housing Sentiment Ticks Higher Despite Consumers’ Growing Affordability Concerns

    Source: Fannie Mae

    WASHINGTON, DC – The Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTCQB) Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI) increased 0.3 points in January to 73.4, bouncing back slightly after falling last month for the first time since July. Improvements in consumer optimism toward both homebuying and home-selling conditions, along with even greater expectations that home prices will rise over the next 12 months, drove the increase. However, after a surge in mortgage rate optimism in the second half of last year, January saw a 13-percentage-point decline in the net share of consumers who believe mortgage rates will go down in the next 12 months. In addition, the share of consumers who expect rental prices will go up increased 8 percentage points from last month to 65%. Year over year, the HPSI is up 2.7 points.

    “Consumers seem increasingly pessimistic that housing affordability conditions will improve across the board, as a growing share expects home prices, rent prices, and mortgage rates will all go up,” said Kim Betancourt, Vice President of Multifamily Economics and Strategic Research. “The lower optimism toward the mortgage rate outlook was largely expected, as rates have continued to stay elevated and even crossed the 7% threshold in mid-January. As noted in our latest forecast, we currently expect mortgage rates to end 2025 around 6.5%, relatively little changed from where we are today, which will likely continue to hinder relief for housing affordability and home sales activity.”

    Betancourt continued: “On the rental side, consumers have indicated a sharply growing expectation over the past two months that rent prices will increase. This mirrors our expectation that multifamily rents will grow between 2.0% and 2.5% this year — up from an estimated 1.0% last year. Even though it remains relatively cheaper for consumers to rent than buy in nearly every U.S. metro, we expect affordability issues will remain a real challenge for both renters and homeowners alike for the foreseeable future.”

    Home Purchase Sentiment Index – Component Highlights
    Fannie Mae’s Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI) increased 0.3 points in January to 73.4. The HPSI is up 2.7 points compared to the same time last year. Read the full research report for additional information.

    • Good/Bad Time to Buy: The percentage of respondents who say it is a good time to buy a home (22%) and the percentage who say it is a bad time to buy (78%) both stayed the same from last month. The net share of those who say it is a good time to buy increased 2 percentage points month over month to -55%.
    • Good/Bad Time to Sell: The percentage of respondents who say it is a good time to sell a home (63%) and the percentage who say it’s a bad time to sell (36%) both remained unchanged month over month. The net share of those who say it is a good time to sell increased 1 percentage point month over month to 28%.
    • Home Price Expectations: The percentage of respondents who say home prices will go up in the next 12 months increased from 38% to 43%, while the percentage who say home prices will go down decreased from 27% to 22%. The share who think home prices will stay the same decreased from 35% to 34%. As a result, the net share of those who say home prices will go up in the next 12 months increased 9 percentage points month over month to 20%.
    • Mortgage Rate Expectations: The percentage of respondents who say mortgage rates will go down in the next 12 months decreased from 42% to 35%, while the percentage who expect mortgage rates to go up increased from 25% to 32%. The share who think mortgage rates will stay the same increased from 32% to 33%. As a result, the net share of those who say mortgage rates will go down over the next 12 months decreased 13 percentage points month over month to 3%.
    • Job Loss Concern: The percentage of employed respondents who say they are not concerned about losing their job in the next 12 months increased from 77% to 78%, while the percentage who say they are concerned stayed at 22%. As a result, the net share of those who say they are not concerned about losing their job increased 2 percentage points month over month to 56%.
    • Household Income: The percentage of respondents who say their household income is significantly higher than it was 12 months ago remained at 17%, while the percentage who say their household income is significantly lower decreased from 11% to 9%. The percentage who say their household income is about the same increased from 70% to 73%, a new survey high. As a result, the net share of those who say their household income is significantly higher than it was 12 months ago increased 2 percentage points month over month to 8%.

    About Fannie Mae’s Home Purchase Sentiment Index
    The Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI) distills information about consumers’ home purchase sentiment from Fannie Mae’s National Housing Survey® (NHS) into a single number. The HPSI reflects consumers’ current views and forward-looking expectations of housing market conditions and complements existing data sources to inform housing-related analysis and decision-making. The HPSI is constructed from answers to six NHS questions that solicit consumers’ evaluations of housing market conditions and address topics that are related to their home purchase decisions. The questions ask consumers whether they think that it is a good or bad time to buy or to sell a house, what direction they expect home prices and mortgage interest rates to move, how concerned they are about losing their jobs, and whether their incomes are higher or lower than they were a year earlier.

    About Fannie Mae’s National Housing Survey 
    The National Housing Survey (NHS) is a monthly attitudinal survey, launched in 2010, which polls a representative sample of adult household financial decision makers in the United States, to assess their attitudes toward owning and renting a home, purchase and rental prices, household finances, and overall confidence in the economy. Each respondent is asked more than 100 questions, making the NHS one of the most detailed longitudinal surveys of its kind to track attitudinal shifts, six of which are used to construct the HPSI (findings are compared with the same survey conducted monthly beginning June 2010). For more information, please see the Technical Notes.

    Fannie Mae conducts this survey and shares monthly and quarterly results so that we may help industry partners and market participants target our collective efforts to support the housing market. The January 2025 National Housing Survey was conducted between January 2, 2025, and January 21, 2025. Most of the data collection occurred during the first two weeks of this period. The latest NHS was fielded exclusively through AmeriSpeak®, NORC at the University of Chicago’s probability-based panel, in coordination with Fannie Mae and PSB Insights. Calculations are made using unrounded and weighted respondent-level data to help ensure precision in NHS results from wave to wave. As a result, minor differences in calculated data (summarized results, net calculations, etc.) of up to 1 percentage point may occur due to rounding.

    Detailed HPSI & NHS Findings 
    For detailed findings from the Home Purchase Sentiment Index and National Housing Survey, as well as a brief HPSI overview and detailed white paper, technical notes on the NHS methodology, and questions asked of respondents associated with each monthly indicator, please visit the Surveys page on fanniemae.com. Also available on the site are in-depth special topic studies, which provide a detailed assessment of combined data results from three monthly studies of NHS results.

    To receive e-mail updates with other housing market research from Fannie Mae’s Economic and Strategic Research Group, please click here.

    About the ESR Group
    Fannie Mae’s Economic and Strategic Research Group, led by Chief Economist Mark Palim, studies current data, analyzes historical and emerging trends, and conducts surveys of consumer and mortgage lender groups to provide forecasts and analyses on the economy, housing, and mortgage markets.

    MIL OSI Economics

  • MIL-OSI Global: Seed oils are toxic, says Robert F. Kennedy Jr. – but it’s not so simple

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Mary J. Scourboutakos, Adjunct Lecturer in Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto

    Seed oils have become a mainstay of the American diet. d3sign/Moment via Getty Images

    Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is expected to clear the final hurdles in his confirmation as President Donald Trump’s health secretary, and a host of health influencers have proclaimed that widely used cooking oils such as canola oil and soybean oil are toxic.

    T-shirts sold by his “Make America Healthy Again” campaign now include the slogan, “make frying oil tallow again” – a reference to the traditional use of rendered beef fat for cooking.

    Seed oils have become a mainstay of the American diet because unlike beef tallow, which is comprised of saturated fats that increase cholesterol levels, seed oils contain unsaturated fats that can decrease cholesterol levels. In theory, that means they should reduce the risk of heart disease.

    But research shows that different seed oils have varying effects on risk for heart disease.
    Furthermore, seed oils have also been shown to increase risk for migraines. This is likely due to their high levels of omega-6 fatty acids. These fats can increase inflammation, a heightened and potentially harmful state of system immune activation.

    As a family physician with a Ph.D. in nutrition, I translate the latest nutrition science into dietary recommendations for my patients. When it comes to seed oils, the research shows that their health effects are more nuanced than headlines and social media posts suggest.

    How seed oils infiltrated the American diet

    Seed oils — often confusingly referred to as “vegetable oils” — are, as the name implies, oils extracted from the seeds of plants. This is unlike olive oil and coconut oil, which are derived from fruits. People decrying their widespread use often refer to the “hateful eight” top seed oil offenders: canola, corn, soybean, cottonseed, grapeseed, sunflower, safflower and rice bran oil.

    These oils entered the human diet at unprecedented levels after the invention of the mechanical screw press in 1888 enabled the extraction of oil from seeds in quantities that were never before possible.

    Between 1909 and 1999, U.S. consumption of soybean oil increased 1,000 times. This shift fundamentally changed our biological makeup. Due to increased seed oil intake, in the past 50 years the concentration of omega-6 fatty acids that Americans carry around in their fatty tissue has increased by 136%

    Evaluating the omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acid ratio

    Omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids are essential nutrients that control inflammation. While omega-6s tend to produce molecules that boost it, omega-3s tend to produce molecules that tone it down. Until recently, people generally ate equal amounts of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids. However, over the past century, this ratio has changed. Today, people consume 15 times more omega-6s than omega-3s, partly due to increased consumption of seed oils.

    In theory, seed oils can cause health problems because they contain a high absolute amount of omega-6 fatty acids, as well as a high omega-6 to omega-3 ratio. Studies have linked an increased omega-6 to omega-3 ratio to a wide range of conditions, including mood disorders, knee pain, back pain, menstrual pain and even preterm birth. Omega-6 fatty acids have also been implicated in the processes that drive colon cancer.

    However, the absolute omega-6 level and the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio in different seed oils vary tremendously. For example, safflower oil and sunflower oil have ratios of 125:1 and 91:1. Corn oil’s ratio is 50:1. Meanwhile, soybean oil and canola oil have lower ratios, at 8:1 and 2:1, respectively.

    Scientists have used genetic modification to create seed oils like high oleic acid canola oil that have a lower omega-6 to 3 ratio. However, the health benefit of these bioengineered oils is still being studied.

    The upshot on inflammation and health risks

    Part of the controversy surrounding seed oils is that studies investigating their inflammatory effect have yielded mixed results. One meta-analysis synthesizing the effects of seed oils on 11 inflammatory markers largely showed no effects – with the exception of one inflammatory signal, which was significantly elevated in people with the highest omega-6 intakes.

    To complicate things further, genetics also plays a role in seed oils’ inflammatory potential. People of African, Indigenous and Latino descent tend to metabolize omega-6 fatty acids faster, which can increase the inflammatory effect of consuming seed oils. Scientists still don’t fully understand how genetics and other factors may influence the health effects of these oils.

    Soybean oil is the most highly purchased oil in the United States.
    fcafotodigital via Getty Images

    The effect of different seed oils on cardiovascular risk

    A review of seven randomized controlled trials showed that the effect of seed oils on risk of heart attacks varies depending on the type of seed oil.

    This was corroborated by data resurrected from tapes dug up in the basement of a researcher who in the 1970s conducted the largest and most rigorously executed dietary trial to date investigating the replacement of saturated fat with seed oils. In that work, replacing saturated fats such as beef tallow with seed oils always lowers cholesterol, but it does not always lower risk of death from heart disease.

    Taken together, these studies show that when saturated fats such as beef tallow are replaced with seed oils that have lower omega-6 to omega-3 ratios, such as soybean oil, the risk of heart attacks and death from heart disease falls. However, when saturated fats are replaced with seed oils with a higher omega-6 to omega-3 ratio, such as corn oil, risk of death from heart disease rises.

    Interestingly, the most highly purchased seed oil in the United States is soybean oil, which has a more favorable omega-6 to 3 ratio of 8:1 – and studies show that it does lower the risk of heart disease.

    However, seed oils with less favorable ratios, such as corn oil and safflower oil, can be found in countless processed foods, including potato chips, frozen dinners and packaged desserts. Nevertheless, other aspects of these foods, in addition to their seed oil content, also make them unhealthy.

    The case for migraines – and beyond

    A rigorous randomized controlled trial – the gold standard for clinical evidence – showed that diets high in omega-3 fatty acids and low in omega-6 fatty acids, hence low in seed oils, significantly reduced the risk of migraines

    In the study, people who stepped up their consumption of omega-3 fatty acids by eating fatty fish such as salmon experienced an average of two fewer migraines per month than usual, even if they did not change their omega-6 consumption. However, if they reduced their omega-6 intake by switching out corn oil for olive oil, while simultaneously increasing their omega-3 intake, they experienced four fewer migraines per month.

    That’s a noteworthy difference, considering that the latest migraine medications reduce migraine frequency by approximately two days per month, compared to a placebo. Thus, for migraine sufferers — 1 in 6 Americans — decreasing seed oils, along with increasing omega-3 intake, may be even more effective than currently available medications.

    Overall, the drastic way in which omega-6 fatty acids have entered the food supply and fundamentally changed our biological composition makes this an important area of study. But the question of whether seed oils are good or bad is not black and white. There is no basis to conclude that Americans would be healthier if we started frying everything in beef tallow again, but there is an argument for a more careful consideration of the nuance surrounding these oils and their potential effects.

    Mary J. Scourboutakos does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    ref. Seed oils are toxic, says Robert F. Kennedy Jr. – but it’s not so simple – https://theconversation.com/seed-oils-are-toxic-says-robert-f-kennedy-jr-but-its-not-so-simple-246494

    MIL OSI – Global Reports

  • MIL-OSI Global: Why Americans need well-informed national security decisions – not politicized intelligence analysis

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Mark S. Chandler, Professor of Practice and Director, Government Relations – Intelligence and Security Studies Department, Coastal Carolina University

    U.S. intelligence workers gather information from around the world to help guide leaders’ decisions. da-kuk/E+ via Getty Images

    The United States’ security depends on leaders who make well-informed decisions, including matters ranging from diplomatic relations around the world to economic relations, threats to the U.S., up to the deployment of military force. The nation’s intelligence community – 18 federal agencies, some military and others civilian – has the responsibility of gathering information from all over the world and delivering it to the country’s leaders for their use.

