SciTech Northwest is the region’s first science and technology expo that highlights the latest innovations in cyber/data analytics, clean energy, and biotechnology. Register here, or contact events@technology-alliance.com for more information.
CYBER/DATA ANALYTICS EXHIBITS
As global economies become increasingly dependent on digital infrastructures, we are are more prone to cyber attacks. Data visualization and analytics are increasingly important tools for staying ahead of adversaries, as well as making business decisions when faced with mountains of data. The three institutions are developing advanced technologies to modernize and protect our power grids, financial institutions, industry operations, and beyond.
Scalable Reasoning System: Analytic Framework for Web-Based Visualization, PNNL
Scalable Reasoning System is an analytic framework for developing web-based visualization applications. Using a growing library of both visual and analytic components, custom applications can be created for any domain, from any data source. Its modular architecture helps connect data to analytics and visualizations —helping users make sense of data. This technology has been used to create solutions for a wide range of domains including health care and cyber security, incorporating either large or streaming data sets. At SciTech Northwest, you will see how this tool has been used for cyber security, biosurveillance, and patent analysis.
MLSTONES for Detecting Malware - Bio-inspired Software Detects and Classifies Malware, PNNL
Organizations need to be able to quickly identify malware in computer networks to minimize information theft and operational disruption. But existing cybersecurity tools have been notoriously inadequate at finding real threats vs. innocuous false alarms. That’s because malware is constantly mutating and evolving, and traditional antivirus software has a hard time keeping up with the changes. PNNL is developing a new generation of biology-inspired cybersecurity based on the way health researchers compare proteins associated with early-stage disease. At SciTech Northwest you will see how the PNNL software package known as MLSTONES uses bio-inspired approaches to classify, characterize, and detect malware. We will demonstration our malware “detector” that will identify current and zero-day (evolving) malware.
Hydra Software: Statistical Design for More Accurate Predictions, PNNL
Hydra is a statistical design process that identifies how to best combine multiple streams of varying information to improve predictive accuracy. It is applicable to the energy, financial, and other sectors where personnel must make accurate, cost-effective decisions based on forecast or predictions. One example is to predict short and long-term energy needs in the power grid. Hydra works by iteratively tuning, augmenting, and then combining the strengths from an ensemble of competing methods to generate a single aggregate forecasting model that is more accurate and reliable than any ensemble constituent. At SciTech Northwest, you will see how researchers have used distributive, real-time data to make immediate, accurate decisions.
“Clique” To See Online Threats Detects and Analyzes Cyber Threats in Real Time, PNNL
Clique is an advanced data-intensive visual analytic software package that combines visual identification and investigative discovery — enabling detection and analysis of cyber threats in near-real-time. The ability to detect and respond to threats quickly is a paramount concern that spans government, utilities, financial, and private sectors. These organizations share a common burden of threat identification contained within potentially billions of network transactions each day. Network defenders now have a mechanism to move seamlessly from high-level views of behaviors down to detailed representations. At SciTech Northwest you will see two views of Clique: 1) Cadence, with a graphical user interface that gives users the ability to see deviations from expected activity, and 2) Trace, which gives analysts a flexible and scalable two-dimensional scatter plot, revealing patterns in large volumes of network data.
Ant-Based Cyber Defense Protects Large-scale Networks and Internet-of-Things Devices, PNNL
Ant-Based Cyber Defense (ABCD), also known as Digital Ants, can protect large-scale networks, up to millions or even billions of devices — think the Internet of Things — without compromising proprietary information between shared networks. This copyrighted software mimics ant colony behavior, but instead of laying down scent patterns to alert other ants, it uses sensor “ants” to roam around all the computer-operated devices in the network, looking for differences in system operations that could indicate an attack. Unlike traditional security software, ABCD is lightweight (computationally negligible), nimble, costs only pennies per device, and doesn’t pick up or share network data. Scientific American named it “one of 10 world-changing ideas” because it is more scalable and flexible than centralized security programs. ABCD could be a game changer for companies with large networks to protect and anyone with Internet-connected products. At SciTechNorthwest, you will see how ABCD finds anomalies. See video.
SerialTap for Protecting Physical Control Systems - Low-Cost Device Improves Situational Awareness, Detects Potential Threats, PNNL
It’s crucial to keep computer-driven control systems running efficiently, such as those for power systems, manufacturing, oil and gas, and other operational systems. Organizations need better ways of finding potential control system threats before problems occur, the way they do by monitoring computer network traffic. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has developed a device called SerialTap that does just that. This low-cost, small device connects to both a control system and the computer network without interrupting system operations. SerialTap “translates” the data from the control system so that the network cybersecurity software can analyze it. Control system vendors and integrators who design systems are particularly interested in this patent-pending technology for situational awareness and trouble-shooting. At SciTech Northwest, you’ll see a demonstration showing how SerialTap triggers alarms from the simulated control system of a water tank.
High-throughput sensing in agriculture allows for more informed decision-making, Washington State University
Currently, farmers and plant breeders have to walk through acres of fields to manually inspect and monitor crop health. WSU researchers combine the power of high-tech sensors and camera systems with mechanized platforms to detect plant health characteristics more quickly and accurately than the human eye. Dr. Sindhuja Sankaran and her team are in the early development of this technology which harnesses data to identify factors such as water stress in grapes, signs of disease in crops and which plants are producing the most desirable fruits. Having that information will help farmers make decisions about when to treat crops, which plants are best for propagation, when to use less water, and so on. So far, Dr. Sankaran has tested the technology in vineyards and wheat fields using a range of platforms from tractors to unmanned aerial systems (UAVs).