TSA
from page 1
said that the change would make travel more secure and convenient. “[The technology] should have a huge impact on speed and on safety,” Carin said. The innovations would cut down on lines in several ways, for example making it so that travelers do not have to take laptops or liquids out of their bags, said David Brady, the head of the project and Michael J. Fitzpatrick Professor of electrical and computer engineering. Jeff Glass, a professor of electrical and computer engineering and director of the Pratt School’s master of engineering management and entrepreneurship, said that the system could be utilized in places other than airports as well. “If you go to visit Congress or a federal building, you could go through similar scanners,” he said. “The goal here is to avoid that bottleneck.” There are significant hurdles to a largescale implementation of a new airport security system, said David Schanzer, associate professor of the practice for public policy. “Logistically, we have invested billions in the infrastructure in the airport,” he said. “Any change that would require a different infrastructure would be a big cost.” Schanzer said that although the current infrastructure would be difficult to replace, the technology could be seen as a politically popular long term cost-cutting measure. “If we needed fewer [Transportation Security Administration agents], that would be seen as a good way for Homeland Security to cut costs,” he said. “Congress would welcome this.” Carin said that as engineers, his team was more focused on the technology rather than the political implications. He added, though, that he believed the system would be better for travelers in many respects, in-
The Chronicle
www.dukechronicle.com
10 | WEDNESDAY, NOVMEBER 13, 2013
cluding privacy. Researchers from other institutions are impressed with the work being done at Duke. “It’s cutting-edge. It’s great work,” said Michael Silevitch, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Northeastern University, who works on similar technologies. Glass said that although it would be nice to perfect the technology at Duke, it is more important for the University to contribute to the larger national effort to improve airport security. “If an instrument uses our components, that’s as much a win as if we develop the whole instrument,” he said. “What’s important is that we show that we are leaders in this field.” Glass said that the technology is on track to be implemented in airports in three years, but it will take longer to set up systems in other locations. Carin said that he too was optimistic, but that he knew there would be challenges ahead. “We’ll get it done, but it’s not going to be easy,” he said.
bike
from page 2
timeline of implementing the new program. Both Sunder and Jones have received positive feedback on their work. “We met with key administrators and they really liked the idea of the program, and we’re taking the first official steps,” Sunder said.
bonobo from page 2 at Lola ya Bonobo because I know each and every bonobo. I’m like a link between one species and the other.” Kwetuenda’s insight into the bonobo
mind enabled her to, in collaboration with Hare, design and conduct the first experiment to show that bonobos are capable of sharing—a trait that was previously thought to be unique to humans. Even Hare initially thought this result was impossible. Previous research into other nonhuman primates indicated that nonhuman primates were exclusively competitive and incapable of displaying cooperation as is found in humans. “Even for chimpanzee mother-offspring relationships, the infant will only get the food that the mother doesn’t want. So we were like, ‘There’s no way that we can find bonobos that can share,’” Tan said. “Brian Hare didn’t believe this could happen, and Suzy said, ‘No, you’re wrong. Let me show you. We can do this.’” The results were published in Current Biology in 2010, showing that bonobos did in fact readily share their food with others. “It was just mind-blowing.” Tan said. “We’d been studying bonobos for years and still didn’t believe that any nonhuman animal could do this. Suzy knows bonobos better than any of us as researchers.” Beyond a pure scientific curiosity into the inner life of the bonobo, Kwetuenda’s research also holds an immediate practical necessity in her work as the leader of the ongoing effort by Lola ya Bonobo to release bonobos from the sanctuary back into the wild. This is the first project of its kind in history. “The next step in bonobo conservation will be to assess their ability to become wild again after years in captivity—how they survive, how well they remember their skills,” Kwetuenda said. Kwetuenda serves as both the manager of the bonobo release project and as the science director of the sanctuary. Her research, she said, is crucial to assessing how well bonobos will adapt to the wild. Kwetuenda maintains, however, that
the most difficult part of her project lies in convincing the Congolese public that they should care about bonobo conservation. “[Bonobo release] is very challenging because we need to educate people in the surrounding area …about other ways of life that don’t involve killing bonobos. They still get everything they need to survive from the forest. This keeps bonobos in danger because they are still victims of meat trafficking,” Kwetuenda said. “This will be the most difficult part of the project. Because these people are still very poor, they still need some way to survive.” However, clear signs of progress are already being seen, she said. For example, some people from a nearby area brought an orphan bonobo to the sanctuary, whereas in previous years they might have eaten it. She said that is an example of the community getting involved in the cause and the education project’s goals being met. “As with any work involving endangered species, it’s essential that people in the habitat country embrace the effort to protect and understand these amazing animals,” said Evan MacLean, a senior research scientist of evolutionary anthropology. “Suzy is the first Congolese woman to study bonobo psychology and is an ambassador for this work. She can connect with Congolese communities vital to bonobo conservation and educate Congolese youth about this species in ways that are impossible for researchers outside the DRC.” For Kwetuenda, though, her groundbreaking work as a scientist and conservationist is foremost an act of love. “I fell in love with bonobos the first time I met them,” Kwetuenda said. “It’s more a passion than a job. So I really understand the importance of that, and I will need that in the future in order to have a big impact on my country. That is what motivates me.”
ASK US YOUR QUESTIONS. GIVE US YOUR OPINIONS.
Connect with Duke University Stores! Give us your feedback on any of our operations via our online question/comment page, DevilSpeak. Just visit www.dukestores.duke.edu and click on the DevilSpeak link.
Duke University Stores. We are the Stores that Work for You! OPERATION: Stores Administration PUBLICATION: Chronicle