As noted previously on ÆtherCzar, the FCC recently issued an NPRM proposing to reform the Experimental Radio Service (ERS). While many of the reform ideas are welcomed, the Commission proposes offering favorable treatment to academic researchers over researchers in industry. This policy is difficult to justify since most technological development […]
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As noted previously on ÆtherCzar, the FCC recently issued an NPRM proposing to offer favorable treatment to academic researchers over researchers in industry. Yesterday, ÆtherCzar presented evidence from wide-ranging studies showing that industry, not academia is the principal fountainhead of innovation. This previous research did not specifically address wireless technology, […]
In yesterday’s post, FCC Overhauls Experimental Licensing to Favor Academia Over Industry, I explained how a recent Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) would offer academic researchers preferred status over researchers with non-academic affiliations. The NPRM justifies this discriminatory treatment on the grounds that that universities are “a powerhouse for […]
The FCC has been busy lately with proposals on use of “white space” spectrum and, of course, net neutrality. Largely overlooked has been a much welcomed proposal (see the Notice of Proposed Rule Making or “NPRM”) to reform the Experimental Radio Service (ERS). Unfortunately, a key part of these reforms, […]
There’s yet another book out attempting to inspire what ÆtherCzar has dubbed “antennaphobia:” Disconnect: The Truth About Cell Phone Radiation, What the Industry Has Done to Hide It, and How to Protect Your Family by Devra Davis, Ph.D. I haven’t had time to read it, but I’ll pass on this […]
It’s been slow this month at ÆtherCzar, with a couple of weeks off from regular daily posting. Here are the highlights for December: The month began with some sad news – back-to-back obituaries for Dr. Robert E. Collins and Dr. Carl Baum. Many media outlets confuse scans from X-ray backscatter […]
Writing in People’s Daily Online, Li Hongmei argues that the days of the U.S. employing carriers to project power into the western Pacific are numbered. Her article, “Carrier domineering mentality obsolete” suffers a bit in translation, yet offers a window into Chinese strategic thought. The basic point of the story […]
On this day, December 30, 1905, former Idaho governor Frank Steunenberg opened his garden gate. An explosion shattered the calm and mortally wounded Steunenberg. Steunenberg was targeted for his role in suppressing the violent 1899 miners’ strike in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho. The Steunenberg assassination led to a no-holds-barred trial pitting […]
In 1955, a Sears Department store in Colorado Springs, CO misprinted Santa’s phone number so children calling for Santa accidentally reached the Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) Commander-in-Chief’s operations “hotline.” Colonel Harry Shoup, Director of Operations, had his staff track Santa by radar and provide updates to the children who […]
Some interesting new details are emerging on the Stuxnet virus and the damage it did to the Iranian nuclear program: Jerusalem Post – ‘Stuxnet virus set back Iran’s nuclear program by 2 years’ The Atlantic – Stuxnet? Bah, That’s Just the Beginning FoxNews.com – Mystery Surrounds Cyber Missile That Crippled […]
Previously, ÆtherCzar shared the story of the Lightsquared’s Skyterra-1 satellite with the 22m reflector antenna – largest ever deployed in space on a commercial satellite (Orbiting 22m Dish Antenna to Provide 4G Service). Then, the satellite suffered a glitch in which the reflector antenna only deployed 98%. Some sources indicated […]
Gawrker Media, parent of such sites as Gawker.com, Fleshbot [NSFW], Deadspin, Lifehacker, Gizmodo, io9, Kotaku, Jalopnik, Jezebel, Gawker.tv, and Cityfile, was hacked over the weekend. As a result, their user files were compromised. Although the password file was encrypted, the encryption was particularly weak, and vulnerable to a brute force […]
Previously, ÆtherCzar noted that the effectiveness of full body scanners has been called into question. Liquid explosives and other organic contraband contrast poorly and are said to be difficult to spot. These reports were largely anecdotal, however. Good technical information on the performance of x-ray backscatter full-body scanners has been […]
A century-old concept may be the next big thing in military technology. General Atomics has developed and test fired a rail gun. The rail gun uses a 33 megajoule current impulse to accelerate a projectile at speeds up to Mach 8. Here’s a video of the test. This high-tech concept […]
Armig Kandoian received U.S. Patent 2,368,663 for his invention of the discone antenna in 1945. The basic idea behind a discone antenna is to drive a circular disk against a conical ground. Kandoian was motivated by the problem of trying to mount antennas to aircraft. In alternate embodiments, Kandoian showed […]
Previously, ÆtherCzar passed on the Air Force’s warning to service members to avoid geolocation services. The U.S. Army has the same concern. Here’s why. GPS equipped smart phones and digital cameras can “geotag” photos – embedding GPS coordinates in the image that tell precisely where and when the picture was […]
I’ve joined Joshua Zader, founder of AtlasSphere, as a co-blogger at the Atlas Shrugged Movie Blog. This is an unofficial fan-run web site focusing on news pertaining to Atlas Shrugged Part One, the soon to be released screen adaptation of Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged. I’ll primarily post Atlas Shrugged related […]
Some of the latest happenings in wireless, just in time for Wireless Wednesday: Steven J. Crowley’s always interesting Experimental License Updates. Why broadcasters need FM on cell phones – it’s all about the money. Hat Tip: Steven J. Crowley. Wireless guru Shayan Sanyal has a new blog. Check out the […]
Inertial tracking systems have an unfortunate tendency to slowly drift over time. University of Michigan Professor Johann Borenstein has developed a very effective solution to that problem. First, he places a MEMS sensor in a boot. With every step, the sensor is momentarily stationary, allowing drift to be completely reset. […]
Can you tell which is which at a glance? Even otherwise tech-savvy folks like those at Ars Technica sometimes get it wrong. Once you understand the physics, you can tell which kind of scanner produced which image, at a glance. Millimeter wave scans bounce very short wavelength radar signals off […]
A recruiter working for Raytheon requested that I pass along the following job posting. Interested in being their Chief System Engineer for Electronic Warfare? Then read on…
Still more sad news to pass on from the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society… I am very sorry to tell you that we have lost another great person in the IEEE AP-S family. On December 1st, Dr. Carl Baum passed away. The doctors believe that a blood clot started in […]
Passing on some sad news from the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society… Dr. Robert E. Collin passed away Monday night after a short fight with lung cancer. The funeral service will be at the DiCicco Funeral Home, 5975 Mayfield Road, Mayfield Heights, OH 44124, (440) 449-1818. Visitation 5-7pm, service at […]
Springwise reports on “Parksense,” an application created by Paris-based SmartGrains. The system uses networked in-ground sensors to alert drivers to open parking spots.