This study aimed to evaluate the survival rate of microorganisms within different antiseptic formulations - povidone-iodine (PVP-I) and chlorhexidine (CHX) - after intentional contamination, and to establish the minimum care necessary to ensure sterilization of non-disposable antiseptic solution containers. A laboratory study was performed with 180 antiseptic containers, which were contaminated...

Accidental or intentional drinking water contamination has long been and remains a major threat to water security throughout the world. An inverse problem can be constructed, given sensor measurements in a water distribution system (WDS), to identify the contaminant source characteristics by integrating a WDS simulation model with an optimization method. However, this approach requires numerous...

Arsenic exposures contribute significantly to the burden of preventable disease worldwide, specifically related to increased risks of cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Most exposures are associated with natural contamination of groundwater, which is difficult to mitigate when these sources are used for drinking water. An anthropogenic source of arsenic exposure stems from the widesp...

Rapid detection of chemical contamination in the distribution system is essential in protecting public health, and using water quality surrogates to signal a contamination event offers the advantage of detecting a large number of chemicals. The concern over using surrogate parameters is whether they offer the ability to detect contaminants at concentrations low enough to prevent serious illness...

Multi-species water quality models can be used to predict the fate and transport of contaminants such as arsenic in water distribution networks. In recent work, water quality models have been used to simulate hypothetical contamination events, estimate potential human health effects, and characterize the ability of sensors to detect contamination. Little work has been done to calibrate water qu...

Drinking-water is a direct conduit to many human receptors. An intentional attack (e.g. terrorism) on drinking-water systems can shock and disrupt elements of national infrastructures. We report on an unintentional drinking-water contamination event that occurred in Tel Aviv, Israel in July, 2001. Initially of unknown origin, this event involved risk management strategies used by the Ministry o...

This paper is a limited overview of a preliminary research task carried out for the National Security Agency (NSA) having to do with developing a basic understanding of the notions and concepts of intent, intentionality, and intentional behavior. These notions clearly have significant implications for intelligence analysis and especially predictive intelligence; modern-day “asymmetric threats” ...