    As a nearly 40-year veteran of the intelligence community, both in and out of uniform, I know that regardless of what leaders do with the information, the American people need them to have as thorough, unbiased, fact-based and nonpoliticized intelligence assessments as possible.

    That’s because reality matters. Those tasked with gathering, analyzing and assembling intelligence material work hard to assemble facts and information to give leaders an advantage over other nations in international relations, trade agreements and even warfare. Reality is so important that a key policy document for the intelligence community tells analysts that their top two priorities are to be “objective” and “independent of political consideration.”

    But an investigation into the intelligence community found that during the first Trump administration, intelligence workers at many levels made political value judgments about the information they assembled, and did not report the truest picture possible to the nation’s leaders.

    Tulsi Gabbard is President Donald Trump’s choice to be director of national intelligence.
    AP Photo/John McDonnell

    Analysts are a key defense against politicization

    In general, each administration develops a national security strategy based on global events and issues, including threats to U.S. interests that are detailed and monitored by the intelligence community. Based on the administration’s priorities and interests, intelligence agencies collect and analyze data. Regular, often daily, briefings keep the president abreast of developments and warn of potential new challenges.

    In a perfect world, the president and the national security team use that information to determine which policies and actions are in the nation’s best interests.

    With the recent arrival of a new presidential administration, recent reports indicate that at least some workers in the intelligence community are feeling pressure to shift their priorities away from delivering facts and toward manipulating intelligence to achieve specific outcomes.

    Current and former intelligence officials have publicly worried that President Donald Trump might be biased against the intelligence community and seek to overhaul it if analyses did not fit his policy objectives.

    It happened in Trump’s first term. After Trump left office in 2021, Congress turned to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence – which oversees the entire intelligence community – to investigate whether intelligence reports were politicized under Trump’s leadership.

    The investigation determined that they were, up and down the intelligence system. The report found that some people who didn’t agree with the president’s policy views and objectives decided among themselves not to provide a full intelligence picture, while others tried to tailor what they showed the president to match his existing plans.

    At times, individual analysts withheld information. And managers, even up to the most senior level, also edited analyses and assessments, seeking to make them more appealing to leaders.

    For instance, the report found that top intelligence community officials, members of the National Intelligence Council, “consistently watered down conclusions during a drawn-out review process, boosting the threat from China and making the threat from Russia ‘not too controversial.’”

    The ombudsman’s report pointed out that this type of event has happened before – specifically, in 2003 around questions of whether Iraq had weapons of mass destruction – which it was ultimately found not to. As the report describes, “politicians and political appointees had … made up their mind about an issue and spent considerable time pressuring analysts and managers to prove their thesis to the American public.” That biased, politically motivated intelligence led to a war that killed nearly 4,500 U.S. service members, wounded more than 30,000 more, and cost the lives of about 200,000 Iraqi civilians, as well as more than $700 billion in U.S. taxpayer funds.

    Intelligence community leaders brief not only the president and others in the executive branch, but also members and committees in Congress.
    Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

    Leaders don’t have to listen

    At some point or other, almost every president makes decisions that run contrary to intelligence assessments. For instance, George H.W. Bush did not prioritize a crumbling Yugoslavia, and the challenges that presented, choosing to focus on Iraq’s 1990 invasion of Kuwait and the resulting U.S. military Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm.

    President Bill Clinton inherited the Yugoslavia situation, in which a failing country was at risk of political implosion, and chose to ignore intelligence warnings until the ethnic cleansing in that country became too public to ignore, at which point he began a U.S.-led NATO air campaign to stop the fighting. Clinton also ignored several intelligence warnings about al-Qaida, even after its deadly attacks on two U.S. embassies in 1998, and in 2000 on the USS Cole, a U.S. Navy destroyer. He chose more limited responses than aides suggested, including passing up an opportunity to kill al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden.

    President Barack Obama chose to dismiss indications relayed by intelligence officials that Russia was going to invade Ukraine in 2014 – which it did. He focused on the Middle East instead. Obama’s goal of withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq led him to discount warnings of the potential threat from what would become the Islamic State group – which in 2014 took advantage of the American departure to launch a major assault and seize a massive amount of territory in both Syria and Iraq. Driving the group out required significant reengagement from the U.S. military.

    And President Joe Biden ignored military and intelligence assessments that the Afghan military and government were weak and would not be able to withstand Taliban attacks if the U.S. military withdrew. And until almost the last moment, the Biden administration did not believe warnings that Russia was about to launch a second invasion of Ukraine in 2022. In both cases, the intelligence predictions were correct.

    Elected officials are accountable to the American people, and to history, but I believe accountability is key to ensuring the intelligence community follows its own standards from top to bottom, from senior leaders to the most junior analysts. Failure to abide by those standards harms American national security, and the standards themselves say violations are meant to bring professional, and potentially personal, consequences.

    A U.S. military helicopter flies above Kabul during the evacuation of U.S. troops from Afghanistan in 2021.
    Wakil Kohsar/AFP via Getty Images

    Perfection is elusive

    It’s impossible for intelligence collection and analysis staff to get everything right – they don’t have a crystal ball. Leaders aren’t under any obligation to follow the intelligence community’s recommendations. But if intelligence officials and political leaders are to have effective relationships that safeguard the nation’s security, each must understand their role and trust that each is doing that work as best as possible.

    Providing unvarnished truthful assessments is the job of the intelligence community. That means assessing what’s happening and what might happen as a result of a range of decisions the policymakers might choose. In my experience, putting aside my own views of leaders and their past decisions built trust with them and improved the likelihood that they would take my assessments seriously and make decisions based on the best available information.

    It’s not that intelligence professionals can’t have opinions, political ideologies or particular perspectives on policy decisions. All Americans can, and should.

    But as a second Trump administration begins, I think of what I told my colleagues and staff over the decades: National security requires us to keep those personal views out of intelligence analysis.

    Mark S. Chandler does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    ref. Why Americans need well-informed national security decisions – not politicized intelligence analysis – https://theconversation.com/why-americans-need-well-informed-national-security-decisions-not-politicized-intelligence-analysis-248831

    MIL OSI – Global Reports

  • MIL-OSI Global: Map wars in the Middle East: How cartographers charted and helped shape a regional conflict

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Christine Leuenberger, Senior Lecturer, Cornell University

    A lot has changed since the publication of this 1750 map of Palestine. Ken Welsh/Design Pics/Universal Images Group via Getty Image

    Maps are ubiquitous – on phones, in-flight and car displays, and in textbooks the world over. While some maps delineate and name territories and boundaries, others show different voting blocs in elections, and GPS devices help drivers navigate to their destination.

    But no matter the purpose, all maps have something in common: They are political. Making maps is about making decisions about what to omit and what to include. They are subject to selection, classification, abstractions and simplifications. And studying the choices that go into maps, as I do, can reveal different stories about land and the people who claim it as theirs.

    Nowhere is this more true than in the contested regions that today include modern-day Israel and the Palestinian territories. Since the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948, different governmental and nongovernmental organizations and political interest groups have engaged in what can best be described as “map wars.”

    Maps of the region use the naming of places, the position of borders and the inclusion or omission of certain territories to present contrasting geopolitical visions. To this day, Israel or the Palestinian territories may fall off some maps, depending on the politics of their makers.

    This is not exclusive to the Middle East – “map wars” are underway across the globe. Some of the more well-known examples include disputes between Ukraine and Russia, Taiwan and China, and India and China. All are engaged in controversies over the territorial integrity of nation-states.

    Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu displays a map of Israel indicating the Golan Heights are inside the state’s borders.
    Thomas Coex/AFP via Getty Images

    A short history of maps

    Traditionally, maps have been used to represent cosmologies, cultures and belief systems. By the 17th century, maps that represented spatial relations within a given territory beaome important to the making of nation-states. Such official maps helped annex territories and determine property rights. Indeed, to map a territory meant to know and control it.

    More recently, the tools for making maps have become more broadly accessible. Anyone with a computer and internet access can now make and share “alternative maps” that present different visions of a territory and make varied geopolitical claims.

    And maps produced in a conflict region, such as Israel and the Palestinian territories, tell a rich story about the relationship between mapmaking and politics.

    Mapping the Middle East

    During the British Mandate of Palestine from 1917 to 1947, British surveyors mapped the territories to exercise their control over the land and its people. It was an attempt to supersede the more informal Ottoman land claims of the time.

    By the founding of Israel in 1948, only about 20% of the total area of what is known as historic Palestine had been mapped – a fact that has fueled land disputes to this day. The British mapping efforts and their omissions enabled the newly established state of Israel to declare most of the territories as state land, thereby delegitimizing Palestinian land claims.

    A map shows the shaded areas of the Arab state recommended by the U.N. Special Committee on Palestine in 1947. The unshaded areas are parts of the proposed Jewish state.
    Underwood Archives/Getty Images

    Maps also helped build the Israeli state. Surveyors and planners mapped the land to allocate land rights, and they helped build the state’s infrastructure, including roads and railroads.

    But maps also helped create a sense of nationhood. Maps representing a nation’s shape by delineating its national borders are known as “logo” maps. They can enhance feelings of national unity and a sense of national belonging.

    Once established, the Israeli state remade the maps of the region. An Israeli Governmental Names Commission came up with Hebrew names to replace formerly Arab and Christian names for different towns and villages on the official map of Israel. At the same time, formerly Palestinian topographies and places were omitted from the map.

    Some Palestinian mapmakers, however, continue to make maps that include Palestinian named sites and depict pre-1948 historic Palestine – an area that stretches from River Jordan in the east to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. Such maps are used to advocate for Palestinians’ right to land and foster a sense of national belonging.

    A Palestinian woman holds up a map of the British Mandate of Palestine during a protest in Gaza City on Feb. 27, 2020.
    Mohammed Abed/AFP via Getty Images

    At the same time, Palestinian cartographers who work with the Palestinian Authority – the government body that administers partial civil control over Palestinian enclaves in the West Bank – make official maps of the West Bank and Gaza in the hope of establishing a future state of Palestine. They align their maps with United Nations efforts to map the territories according to international law by demarking the West Bank and Gaza as separate from and as occupied by Israel.

    After the 1967 war between Israel and its Arab neighbors, Israel occupied the West Bank and Gaza. As a result, map wars intensified, especially between different fractions within Israel. The left-wing “peace camp,” which was dedicated to territorial compromises with the Palestinians, was pitted against an Israeli right wing committed to reclaiming the “Promised Land” for ensuring Israeli security.

    Such incompatible geopolitical visions continue to be reflected in the maps produced. “Peace camp” maps adhere to the delineation of the territories according to international law. For example, they include the Green Line – the internationally recognized armistice line between the West Bank and Israel. Official maps produced by the Israeli government, by contrast, stopped delineating the Green Line after 1967.

    Broader and border disputes

    Not only have different interest groups and political actors used maps of the region to put forth competing geopolitical claims, but maps have also played a central role in sporadic efforts to establish peace in the region.

    The 1993 Oslo Accords, for example, relied on maps to provide the framework for Palestinian self-rule in return for security for Israel. The aim was that after a five-year interim period, a permanent peace settlement would be negotiated based on the borders laid out in these maps.

    A map of the West Bank with proposed Palestinian-controlled areas in yellow, as per the Oslo II Accords.
    Wikimedia Commons

    Consequently, Palestinian planners and surveyors mapped the territory allocated to a future state of Palestine. With the Oslo Accords promising only a future state – but with its borders and level of sovereignty still uncertain – Palestinian experts nevertheless continue to prepare for governing the territories by mapping them.

    The Oslo maps are used to this day to delineate geopolitical visions of Israel and a future state of Palestine that are based on international law. But for many Israelis, the Oslo vision of a two-state solution has died – the attack by Hamas, the Palestinian nationalist political organization that governs Gaza, on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, was its last blow.

    The subsequent war between Israel and Hamas, currently subject to a cease-fire, has from the outset involved maps.

    In December 2023, the Israeli military posted an online “evacuation map” that divided the Gaza Strip into 623 zones. Palestinians could go online – provided they have access to electricity and internet in a territory plagued by blackouts – to find out whether their neighborhood was called upon to evacuate. Israeli military commanders used this map to decide where to launch airstrikes and conduct ground maneuvers.

    But the map served a political aim, too: to convince a skeptical world that Israel was taking care to protect civilians. Regardless, its introduction caused confusion and fear among Palestinians.

    Charting a way forward

    Maps aren’t just for making sense of the past and present – they help people imagine the future, too. And different maps can reveal conflicting geopolitical visions.

    In January 2024, for example, various Israeli right-wing and settler organizations organized the Conference for the Victory of Israel. The aim was to plan for resettling Gaza and increase Jewish settlements in the West Bank. Speakers advocated for transferring Palestinians from the Strip to the Sinai through “voluntary emigration.” With Jewish settlers planning for the return to Gaza, and speakers citing both the Bible and Israeli security for justifications, an oversized map showed the location of proposed Jewish settlements.

