Category Archives: Technology

Few things are hotter in the financial services industry right now than blockchain. The technology is being tested in a variety of ways, going up against decades-old technology thats ripe for replacement. But now that there are live blockchain-based systems in place, advocates need to prove that theyre better than the alternatives.

Take Daimler, the maker of Mercedes-Benz cars, which borrowed 100 million ($114 million) via German bank LBBW using blockchain technology. The old way of taking out such a loan required drawing up contracts, communicating with investors, making payments, and extensive administration. The old way also apparently involved a fax machine for confirmations.

In short, traditional loan contracts are managed in analog format, whereas smart contracts that rely on blockchain automate the loans order book, the creation of agreements, and checks to ensure payments have been received. With a blockchain-based loan, all parties involved have instant access to an identical, distributed recordthat is, a private blockchainwith all the relevant details.

A spokesman for Daimler said that while the company is taking a serious look at blockchain, its not excluding other systems as it explores new ways of doing things. Not every modernization drive needs to feature blockchain, even if these days it sometimes seems that way.

Theres hype about blockchain because there is undoubtedly promise in it. The technology backs bitcoin, and provides a cryptographically secure way of storing and transferring value. Its also designed to eliminate the need for a single central authority, like a bank. Financial firms are looking to distributed ledgers to manage contracts more efficiently and otherwise streamline their operations.

Relatively mundane things like corporate lending and settlement suddenly become exciting if you think blockchain will completely upend the traditional way of doing things. As a result, many firms are developing blockchain projects or are hedging their bets by joining industry groups that are investigating the effects that the technology will have on their businesses. Santander InnoVentures thinks blockchain could reduce banking costs by as much as $20 billion annually by 2022.

What blockchain does better than any other system is eliminate the need for trust between counterparties. This could overhaul systems that are complex and at high risk of crime, like trade finance. But for other uses, the technology could become an over-engineered databasethere are already signs that bitcoin is hitting its usage limit and ethereum, a more advanced digital network and currency, has faced bottlenecks.

Peter Randall, a former stock exchange CEO who now runs a blockchain company called SETL.io, notes that stock exchanges are already very efficientNew York Stock Exchange platforms, for instance, commonly process millions of trades a day. In the world of credit cards, Visa says it can handle 56,000 transaction messages per second.

The excitement around blockchain may well mirror the dot-com bubble of the late 1990s and early 2000s, when lots of companies went bust, but a few gems emerged: Some 90% of so-called distributed-ledger projects will probably fail, but a few will survive with potential to change the financial world, says Ajit Tripathi, a director at PwC.

Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple, says there is bona fide blockchain adoption in his companys field of cross-border payments. However, he notes that there are instances in which a traditional database works better than distributed ledger, and says blockchain hype has at times made his job harder than it needs to be.

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A bank replaced a fax machine with blockchain. Was it worth it? - Quartz

By Kimberly Chin | NEW YORK

NEW YORK U.S. stocks edged higher on Monday, led by gains in technology stocks as investors were optimistic ahead of earnings.

The S&P 500 technology index .SPLRCT was up 0.8 percent, followed by a 0.6 percent gain in the materials index .SPLRCM.

Technology is expected to have had among the strongest earnings growth for the second quarter, according to Thomson Reuters data.

"You had a little bit of a sell-off in the tech sector over the last couple of weeks," said Jeff Carbone, managing partner at Cornerstone Financial Partners. "This shows that investors may be seeing opportunities to get in ... as we head into earnings season."

U.S. companies have begun to release second-quarter earnings, with reports due this week from big U.S. banks including JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N), Wells Fargo (WFC.N) and Citigroup (C.N). S&P 500 earnings are forecast up 7.9 percent in the second quarter compared with a year ago.

In a significant victory for the banking industry, the Federal Reserve late last month approved plans from the 34 largest U.S. banks to use extra capital for stock buybacks, dividends and other purposes.

The healthcare sector .SPXHC was down 0.3 percent as investors waited for clarity on the healthcare legislation overhaul proposed in Washington.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 5.82 points, or 0.03 percent, to end at 21,408.52, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 2.25 points, or 0.09 percent, to 2,427.43 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added 23.31 points, or 0.38 percent, to 6,176.39.

