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DHS acquires 2,700 MRAPs
The Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles were first deployed to the field in 2007 as a way to protect U.S. soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan from ever-more-powerful improvised explosive devices (IEDs) used by insurgents. DHS has acquired over 2,700 MARPs to be used on missions inside United States.
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Enabling small ships to launch and retrieve long-endurance UAVs
About 98 percent of the world’s land area lies within 900 nautical miles of ocean coastlines. Enabling small ships to launch and retrieve long-endurance UAVs on demand would greatly expand the U.S. military’s situational awareness and ability quickly and flexibly to engage in hotspots over land or water. DARPA is seeking companies to develop these systems.
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Corpus Christi police wants new recruits to be Army Strong
The Corpus Christi Police Department wants to make it known that if you are an Army veteran coming home, they have a job waiting for you.
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The impact of sea-level rise on coastal military installations
The Pentagon says that climate-related effects are already being observed at Department of Defense (DoD) installations in every region of the United States and its coastal waters. The effects of climate change will adversely impact military readiness and DoD natural and built infrastructure unless these risks are considered in DoD decisions. A new white paper developed by the Pentagon’s Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) identifies key climate-related policy questions that need to be addressed.
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Police budget cuts a boon to private security picks
In cities across the United State, local law enforcement, facing deep budget cuts, has had to do more police work with fewer officers. New Jersey alone lost 4,200 officers between 2008 and 2011. The reduction in police force has been a boon to the U.S. private security industry, which is expected to earn more than $19 billion by 2016.
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Developing the next-generation of VTOL aircraft
One of the greatest challenges of the past half century for aerodynamics engineers has been how to increase the top speeds of aircraft that take off and land vertically without compromising the aircraft’s lift to power in hover or its efficiency during long-range flight. DARPA’s new VTOL X-Plane project aims to achieve higher speeds, increased efficiency, and elegant design.
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Saving money and time in developing phased RF arrays
Phased radio frequency (RF) arrays use numerous small antennas to steer RF beams without mechanical movement. These electronics are invaluable for critical DoD applications such as radar, communications, and electronic warfare. These arrays, however, come with a high price tag. Current phased arrays are extremely expensive and can take many years to engineer and build.
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Rhode Island bill would require gun owners to register their weapons
A proposed bill in Rhode Island would require gun owners to register their weapons with local or state police, and would also allow police to file copies of applications for gun purchases sent to them for background checks.
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Infrared digital holography allows firefighters to see through flames, smoke
Firefighters put their lives on the line in some of the most dangerous conditions on Earth. One of their greatest challenges, however, is seeing through thick veils of smoke and walls of flame to find people in need of rescue. A team of Italian researchers has developed a new imaging technique that uses infrared (IR) digital holography to peer through chaotic conflagrations and capture potentially lifesaving and otherwise hidden details.
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With budget cuts looming, ICE releases undocumented immigrants from detention
With budget cuts hanging over federal agencies, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has started to prepare for the cuts by releasing detainees from its detention facilities across the country on Monday.
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Israel tests advanced Arrow 3 missile defense
Israel and the United States have jointly tested the Arrow 3, a ballistic missile defense system designed to intercept enemy missiles outside the atmosphere. The Arrow 3 is the fourth component of Israel’s layered missile and rocket defense system, which also includes Iron Dome, David’s Sling, and Arrow 2. The Arrow 3 was designed to intercept missiles outside the atmosphere.
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Tennessee considers ways to raise money for homeland security
A 2011 bill gave the Tennessee government the ability to revoke the license of anyone in the state who did not pay criminal fines and court costs. Lawmakers originally hoped the law would bring millions of dollars in reinstatement fees, money which would be directed to the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security. Only nine counties are complying with the law by notifying the state of violators, and so far the state had collected just $22,425.
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Cockroaches gait informs search-and-rescue robot design
More than 70 percent of Earth’s land surface is not navigable by wheeled or tracked vehicles, so legged robots could potentially bridge the gap for ground-based operations like search and rescue and defense. New insights on how cockroaches stabilize could help engineers design steadier robots for operating on difficult terrain.
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Computers, data help police prevent violence
As cities across America work to reduce violence in tight budget times, new research shows how they might be able to target their efforts and police attention — with the help of high-powered computers and loads of data. These computers offer detailed analysis of drugs, alcohol, and crimes across a city, helping target crime prevention.
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Battle-tested technologies no employed by the police
Technologies employed in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now hitting local streets across the United States, changing how local law enforcement investigates crimes by focusing on where crimes are most likely to happen instead of where a crime has taken place.
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More headlines
The long view
Tantalizing Method to Study Cyberdeterrence
Tantalus is unlike most war games because it is experimental instead of experiential — the immersive game differs by overlapping scientific rigor and quantitative assessment methods with the experimental sciences, and experimental war gaming provides insightful data for real-world cyberattacks.
Using Drone Swarms to Fight Forest Fires
Forest fires are becoming increasingly catastrophic across the world, accelerated by climate change. Researchers are using multiple swarms of drones to tackle natural disasters like forest fires.
Testing Cutting-Edge Counter-Drone Technology
Drones have many positive applications, bad actors can use them for nefarious purposes. Two recent field demonstrations brought government, academia, and industry together to evaluate innovative counter-unmanned aircraft systems.
European Arms Imports Nearly Double, U.S. and French Exports Rise, and Russian Exports Fall Sharply
States in Europe almost doubled their imports of major arms (+94 per cent) between 2014–18 and 2019–23. The United States increased its arms exports by 17 per cent between 2014–18 and 2019–23, while Russia’s arms exports halved. Russia was for the first time the third largest arms exporter, falling just behind France.
How Climate Change Will Affect Conflict and U.S. Military Operations
“People talk about climate change as a threat multiplier,” said Karen Sudkamp, an associate director of the Infrastructure, Immigration, and Security Operations Program within the RAND Homeland Security Research Division. “But at what point do we need to start talking about the threat multiplier actually becoming a significant threat all its own?”
The Tech Apocalypse Panic is Driven by AI Boosters, Military Tacticians, and Movies
From popular films like a War Games or The Terminator to a U.S. State Department-commissioned report on the security risk of weaponized AI, there has been a tremendous amount of hand wringing and nervousness about how so-called artificial intelligence might end up destroying the world. There is one easy way to avoid a lot of this and prevent a self-inflicted doomsday: don’t give computers the capability to launch devastating weapons.