Tag: AFGHANISTAN

We like to believe that the U.S. military knows a thing or two more than the rest of us. Your devoted Switched team, for example, would be hard pressed to dismantle an IED, no matter how many times we've seen 'The Hurt Locker.' But it turns out that the men and women in uniform are entangled in the simplifying software magic known as PowerPoint, no different from the soporific strategy meetings ...

Here's the thing about heavy metal. There comes a time in some young men's lives when we they realize they suck at football, don't know anything about cars, are not "intelligent" in the conventional sense and are less than admired by the ladies. At that point, possibly as a function of biology, their hair grows longer, their lips turn to sneers, and their ear drums demand thunderous bass lines, ...

Sometimes, as we report and thus publicize certain technological advancements, we tech writers feel like a reptile farmer who will one day be gobbled up by his prize gator. Thanks to Tokyo University's Intelligent Systems Informatics Lab (ISI) and its new robotic reporter, we've stumbled upon yet another one of those advancements. According to Singularity Hub, the mechano-journalist is able to ...

As the war in Afghanistan continues to lurch forward, U.S. and Western coalition forces are increasingly implementing initiatives to help impoverished Afghans pick themselves up and get on the road to economic recovery. Among these programs is "cash-for-work," a set of projects run by NATO and U.S. development organizations, whereby organizations give money to local communities for creating ...

Years of top secret R&D and millions of dollars of military hardware has been thwarted -- by a $26 program you can buy on the Internet. Insurgents in Iraq have figured out how to use off the shelf software to intercept video feeds from unmanned drones, like the Predator, on the battlefield. Yesterday, Lt. Gen. David Deptula announced that this summer, American military personnel found ...

If you're not in the habit of locking your keypad before throwing it in your pocket or purse, you've probably had it make a few calls without your knowledge. Accidental dialing is annoying, but usually just results in some long, boring voicemails of background noise, or, in a worst-case scenario, captures your off-key singing along with some Michael Buble song your car stereo. But a recent ...

Taliban militants are threatening to blow up the radio towers of cell phone companies in Afghanistan if they don't shut down their networks for ten hours, starting at 5 P.M, according to the Associated Press. Zabiullah Mujaheed, a Taliban spokesman, has said the networks have three days to comply with the demands. The Taliban believes that the U.S. military is using the cell phone signals to ...