Safety an Issue at Nuclear Site Cleanup; Scientist in Isolation After Ebola Exposure;DOD Supercomputer Runs Linux; FBI Warning Will Accompany Software

Safety an Issue at Nuclear Site CleanupThe New York Times reports that the State of Washington has just begun a new investigation into accusations by an advocacy group that the federal Department of Energy and its contractors are ignoring some of the risks associated with the cleanup of the 586-square-mile site of the Hanford nuclear complex in Richland, Washington.Scientist in Isolation After Ebola Exposure The Washington Post reports that a scientist who works in a maximum containment laboratory at Fort Detrick has been placed in isolation after she accidentally stuck herself with a needle while working with mice infected with a weakened form of the Ebola virus. According to the story, the woman was exposed to the Zaire strain of Ebola, the deadliest of the three types of the virus. DOD Supercomputer Runs LinuxComputerworld reports that Linux Networx is building a new, high-performance 2,132-CPU Linux cluster supercomputer for the U.S. Department of Defense as part of an IT modernization program being undertaken by the agency. According to the story, the machine, being built at the Army’s Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Aberdeen, Md., will be used for weapons research, including calculating projectional dynamics for weapons systems, battlefield weather simulations and battle survivability.FBI Warning Will Accompany SoftwarePC World reports that the FBI is teaming with several entertainment and software industry organizations to launch a new antipiracy seal and warning text for vendors to display on piracy-prone products like CDs and software. According to the story, various industry associations are still working out what form the seals will take, and how soon they’ll be turning up on retail products.