Snap (SNAP.N) shares fell below their IPO price of $17 for the first time, to hit a low of $16.95. The stock closed at $16.99, down 1.1 percent. Snap was the hottest U.S. technology listing in years when it went public in March.

Fed Chair Janet Yellen's semi-annual testimony may be the highlight this week for investors looking for cues on further interest rate hikes. She will testify on Wednesday and Thursday.

Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) shares rose 1.8 percent to $996.47 ahead of its popular Prime Day shopping festival. Shares of Best Buy (BBY.N) fell 6.3 percent to $54.23 on news that Amazon was planning to roll out a Geek Squad competitor.

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.05-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.48-to-1 ratio favored decliners.

The S&P 500 posted 27 new 52-week highs and 11 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 81 new highs and 69 new lows.

Volume was light, with about 5.6 billion shares changing hands on U.S. exchanges. That compares with the 6.9 billion daily average for the past 20 trading days, according to Thomson Reuters data.

(Reporting by Kimberly Chin in New York; Editing by James Dalgleish)

WASHINGTON U.S. President Donald Trump plans to nominate former Treasury official Randal Quarles to be the Federal Reserve's first vice chairman of supervision, the White House said on Monday.

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf said on Monday he would allow an unbalanced budget of just under $32 billion to become law at midnight after state lawmakers failed to agree on a plan to close a $2 billion deficit.

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Wall Street starts week upbeat, boosted by tech shares - Reuters

JERUSALEM Israel is looking for firms to manage four high-tech investment funds that will be traded on the stock exchange and given state protection for any losses, the government said on Sunday.

Israel's government has been under pressure to open the country's thriving technology sector to more local investment as foreigners are seen to be mainly reaping the returns of Israel's tech boom.

Most of the capital invested in Israeli companies is in research and development and many firms are acquired by foreign ones at relatively early stages.

Last week, Symantec Corp said it was buying Israeli cybersecurity startup Fireglass, while earlier this year Intel agreed to buy Israeli autonomous vehicle tech firm Mobileye for $15 billion. In 2013, Google bought Israeli mapping service Waze for some $1 billion.

The government will put out to tender on Sunday the management of the two new investment funds, the Finance Ministry and Israel Securities Authority (ISA) said in a joint statement.

Up to four managers will be selected for the funds, which will each have a minimum of 400 million shekels ($113 million), they said.

The funds will combine investments in tech stocks that are already traded, while at least 30 percent will be made in early stage startups, enabling investors -- including institutions -- to benefit from returns in the tech sector in a relatively secure manner, the statement said.

For each fund, the government will provide guarantees of up to 50 million shekels ($14 million). The funds will also be able to raise credit backed by the state of up to 100 million shekels.

"Our proposal is intended to create an investment instrument for the general public that will enable it to participate for the first time in the success of Israeli technology companies, while providing state protection," said Shmuel Hauser, chairman of the ISA, Israel's markets regulator.

(Reporting by Steven Scheer; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle)

LONDON Alcohol and automobiles famously do not mix - but one Scottish scientist has disproved that maxim by driving a car powered by biofuel derived from making whisky.

WASHINGTON Chipmaker Qualcomm Inc will ask the U.S. International Trade Commission to bar Apple Inc from selling some iPhones and iPads in the United States that use chips made by competitor Intel Corp on the grounds that the devices infringe on six Qualcomm patents.

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Israel seeks managers for state-backed technology funds - Reuters

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In July 2016, dressage competitor Sherbert the horse was having subtle and occasional lameness issues which owner Libby Gill said was "frustrating" because "one day, or literally one minute he would be fine, the next he would feel lame".

Lameness is an abnormal stance of an animal, usually caused by pain or a mechanical dysfunction. Sherbert suffered from it so badly during a competition at the Badminton Championships last year, that Libby and him were unable to continue despite the lameness being random.

Vets were unable to diagnose Sherbert because, when taken to the vet, he was not appearing lame. Libby was told she had to make Sherbert lame before the vet was able to help, but this was impossible as the lameness would occur on a random basis.

After a chance conversation with a friend Libby heard about Sync Thermology. A type of physiological screening that has been successful for humans for ten years and developed into a service that is accessible for use in veterinary medicine.

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Libby, from Truro, contacted Louisa Jenkins, from Camborne, the Cornwall technician for Sync Thermology.

