Re: The Net and Terrorism

[jya@pipeline.com (John Young)]

   To complement Tim May's essay on the Net and Terrorism: 
 
 
   The Washington Post, July 1, 1996, Business, p. 22. 
 
 
   Keeping the Military in High Tech [Excerpts] 
 
 
   At Camber Corporation in Springfield, Va., posters, comic 
   strips and colorful Silicon Graphics Inc. computers dot the 
   office landscape. Employees banter as they work. 
 
   Technical director Bryan Ware, 26, serves as the bridge  
   between the college-age computer programmers and the  
   military commanders who authorize the projects. "A lot of  
   military people don't know or trust technology," he said.  
   "A lot of computer nerds don't know or trust the military. 
   I know and like both." 
 
   The Army had a congressional mandate to prepare for 
   terrorists using chemical, biological or even nuclear 
   weapons and for civilian doctors having to figure out how 
   to treat the victims. To that end, the Army contracted 
   Camber to create the Nuclear Biological Chemical Medical 
   Defense Information Server which has many more bells and 
   whistles than the average Web site. 
 
   On the opening page, "danger" signs line the background. 
   Articles on the latest terrorist catastrophes appear in the 
   center of the screen. Black illuminated links to the site's 
   library, to news and to other information fill the 
   left-hand side. 
 
   Click on the library link, and medical manuals on nuclear, 
   biological and chemical warfare treatments appear. To the 
   left, a video section link becomes visible. Click on it, 
   and an interactive session begins between the user and an 
   actor playing the role of nuclear, chemical or biological 
   warfare victim. If the user administers the proper 
   treatment (it's good to read the library manuals before 
   going to the video), the victim will survive. If the user 
   fails to administer the correct procedures, the victim will 
   die. 
 
   "We try to have fun," said Alex Neifert, 21, who's working 
   on the Army Web site project for the summer before heading 
   back to the University of Michigan's Graduate School of 
   Information in the fall. 
 
   "We're hoping to improve the preparedness of the military 
   and civilian communities to deal with these types of 
   problems. This site will give doctors access to important 
   information that could save lives in the event of a 
   terrorist action," said the Army officer in charge of the 
   project. 
 
   Camber and the military hope that 1,000 visitors will view 
   the Web site daily when it officially opens July 3. To 
   access the site, point your browser to: www.nbc.gov/. 
 
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