    A man takes a photo with a map showing the Gaza Strip with Jewish settlements during a convention calling to resettle the Gaza Strip on Jan. 28, 2024, in Jerusalem, Israel.
    Amir Levy/Getty Images

    Similarly, the Israeli Movement for Settlement in Southern Lebanon has published maps of planned Jewish settlements in Southern Lebanon.

    Such maps reveal the desire by some in Israel for a “Greater Israel” – an area described in 1904 by Theodor Herzl, considered the father of modern-day Zionism, as spanning from the brook of Egypt to the Euphrates.

    Unsurprisingly, Palestinians make different maps for envisioning the future. Palestine Emerging – a Palestinian and international initiative that brings together various experts, organizations, and funders – uses maps that connect Gaza to the West Bank and the wider region.

    A map shows the proposed Gaza-West Bank corridor transport link.
    Palestine Emerging

    Their aim is to transform Gaza into a commercial hub for trade, tourism and innovation and to integrate it into the global economy. Accordingly, maps of urban projects, airports and seaports overlay the cartographic contours of Gaza; and a Gaza-West Bank corridor, which would be sealed for Israeli security, could connect the two geographically separate Palestinian territories.

    Such maps reflect the efforts by Palestinian stakeholders to continue surveying the territories that, since the Oslo Accords, were to make up the future state of Palestine.

    A new era of expansionist geopolitics

    With the current U.S. administration more aligned with right-wing Israeli policies, maps of Greater Israel may guide what Hagit Ofran from Peace Now calls the beginning of a new “Greater Israel” policy period.

    In a novel twist, U.S. President Donald Trump on Feb. 4, 2025, floated a plan for the U.S. to “take over” Gaza, moving its current inhabitants out and turning the enclave into “”the Riviera of the Middle East.”

    Such a move would amount to another attempt to remake borders across the Middle East. It would not, however, end the “map wars” in Israel/Palestine.

    This work was supported by the National Science Foundation through the Science and Technology Studies (STS) Program, award #1152322. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation or any other entity.

    ref. Map wars in the Middle East: How cartographers charted and helped shape a regional conflict – https://theconversation.com/map-wars-in-the-middle-east-how-cartographers-charted-and-helped-shape-a-regional-conflict-231668

    MIL OSI – Global Reports

  • MIL-OSI Global: Why does Trump want to abolish the Education Department? An anthropologist who studies MAGA explains 4 reasons

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Alex Hinton, Distinguished Professor of Anthropology; Director, Center for the Study of Genocide and Human Rights, Rutgers University – Newark

    A pedestrian walks past the Lyndon Baines Johnson Department of Education Building on Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. Pete Kiehart for The Washington Post via Getty Images

    “And one other thing I’ll be doing very early in the administration is closing up the Department of Education.”

    President Donald Trump made this promise in a Sept. 13, 2023, campaign statement. Since then, he has frequently repeated his pledge to close the U.S. Department of Education.

    Project 2025, the conservative think tank Heritage Foundation’s blueprint for the Trump administration, also provides detailed recommendations for closing the Education Department, which was created by an act of Congress in 1979.

    On Feb. 4, 2025, Trump described his plans for Linda McMahon, his nominee for education secretary. “I want Linda to put herself out of a job,” Trump said, according to The Associated Press.

    I am an anthropologist and have been studying U.S. political culture for years. During Trump’s first presidency, I wrote a book about the extremist far-right called “It Can Happen Here”. Since then, I have continued to study the Make America Great Again, or MAGA, movement, seeking to understand it, as the anthropological expression goes, “from the native’s point of view.”

    Education policies in the U.S. are largely carried out at the state and local levels. The Education Department is a relatively small government agency, with just over 4,000 employees and a US$268 billion annual budget. A large part of its work is overseeing $1.6 trillion in federal student loans as well as grants for K-12 schools.

    And it ensures that public schools comply with federal laws that protect vulnerable students, like those with disabilities.

    Why, then, does Trump want to eliminate the department?

    A will to fight against so-called “wokeness” and a desire to shrink the government are among the four reasons I have found.

    President Donald Trump waves to supporters at a Jan. 25, 2025, rally in Las Vegas.
    Ian Maule/Getty Images

    1. Education Department’s alleged ‘woke’ mentality

    First and foremost, Trump and his supporters believe that liberals are ruining public education by instituting what they call a
    radical woke agenda” that they say prioritizes identity politics and politically correct groupthink at the expense of the free speech of those, like many conservatives, who have different views.

    Diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, initiatives promoting social justice – and critical race theory, or the idea that racism is entrenched in social and legal institutions – are a particular focus of MAGA ire.

    So, too, is what Trump supporters call “radical gender ideology,” which they contend promotes policies like letting transgender students play on school sports teams or use bathrooms corresponding with their gender identity, not biological sex.

    Trump supporters say that such policies – which the Education Department indirectly supported by expanding Title IX gender protections in 2024 to include discrimination based on gender identity – are at odds with parental school choice rights or, for some religious conservatives, the Bible.

    Race and gender policies are highlighted in Project 2025 and in the 2024 GOP’s “Make America Great Again!” party platform.

    Trump has repeatedly promised, as he did on Aug. 14, 2024, in North Carolina, to “keep critical race theory and transgender insanity the hell out of our schools.”

    On Jan. 20, 2025, Trump signed executive orders targeting “gender ideology extremism” and “radical” DEI policies. Two weeks later, he signed another one on “Keeping Men Out Of Women’s Sports.

    2. American Marxist indoctrination

    For MAGA supporters, ”radical left“ wokeness is part of liberals’ long-standing attempt to ”brainwash“ others with their allegedly Marxist views that embrace communism.

    One version of this ”American Marxismconspiracy theory argues that the indoctrination dates to the origins of U.S. public education. MAGA stalwarts say this alleged leftist agenda is anti-democratic and anti-Christian.

    Saying he wants to combat the educational influence of such radicals, zealots and Marxists, Trump issued executive orders on Jan. 29 that pledge to fight ”campus anti-Semitism“ and to end ”Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schools.“

    3. School choice and parental rights

    Trump supporters also argue that “woke” federal public education policy infringes on people’s basic freedoms and rights.

    This idea extends to what Trump supporters call “restoring parental rights,” including the right to decide whether a child undergoes a gender transition or learns about nonbinary gender identity at public schools.

    The first paragraph of Project 2025’s chapter on education argues, “Families and students should be free to choose from a diverse set of school options and learning environments.”

    Diversity, according to this argument, should include faith-based institutions and homeschooling. Project 2025 proposes that the government could support parents who choose to homeschool or put their kids in a religious primary school by providing Educational Savings Accounts and school vouchers. Vouchers give public funding for students to attend private schools and have been expanding in use in recent years.

    Critics of school vouchers, like the National Education Association and American Federation of Teachers unions, argue that vouchers would diminish public education for vulnerable students by taking away scarce funding.

    Trump has already issued a Jan. 29 executive order called “Expanding Educational Freedom and Educational Opportunity for Families,” which opens the door to expanded use of vouchers. This directly echoes Project 2025 by directing the Education Department to prioritize educational choice to give families a range of options.

    4. Red tape

    For the MAGA faithful, the Education Department exemplifies government inefficiency and red tape.

    Project 2025, for example, contends that from the time it was established by the Carter administration in 1979, the Education Department has ballooned in size, come under the sway of special interest groups and now serves as an inefficient “one-stop shop for the woke education cartel.”

    To deal with the Education Department’s “bloat” and “suffocating bureaucratic red tape,” Project 2025 recommends shifting all of the department’s federal programs and money to other agencies and the states.

    These recommendations dovetail with Trump’s broader attempt to eliminate what he and his MAGA supporters consider wasteful spending and deregulate the government.

    Trump signed an executive order on Jan. 20 that establishes a “Department of Government Efficiency” headed by billionaire Elon Musk. Musk said on Feb. 4 that Trump “will succeed” in dismantling the Education Department.

    An electric school bus is parked outside a public high school in Miami in March 2024.
    Joe Raedle/Getty Images

    Can Trump abolish the Education Department?

    At first glance, the Education Department’s days might seem numbered given Trump’s repeated promises to eliminate it and his reported plans to soon sign an executive order that does so. Republican Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota also introduced a bill in November 2024 to close the department.

    And Trump has taken actions, such as seeking to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development without the required congressional approval, which suggest he may try to act on his Education Department promises.

    Abolishing the department, however, would legally require congressional approval and 60 votes to move forward in the Senate, which is unlikely since Republicans only have 53 seats.

    Trump also made similar promises in 2016 that were unfulfilled. And Trump’s executive actions are likely to face legal challenges – like a DEI-focused higher education lawsuit filed on Feb. 3.

    Regardless of such legal challenges, Trump’s executive orders related to education demonstrate that he is already attempting to “drain the swamp” – starting with the Education Department.

    Alex Hinton receives funding from the Rutgers-Newark Sheila Y. Oliver Center for Politics and Race in America, Rutgers Research Council, and Henry Frank Guggenheim Foundation.

    ref. Why does Trump want to abolish the Education Department? An anthropologist who studies MAGA explains 4 reasons – https://theconversation.com/why-does-trump-want-to-abolish-the-education-department-an-anthropologist-who-studies-maga-explains-4-reasons-248818

    MIL OSI – Global Reports

  • MIL-OSI Video: Young Trade Leaders: Nasubia, Malawi

    Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)

    The Young Trade Leaders Programme was established to connect young people with the work of the WTO. Nasubila Ng’ambi, from Malawi, is a 2024 participant. She earned her LLB with distinction from Nelson Mandela University in South Africa.

    Nasubila shares what inspired her to join the programme and her aspirations as a Young Trade Leader.

    Download this video from the WTO website:
    https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/webcas_e/webcas_e.htm

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Rtlb209lDc

    MIL OSI Video

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Breastfeeding and Ebola: knowledge gaps endanger mothers and babies

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Catriona Waitt, Professor of Clinical Pharmacology and Global Health, University of Liverpool

    Breastfeeding is so important for child health that the World Health Organization (WHO) and Unicef recommend that babies should be breastfed within an hour of birth, be exclusively breastfed for the first six months of life, and then continue breastfeeding in combination with other foods for two years or more.

    Infectious disease emergencies can threaten breastfeeding and the lives of mothers and babies. Depending on the disease, there is a risk of passing infection to the baby by close contact or (rarely) through breastmilk. There is also the risk of harm to breastfed infants from medication or vaccination of their mothers.

    But separating mothers and babies or stopping breastfeeding also poses risks.

    Mothers need proper guidance on the best course of action during an Ebola outbreak.

    Threat to mothers and babies

    The symptoms of Ebola include fever, tiredness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, rash and, later, bleeding from any part of the body.

    Ebola viruses are extremely contagious and people who become infected are at very high risk of death. Pregnant women and infants are more vulnerable and at greater risk than others.

    Ebola outbreaks most often occur in countries where breastfeeding is vital for child survival. They have occurred in several African countries and on 30 January 2025 Uganda declared an outbreak, the latest in several the country has endured.

    Breastmilk contains many ingredients that help to prevent and fight infection and that strengthen the baby’s own immune system. Replacing breastmilk with other foods or liquids (including infant formula) removes this protection from babies and makes them more likely to become seriously ill.


    Read more: Ebola: how a vaccine turned a terrifying virus into a preventable disease


    Protection or harm?

    It’s important to know which actions protect or harm babies and their mothers during outbreaks. Recommendations on infectious diseases must weigh up the risks related to the disease, medical treatments and the risks of not-breastfeeding.

    The World Health Organization has published guidelines on how to care for breastfeeding mothers and their infants when one or both have Ebola, but these recommendations are based on “very low quality” evidence, they are mostly expert opinion rather than research-based knowledge.

    Women and children have been largely neglected in Ebola research. More is known about Ebola and semen than Ebola and breastmilk.

    In a paper just published in the Lancet Global Health, we have outlined a roadmap for research on Ebola and breastfeeding so that mothers and babies can be protected.


    Read more: Ebola in Uganda: why women must be central to the response


    What we don’t know

    We know that Ebola is easily transmitted by close contact between people. So the close contact of breastfeeding is a risk to an uninfected baby or mother if one of them has Ebola.

    However:

    • We don’t know if breastmilk can be infectious and, if it is, for how long.

    • We don’t know whether expressed breastmilk can be treated so that it is safe.

    • We don’t know whether, if both mother and baby are infected, it is better for the baby if the mother keeps breastfeeding, if she is able to.

    • We don’t know if vaccinating mothers against Ebola helps to protect their breastfed infants from the virus.

    • We don’t know if there are any risks for breastfed infants if their mothers are infected.

    The result of this lack of knowledge is that decisions may be taken that increase risk and suffering for mothers and their babies.

    For example, mothers may refuse vaccination because they are fearful that it is risky for their baby. But by refusing vaccination they’d be making themselves vulnerable to Ebola.

    Alternatively, they may get vaccinated and stop breastfeeding, making their baby vulnerable to other serious infections.

    If mothers and babies who both have Ebola are separated and breastfeeding is stopped, it could reduce the chances of survival.

    Mothers and babies deserve better than this.

    No more excuses

    For many years people have called for more research on Ebola, breastmilk and breastfeeding, but this research has not been undertaken. It is not acceptable that women and children are deprived of breastfeeding because the needed research has not been done.

    Our experience providing medical care in Ebola outbreaks, developing guidance for breastfeeding mothers in emergencies and researching medications and breastfeeding prompted us to develop a plan to fill this research gap.

