Author Archive

Adrienne LaFrance

Science & Tech

Stolen NSA Tool Suspected in Global Ransomware Attack

A dozen countries were hit in a cyberattack Friday. Such attacks have increased by more than 500 percent in recent years.

Science & Tech

Trump Wants ‘Goddamned Steam,’ Not Digital Catapults on Aircraft Carriers

The president's criticism of the USS Ford's EMALS 'blindsided' Navy officials.

Threats

Hawaii’s Renewed Jitters About Nukes

The state is asking the Department of Defense to help it prepare for a nuclear attack, amid escalating tensions between the United States and North Korea.

Business

A Border Wall by 2020? Doubt It

Megaprojects are rarely, if ever, completed on schedule.

Ideas

Why Is the US Military Short-Staffing Its Sickest Children?

The military health-care system serves 2 million children with just a handful of full-time pediatric social workers. In the civilian world, this kind of staffing is 'unimaginable.'

Science & Tech

What the OPM Hack Means for the Future of Warfare

It's not the first time the U.S. government's systems have been breached, and it won't be the last time either.

Science & Tech

Building An Unkillable Robot

New research shows that artificial intelligence can use trial and error to finish a job even when a robot’s body is damaged.

Science & Tech

How Surveillance and Privacy Will Overlap in 2025

In a new paper from Pew, experts warn that privacy will become a luxury commodity as surveillance-free spaces are rapidly disappearing. By Adrienne Lafrance