"Thermography is essentially a test of physiology," Louisa said. "It measures the sympathetic nervous response and detects physiological abnormalities and inflammatory responses."

After consulting the vet Libby took Sherbert to Louisa, who has screening facilities in her yard with medically graded cameras also used on humans.

Louisa Jenkin, Cornwall technician for Sync Thermology.

"I took Sherbert to Louisa's yard as she has the proper facilities there to do it, and it only took about an hour and a half in total from start to finish," Libby said.

"I got the report back really quickly and it identified a few things for us to investigate. I am really pleased my friend mentioned this service to me as without it I might still be going around in circled trying to get to the bottom of it all."

Louisa said she screened Sherbert before and after letting him move around so the screen would show the physiological differences before and after work.

"You see the images and then send them through to our team of vets who interpret the images," Louisa added. "They are also trained in thermography and have interpretation software."

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The interpretation software allows the vets to pinpoint areas of distress or increased blood flow to certain areas of the animals.

She said pinpointing certain areas has helped vets in the past discover hairline stress fractures related to the area of increased blood flow in the animal.

Sync Thermology has been used on dogs, giraffes and other animals in the zoo. "There are technicians all over the country," Louisa said. "So it's pretty much a national coverage."

Louisa said this service was popular because of the little harm it brings to animals and the fact it is the only form of physiological screening which assists vets in pinpointing a problem.

After taking Sherbert to Louisa and having his issues resolved through the screening, the pair have since had a very successful Winter Dressage Championship in Hartpury in April this year. They were placed fourth in the Preliminary Area Festival Final.

"It was such a great weekend and fantastic experience," Libby said. "Sherbert was really on form and pulled it out of the bag just at the right time, I'm delighted."

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Screening technology used for humans a success for Sherbert the horse - Cornwall Live

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Crispr Patent-Holders Move Toward Easing Access to Gene-Editing Technology Wall Street Journal (subscription) A holder of key patents to the Crispr gene-editing technology is willing to join a world-wide joint patent poola development that medical and legal experts think could hasten the development of new human therapies. The Broad Institute of MIT and ...

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Crispr Patent-Holders Move Toward Easing Access to Gene-Editing Technology - Wall Street Journal (subscription)

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Apple Expands Bet on Cutting Edge Privacy Technology Wall Street Journal (subscription) Last year, Apple Inc. kicked off a massive experiment with new privacy technology aimed at solving an increasingly thorny problem: how to build products that understand users without snooping on their activities. Its answer is differential privacy, a ... and more »

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Apple Expands Bet on Cutting Edge Privacy Technology - Wall Street Journal (subscription)

Instant transfer of thoughts would also speed up the innovation process. Imagine being a filmmaker or a writer and being able to download the dream you had last night. Or, she suggests, what if all you had to do was think of an idea for a new product, download your thought and then send the digital version of your thought to a 3-D printer?

"That makes our iteration cycle so much faster," says Jepsen.

Jepsen is not the only one dreaming of communication by thought. Earlier this year, Elon Musk launched Neuralink, a company aiming to merge our brains with computing power, though with a different approach.

"Elon Musk is talking about silicon nanoparticles pulsing through our veins to make us sort of semi-cyborg computers," says Jepsen. But why not take a noninvasive approach? "I've been working and trying to think and invent a way to do this for a number of years and finally happened upon it and left Facebook to do it."

Talk of telepathy cannot happen without imagining the ethical implications. If wearing a hat would make it possible to read thoughts, then: "Can the police make you wear such a hat? Can the military make you wear such a hat? Can your parents make you wear such a hat?" asks Jepsen.

What if your boss wanted you to wear a telepathy hat at the office?

"We have to answer these questions, so we're trying to make the hat only work if the individual wants it to work, and then filtering out parts that the person wearing it doesn't feel it's appropriate to share."

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This inventor is developing technology that could enable telepathy - CNBC

Photo: SKIP DICKSTEIN, Albany Times Union

At EMPAC, sound technology turns 3D

A cellist was playing on stage at EMPACs main theater on Friday afternoon, performing a lovely, lilting snippet of an early Mozart string quartet. You could hear it there, just by your right ear. When you stepped to the right, it stayed put. When you walked to the left, you passed by two violins and a viola.

