Category: Military

Impact Lab > Military
Current Events, government, Military, Science & Technology News

North, South Korea begin removing landmines along fortified border

IMG_9296

SEOUL (Reuters) – Troops from North and South Korea began removing some landmines along their heavily fortified border on Monday, the South’s defense ministry said, in a pact to reduce tension and build trust on the divided peninsula.

Project details were agreed during last month’s summit in Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, between its leader, Kim Jong Un, and South Korean President Moon Jae-in.

In a statement, the ministry said the two sides agreed to remove all landmines in the so-called Joint Security Area (JSA) in Panmunjom within the next 20 days, with military engineers performing the hazardous task on the South Korean side.

There was no immediate confirmation from North Korea that its troops had begun the process.

Continue reading… “North, South Korea begin removing landmines along fortified border”

Coding, Historical Perspectives, Military, Science & Technology News, women

The Woman Who Smashed Codes: The Untold Story of Cryptography Pioneer Elizebeth Friedman

 

IMG_9039

How an unsung heroine established a new field of science and helped defeat the Nazis with pencil, paper, and perseverance.

While computing pioneer Alan Turing was breaking Nazi communication in England, eleven thousand women, unbeknownst to their contemporaries and to most of us who constitute their posterity, were breaking enemy code in America — unsung heroines who helped defeat the Nazis and win WWII.

Among them was American cryptography pioneer Elizebeth Friedman (August 26, 1892–October 31, 1980). The subject of Jason Fagone’s excellent biography The Woman Who Smashed Codes: A True Story of Love, Spies, and the Unlikely Heroine Who Outwitted America’s Enemies (public library), Friedman triumphed over at least three Enigma machines and cracked dozens of different radio circuits to decipher more than four thousand Nazi messages that saved innumerable lives, only to have J. Edgar Hoover and the FBI take credit for her invisible, instrumental work.

Continue reading… “The Woman Who Smashed Codes: The Untold Story of Cryptography Pioneer Elizebeth Friedman”

3D Printer, Automation, Housing, Military, Science & Technology News

The Marines 3D printed a concrete barracks

IMG_8565

Letting robots do construction jobs on the battlefield frees Marines to fight.

Forging ahead with plans to have robots do “dull, dangerous and dirty” jobs, the U.S. Marine Corps used a 3D printer to create a barracks building out of concrete. The process, which took less than two days, created a hardened living space capable of resisting enemy fire, a real improvement over canvas and nylon tents.

The U.S. Marine Corps moves around a lot, deploying worldwide, often to dusty, remote locations for months at a time. As a consequence, they tend to build a lot of housing for themselves, and it takes a team of ten Marines five days to build a barracks from wood. Not only is construction dangerous, it also prevents those ten Marines from doing other things during those five days.

Continue reading… “The Marines 3D printed a concrete barracks”

Breakthrough Thinking, communication, Military

MITdevelops water-to-air wireless Communication

IMG_8517

You can wirelessly communicate with people on the other side of the world in real time, but it’s still impossible for a submarine to talk to an airplane. They both use systems designed for their environment, and those systems aren’t compatible. At least, they weren’t until now. Researchers from MIT have developed a technology to link the underwater world with the open air.

Continue reading… “MITdevelops water-to-air wireless Communication”

Big Problems, drones, government, Military

The Army is buying microwave cannons to take down drones in mid-flight

IMG_8131

The high-powered microwave system would be mounted to an aircraft.

The US Army has a new plan for microwaving drones out of the sky. In a public solicitation last Friday, the agency announced its intention to purchase an airborne high-powered microwave system from Lockheed Martin, which is intended for use against drones. The weapon, which would be mounted to an airplane, would disable fixed-wing or quadcopter drones with a beam of focused radiation.

Drone countermeasures are particularly relevant in the wake of an apparent assassination attempt against Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro that was carried out by a pair of hexacopter drones rigged with remote-triggered explosives. Public video collected by Bellingcat indicates the attack was carried out by drones similar to DJI’s Matrice 600. Each drone was equipped with a kilogram of C4 explosive, according to a statement by Venezuelan security forces. The Matrice 600’s maximum carrying capacity is 5.5 kilograms.

Continue reading… “The Army is buying microwave cannons to take down drones in mid-flight”

Engineering, Military, mobile technology, Wearables

Power-multiplying exoskeletons are slimming down for use on the battlefield

IMG_7628

The technology has been long-anticipated by military commanders.

With exoskeletons, soldiers don’t have to consume as much oxygen to perform a given task. Taking that edge off has associated benefits, including cutting the risk of bone and muscle injuries.

Continue reading… “Power-multiplying exoskeletons are slimming down for use on the battlefield”

Automation, Aviation, Drone, Military, military drones

Isreal’s self -flying ‘Cormorant’ whisks wounded soldiers to safety

IMG_7066

Tactical Robotics’ Cormorant can carry up to 1,000 pounds and offers a range of 20 miles while flying at more than 100 mph.TACTICAL ROBOTS

FIVE MEN IN white overalls lifted the stretcher off the ground, one of them taking care to lay a clear plastic IV bag that’s connected to the patient onto his stomach. They marched him toward what looks like a black inflatable dinghy on small wheels, crossed with a fly. The stretcher was loaded in through a hatch on the side, and then the men stood back.

The patient was actually a medical training mannequin, but that didn’t stop him (it, rather) from taking part in the first “mission representative” demonstration of a new aircraft. That bean-shaped thing is called the Cormorant, and it was built by Israel-based Tactical Robotics to make battlefield evacuations—which today rely on helicopters—quicker and safer, thanks to a new design and the fact that there’s no human pilot involved.

Continue reading… “Isreal’s self -flying ‘Cormorant’ whisks wounded soldiers to safety”

China, government, Military, Money Talk

China is ‘weaponizing capital’ — and it’s keeping the head of the US Navy awake at night

IMG_5843

China has pursued numerous commercial and infrastructure deals around the world in recent years. Critics see this as a Chinese effort to extent its influence abroad.

These financial maneuvers are a source of concern for many — including the head of the US Navy.

Continue reading… “China is ‘weaponizing capital’ — and it’s keeping the head of the US Navy awake at night”

drones, government, Military, military drones

The newest weapon for the U.S. Marine Corps is a fleet of quadcopter drones.

160805-M-KA224-078
Each squad in the Marine Corps will soon have a new member — a quadcopter drone that will be used in everything from training to surveillance to battlefield assaults. The Marines purchased more than 800 drones at the end of 2017 and now they’re rolling out quickly to every squad in the service, according to National Defense magazine. Continue reading… “The newest weapon for the U.S. Marine Corps is a fleet of quadcopter drones.”
Discover the Hidden Patterns of Tomorrow with Futurist Thomas Frey
Unlock Your Potential, Ignite Your Success.

By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.

Learn More about this exciting program.