New Tasking for Defense Science Board.

The undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics, Edward "Pete" Aldridge, Jr. directed the Defense Science Board (DSB) to take a new look at the work the panel did on homeland defense. The DSB released a two-volume study earlier this year on the subject of homeland defense, specifically addressing the threats of bioterrorism, chemical attacks and cyber-warfare. An ad-hoc DSB group is being assembled to look at these studies and make them more relevant to the realities of U.S. national security since the terrorist attacks of September 11.

"We got a tasking on September 19 from Aldridge to do a study on anti-Terrorism," said William Schneider, chairman of the DSB. "Our first round of efforts is to review the recent work that has been done on homeland defense and refocus some of the recommendations in ways that are implementable," Schneider told reporters during a breakfast meeting in Washington, D.C. No specific due date was set for this report.