    In our paper, we describe the different groups of breastfeeding women affected by Ebola who must be included in research:

    • vaccine recipients

    • mothers who are ill with Ebola

    • mothers recovering from Ebola

    • mothers who are infected with Ebola, but have no symptoms

    • the wider population of breastfeeding mothers in communities experiencing Ebola outbreaks.

    The roadmap also includes the research questions that need answering and the study designs that would enable these questions to be answered.

    It is up to governments, pharmaceutical companies, researchers, funders and health organisations to act.

    Following the Ebola and breastfeeding research roadmap will not necessarily be easy. It is difficult to do research in the middle of an emergency.

    But research on vaccination safety can be done outside outbreaks. Putting research plans in place and gaining approvals before outbreaks will also make things easier.

    Closing the female data gap

    Women have the right to societal, family and health support to enable them to breastfeed.

    Lack of research is part of a problem called the “female data gap”, where knowledge of women’s bodies, experiences and needs is lacking.

    The Universal Declaration of Human Rights says, “Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance.”

    There just needs to be a commitment to make this research happen.

    – Breastfeeding and Ebola: knowledge gaps endanger mothers and babies
    – https://theconversation.com/breastfeeding-and-ebola-knowledge-gaps-endanger-mothers-and-babies-248356

    MIL OSI Africa

  • MIL-OSI Africa: The fossil skull that rocked the world – 100 years later scientists are grappling with the Taung find’s complex colonial legacy

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Rebecca Ackermann, Professor, Department of Archaeology and Human Evolution Research Institute, University of Cape Town

    Here’s how the story of the Taung Child is usually told:

    In 1924 an Australian anthropologist and anatomist, Raymond Dart, acquired a block of calcified sediment from a limestone quarry in South Africa. He painstakingly removed a fossil skull from this material.

    A year later, on 7 February 1925, he published his description of what he argued was a new hominin species, Australopithecus africanus, in the journal Nature. It was nicknamed the Taung Child, a reference to the discovery site and its young age.

    The international scientific community rebuffed this hypothesis. They were looking outside Africa for human origins and argued that the skull more likely belonged to a non-human primate. Dart was vindicated decades later after subsequent similar fossil discoveries elsewhere in Africa.

    Dart is portrayed as prescient in most retellings. He’s hailed for elevating the importance of Africa in the narrative of human origins.

    But is this a biased and simplified narrative? The discovery played out during a period marked by colonialism, racism and racial segregation and apartheid in South Africa. The history of human origins research is, therefore, intertwined with inequality, exclusion and scientifically unsound ideas.

    Viewed against this backdrop, and with a contemporary lens, the figure of Dart, and palaeoanthropology on the African continent more broadly, is complex and worthy of reflection.

    The South African Journal of Science has published a special issue to mark the centenary of Dart’s original paper.

    A group of African researchers and international collaborators, ourselves among them, contributed papers offering perspectives on the science, history and legacy of palaeoanthropology in South Africa and beyond.

    We were particularly interested in exploring how the history of the discovery of early hominins in South Africa influenced the scientific field of palaeoanthropology. Did it promote or limit scientific enquiry? In what ways? What were its cultural effects? And how do they play out now, a century later?

    The papers in the special issue unpack a number of issues and highlight ongoing debates in the field of human evolution research in Africa and beyond.

    Our goal is to celebrate the remarkable science that the discovery of A. africanus enabled. At the same time we are probing disciplinary legacies through a critical lens that challenges researchers to do science better.

    The marginalisation and erasure of voices

    Several key themes run through the contributions in the special issue.

    One is the unheard voices. The colonial framework in which most palaeoanthropological research in South Africa took place excluded all but a few groups. This is particularly true for Indigenous voices. As a legacy, few African researchers in palaeoanthropology are first authors on prominent research or leading international research teams.

    Too often, African palaeoanthropological heritage is the domain of international teams that conduct research on the continent with little meaningful collaboration from local African researchers. This is “helicopter science”. More diverse teams will produce better future work and those of us in the discipline must actively drive this process.


    Read more: Archaeology is changing, slowly. But it’s still too tied up in colonial practices


    The dominance of western male viewpoints is part of the colonial framework. This theme, too, threads through most of the work in the special issue.

    In a bid to redress some of the imbalances, a majority of the authors in the special issue were women, especially African women, and Black Africans more broadly. Many of the papers call for a more considered and equitable approach to the inclusion of African researchers, technicians and excavators in the future: in workshops and seminars, on professional bodies, as collaborators and knowledge creators, and in authorship practices.

    Community and practice

    Colonial legacies also manifest in a lack of social responsiveness – the use of professional expertise for a public purpose or benefit. This is another theme in the special edition. For example, Gaokgatlhe Mirriam Tawane, Dipuo Kgotleng and Bando Baven consider the broader effects of the Taung Child discovery on the Taung community.

    A map showing where the skull was discovered. HERI, Author provided (no reuse)

    Tawane is a palaeoanthropologist and grew up in the Taung municipality. She and her co-authors argue that, a century after the discovery of the fossil, there is little (if any) reason for the local community to celebrate it. They argue that more must be done not only to give back to the community, which is beset by socio-economic struggles, but also to build trust in science and between communities and scientists.

    Researchers need to understand that there is value in engaging with people beyond academia. This is not merely to disseminate scientific knowledge. It can also enrich communities and co-create a scholarship that is more nuanced, ethical and relevant. Researchers must become more socially responsive and institutions must hold researchers to higher standards of practice.

    Resourcing

    Another theme which emerges from this special issue is the value of and the need for excellent local laboratory facilities in which to undertake research based on the fossils and deposits associated with them.

    Increased investment in local laboratory facilities and capacity development can create a shift towards local work on the content being led by Africans. It can also increase pan-African collaboration, dismantling the currently common practice of African researchers being drawn into separate international networks.

    It is important for international funding bodies to increase investment within African palaeoanthropology. This will facilitate internal growth and local collaborative networks. International and South African investment is also needed to grow local research capacity. Fossil heritage is a national asset.

    This is an edited version of an article in the South African Journal of Science. Yonatan Sahle (Department of Archaeology, University of Cape Town, South Africa and Department of History and Heritage Management, Arba Minch University, Ethiopia) co-authored the academic article.

    – The fossil skull that rocked the world – 100 years later scientists are grappling with the Taung find’s complex colonial legacy
    – https://theconversation.com/the-fossil-skull-that-rocked-the-world-100-years-later-scientists-are-grappling-with-the-taung-finds-complex-colonial-legacy-248605

    MIL OSI Africa

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Lost Iron Age treasures discovered beneath RAF airfield04 Feb 2025

    Source: United Kingdom – Royal Air Force

    Long-lost Iron Age artefacts discovered by Military personnel and veterans have been declared as treasure.

    Parts of a Celtic chariot, thought to be around 2000 years old, were discovered underneath the airfield at RAF Valley in Anglesey during an excavation by military personnel and veterans.

    The Senior Coroner for North Wales (West) has now declared these discoveries as treasure. They will be gifted to Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales.

    © Harvey Mills

    The archaeological excavations took place in April 2024 and were led by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO). The investigation also included personnel and veterans from Operation Nightingale, a DIO initiative which supports the health and wellbeing of military personnel and veterans.

    “Operation Nightingale is an innovative and award-winning programme that consistently shows the benefits that archaeology can offer to military personnel and veterans.

    Congratulations to those who carried out the excavation and made this exciting discovery.  Through their hard work, we are uncovering and preserving our history for future generations.”

    Alistair Carns DSO OBE MC MP
    Minister for Veterans and People

    The award-winning scheme sees wounded, injured, and sick personnel and veterans taking part in archaeological investigations across the Defence estate, providing unique experiences within the field.

    The finds are believed to form part of the famed Llyn Cerrig Bach hoard, originally uncovered in the 1940s during work to extend the airfield at RAF Valley for American bombers during the Allied war effort. The hoard is one of the most important collections of Iron Age artefacts discovered in the UK, comprising over 150 bronze and iron objects deposited between 300BC and 100AD.

    © Harvey Mills

    Among the new finds was a terret ring which would have been used to guide the reins of a Celtic chariot, featuring a red decorative inlay. The ring, found by retired RAF Squadron Leader David Ulke, is one of just three found with this particular decoration in Wales.

    A second discovery, a horse bridle-bit thought to date to c. 60AD, was found by serving RAF Flight Sergeant Moore. Similar to those from the Polden Hill hoard found in Somerset, the bridle-bit would have been worn by horses pulling Iron Age chariots.

    “These finds at RAF Valley are extremely exciting for all involved; the Llyn Cerrig Bach hoard is of national importance for Wales, and the United Kingdom as a whole. These new discoveries have confirmed the suspicions of earlier archaeologists that there was more to be found from this particular hoard.”

    Richard Osgood
    DIO’s Senior Archaeologist

    Richard Osgood continued: “It’s great that the personnel and veterans who take part in Operation Nightingale continue to be rewarded with finds of such historical importance. I am proud that the initiative plays a part in supporting personnel and veterans in their recovery and it’s fantastic to see the wonderful impact of this project.”

    The Operation Nightingale team was given special permissions to carry out the excavation by RAF Valley, ahead of refurbishment works on the site’s airfield. Construction for these improvements began in September 2024.

    “We’d been briefed on the sort of things we could expect to find, so when I uncovered the piece, I was pretty sure it was an Iron Age terret ring. To say I was the over the moon is probably an understatement! I’ve been involved in archaeology for many years and this was by far the most significant recovery I have ever made.

    The fact that Operation Nightingale can bring together service personnel through archaeological digs shows how healing and helpful archaeology can be. It’s by no means a silver bullet, but many have benefitted, and I for one am one of those grateful beneficiaries.”

    Squadron Leader (Retired) David Ulke
    Finder of the terret ring

    © Harvey Mills

    “The search for the lost hoard was hard work and we had a huge area to cover. It wasn’t until the final day – with just 10 minutes to go – that I discovered the horse bridle-bit. At first the team thought I was joking, but quickly realised I’d found something special. Words could not explain how I felt in that moment, but it was a wonderful experience.

    I’ve been involved in lots of Operation Nightingale digs now, and the experience truly is priceless for the veterans and service personnel taking part.”

    Flight Sergeant Moore
    Finder of the bridle-bit

    © Harvey Mills

    Group Captain Gez Currie OBE, said: “It is incredible that we are again reminded of the significance of the site on the doorstep of RAF Valley and the importance it has in Welsh history. It was the preparation of RAF Valley in the 1940s to help prevent invasion, that brought to light the significance of this location and its links to an earlier invasion by the Romans.”

    “The importance of RAF Valley to UK Defence today is beyond question, but this is a reminder that we are part of a continuum spanning over 2,000 years and we must be responsible stewards of this land. We are immensely proud to be part of efforts to discover and conserve these important artefacts from Welsh history and equally delighted that our own service personnel have been so intimately involved in these efforts.”

    Group Captain Gez Currie OBE
    Station Commander at RAF Valley

    The finds will now be gifted to the National Museum of Wales, which is home to several items from the initial Llyn Cerrig Bach hoard.

    Senior Curator of Prehistory at Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales, Adam Gwilt, said: “It is amazing to think that these 2,000 year old artefacts have remained so complete and well-preserved within a shallow peat deposit, previously moved and dragged onto the airfield over 80 years ago from a nearby ancient lake!

    The bridle-bit and terret are both of styles which are not represented amongst the original collection. They add important new information on the religious gifting of prized objects into the lake at the end of the Iron Age, a little before, or at around the time when the Roman Army invaded Anglesey.”

    “It is great that these artefacts will be made accessible for display and public benefit at Oriel Môn. I look forward to working collaboratively in coming years with the museum, the heritage centre at RAF Valley and the Operation Nightingale team, so this great story can be celebrated and shared by all.”

    Adam Gwilt

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: ‘Tornado 2 Tempest’: Fighter jet component recycling project off to flying start05 Feb 2025

    Source: United Kingdom – Royal Air Force

    Individual parts from retired fighter jets have been ground down and 3D printed into new components suitable for the UK’s next generation of military aircraft – a first of its kind initiative for the Royal Air Force.

    The innovative recycling project has seen parts from old Tornado aircraft turned into powered metal and used to 3D print new components suitable for Tempest jets. This is a great example of UK-developed technology of the future, and demonstrates UK defence industry as an engine for growth and a key part of the Government’s Plan for Change.

    The development could save taxpayer money, reduce the UK’s reliance on global supply chains of critical and high value metals and produce components that are lighter, stronger, and longer lasting than those made through traditional forging techniques.

    Many of the Ministry of Defence’s surplus assets contain strategic metals, including high quality steel, aluminium, and titanium, and the Tornado 2 Tempest project team have been identifying whether some of these components could be atomised into powders – known as “feedstock” – for additive manufacturing to make new parts.

    Tornado parts containing titanium, including jet engine compressor blades from a low-pressure air compressor, were selected. They were cleaned, successfully atomised and recycled into a 3D printed nose cone and compressor blades by Additive Manufacturing Solutions Limited (AMS) for Orpheus – Rolls-Royce’s small engine concept that is part of the MOD’s Future Combat Air System (FCAS) programme delivering Tempest.

    The nose cone was fitted onto an Orpheus test engine and passed suitability and safety checks – demonstrating the technique has potential use in the sixth-generation jet.

