Star wars in transition
Article Abstract:
An analysis of the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), also known as 'Star Wars', after six years of existence finds it still plagued in controversy. Budget shortfalls are blamed by proponents for the continuously pushed-back final implementation dates, now scheduled for the mid-1990s. To date, some $16 billion has been spent on research for SDI. Not until the mid-1990s will any decisions be made on any sort of deployment of the system and how useful or reliable it will be. One experiment in 1986 used more than one million lines of computer code written over 18 months and resulted in a missile homing in and destroying a spacecraft. This showed in expensive detail the problem of defending the US from space. Whether the entire SDI system can be made survivable is still argued. The toughest problem seems to be in writing the major and complex software needed to drive the systems in space. SDI faces high scrutiny by Congress and the Bush administration. SDI's goal may be not to transcend deterrence but to enhance it.
Publication Name: IEEE Spectrum
Subject: Engineering and manufacturing industries
ISSN: 0018-9235
Year: 1989
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Cryptography = privacy?
Article Abstract:
Cryptography is considered the most effective means to ensure security and privacy in computer communications. Estimates by the Software Publishers Association indicate that by 1997 most mass-market software programs will include data, text and file encryption capabilities. Digital signatures enable users to detect tampering and determine software integrity each time a program is run. Telecommunications security will eventually involve encrypted store-and-forward data, video, facsimile and certified electronic mail. Applications for cryptography include smart cards, secure portable computers and wireless networks, and authenticated access to thwart intruders and protect data bases. In 1976 cryptography became applicable to many commercial applications when Whitfield Diffie and Martin Hellman published their paper on a revolutionary type of asymmetric, public-key cryptography (PKC), a private-public combination for encryption-decryption.
Publication Name: IEEE Spectrum
Subject: Engineering and manufacturing industries
ISSN: 0018-9235
Year: 1992
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The privacy problem
Article Abstract:
A panel discussion on the issue of protecting privacy in the information superhighway is presented. The two-hour meeting, which was convened by the IEEE Spectrum on Oct. 13, 1995, looked at problems in the design of systems that maintain privacy and the need to educate people on their ethical responsibilities. The participants were Lance J. Hoffman, Stephanie Perrin, Marc Rotenberg, Martha Stansell-Gamm, Robert N. Veeder and Willis H. Ware.
Publication Name: IEEE Spectrum
Subject: Engineering and manufacturing industries
ISSN: 0018-9235
Year: 1995
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