Knowing beforehand whether a system for detecting weapons of mass destruction at U.S. ports will be practical and effective can make for smooth sailing. PortSim, a security simulation and visualization tool developed by Dan Koch, does just that by taking away any guesswork for evaluating the operation and cost of proposed inspection procedures. "With more than 27 million 20-foot equivalent units coming through our 150 ports, the challenge of examining the contents of every container is enormous," said Koch, a member of Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Computational Sciences and Engineering Division. PortSim allows users to look at and adjust a number of parameters to evaluate the cost and impact on port operations. The research is funded by the Department of Homeland Security.
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