    “The Tornado 2 Tempest project highlights the creativity, ingenuity and innovation defence employs in our approach to national security.

    By working with key industry partners, we can deliver savings, reduce reliance on global supply chains and ensure our Armed Forces have the very best kit to keep our country safe.

    Not only does this initiative have a positive impact on the environment and national security, it supports the domestic defence industry acting as an engine for growth, which is at the heart of Plan for Change.”

    Maria Eagle
    Minister for Defence Procurement and Industry

    The project was led by Defence Equipment and Support’s (DE&S) Defence Recycling & Disposals Team (DRDT) in partnership with the MOD FCAS team, Rolls-Royce and AMS based in Burscough, Lancashire.

    The initiative also led to the creation of three jobs and sustained two at Small Medium-Sized Enterprise (SME), AMS. The business now expects to create 25 new jobs by offering the innovation to other suppliers.

    A team of more than 80 people participated in the project, including DRDT’s commercial graduates and Rolls-Royce graduate apprentices, combining current skills and innovative technologies to deliver and maintain future capabilities.

    Funded by UK Strategic Command’s Defence Support Organisation in relation to its Circular Economics for Defence Concept Note, the feat shows that turning old parts into new is viable and could bring huge benefits to the MOD and wider Defence, especially through increasing the accessibility of strategic metals to the UK Defence industry and suppliers.

    The MOD’s Chief of Defence Logistics and Support (CDLS) recently awarded the Tornado 2 Tempest Rolls-Royce Team a CDLS Commendation in recognition of their commitment and dedication to the delivery and improvement of support to the front line.

    The team also demonstrated a Digital Product Passport (DPP) by capturing and recording material provenance and lifecycle data. This can potentially enable more informed decisions around material allocation and protect against the use of counterfeit materials.

    “The Tornado 2 Tempest project exemplifies the forward-thinking sustainability principles embedded in the FCAS Sustainability Strategy and MoD Defence Support Strategy.

    This project is bold, exciting and innovative, and a demonstration of exemplary collaboration between the MoD, industry and SME, furthering the drive for circular economy practices and innovative digital enablers in Defence.”

    Andrew Eady
    Rolls-Royce

    “At AMS our tagline is ‘Innovative Solutions for a Sustainable Future’ and we were confident our innovations and ideas would have a great bearing on the future of a resilient supply.

    This project turned our proposed solutions into a reality, and we have been very humbled and grateful to the MOD and Rolls Royce, for allowing us to showcase our capability to deliver game-changing circular economy processes and parts in Defence.”

    Robert Higham
    AMS Director

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Exercise Red Flag 2025 beginsRAF joined counterparts from the United States, Canada and Australia on Exercise Red Flag Nellis 25-1.24 Jan 2025

    Source: United Kingdom – Royal Air Force

    Royal Air Force aviators have joined counterparts from the United States, Canada and Australia on Exercise Red Flag Nellis 25-1, considered one of the world’s toughest air combat training environments, to hone their war-fighting skills.

    RAF personnel, including Rivet Joint aircrew from 51 Squadron, Air Operations Controllers from 19 Squadron and 20 Squadron, along with eight Typhoons and a Voyager aircraft are participating in the exercise, running 27th January to 14th February at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, United States.

    Exercise Red Flag was established by United States Air Force in 1975, after the Vietnam War revealed the first 10 combat missions to be the most dangerous for aircrews. The first 10 missions of a modern air campaign are recreated in Red Flag to provide an invaluable experience for all participants.

    Generations of RAF aviators have attended this exercise, and it continues to evolve and reflect the threats and challenges faced on modern operations. Missions are conducted to the nearby Nevada Test and Training Range, and further to the southwest of the United States where there is integration with maritime units.

    This year’s exercise involves approximately 3,000 personnel and up to 150 aircraft over 15 different locations, conducting large force employment missions in a range of scenarios.

    The exercise is renowned for its use of ‘aggressor’ forces including simulated enemy fighter aircraft, ground-based radars and simulated surface-to-air missiles – and even cyber and space-based elements that simulate threats for each mission.

    The Tactical Command and Control team’s role is to manage and control all of those aircraft, alongside other elements and units working in the ground, maritime, cyber and space-based domains, to accomplish the mission. The scale and complexity of Exercise Red Flag Nellis cannot be replicated elsewhere, which makes it an outstanding place to build experience and reinforce a close working relationship with the United States, Australia and Canada.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: InsideAIR podcast 109: DE&S delivering RAF warfighting capabilityListen to the latest episode of InsideAIR.04 Feb 2025

    Source: United Kingdom – Royal Air Force

    Acquiring new platforms, upgrading current platforms so they remain relevant, and ensuring the support solutions, supplies and spares are in place. This is the unsung role of Defence Equipment and Support.

    Squadron Leader Lisney talks with DE&S’s Director Fixed Wing and Director Rotary Wing, UAS and Air Enablers, to find out how they deliver warfighting capability to the RAF, and hears what to look out for in the coming years.  

    InsideAIR is produced for the Royal Air Force by RAF Media Reserves. Theme music by RAF Music Services.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: RAF Invictus competitors share their recovery journey07 Feb 2025

    Source: United Kingdom – Royal Air Force

    UK Armed Forces personnel and veterans are joining counterparts from 20 nations to compete in adaptive sports at the Invictus Games Vancouver Whistler 2025.

    Team UK comprises 62 competitors – all wounded, injured and sick serving personnel and veterans, who have experienced a range of challenging physical and mental injuries sustained while serving in the UK Armed Forces either at home or abroad.

    Team UK departing for the Invictus Games 2025 in Vancouver.

    Some of Team UK, who serve or served in the RAF, have shared their inspiring recovery journeys in this short documentary, ‘I AM INVICTUS: Finding me again’.

    This video contains emotional discussions around mental and physical health that some viewers may find upsetting. If you are affected by any of the issues raised, please see the link below for support.

    What the competitors want to share with those listening, is how powerful the Invictus Games can be in your recovery.

    “A big thing for me is I really want to keep promoting the programme. Because for me it’s been so powerful. If that can just reach one person that felt the way I did, and help them to realise, you may think you’ve tried everything but there are other things out there. I really hope that my contribution to the Invictus Games and my part of the programme and the journey isn’t about what we achieve this time round, it’s about getting other people involved for the legacy of the games. So that they get involved next time round and it helps them.”

    Corporal Matthew ‘Twitch’ Wickens

    The Invictus Games uses the power of sport to inspire recovery, offering a recovery pathway that helps wounded, injured or sick servicemen and women reclaim their purpose, identity and future, beyond their injury. The Ministry of Defence and the Royal British Legion are supporting Team UK to compete at the seventh Invictus Games, which features winter sports for the first time. Selection for the Games is based on the recovery benefit to each individual, rather than solely on expected performance. 

    Access to adaptive sports and the opportunity to participate in the Invictus Games is just one way the Royal British Legion & MOD supports the wounded, injured and sick Armed Forces community. There are also adventurous training and theatre and art programmes available for personnel, veterans and families which are delivered by partners via the RAF Recovery and Support Team.

    In recent months, Team UK have been preparing for the Games at the Royal British Legion’s Battle Back Centre in Lilleshall, which promotes the use of adaptive sport and adventure activities to help improve confidence and positively impact mental health and wellbeing. These activities are designed to help each individual achieve their best possible recovery and either return to Service duty or make a smooth transition to civilian life.

    The Invictus Games will be broadcast in the UK between 8-16 February on ITV in the UK. Nine daily highlight shows will be available on ITVX across the duration of the Games, which will include the Opening Ceremony.

    If you or a friend needs help or support, visit the Health and Wellbeing page for links to resources and partners who can help.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: The era of practical quantum computers draws closer

    Source: Anglia Ruskin University

    Practical quantum computers could help solve problems associated with rescheduling airline flights

    By Domenico Vicinanza, Anglia Ruskin University

    In 1981, American physicist and Nobel Laureate, Richard Feynman, gave a lecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) near Boston, in which he outlined a revolutionary idea. Feynman suggested that the strange physics of quantum mechanics could be used to perform calculations.

    The field of quantum computing was born. In the 40-plus years since, it has become an intensive area of research in computer science. Despite years of frantic development, physicists have not yet built practical quantum computers that are well suited for everyday use and normal conditions (for example, many quantum computers operate at very low temperatures). Questions and uncertainties still remain about the best ways to reach this milestone.

    What exactly is quantum computing, and how close are we to seeing them enter wide use? Let’s first look at classical computing, the type of computing we rely on today, like the laptop I am using to write this piece.

    Classical computers process information using combinations of “bits”, their smallest units of data. These bits have values of either 0 or 1. Everything you do on your computer, from writing emails to browsing the web, is made possible by processing combinations of these bits in strings of zeroes and ones.

    Quantum computers, on the other hand, use quantum bits, or qubits. Unlike classical bits, qubits don’t just represent 0 or 1. Thanks to a property called quantum superposition, qubits can be in multiple states simultaneously. This means a qubit can be 0, 1, or both at the same time. This is what gives quantum computers the ability to process massive amounts of data and information simultaneously.

    Imagine being able to explore every possible solution to a problem all at once, instead of once at a time. It would allow you to navigate your way through a maze by simultaneously trying all possible paths at the same time to find the right one. Quantum computers are therefore incredibly fast at finding optimal solutions, such as identifying the shortest path, the quickest way.

    Think about the extremely complex problem of rescheduling airline flights after a delay or an unexpected incident. This happens with regularity in the real world, but the solutions applied may not be the best or optimal ones. In order to work out the optimal responses, standard computers would need to consider, one by one, all possible combinations of moving, rerouting, delaying, cancelling or grouping, flights.

    Every day there are more than 45,000 flights in the United States alone, and worldwide there are thousands of airlines connecting tens of thousands of airports. This problem would take years to solve for a classical computer.

    On the other hand, a quantum computer would be able to try all these possibilities at once and let the best configuration organically emerge. Qubits also have a physical property known as entanglement. When qubits are entangled, the state of one qubit can depend on the state of another, no matter how far apart they are.

    This is something that, again, has no counterpart in classical computing. Entanglement allows quantum computers to solve certain problems exponentially faster than traditional computers can.

    A common question is whether quantum computers will completely replace classical computers or not. The short answer is no, at least not in the foreseeable future. Quantum computers are incredibly powerful for solving specific problems – such as simulating the interactions between different molecules, finding the best solution from many options or dealing with encryption and decryption. However, they are not suited to every type of task.

    Classical computers process one calculation at a time in a linear sequence, and they follow algorithms (sets of mathematical rules for carrying out particular computing tasks) designed for use with classical bits that are either 0 or 1. This makes them extremely predictable, robust and less prone to errors than quantum machines. For everyday computing needs such as word processing or browsing the internet, classical computers will continue to play a dominant role.

    There are at least two reasons for that. The first one is practical. Building a quantum computer that can run reliable calculations is extremely difficult. The quantum world is incredibly volatile, and qubits are easily disturbed by things in their environment, such as interference from electromagnetic radiation, which makes them prone to errors.

    The second reason lies in the inherent uncertainty in dealing with qubits. Because qubits are in superposition (are neither a 0 or 1) they are not as predictable as the bits used in classical computing. Physicists therefore describe qubits and their calculations in terms of probabilities. This means that the same problem, using the same quantum algorithm, run multiple times on the same quantum computer might return a different solution each time.

    To address this uncertainty, quantum algorithms are typically run multiple times. The results are then analysed statistically to determine the most likely solution. This approach allows researchers to extract meaningful information from the inherently probabilistic quantum computations.

    From a commercial point of view, the development of quantum computing is still in its early stages, but the landscape is very diverse with lots of new companies appearing every year. It is fascinating to see that in addition to big, established companies like IBM and Google, new ones are joining, such as IQM, Pasqal and startups such as Alice and Bob. They are all working on making quantum computers more reliable, scalable and accessible.

    In the past, manufacturers have drawn attention to the number of qubits in their quantum computers, as a measure of how powerful the machine is. Manufacturers are increasingly prioritising ways to correct the errors that quantum computers are prone to. This shift is crucial for developing large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum computers, as these techniques are essential for improving their usability.

    Google’s latest quantum chip, Willow, recently demonstrated remarkable progress in this area. The more qubits Google used in Willow, the more it reduced the errors. This achievement marks a significant step towards building commercially relevant quantum computers that can revolutionise fields like medicine, energy and AI.

    After more than 40 years, quantum computing is still in its infancy, but significant progress is expected in the next decade. The probabilistic nature of these machines represents a fundamental difference between quantum and classical computing. It is what makes them fragile and hard to develop and scale.

    At the same time, it is what makes them a very powerful tool to solve optimisation problems, exploring multiple solutions at the same time, faster and more efficiently than classical computers can.

    Domenico Vicinanza, Associate Professor of Intelligent Systems and Data Science, Anglia Ruskin University

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

    The opinions expressed in VIEWPOINT articles are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARU.

    If you wish to republish this article, please follow these guidelines: https://theconversation.com/uk/republishing-guidelines

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: ARU student donations raise over £110k for charity

    Source: Anglia Ruskin University

    Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) students have raised over £110,000 for the British Heart Foundation through a scheme that sees them donate their unwanted household items.

    The Green Move Out initiative began in 2015, encouraging students moving out of university accommodation to donate household items that they no longer need. Donation points are located around ARU’s campuses in Chelmsford and Cambridge, as well as some off-site student residences.

