Month: June 2011

Stuxnet: Cyber Weapon of Mass Destruction

Published by

Teeth Maestro I’m sure over the past year you may have accidentally stumbled across the word Stuxnet, it is technically a simple computer virus that has started infecting Microsoft Windows computers since July 2010, I too heard some reports of the virus, but as usual shrugged it aside as just another scare, little did I worry any any further until I heard Ralph Langner speak about it at TED 2011 Cracking Stuxnet, a 21st-century cyber weapon. Only recently after reading a blog post by Amit Agarwal who shared an animated documentary on the Stuxnet Virus prepared by ABC1 Australia on Jun 8th 2011, that made me realize the implications of this mere virus to have the devastation power of becoming a Cyber Weapon of Mass Destruction, im not talking sci-fi, this weapon is being used, carried around on hundreds, thousands and millions of USB’s with the potential force of causing a meltdown in any [or possibly a certain series] of nuclear power plant around the globe.

Talking to the Taliban

Published by

By Rasul Bakhsh Rais Published: June 26, 2011 The writer is professor of political science at LUMS rasul.rais@tribune.com.pk When, how and on what terms will the Afghan war end? If we go by the political rhetoric of the warring sides, the Taliban and the United States and its Nato allies, there will be no solution until each side achieves its central objectives. The problem is that both sides in any conflict cannot achieve their objectives until they reach some middle ground by recognising that the other side has some legitimate concerns, interests and can be acknowledged as a party with whom some political business can be done.

The Pakistani Elephant in the Room

Published by

What President Obama didn’t say about the other South Asian country where we’re at war Reuters In his speech Wednesday night announcing the beginning of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, President Obama mentioned only three times the country that, in a November 2009 Oval Office meeting, he said was the source of the “cancer” that had spread into the Afghan war: Pakistan. Though the U.S. has spent much of the last year expanding its assault on the Taliban across the border into Pakistan, sending drones and special forces teams against the militants based there (recently, Osama bin Laden, who appeared to be living in relative comfort with support from Pakistani military elements), Obama took a slightly softer tone toward this ostensible U.S. ally.

Alternative energy – “Power In A Drop Of Water”

Published by

By: Arshad H Abbasi Harnessing hydel energy can be an effective way of reducing poverty. China and India have already done that successfully It is not a fruitful idea to keep discussing as to how much the number of people living below the poverty line has come down during the last five years. Considering that even with the reduced percentage, those suffering from acute poverty are still too many to be left on their own, now is the time to move on and discuss what is the best strategy to reduce poverty and let the economic grow at the same time.

Women inside, not outside

Published by

By  Amna Shaikh Musings of a Foreign Born Muslim Woman As a 25-year-old woman who was raised abroad and greatly values the empowerment and independence of women, I find it a struggle at times to roam the streets of Pakistan.  Growing up in Singapore I was exposed to a variety of cultural and religious values regarding the role of women in society.  From hijab wearing Malaysian Muslim women working at Abercrombie and Fitch to Singaporean Chinese women working as CEOs of multi-national corporations.  Growing up as a Muslim girl in Singapore I never felt as anything less or different when it came to being female.  I was encouraged by my parents to expose myself to as much as possible and explore what cultures, religions and places the world had to offer.  To this day, my parents value the education of their daughters more than their sons.  They always emphasized the importance of a woman being able to stand on her own two feet and be independent and strong in who she is.  Seeing my mother’s …

Calling America’s bluff

Published by

By Kurt Jacobsen and Sayeed Hassan Khan Published in Dawn HAS Obama unwittingly called his own bluff? The spooky so-called mastermind Osama Bin Laden is rubbed out, courtesy a Hollywood-style hit squad operation. What more is there to say? Everything, actually. But nervous authorities want to curb jubilation so as not to give the exasperated American public any funny ideas about pulling their stupendously expensive military apparatus out of battered Afghanistan.