Travelers excited about keeping their shoes on at TSA checkpoints may soon see another change: increased liquid limits. On August 26, 2025, SciLine interviewedDr. Sheldon Jacobson, a professor of computer science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
TV bundle includes:
Soundbite (SOT)
VOSOT script (can be used as-is or modified)
Raw, full-length interview video & log with timecodes (upon request via form below)
Link to TSA data on passenger numbers (updated weekly)
These resources are free to use. No attribution to SciLine is required.
Click for VOSOT script (can be used as-is or modified)
ANCHOR WITH LABOR DAY TRAVEL ABOUT TO TAKE OFF… T-S-A EXPECTS TO SCREEN MORE THAN 17-MILLION-PASSENGERS THIS HOLIDAY WEEKEND… AND SOME MAY NOTICE NEW CHANGES AT SECURITY.
VO THE BIGGEST CHANGE… PASSENGERS CAN NOW KEEP THEIR SHOES ON AT T-S-A CHECKPOINTS.
DOCTOR SHELDON JACOBSON… A COMPUTER SCIENCE PROFESSOR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA-CHAMPAIGN… CREDITS T-S-A’S MULTI-LAYERED SCREENING… INCLUDING REAL I-D VERIFICATION AND ADVANCED SCANNERS.
AND EVEN MORE CHANGES COULD BE ON THE WAY… LIKE HIGHER LIQUID LIMITS AND LETTING PASSENGERS KEEP LAPTOPS IN THEIR BAGS.
BUT DOCTOR JACOBSON SAYS FACIAL RECOGNITION IS THE FUTURE OF AIRPORT SECURITY… BOTH FOR SPEED AND SAFETY.
SOT Duration: 0:26 Super: Dr. Sheldon Jacobson – Professor, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
“It’s matching up your form of identification with the person you are. And by doing that match, using facial recognition, biometrics, artificial intelligence, it enables there to be a higher level of security around you as a traveler because bad actors don’t want the TSA to know who they are. They will try and hide and obfuscate their identity. Facial recognition gets around that.”
VO DOCTOR JACOBSON SAYS FACIAL RECOGNITION IS OFTEN MISTAKEN FOR SURVEILLANCE… BUT IT’S ONLY USED TO CONFIRM YOUR IDENTITY… AND THE DATA IS DELETED RIGHT AFTER.
Raw, full-length interview covers:
How researchers assess whether changes to airport security—like increased liquid limits—impact passenger safety.
An overview of risk-based security, the data-driven system behind TSA PreCheck;
How facial recognition is changing airport security, and how researchers expect it to be used in the future; and
Practical tips for getting through TSA checkpoints faster.
