http://www.hlswatch.com/2008/06/10/homeland-security-technology-panel-event/ News and analysis of critical issues in homeland security today. Sun, 21 Mar 2010 04:43:16 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7.1 hourly 1 http://www.hlswatch.com/2008/06/10/homeland-security-technology-panel-event/comment-page-1/#comment-108011 William R. Cumming Tue, 10 Jun 2008 21:39:35 +0000 http://www.hlswatch.com/2008/06/10/homeland-security-technology-panel-event/#comment-108011 There is a huge shortfall in R&D and applied research on decision support sytems. In many crisis management there is too much information that is of no consequence no matter how dramatic and too little that can make the difference in life and property saving in futuro. Interesting how little real imagination has been applied to DHS needs and HS shortfalls. Is it the quality of those asking the questions or those attempting to answer? We know that the Fire and Law Enforcement Professions are not early adopters. In fact development of EM and HS may be in reality a workaround of technology phobia in those professions. To some extent the Armed Services are the same, always a tradeoff between what worked in the past and what is needed for the future. Certainly, flexibiltiy in usuage (employment, inoperability, resiliency, reliability, restorability, and applications) will make some vendor products succeed. But are first principles of the needs and demands being looked at or just what can be sold to Uncle Sugar? At the moment it looks like the equivalent of the "wooden rifles" used to prepare troops in 1940 and 1941. There is a huge shortfall in R&D and applied research on decision support sytems. In many crisis management there is too much information that is of no consequence no matter how dramatic and too little that can make the difference in life and property saving in futuro. Interesting how little real imagination has been applied to DHS needs and HS shortfalls. Is it the quality of those asking the questions or those attempting to answer? We know that the Fire and Law Enforcement Professions are not early adopters. In fact development of EM and HS may be in reality a workaround of technology phobia in those professions. To some extent the Armed Services are the same, always a tradeoff between what worked in the past and what is needed for the future. Certainly, flexibiltiy in usuage (employment, inoperability, resiliency, reliability, restorability, and applications) will make some vendor products succeed. But are first principles of the needs and demands being looked at or just what can be sold to Uncle Sugar? At the moment it looks like the equivalent of the “wooden rifles” used to prepare troops in 1940 and 1941.

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