Security center planned at Arizona State

TEMPE, Ariz., Nov. 3 (UPI) -- An institute on security, terrorism and cyberwarfare will be set up at Arizona State University, officials say.

The institute, still unnamed, will be led by Werner Dahm, chief scientist for the Air Force for the past two years, The Arizona Republic reported.

Dahm, who has been at the University of Michigan since 1985, joined the ASU engineering faculty Monday. He will help establish the institute, which is expected to open within five years.

Most funding will come from federal grants, Arizona's aerospace and military industry and foundations, Dahm said.

Rick Shangraw, ASU's senior vice president for knowledge enterprise development, said the institute will fit well with the state's well-established aerospace and defense sector.

The center's range of study will include national defense, homeland and border security, international piracy, arms trafficking, counterfeiting, drug trafficking and cybercrime, Dahm said.

It will focus on studying legal and policy issues and root social causes that affect security challenges, including energy use, religious extremism and global disparities, Dahm said.

ASU will focus on getting funding in areas that are its strength, including renewable energy and sensor technology, Shangraw said.