    In 2024, students donated 6,784kg of items, the equivalent weight of about 60 baby elephants. The goods donated are estimated to have a value of £12,720, taking the total value of goods donated to the BHF to £111,280 in just 10 years.

    Among the most commonly donated items are books, clothes and cookware. Although the scheme is primarily targeted at students living in ARU accommodation, any student or staff can donate items and donations can be made at any time of year.

    “2024 was another fantastic year for our Green Move Out scheme, which has been hugely successful both in reusing items that may otherwise have been thrown away, and in contributing to a charity that does such wonderful work.

    “I thank all our students and staff who have donated items, and I am sure 2025 will be another strong year for donations.”

    James Rolfe, Chief Operating Officer at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU)

    “Anglia Ruskin University has been raising money for the British Heart Foundation since 2015. The students generously donate items to us through our Pack for Good campaign and we couldn’t be more grateful for their continued support.

    “Every year, using these donations, BHF shops and stores raise millions of pounds to help the BHF fund lifesaving research into heart and circulatory diseases. We couldn’t do this without the continued support of students, like those at Anglia Ruskin.”

    Natasha Feltham, university account executive at the British Heart Foundation

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Craigavon firm donates 360 meals to ABC Community Food Hub

    Source: Northern Ireland City of Armagh

    Shera McAloran, who is the founder of Karri Kitchens pictured with Chris Leach from ABC Community Food Hub.

    A Craigavon-based food business has been praised for their generous donation to the ABC Community Food Hub.

    Karri Kitchen have kindly given 360 prepared meals to be redistributed through the social supermarkets which are part of the ABC Community Food Hub set up to help those people experiencing food insecurity.

    With support from Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon (ABC) Borough Council, the Community Food Hub was co-designed to provide a centralised location for food donations to be distributed to food banks and social supermarkets within the ABC Borough.

    Shera McAloran who is the founder of Karri Kitchen, said: “It is our pleasure to be able to donate some of our healthy and nutritious meals to the ABC Food Hub. As a business based in the ABC Council area, we are keen to support local organisations who are providing much-needed help to people in crisis.

    “Food is a passion for our business, and we are happy to share that experience with people at a time of need. Knowing that our donations are being distributed through the hub to social supermarkets who journey alongside clients gives us confidence that what we give, makes a difference to those who need it the most.”

    Chris Leech from the ABC Community Food Hub said the donation by Karri Kitchen would make an important impact. “Our primary goal is to coordinate food donations from our amazing local food sector and channel these donations to organisations who are supporting people in crisis. We are impressed by the generosity of companies like Karri Kitchen, who want to share their award-winning meals with our social supermarket and food bank network,” said Chris.

    “Our strategy in 2025 is to develop this partnership between business and the community sector, ensuring that the generosity of local businesses is met with the best practice support of our local poverty relief charities.

    “Appropriate food support at a time of crisis, coupled with wrap-around support, can both meet an immediate poverty need and deliver ongoing empowering support. This wrap-around support helps to tackle some of the more complex issues that many people in our community face. Businesses are happy to meet their corporate social responsibility status and know that their community benefits.”

    Businesses can support the ABC Community Food Hub by visiting – www.armaghbanbridgecraigavon.gov.uk/resident/business-engagement/

    For those seeking help from the ABC Community Food Hub, social supermarkets and wraparound services are available in seven locations, ABC Community Food Hub, Craigavon; Stepping Stones Pantry, Armagh; The Pantry, Banbridge; Freedom Foods Pantry, Lurgan; Freedom Foods Pantry, Portadown; Via Wings Larder, Dromore and the Salvation Army, Lurgan.

    For further information and contact details please visit – www.armaghbanbridgecraigavon.gov.uk/resident/socialsupermarket/

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: GRANGEMOUTH: Community will not forget if governments abandon them

    Source: Scottish Greens

    Workers and the community of Grangemouth deserve support for their future.

    Workers and the community in Grangemouth will not forget it if they are abandoned by their governments, says Scottish Green MSP Gillian Mackay.

    Ms Mackay, who represents Grangemouth and who grew up and still lives in the shadow of the refinery, was responding to news that the site could close as early as May.

    Ms Mackay said:

    “This is a further devastating blow to hundreds of workers and to a community that feels like it has been abandoned and left to the will of a detached billionaire.

    “All of us in the town know somebody who is employed at the site, and we all know the businesses who rely on it. Three months is no time at all, and a lot of people will be extremely worried and angry about what is happening.

    “The Labour government was elected on a promise to step in and save the jobs, but those words are looking extremely hollow today. With only months to go, it is clear that they have no plan to protect workers or to provide jobs for the future.

    “The workers in Grangemouth could have a crucial role to play in our green future. But warm words alone about a just transition won’t pay the bills, it needs investment and it needs a proper plan.

    “The workers and the community will not forget it if they are abandoned by their governments at a time when they need them the most. 

    “We can’t let Grangemouth go the same way as so many other communities and towns where big businesses have cut and run while jobs have been lost and people have suffered.

    “Workers should not be in this position. I implore the Scottish and UK governments to pull out all stops and work with the trade unions and the community to protect workers.”

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Dame Sue Owen reappointed as Non-Executive Chair of the UK Debt Management Office Advisory Board

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    HM Treasury announces that Dame Sue Owen will serve a second three-year term as Non-Executive Chair (NEC) of the UK Debt Management Office (DMO) Advisory Board.

    Dame Sue was previously a civil servant for 30 years, including serving as the Permanent Secretary at the Department for Culture, Media & Sport from 2013 to 2019. She also worked on fiscal policy and debt management policy at HM Treasury.

    She was first appointed to the role, which involves chairing Advisory Board meetings and providing support and challenge to the Debt Management Office (DMO) executive team, in 2022.

    The Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Emma Reynolds MP, said:

    I am delighted that Dame Sue Owen will be serving a second term at the Debt Management Office.

    Her expertise and experience has been, and will continue to be, incredibly valuable to the organisation as it continues its vital mission of delivering government financing.

    Dame Sue Owen said:

    The DMO has an exceptionally important role and I am very happy to have this further opportunity to provide continuity and support to the CEO, her team, and Treasury colleagues.

    Jessica Pulay, Chief Executive of the DMO, said:

    Dame Sue Owen’s reappointment as Non-Executive Chair of the DMO’s Advisory Board is greatly welcomed by myself, the DMO’s executive team and wider DMO colleagues.  We look forward to working with her over the years ahead, as we continue to deliver the DMO’s remit to finance the UK government.


    Further information:

    • The DMO is an Executive Agency of HM Treasury and is responsible for delivering HM Government’s debt management and cash management requirements, lending to local authorities, and managing certain public sector funds.
    • Dame Sue Owen is the first Non-Executive Chair (NEC) of the Advisory Board. The appointment of a NEC was a recommendation included in the Tailored Review of the DMO, published in June 2021.
    • This reappointment was made by HM Treasury ministers, in line with the requirements of the Governance Code for Public Appointments
    • Dame Sue Owen DCB is an experienced and respected economist. She spent 10 years as an academic and 30 years in the civil service, including 14 years at HM Treasury, where she worked with the DMO as a non-executive member of its Managing Board from 2002-06. She also held senior roles at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), Department for International Development (DfID), and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), before retiring as Permanent Secretary of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport in April 2019. Dame Sue is now a specialist partner at Flint-Global, a non-executive Director at Pool Re, Pantheon International plc, Methera Global Communications and Serco plc, a trustee for Opera Holland Park and she chairs the Royal Ballet Governors.

    Updates to this page

    Published 7 February 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Scientific regiment. Chemist and theologian Nikolai Pestov

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –

    Nikolai Evgrafovich Pestov (1892-1982) – Doctor of Chemical Sciences – specialist in the field of mineral fertilizer technology, professor, holder of the Order of Lenin, famous theologian, historian of the Orthodox Church.

    Nikolay Pestov was born on August 17, 1892 in Nizhny Novgorod. He was the youngest, tenth, child in the family. From school, he was interested in chemistry and in 1911 he entered the chemistry department of the Imperial Moscow Higher Technical School (now Bauman Moscow State Technical University). When the Great War, as World War I was then called, broke out, he first entered the Alekseevskoye Military School, and later volunteered for the front with the rank of ensign, without finishing his fourth year at Bauman Moscow State Technical University.

    During the war, Nikolai Pestov participated in training soldiers for chemical defense. Once he had to defuse a bomb and carry it out in a truck along a broken road. He took the body of the bomb as a souvenir. After the February Revolution, Nikolai Pestov was elected a member of the regimental committee and the regimental court. A review of him spoke of his discipline, tact, excellent knowledge, and “a sympathetic and noble heart.” For his military distinctions, Nikolai was awarded the Order of St. Stanislav, 3rd degree, and the Order of St. Anna, 3rd degree.

    After the October Revolution, Nikolai Evgrafovich had the chance to serve in the Nizhny Novgorod Cheka, in the capital’s Vsevobuch administration under the All-Russian Main Headquarters, and as the head of the Vsevobuch administration in Sverdlovsk, where he personally met Lev Trotsky, whom he later called a “demonic personality.” Trotsky gave his younger comrade his book with the dedication: “To my friend and comrade-in-arms N. Pestov, as a keepsake. Lev Trotsky.”

    In 1921, the convinced atheist Pestov had a spiritual experience – he saw Christ in a dream – and soon resigned from the Red Army, left the Communist Party, completed his studies at the Moscow Higher Technical School and was hired as an employee of the Scientific Institute for Fertilizers (NIUIF). He began to lead a religious life, and was briefly arrested for participating in a student Christian circle.

    From 1933, he worked at the Department of Mineral Substances Technology at the Mendeleyev Moscow Institute of Chemical Technology, from where he was fired in the dangerous year of 1937 for refusing to speak at a meeting condemning the arrested professor Nikolai Yushkevich. “Almost every day, or rather every night, I expected to be arrested. I believe that only through the prayers of my children, wife and spiritual father was I not arrested at that time and remained alive,” he wrote later. Not long before this, Nikolai Evgrafovich was almost arrested when that very memorable German bomb from the First World War was discovered during a search.

    Two years later, Nikolai Pestov was unanimously elected head of the chemical technology department at the Moscow Engineering and Economics Institute (now the State University of Management), where he headed the chemical technology department. In January 1941, he defended his doctoral dissertation “Physicochemical properties of powder and granular products of the chemical industry.” Later, he worked for about a year as the dean of the chemistry department, and from October 1943, he became deputy director for scientific and educational work.

    During the Great Patriotic War, Nikolai Evgrafovich worked on issues of organizing and planning the chemical industry. A separate topic of his research was mineral fertilizers for the country’s agriculture. These studies turned out to be very useful both during and after the war, when it was necessary to establish agriculture on low-fertility and war-damaged soils. Professor Pestov was not mobilized into the active army due to health reasons; he developed bronchial asthma. His eldest son Nikolai went to the front and died in 1943. While adjusting the fire of a mortar battery, he was wounded and shell-shocked, but refused to go to the hospital; the second wound to the stomach turned out to be fatal. Nikolai Pestov later wrote a book about his son, Life for Eternity.

    Even during the war, Nikolai Evgrafovich stopped hiding his faith from his colleagues and placed a small iconostasis in his office. Since 1943, he worked on the fundamental work “Modern Practice of Orthodox Piety”. Professional merits turned out to be higher than personal convictions for the country’s leadership, and in November 1944, Professor Pestov was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor. In 1946, he received the medal “For Valiant Labor in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945”, and in 1953, for length of service and impeccable work among the workers of science of higher educational institutions of the city of Moscow, he was awarded the Order of Lenin.

    Nikolay Pestov is the author of over 100 scientific publications and had 4 patents for inventions. His memory is still alive at the State University of Management.

    #Scientific regiment

    Nikolai Pestov, 1915 Nikolai Evgrafovich (right) with his eldest son Nikolai Nikolai Evgrafovich and his wife Zoya Veniaminovna

    Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 02/07/2025

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Marat Khusnullin: Thanks to the national project “Safe High-Quality Roads”, about 460 km of approaches to airports have been updated

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Previous news Next news

    Access to the airport in Bratsk district, Irkutsk region

    Over the past six years, 457 km of regional and local roads leading to airports have been put into operation in the regions participating in the national project “Safe High-Quality Roads” after repair, reconstruction and construction. This was reported by Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin.

    “Currently, large-scale work is underway in the country to develop airports: new airport complexes are being built and existing ones are being reconstructed, and airfield infrastructure is being modernized. At the same time, we are bringing access roads to air harbors into compliance with regulations. Over the six years of implementing the national project “Safe High-Quality Roads”, more than 120 sections of the regional and local road network leading or included in the routes to airports have been commissioned. Their total length is 457 km. In 2025, we will continue this work thanks to the new national project “Infrastructure for Life”, – said Marat Khusnullin.

    A unified, comfortable transport system for everyone allows us to solve social problems, improve the quality of logistics and strengthen interregional ties.

    “Recently, there has been an increase in passenger traffic on domestic routes, and the national air transportation route network is growing. At the same time, the road transport infrastructure is also developing, which in combination makes travel to other regions safer and more comfortable. In 2024 alone, 21 km of routes to airports were brought up to standard under the national project “Safe High-Quality Roads”. In 2025, repair work is planned for 16 such facilities of the national project “Infrastructure for Life”, their total length will be about 44 km,” said Transport Minister Roman Starovoit.

