Smallpox and bioterrorism

Apparently, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) embarked a while back on the development of a safer smallpox vaccine. This is part of a preventive campaign against bioterrorism. Smallpox was nominally eradicated in 1979; however, a few samples of the live virus remain in the USA and in Russia. It is currently believed that certain countries -- both hostile and friendly -- may have samples of the virus as well. (North Korea, perhaps? Criminy.)

The classic smallpox vaccine (vaccinia) has some unpleasant side effects, and in rare cases (1 out of 1,000,000), it can even be fatal. For these reasons, its use is currently reserved for health care and emergency workers. The government has embarked on an effort to develop a safer vaccine--just in case it becomes necessary to deploy this vaccine in the populace at large.