Only you didnt. Not really. The music was audible, formed from sound waves as present and real as any youd hear from a live string quartet, but the ensemble itself was a ghost -- its music recreated in a system called Wave Field Synthesis that generates sound waves in real space from a long array of speakers several feet away. Essentially, the array functions like a ventriloquist, throwing the elements of sound and reassembling them at a distance.

Its synthetically, actually there its synthetically the same as if it was there, but (theres) no body there, said EMPAC music curator Argeo Ascani. Its really, really, really, really hard for your brain to understand and it kind of feels like magic.

The Wave Field equipment onstage was one of two innovative 3D-audio systems on display in at a media event Friday afternoon, as Ascani and audio researcher Markus Noisternig demonstrated some of the more mind-blowing basics of emergent technologies that expand and alter the nature of recording and projecting sound.

The sound exists. Its physically there, said Ascani of Wave Field Synthesis at the media demo, which was organized to mark EMPACs inaugural Spatial Audio Workshop for composers and programmers working within holophonics i.e., immersive sound technologies, akin to acoustic holograms, that create an aural environment from hundreds of loudspeakers.

Kicking off on Monday, the five-day international workshop is a collaboration between R.P.I., the Paris-based Institut deRecherche et Coordination Acoustique/Musique the globally prominent audio research hub where Noisternig works and Harvards Studio forElectroacoustic Composition. Many of its roughly 40 international participants will take part in hands-on afternoon workshops exploring both Wave Field Synthesis and EMPACs other spatial-audio system, High-Order Ambisonics, which records sound from multidirections that can then be replicated and tweaked in three-dimensional playback via numerous speakers.

In an Ambisonic recording, sound moves -- traveling from speaker to speaker in quicksilver adjustments that duplicate the behavior and characteristics of sound in space. In demonstrating the system, Noisternig played a few excerpts of multichannel recordings via 64 large speakers ringing the upper reaches of the EMPAC theater.

In one, an abstract work by Natasha Barrett titled "He slowly fell and transformed into the terrain, a series of whooshes, dings and grating mechanical noises clanked around the theater with unnerving realism, lending the space the eerie, alien feel of a dystopian sci-fi movie. In another, Le Encantadas by Olga Neuwirth, the recording evoked the sounds of an echoing cathedral its oohing voices and blaring horns popping out in different pockets of the room.

They all sounded real or real enough, at least, that the reflex to turn and look proved irresistible. Just as the cellist wasnt there, neither were all those clangorous sounds and ethereal voices. There was nothing to see. But inevitably, journalistic heads turned to track the emergence and movements of each one.

Developed over several years, the spatial-audio systems in use at EMPAC premiered with a soft opening last August, when R.P.I. Professor Rob Hamilton performed 108 Troubles on a Disklavier piano -- the sounds traveling among each of the systems small, controlled speakers. Upcoming public performances featuring spatial audio include two next week by workshop leaders Noisternig and Harvard professor Hans Tutschku. In September, EMPAC will use its systems in a theatrical context with Andrew Schneider's "After.

Noisternig said researchers anticipate that new audio technologies may ultimately have applications beyond the performing arts -- equipping cochlear implants, for example, with a directional component in sound amplified for the hearing impaired.

We know that human hearing is very focused on three dimensions, because its one of our primary defense senses, actually, he said. Because I cant see whos coming behind me. But I can hear it, and localize it. . . . So there are many applications away from art.

If you go Upcoming multichannel performances featuring EMPAC's "spatial audio" systems Where: EMPAC, 110 8th Street, Troy Info: 276-3921; empac.rpi.edu

Markus Noisternig When: 7 p.m. Monday, July 10 Admission: Free

Hans Tutschku When: 7 p.m. Thursday, July 13 Admission: $18 general; $13 for senior citizens, non-R.P.I. students and R.P.I. faculty and staff; $6 for R.P.I. students with I.D.

(The Spatial Audio Summer Workshop, which runs from July 10-July 14, also offers admission to all morning lectures for $150.)

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At EMPAC, sound technology turns 3D - Albany Times Union

I found Wayside Technology (WSTG) after running a stock screener for growing small-cap companies with low P/E ratios and high returns on invested capital. I think it could be a valid investment, depending on how much risk an investor is willing to take on, as well as their intended time frame. While the company looks good on paper now, there are some aspects of its business that concern me.