    The development of roads to airports and transport infrastructure in general also influences the development of domestic tourism. This is another important aspect of the work to improve the quality of life of Russians.

    “Over the six years of implementation of the national project “Safe High-Quality Roads”, more than 2 thousand sections of the regional and local road network leading to unique natural complexes, architectural monuments, religious buildings, historical landmarks have been repaired, reconstructed and built. As a rule, work on such sites was carried out in a comprehensive manner: in addition to the roadway, elements of safety and road infrastructure were installed. As a result, every year travel around Russia is becoming more comfortable, and the increase in tourist flow ensures investment in the regions, contributes to the creation of new jobs, and forms new spaces for business development,” said Igor Kostyuchenko, Deputy Head of the Federal Road Agency.

    Thus, in 2024, a four-kilometer approach to the Krasnoyarsk International Airport was repaired, and in 2023, a section of the highway in the Irkutsk Region was updated – an approach to the Bratsk International Airport, the second largest air harbor in the region. The length of the section is 2.8 km.

    In 2023, the Tomsk-Airport highway leading to the Tomsk International Airport named after Nikolai Kamov was renovated in the Tomsk Region. In total, more than 8 km were repaired during the implementation of the national project. In particular, on the section from Basandayskaya Street in Tomsk to the village of Klyuchi, the road surface was renewed, public transport stops were repaired, and markings were applied. In 2020, about 0.8 km of access road to the airport terminal was built with a ring road and free parking for 226 spaces.

    In 2020, the Airport Yuzhny – Stankostroiteley Street (western bypass of Ivanovo) highway was built in the Ivanovo Region. The new 2.8 km long section connected the federal highway R-132 “Golden Ring” with the existing section of the western bypass and allowed transit transport to bypass the regional center.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News

  • MIL-OSI Security: Louisiana Doctor Sentenced for Illegally Distributing Over 1.8 Million Doses of Opioids in $5.4 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme

    Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (b)

    A Louisiana physician was sentenced yesterday to 87 months in prison for conspiring to illegally distribute over 1.8 million doses of Schedule II controlled substances, including oxycodone, hydrocodone, and morphine, and for defrauding health care benefit programs of more than $5.4 million.

    According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Adrian Dexter Talbot M.D., 59, of Slidell, owned and operated Medex Clinical Consultants (Medex), located in Slidell. Medex was a medical clinic that accepted cash payments from individuals seeking prescriptions for Schedule II controlled substances. Talbot routinely ignored signs that individuals frequenting Medex were drug-seeking or abusing the drugs prescribed. In 2015, Talbot took a full-time job in Pineville, Louisiana, and although he was no longer physically present at the Slidell clinic, he pre-signed prescriptions, including for opioids and other controlled substances, to be distributed to individuals there whom he did not see or examine. In 2016, Talbot hired another practitioner who, at Talbot’s direction, also pre-signed prescriptions to be distributed to individuals in exchange for cash deposited into a Medex bank account. The evidence also demonstrated that Talbot falsified patient records to cover up the scheme and to make it appear as though he was routinely examining the patients. With Talbot’s knowledge, these individuals filled their prescriptions using their insurance benefits, thereby causing health care benefit programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana, to be fraudulently billed for controlled substances that were prescribed without an appropriate patient examination or determination of medical necessity.

    On July 22, 2024, Talbot was convicted by a jury in the Eastern District of Louisiana of one count of conspiracy to unlawfully distribute and dispense controlled substances, four counts of unlawfully distributing and dispensing controlled substances, one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, and one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.

    Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Special Agent in Charge Jason E. Meadows of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Special Agent in Charge Kris Raper of the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (VA-OIG)’s South Central Field Office, Assistant Director Chad Yarbrough of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, Acting Special Agent in Charge Stephen A. Cyrus of the FBI New Orleans Field Office, and Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill made the announcement.

    HHS-OIG, VA-OIG, FBI, and the Louisiana Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigated the case.

    Trial Attorneys Sara E. Porter and Gary A. Crosby II, Assistant Chief Justin Woodard, and Deputy Chief Kate Payerle of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section prosecuted the case.

    The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in 27 federal districts, has charged more than 5,400 defendants who collectively have billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $27 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit. 

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI: Portland Investment Counsel Inc. Recognized at the FundGrade A+® Awards

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    TORONTO, Feb. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Portland Investment Counsel Inc. (Portland) is pleased to announce that the Portland Life Sciences Alternative Fund, managed by Michael Lee-Chin, Executive Chairman and Portfolio Manager and Dragos Berbecel, Portfolio Manager of Portland, was awarded a 2024 FundGrade A+® Award in the Alternative Equity Focused category for the 12-month period ending December 31, 2024, out of a total of 58 funds.

    “We are deeply honored that Portland Life Sciences Alternative Fund has been recognized with a FundGrade A+® Award, a noteworthy achievement in Canada’s wealth management industry. This award reinforces our unwavering commitment to creating wealth for our investors and demonstrates our thesis that improved patient outcomes can lead to stronger investor outcomes. We extend our congratulations to all fellow recipients. Most importantly, we thank advisors and investors for their continued trust and confidence in our investment framework ” said Michael Lee-Chin.

    The annual FundGrade A+® Awards are presented by Fundata Canada Inc. to recognize Canadian investment funds that have consistently received a FundGrade rating every month in the previous year.

    To learn more about this award-winning fund, visit: Portland Life Sciences Alternative Fund.

    About Portland Investment Counsel Inc.
    Portland is an Investment Fund Manager, Portfolio Manager and Exempt Market Dealer. We have a reputation for being Owners and Operators thus we are insightful Investors. Portland provides portfolio management and exempt market dealer services as well as investment products. Our investor roots date back to 1987. www.portlandic.com

    About Fundata Canada Inc.’s FundGrade A+®rating
    FundGrade A+® is used with permission from Fundata Canada Inc., all rights reserved. The annual FundGrade A+® Awards are presented by Fundata Canada Inc. to recognize the “best of the best” among Canadian investment funds. The FundGrade A+® calculation is supplemental to the monthly FundGrade ratings and is calculated at the end of each calendar year. The FundGrade rating system evaluates funds based on their risk-adjusted performance, measured by Sharpe Ratio, Sortino Ratio, and Information Ratio. The score for each ratio is calculated individually, covering all time periods from 2 to 10 years. The scores are then weighted equally in calculating a monthly FundGrade. The top 10% of funds earn an A Grade; the next 20% of funds earn a B Grade; the next 40% of funds earn a C Grade; the next 20% of funds receive a D Grade; and the lowest 10% of funds receive an E Grade. To be eligible, a fund must have received a FundGrade rating every month in the previous year. The FundGrade A+® uses a GPA-style calculation, where each monthly FundGrade from “A” to “E” receives a score from 4 to 0, respectively. A fund’s average score for the year determines its GPA. Any fund with a GPA of 3.5 or greater is awarded a FundGrade A+® Award. For more information, see www.FundGradeAwards.com. Although Fundata makes every effort to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the data contained herein, the accuracy is not guaranteed by Fundata.

    Portland Investment Counsel Inc.
    Diana N. Oddi, Director, Communications and Marketing
    905.331.4250

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: Tenable Completes Acquisition of Vulcan Cyber

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    COLUMBIA, Md., Feb. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Tenable® Holdings, Inc., (“Tenable”) (Nasdaq: TENB) the exposure management company, today announced it has closed its acquisition of Vulcan Cyber Ltd., (“Vulcan Cyber”), a leading innovator in exposure management.

    Vulcan Cyber’s capabilities will enhance Tenable’s industry-leading Exposure Management platform, delivering comprehensive visibility, prioritization and remediation across the entire attack surface.

    “As we welcome our new team members to Tenable, we will immediately begin working on the integration process to drive expanded data insights that will better prioritize risks and simplify remediation efforts for our customers,” said Steve Vintz, Co-CEO and CFO, Tenable. “This move accelerates our exposure management vision, which we believe will set a new standard for accuracy in risk mitigation in the industry.”

    With enhanced visibility, extended third-party data flows, superior risk prioritization, and automated remediation, Tenable One will consolidate and aggregate vast amounts of data into one of the most comprehensive Exposure Management platforms available on the market. This will empower organizations to confidently reduce risk across their entire environment.

    Financial Outlook

    Our financial outlook below reflects the impact of Vulcan Cyber.

    For the first quarter of 2025, we currently expect:

    • Revenue in the range of $233.0 million to $235.0 million.
    • Non-GAAP income from operations in the range of $40.0 million to $42.0 million.
    • Non-GAAP net income in the range of $32.0 million to $34.0 million, assuming interest income of $3.8 million, interest expense of $7.0 million and a provision for income taxes of $3.6 million.
    • Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share in the range of $0.26 to $0.27.
    • 124.0 million diluted weighted average shares outstanding.

    For the year ending December 31, 2025, we currently expect:

    • Calculated current billings in the range of $1.045 billion to $1.060 billion.
    • Revenue in the range of $975.0 million to $985.0 million.
    • Non-GAAP income from operations in the range of $205.0 million to $215.0 million.
    • Non-GAAP net income in the range of $175.0 million to $185.0 million, assuming interest income of $15.3 million, interest expense of $28.3 million and a provision for income taxes of $13.4 million.
    • Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share in the range of $1.41 to $1.49.
    • 124.5 million diluted weighted average shares outstanding.
    • Unlevered free cash flow in the range of $265.0 million to $275.0 million.

    Additional Resources

    • Read today’s blog post on the acquisition here.
    • Request a demo of Tenable One.

    About Tenable
    Tenable® is the exposure management company, exposing and closing the cybersecurity gaps that erode business value, reputation and trust. The company’s AI-powered exposure management platform radically unifies security visibility, insight and action across the attack surface, equipping modern organizations to protect against attacks from IT infrastructure to cloud environments to critical infrastructure and everywhere in between. By protecting enterprises from security exposure, Tenable reduces business risk for approximately 44,000 customers around the globe. Learn more at tenable.com.

    Forward-Looking Statements
    This press release contains forward-looking information related to Tenable, and its acquisition of Vulcan Cyber Ltd. that involves substantial risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. You can generally identify forward-looking statements by the use of forward-looking terminology such as the words: “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “explore,” “evaluate,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “seek,” “should,” or “will,” or the negative thereof or other variations thereon or comparable terminology. The forward-looking statements in this press release are based on Tenable’s current plans, objectives, estimates, expectations and intentions and inherently involve significant risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond Tenable’s control. Forward-looking statements in this communication include, among other things, statements regarding the impact of the Vulcan Cyber acquisition on our future results of operations and financial position, statements about the potential benefits of the acquisition and product developments and other possible or assumed business strategies, potential growth opportunities, new products, potential market opportunities, and the anticipated timing of the closing of the acquisition. Risks and uncertainties include, among other things, our ability to successfully integrate Vulcan Cyber’s operations; our ability to implement our plans, expectations with respect to Vulcan Cyber’s business; our ability to realize the anticipated benefits of the acquisition, including the possibility that the expected benefits from the acquisition will not be realized or will not be realized within the expected time period; disruption from the acquisition making it more difficult to maintain business and operational relationships; the inability to retain key employees; the negative effects of the consummation of the acquisition on the market price of our common stock or on our operating results; unknown liabilities; attracting new customers and maintaining and expanding our existing customer base; our ability to scale and update our platform to respond to customers’ needs and rapid technological change, increased competition on our market and our ability to compete effectively, and expansion of our operations and increased adoption of our platform internationally.

    Additional risks and uncertainties that could affect our financial results are included in the section titled “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2024 and other filings that we make from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) which are available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. In addition, any forward-looking statements contained in this communication are based on assumptions that we believe to be reasonable as of this date. Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons if actual results differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements.

    Contact Information

    Investor Relations
    investors@tenable.com

    Media Relations
    Tenable
    tenablepr@tenable.com

    RECONCILIATION OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES

    The following adjustments to reconcile forecasted non-GAAP income from operations, non-GAAP net income, non-GAAP earnings per share, free cash flow and unlevered free cash flow are subject to a number of uncertainties and assumptions, each of which are inherently difficult to forecast. As a result, actual adjustments and GAAP results may differ materially.

