The Reality of Future Technologies

Individuals, who believe that technologies dreamed up in science fiction novels, movies, and comic strips could one day become a reality, make up the optimists and futurists in the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Science and Technology (S&T) Directorate.

Although technologies that are shown in futuristic movies have not yet been invented, they are well on their way. S&T maintains a team of futurists in Arlington, Va., at the Homeland Security Studies & Analysis Institute (HSSAI) in order to keep dreams grounded. There, in the Resilience and Emergency Preparedness / Response Branch, analysts explore the art of the possible, helping DHS shape dreams into a lucid, viable vision.

In 2011, S&T’s First Responders Group and FEMA’s National Preparedness Directorate turned to Deputy Director, Bob Tuohy and his team to assist in forecasting first responder needs. The study resulted in Project Responder 3 (PR3). PR3 identified the capabilities most critically needed to ensure that responders could meet disasters swiftly, surely, and safely in three to five years.

By using research in order to develop technologies for the future, Dick Tracy’s 2-way wrist TV may soon become available on the market. Future cops will have “augmented reality” eyeglasses and be able to identify perpetrators from long distances. Paramedics will be able to use telemedicine and perform advanced procedures onsite without rushing the victim to the hospital in the years to come.

If you think S&T’s researchers reached these conclusions by taking notes and tallying votes, think again. To firm up their findings, the HSSAI researchers turned to a survey technique called the Q Methodology—an intensive exercise that revealed, in nuanced detail, how respondents felt about their various needs. Each responder studied a long list of needs, ranking each need’s priority from +3 to -3. The researchers then used factor analysis—a technique for describing how dramatically correlations vary—to reveal clusters of like priorities farther down the responders’ wish lists. With studies such as there, technologies of the future may be a lot closer than we think.

Featured

  • Progressing in Capabilities

    Progressing in Capabilities

    Hazardous areas within industries like oil and gas, manufacturing, agriculture and the like, have long-sought reliable video surveillance cameras and equipment that can operate safely in these harsh and unpredictable environments. Read Now

  • A Comprehensive Nationwide Solution

    A Comprehensive Nationwide Solution

    Across the United States, manufacturing facilities, distribution centers, truck yards, parking lots and car dealerships all have a common concern. They are targets for catalytic converters. In nearly every region, cases of catalytic converter thefts have skyrocketed. Read Now

  • Planning for Your Perimeter

    Planning for Your Perimeter

    The perimeter is an organization’s first line of defense and a critical element of any security and surveillance program. Even if a building’s interior or exterior security is strong, without a solid perimeter surveillance approach any company or business is vulnerable. Read Now

  • The Key Issue

    The Key Issue

    It is February 2014. A woman is getting ready in her room on a cruise ship when she hears a knock on the door; it is a crewmember delivering breakfast. She is not presentable so she tells him to leave it by the door. Read Now

Featured Cybersecurity

New Products

  • CyberAudit Introduced to Manage Systems, Intuitive Interface

    CyberAudit Web

    CyberLock, Inc. announces the release of CyberAudit Web 9.4! CyberAudit-Web (CAW), the software suite for managing CyberLock systems, provides an intuitive interface to assign keys, set expirations, monitor staff and configure access schedules. 3

  • Genetec Security Center

    Genetec Security Center

    This major new release allows more system components to run in the cloud, reducing the gap between cloud and on-premises security systems. It also makes it easier to connect external systems and tap external data for use in dashboards, maps and investigations without relying on complex, specialized integrations. 3

  • Camden Door Controls CV-603 2 Door Bluetooth Access Control System

    Camden Door Controls CV-603 2 Door Bluetooth Access Control System

    his app-based system is designed to provide ‘best in class’ security of doors and gates, with up to 2,000 users. The intuitive programming app is Apple® and Android® compatible, with easy to use system set-up, user administration, downloadable audit trail and data back-up. 3