Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, February 29, 2024

INDEPENDENT TASK FORCE ON RESEARCH WITH PANDEMIC RISKS
International experts create framework for safer pathogen research

Yesterday, the Bulletin’s Independent Task Force on Research with Pandemic Risks released a report that provides findings from an eighteen-month initiative designed to ensure pathogen research is conducted responsibly, ethically, and safely. Read the report.

HENRY SOKOLSKI
Wargame simulated a conflict between Israel and Iran: It quickly went nuclear

A wargame reveals how Israel and Iran could quickly consider using nuclear weapons if ever drawn into a direct conflict. Read more.

MATT FIELD
Florida’s top doctor knows how measles is contained but sends unvaccinated kids to school during a measles outbreak, anyway

Instead of responding to a measles outbreak in a school with the standard approach of working to keep unvaccinated students home, the surgeon general of Florida is letting parents send their children to school, potentially exacerbating an outbreak of the disease. Read more.

JESSICA MCKENZIE AND FRANÇOIS DIAZ-MURIN
Texas wildfires force major nuclear weapons facility to briefly pause operations  

Climate change is making explosive wildfires more likely, with serious implications for the country’s nuclear weapons programs. Read more.

IN THE NEWS
International panel calls for tighter oversight of risky pathogen studies

In this Science article, reporter Jocelyn Kaiser provides an overview of the creation of the Pathogens Project, highlights key moments from the project’s report release at the UN headquarters, and dives into some of the most important points in the report. Read more.

QUOTE OF THE DAY
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“How is one individual going to make a difference to climate meltdown and biodiversity? ‘It’s impossible,’ you think. Then you come to Knepp and you see what nature has done, how it’s rebounded in 20 or so years.”

— Isabella Tree, author, ” ‘Does rewilding sort climate change? Yes!’: UK expert says nature can save planet and not harm farming,” Guardian

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