The business

Wayside operates under two significant segments, according to its most recent 10-K:

1.) The Lifeboat Distribution segment: distributes technical software and hardware to corporate resellers, value added resellers (VARs), consultants and systems integrators worldwide.

2.) The TechXtend segment: a value added reseller of software, hardware and services for corporations, government organizations and academic institutions in the USA and Canada.

The Lifeboat Distribution segment is by far the largest, accounting for a touch over 88% of overall sales and almost 82% of gross profit in fiscal 2016. Despite its smaller size, the TechXtend segment is more profitable at the gross level, with margins of 10.25% versus a gross profit margin of roughly only 6% for the firm's larger segment. Pretax profit margins for the latter are roughly 4% and 5.93% for the smaller segment.

Wayside also breaks out assets related to each segment in its annual report, and dividing The Lifeboat Distribution segment's pretax profits by its related assets indicates a 23% return. The smaller segments pretax return on assets is much lower at only about 9%, despite higher profitability.

The problem with the overall business is perpetually declining margins. This problem could continue indefinitely as well, as competition heats up in the e-commerce space and the trend of vendors who are selling direct to customers continues. The company is essentially a middleman, and its long-term prospects could be dim going forward.

What about the short-term?

So far, declining margins haven't inhibited the firm's return on equity in the short-term. I created a DuPont analysis in Excel using data from the firm's financial statements to illustrate what's been going on with its ROE over the last few years.

Wayside's ROE is stuck around the 15.50% mark, but as can be seen from the above DuPont, this is largely because increased asset efficiency (judging by its improved asset turnover ratio from 2014 to 2016), and the magnifying affects of leverage. EBIT margins have slipped sequentially for the last three years, and are much lower than they were a decade ago, when they sat at around 2.87%. Margins are slim to begin with, and as long as they continue to erode away, the company's shares leave me a little cold when considering it as a long-term holding.

Short-term, we have a firm that still spits out double-digit ROE (although this number has been higher, reaching nearly 20% in fiscal 2011). Despite its ROE settling around the 15% to 15.50% range over the past three years, much of this is simply because of increasing leverage, not necessarily stabilizing or even improving fundamentals.

Taking a closer look at the capital structure

The company has no advertised debt on its balance sheet, but does have some non-cancelable operating leases.

I decided to discount the leases at 5%, in order to theoretically capitalize them and inject them into Wayside's capital structure.

The company's balance sheet is still notably strong even accounting for the leases, and with this information in hand I'd like to calculate an estimate for the firm's return on invested capital next. First, we need to adjust the company's operating profit, or EBIT.

Now we can account for taxes to arrive at an adjusted net operating profit after tax (aka NOPAT) numerator, and then divide it by the adjusted capital base denominator.

Wayside's ROIC is likely about 1% to 1.5% lower than its ROE by my estimates. Due to the low capital intensity of its business, it's also likely earning economic profits. Will it still be earning these illustrious excess profits in ten years from now? I simply do not know.

Conclusion

Wayside Technology initially looked good on paper, but didn't hold up when I examined it a little closer. I still think the company is a solid operation, but as long as its margins are continuously declining and competition continues to heat up, I don't see myself considering it as a candidate for long-term investment. As a short-term investment (aka a trade), perhaps it could work for the right investor, considering its low P/E ratio in an elevated market, coupled with its 3.64% dividend yield. It's also growing the top-line at a decent clip:

WSTG Revenue (NYSE:TTM) data by YCharts

Perhaps this growth can prop up the company for awhile, but it should also be noted that this growth is backed by declining margins and weakening cash flow. Free cash flow dipped into negative territory in fiscal 2016. Looking at the past (using FastGraphs and Gurufocus.com), Wayside's P/E seems to hover around the 12x to 14x range historically, so I'm not sure it's really the bargain it appears to be on paper, either.

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Disclosure: I/we have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.

I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Additional disclosure: Articles I write for Seeking Alpha represent my own personal opinion and should not be taken as professional investment advice. I am not a registered financial adviser. Due diligence and/or consultation with your investment adviser should be undertaken before making any financial decisions, as these decisions are an individual's personal responsibility.

Editor's Note: This article covers one or more stocks trading at less than $1 per share and/or with less than a $100 million market cap. Please be aware of the risks associated with these stocks.