    Forecasted Non-GAAP Income from Operations Three Months Ending
    March 31, 2025
      Year Ending
    December 31, 2025
    (in millions) Low   High   Low   High
    Forecasted loss from operations $ (27.0 )   $ (25.0 )   $ (21.0 )   $ (11.0 )
    Forecasted stock-based compensation   55.0       55.0       195.0       195.0  
    Forecasted acquisition-related expenses   6.0       6.0       6.0       6.0  
    Forecasted amortization of acquired intangible assets   6.0       6.0       25.0       25.0  
    Forecasted non-GAAP income from operations $ 40.0     $ 42.0     $ 205.0     $ 215.0  
    Forecasted Non-GAAP Net Income and Non-GAAP Earnings Per Share Three Months Ending
    March 31, 2025
      Year Ending
    December 31, 2025
    (in millions, except per share data) Low   High   Low   High
    Forecasted net loss(1) $ (36.0 )   $ (34.0 )   $ (56.0 )   $ (46.0 )
    Forecasted stock-based compensation   55.0       55.0       195.0       195.0  
    Forecasted tax impact of stock-based compensation   1.0       1.0       5.0       5.0  
    Forecasted acquisition-related expenses   6.0       6.0       6.0       6.0  
    Forecasted amortization of acquired intangible assets   6.0       6.0       25.0       25.0  
    Forecasted non-GAAP net income $ 32.0     $ 34.0     $ 175.0     $ 185.0  
                   
    Forecasted net loss per share, diluted(1) $ (0.30 )   $ (0.28 )   $ (0.46 )   $ (0.38 )
    Forecasted stock-based compensation   0.46       0.46       1.61       1.61  
    Forecasted tax impact of stock-based compensation   0.01       0.01       0.04       0.04  
    Forecasted acquisition-related expenses   0.05       0.05       0.05       0.05  
    Forecasted amortization of acquired intangible assets   0.05       0.05       0.21       0.21  
    Adjustment to diluted earnings per share(2)   (0.01 )     (0.02 )     (0.04 )     (0.04 )
    Forecasted non-GAAP earnings per share, diluted $ 0.26     $ 0.27     $ 1.41     $ 1.49  
                   
    Forecasted weighted-average shares used to compute GAAP net loss per share, diluted   120.5       120.5       121.0       121.0  
    Forecasted weighted-average shares used to compute non-GAAP earnings per share, diluted   124.0       124.0       124.5       124.5  

    ________________
    (1)  The forecasted GAAP net loss assumes income tax expense of $4.6 million and $18.4 million in the three months ending March 31, 2025 and year ending December 31, 2025, respectively.

    (2)  Adjustment to reconcile GAAP net loss per share, which excludes potentially dilutive shares, to non-GAAP earnings per share, which includes potentially dilutive shares.

       
    Forecasted Free Cash Flow and Unlevered Free Cash Flow Year Ending
    December 31, 2025
    (in millions) Low   High
    Forecasted net cash provided by operating activities $ 258.0     $ 268.0  
    Forecasted purchases of property and equipment   (17.0 )     (17.0 )
    Forecasted capitalized software development costs   (3.0 )     (3.0 )
    Forecasted free cash flow   238.0       248.0  
    Forecasted cash paid for interest and other financing costs   27.0       27.0  
    Forecasted unlevered free cash flow $ 265.0     $ 275.0  

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Investment Conference

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    GAD’s inaugural Investment Conference attracted a packed house of professionals across investment, pensions and government.

    Credit: Unsplash

    The role of the Government Actuary’s Department (GAD) in investment issues in the public sector were among the topics discussed in our inaugural Investment Conference. The event attracted more than 140 people from almost 60 different organisations.

    GAD’s Investment Lead Chris Ward introduced the theme of the conference – ‘productive investment to maximise value’ and delegates heard from a wide range of speakers including:

    • Ireland Strategic Investment Fund
    • Border to Coast Pensions Partnership (a Local Government Pension Scheme Pool)

    Investment management firms:

    • Baillie Gifford
    • First Eagle
    • Novum Investment Management
    • Partners Group

    Credit: GAD

    Topics and discussions

    Delegates heard from experts who spoke to various topics such as:

    • alternative approaches to generating returns while having a wider economic and societal impact
    • the impact of scale and the scale of impact when it comes to pensions investing
    • how you can invest to grow your assets and create a positive impact
    • why now is the time for investing in growth and how volatility of asset pricing is different to investment risk

    Unique role

    In closing remarks, the Government Actuary Fiona Dunsire emphasised the role of those working in the public sector, and supporting the public sector, to contribute towards the government’s number one mission of kickstarting the UK’s economic growth.

    Commenting on the event Fiona said: “GAD has a unique role in connecting institutional investors with policy and opportunities, allowing barriers to be aired and addressed.”

    Updates to this page

    Published 7 February 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Serov Readings Reach New Level

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – Participants of the Serov Readings

    On February 3, the Serov Readings took place at SPbGASU. The event, which has been held at our university since 2021, acquired the status of an international scientific and technical symposium this year.

    In memory of a prominent scientist

    “The Serov Readings are held in memory of Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor Evgeny Nikolaevich Serov, who worked at our university for many years. The scientist is known for his participation in the development of domestic standards for the design of wooden structures in the USSR and Russia, as well as high-quality textbooks that will always be relevant,” said the organizer of the symposium, head of the department of metal and wooden structures at SPbGASU Egor Danilov.

    According to Yegor Vladimirovich, the unofficial holding of the readings confirmed the hypothesis about their demand among the professional scientific community: famous scientists, including those from abroad, participated in them. At the moment, the goal is to consolidate Russian scientists in the field of wooden structures on the basis of SPbGASU.

    Evgeny Nikolaevich Serov (01.02.1932–30.01.2018) is a prominent scientist and specialist in the field of wooden structures. He worked at our university from 1964 to 2017, rising from assistant to professor of the Department of Wood and Plastic Structures. In 1975–1980, he headed the correspondence faculty.

    Along with the main course “Wood and Plastic Constructions”, he also taught special disciplines, including “Engineering Restoration of Architectural Heritage”, and conducted practical classes directly at architectural monuments with unique wooden structures. The research work of students supervised by Evgeny Serov was repeatedly awarded second and third degree diplomas by the Ministry of Higher Education of the RSFSR, and the students were participants of the USSR Exhibition of Economic Achievements and co-authors of scientific articles and inventions. Combining extensive public and administrative activities, Evgeny Nikolaevich worked on the most important national economic topics of the State Construction Committee and the State Planning Committee, the Ministry of Higher Education of the RSFSR.

    As a result of many years of research, Evgeny Serov developed new structural forms from glued timber structures (GTS), technologies for their production, including waste-free cutting of blank blocks, as well as calculation methods that take into account the high degree of anisotropy (unequal properties in the directions of the fibers) of glued timber. He formulated the main principle of GTS design – the principle of tracking orientation with the coordination of the fields of effective stresses and the resistance fields of anisotropic material, developed and implemented special curvilinear inserts in the junctions of frame and beam structures, a method for strengthening the support zones of GTS using glued reinforcement bars, which was used in arches with a span of 63 m.

    New solutions in the use of wood

    Opening the symposium, the Vice-Rector of SPbGASU for scientific activities Evgeny Korolev emphasized: despite its long history, the topic of wood use is constantly evolving. Today, it is necessary to search for new design and technological solutions.

    Professor of the Department of Metal and Wooden Structures, Honorary President of the Wooden Housing Association Alexander Chernykh believes that the event provides an opportunity to pass on experience to the younger generation, and that the attention of colleagues from other universities is important for SPbGASU researchers.

    Deputy Dean for Research, Associate Professor of the Department of Architectural and Civil Engineering Olga Pastukh invited everyone to the III National (All-Russian) Scientific and Technical Conference “Prospects of Modern Construction”, which will be held at SPbGASU on April 21–23.

    The program of the Serov Readings included 23 in-person and remote reports, 23 poster reports from 62 participants. 46 people applied as listeners, including students and postgraduates of SPbGASU. Participants from Moscow, Novosibirsk, Arkhangelsk and other Russian cities, as well as from China and Vietnam, exchanged experiences and opinions on the research conducted in the field of wooden structures, their operation, improvement, and calculation.

    Scientific consultant of Georekonstruktsiya LLC Roman Orlovich informed about the problems of exploitation of wooden structures in historical buildings. In his opinion, wooden floors can be preserved with the right approach to analysis of their bearing capacity, physical wear and tear and damage by rot, as well as with the right use of technical solutions.

    Chief Researcher of the Kucherenko Central Research Institute of Building Structures (a structural division of JSC NIC Construction) Alexander Pogoreltsev shared the results of a study of platform joints of multi-story buildings made of CLT. He is confident that the general theory of calculating platform joints, which is successfully used in calculating reinforced concrete structures, is not applicable to wood, which is an anisotropic material (i.e. a material with different mechanical properties of fibers when forces are applied to the fibers in different directions).

    The current generation of researchers are worthy successors of the famous scientist.

    Postgraduate student Elizaveta Kotova presented a report on “Bearing capacity and deformability of circular LVL structures” (supervisor – Egor Danilov): “LVL timber is famous for its high strength and durability, and circular structures made of this material allow you to create elegant and effective architectural forms with large spans, without the use of massive supports. This opens up new opportunities for designing buildings and structures with a unique design. Therefore, the relevance of the study of circular LVL structures is due to the need to develop accurate methods for calculating the stress-strain state, improve the regulatory framework, increase the efficiency of design and operational safety.”

    As a result of studying the existing methods for calculating circular structures, Elizaveta managed to find out that information about the bearing capacity and deformability of circular LVL structures is relatively limited compared to studies of rectilinear LVL beams. This is due to the complexity of analyzing the stress-strain state in curvilinear structures.

    At present, trial tests of LVL samples with different angles of inclination have been carried out to visualize the behavior of a curvilinear LVL sample under load in order to obtain the main mechanical characteristics of the material. The results obtained will be used for more accurate compilation and calculation of the LVL circular structure in the computational program. In the future, it is planned to study the stress-strain state of dowel joints. Based on the results of the numerical study, a physical model of the LVL circular structure will be developed, which will be tested in laboratory conditions.

    The work is aimed at creating a mathematical model for calculating the stress-strain state of circular LVL structures, which will improve the efficiency of calculating and designing such structures and optimize technical solutions, which will lead to an increase in their bearing capacity and rigidity.

    Master’s student Yulia Trunina presented a report on the topic “The influence of low negative temperatures on the mechanical properties of LVL” (supervisor – associate professor of the Department of Metal and Wooden Structures Pavel Koval): “As the temperature decreases, the properties of wood change, namely, the strength and elastic characteristics become higher. This pattern allows the material to be used in regions where for a significant time of the year the air temperature is not only below zero, but also reaches -70 °C. LVL is a composite material based on wood. This allowed us to assume that a change in its properties will also occur with a change in temperature.”

    An experiment at freezing temperatures of -70, -35 and 0 °C on compression of small LVL samples of more than 300 pieces confirmed the dependence. At the same time, depending on the direction of the veneer fibers, the change in strength and elastic modulus occurred with varying degrees. Yulia reported that this will allow more accurate prediction of the material properties in the future. It became possible to take into account the thawing process (using the derived formula), since the experiment took place under normal conditions – at 20 ° C. These data should be used in the future for larger structures, such as beams or frames, and also to study their durability, i.e. the operation of the structure in the climatic conditions of the Arctic and the Far North, taking into account time. And it is also necessary to consider the combined effect of moisture and temperature on the structure, including in real conditions with fluctuations of these factors.

    International experience

    The work of postgraduate student Xu Kaixuan was called “Development of methods for calculating composite (wood-concrete) floor slabs of residential and public buildings” (supervisor – professor, doctor of technical sciences Alexander Chernykh). “I began working on this topic during my studies in the master’s program at SPbGASU and chose it for my PhD dissertation. I would like to note that the research is carried out by a student team with the active assistance of employees of the Center for Mechanical Testing of Building Structures at SPbGASU,” the author noted.

    According to the postgraduate student, the applied basic design solutions and forms of wood-concrete composite slabs are in demand in the construction of industrial, civil construction and social infrastructure facilities, including multi-apartment residential buildings using wooden CLT structures, as well as in the construction of pedestrian and automobile bridges as span slabs. Xu Kaixuan attributed the advantages of such solutions to environmental friendliness and sustainability, cost-effectiveness, and synergy of the strength properties of concrete and wood. The main problem is to ensure the joint operation of concrete and CLT under load.

    During the research, Xu Kaixuan determined the types and shapes of metal connectors (connectors) to ensure the joint operation of CLT slabs and concrete; he found that the combination of shape, size and location of connectors in the adhesive bond zone are critical to the perception of the acting loads of composite floor slabs.

    At present, an analysis of the best practices for the design and application of wood-concrete composite floor slabs in Russia and abroad has been conducted, and the relationships between the geometry of connectors and the bearing capacity of the samples under study have been experimentally established.

    Xu Kaixuan plans to conduct numerical modeling and experimental studies to determine the missing design characteristics of the adhesive interaction in the contact zone of connectors and concrete to develop a method for calculating the stress-strain state of wood-concrete composite floor slabs.

    The Department of Metal and Wooden Structures of SPbGASU was born from the merger of two large scientific centers: MKiIS (metal structures and testing of structures) and KDiP (wood and plastic structures), authoritative in the Russian scientific community and abroad. The employees of the department are members of the Technical Committee for Standardization in Construction, take part in the work of the All-Russian Scientific and Technical Council for Metal and Wooden Structures. The opinions of the members of the department are listened to in large enterprises of the industry (TsNIISK, Association for the Development of Steel Construction, Association of Wooden Housing Construction, etc.).

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News

  • MIL-OSI Security: Tampa Man Indicted For Possessing Firearms As A Convicted Felon

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Tampa, Florida –United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the  return by a grand jury of an indictment charging Denzel Ingram (27, Tampa) with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. If convicted, Ingram faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison. The indictment also notifies Ingram that the United States intends to forfeit a Shadow Systems firearm and a Smith & Wesson firearm, which were used in the commission of the offense.

    According to the indictment, on or about June 23, 2024, Ingram knowingly possessed a Shadow Systems firearm and a Smith & Wesson firearm. Prior to his possession, Ingram knew that he had been convicted of multiple felony offenses, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, throwing a deadly missile, and fleeing and attempting to elude a police officer. Therefore, he is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law. 

    An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

    This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Tampa Police Department.  It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeff Chang.

    This case is part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence for occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

    MIL Security OSI