Sarin (isopropyl methyl fluorophosphonate) is an organophosphorus nerve agent regulated by the Convention on the Banning of Chemical Weapons. It can enter the body through the respiratory system, skin, or eyes, paralyzing the central nervous system by inhibiting acetylcholinesterase, which can lead to death. Therefore, rapid and sensitive detection of trace sarin is vital for safety and environmental protection.
Due to its high toxicity, sarin’s use is strictly controlled, leading researchers to use diethyl chlorophosphate (DCP) as a safer simulant. The common fluorescence detection method takes advantage of DCP’s strong electrophilicity, using recognition sites like hydroxyl oxime and imine for fluorescence quenching to identify the target.
However, this method is affected by photobleaching, acid, and other environmental factors, limiting its application.
This talk dives into four critical dimensions — social, economic, political, and military — to uncover the patterns that led to World War I and II. By comparing those pivotal moments with today’s global dynamics, it reveals troubling signs of growing instability. Are we on the brink of a Third World War? Through the lens of history, this analysis offers a powerful reflection on the present — and a warning to not repeat the mistakes of the past.
Heni Ozi Cukier, widely known as Professor HOC, is an expert in international politics dedicated to making geopolitics more accessible to the general public. He shares his extensive knowledge — and insights into the challenges and dynamics of the contemporary world — through what has become Brazil’s largest geopolitics YouTube channel: PROFESSOR HOC.
He is also behind award-winning documentaries, including Cracol ndia.
In the United States, he worked at the United Nations Security Council, the Organization of American States (OAS), and the Woodrow Wilson Center think tank.
In Brazil, he gained prominence as the founder and coordinator of the postgraduate program in Geopolitics at PUC Paraná, establishing himself as a leading voice in teaching international relations and analyzing global affairs.
He holds a degree in Philosophy and Political Science, and a Master’s in Conflict Resolution and International Peace from the renowned American University in Washington, DC. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community.
Did Chinese researchers at the University of Michigan try to smuggle a biological weapon into the United States? CBN’s Raj Nair is joined by Sean Durns, a Washington DC based foreign affairs analyst, who has written extensively on China.
Hermeus seems dead keen on fast-tracking its way to hypersonic passenger flight. Its uncrewed subsonic Quarterhorse Mark 1 prototype has completed its maiden flight in the skies over Edwards Air Force Base in California on May 21, 2025.
Hypersonic flight looks to be the flavor du jour of the aerospace world these days, which isn’t surprising. Not only is it poised to revolutionize warfare, it also has the potential to alter civilian cargo and passenger travel in ways far beyond what Concorde and its kin promised but never delivered in the 1960s.
The tricky bit is how to, pardon the pun, get it all off the ground. Since its founding in 2018, Hermeus has been pursuing a novel development strategy. Instead of the conventional approach of working directly on a final aircraft preceded by, perhaps, a flying prototype or two that approximate the performance of the ultimate aircraft, the company has been working on highly specialized prototypes designed to specifically test various systems without any pretense of being anything like a hypersonic plane.
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force has ordered two additional Global Positioning System satellites from Lockheed Martin. The $509.7 million contract covers GPS III satellites 21 and 22, which are part of the advanced GPS III Follow-on constellation designed to provide enhanced positioning, navigation and timing services to both civilian and military users worldwide.
Delivery of the two satellites is scheduled by 2031, according to a contract announcement May 28.
The order was placed under an existing 2018 contract that allows for up to 22 spacecraft. With this procurement, the Space Force has now exercised options for 12 satellites, bringing the total value of the contract to $4.1 billion.
A US startup is looking to our closest satellite to fill a resources gap here on Earth. Helium-3 is rare on terra firma, but is thought to be abundant in the regolith of the Moon. Interlune has now revealed a full-scale excavator prototype that forms a key component of its lunar Harvester.
The shortage of helium-3 – a stable isotope of helium important for applications ranging from energy production to medical research – was first identified in the US toward the middle of 2008. The US government officially recognized the issue in early 2009, and mitigation efforts put in place.
“The United States supply of 3He comes from the decay of tritium (3H), which the Nation had in large quantities because of our nuclear weapons complex; however, the tritium stockpile has declined in recent years through radioactive decay and is expected to decline in the future because of reduced demand for tritium,” read the intro to a National Isotope Development Center newsletter from 2014.
China is performing better in the artificial intelligence arms race than many Americans understand, according to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission’s Michael Kuiken.