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Wayside Technology: Is It Cheap? - Seeking Alpha

Bad news for criminals who are trying to remain hidden, nameless and faceless. New technology can predict what a terrorists face looks like from less than a drop of blood or single strand of hair.

Called the Parabon Snapshot, this new groundbreaking technology can take traces of DNA and literally put a face to the crime.

From a terrorist who built a bomb intended to kill hundreds of Americans through to a thief who stole your grandmother's handbag, this is the sort of American innovation that makes it hard for a bad guy to stay anonymous.

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Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) funded this exciting innovation and Parabon NanoLabs created it. DTRA safeguards Americans by focusing on combating weapons of mass destruction around the clock.

In war zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan, there are networks that build improvised explosive devices or IEDs. As such, there has been an urgent need to provide enhanced tools to help military teams identify, track, dismantle and defeat terrorist networks.

Similarly, terrorist plots such as the recent attacks in Manchester, Brussels and Paris have involved explosive devices so investigators immediately searched for clues to identify the bombmaker or possible bomb making network.

Snapshot is one very exciting solution for both the military and law enforcement. If the bombmaker left any trace of DNA, then the tech can take it and read the DNAs code to build a composite image of the bombmaker.

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Whats the picture like?

This new technology can build a picture, but how good is it? Extremely good.

Snapshot can predict the shape of a persons face. Within the face, it will predict the terrorist or criminals eye color and hair color. The tech can reveal skin color, going so far as to add the degree of freckling or pigmentation.

And it can accurately predict not just the appearance of the criminal, but also biogeographic ancestry in great detail as well.

How does it work?

In the simplest terms, the Parabon Snapshot uses DNA to build a picture of what a criminal looks like.

Effectively, Snapshot reverse engineers the DNA to provide a picture. It can do this because DNA carries genetic instruction that dictates a persons physical characteristics. Snapshot understands how this genetic data translates into physical appearance.

If you give Snapshot a DNA sample, it can then read thousands of the genotypes also known as genetic variants and translate them into a visual image of a perpetrator.

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Why is it used?

This is a big leap ahead for the use of DNA in capturing terrorists and criminals.

Just like how each persons fingerprint is unique, the same is true for DNA. A forensic DNA sample from a crime scene or terrorist strike can be matched to a database, for example, to try to identify the culprit.

But now if there is no match in a database, then there is still a way to use the DNA to put a face to the crime.

Investigators can use the DNA as a human blueprint too and have Snapshot transform it into a picture.

Capturing criminals

Early adopters in law enforcement, military and counter terrorism team have had great success with this new tool. It has been so successful that in that short span of time, Snapshot has been used by more than 80 agencies and Snapshot analysis has been undertaken in ten countries.

Investigators have been using Snapshot to help solve tough current criminal cases as well as crack cold cases.

Detectives from the Montgomery County Police Department in Maryland, for example, recently used the Parabon technology to create a composite for a suspect in a series of unsolved burglaries and rapes that occurred between June 19, 2010 and Sept. 2, 2012.

The technology has also reportedly been used by police in Florida to make arrests related to a 2011 homicide.

Rockingham County Sherriffs Office in North Carolina also used Parabon technology during its successful investigation intothe murders of Douglas "Troy" andLaDonna French.Although there was lots of different DNA at the crime scene, there was no police database match. In Januray 2015,a month after the debut of Parabon's Snapshot service,Rockingham County Sherriffs Office contacted the company. Jos Alvarez, Jr. was arrested for the murder in August 2015.

In July 2016 Alvarez pled guilty to two counts of first-degree murder and was sentenced to two consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole.

Other applications

Beyond a military and law enforcement tool, Parabon says it is developing other potential applications for their research, including the ability to predict the risk of developing Alzheimers Disease.

Allison Barrie is a defense specialist with experience in more than 70 countries who consults at the highest levels of defense and national security, a lawyer with four postgraduate degrees, and author of the definitive guide, Future Weapons: Access Granted, on sale in 30 countries. Barrie hosts the new hit podcast Tactical Talk where she gives listeners direct access to the most fascinating Special Operations warriors each week and to find out more about the FOX Firepower host and columnist you can click here or follow her on Twitter @allison_barrie and Instagram @allisonbarriehq.

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New DNA technology creates digital 'sketch' of terrorists' faces - Fox News