PREDATOR DRONES

SCIENCE NON-FICTION WARFARE

I am a science buff with eleven undergraduate hours in physics. It is not the same as being a nerd, because I don’t carry a cell phone or an i-pad, and I am not cognitive of or concerned for the latest electronic gismos.


Most of my interest in theoretical physics, however I am always intrigued by science technology developed to real world uses.


I have recently run across a book Wired for War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the Twenty-first Century by P.W. Singer.   It is a fascinating book that covers Predator Drones and robotics that has been developed for the military.

Under President Obama our drone strikes have been surgically precise and deadly.   We hear occasional mention of them and most lately they were highlighted in the takedown of Kadafi.   However, there are hundreds of strikes and surveillance flights that have taken place in the Middle-East and in Africa that we never hear of.

The Predator Drones are remarkable.   The newer ones can take off and land by themselves.   They can see through clouds and even operate in total darkness; and they can remain airborne for hours or even days over selected targets.

These unmanned Predator Drones are the weapon of the future and presently the Air Force is training more drone operators than conventional pilots.

The U.S Customs service is beginning to use UAV’s (unmanned airborne vehicles) and within the next few years we can probably expect to see them as tools of civilian police departments.




Drown warfare is no longer a figment of science fiction.   The U.S. army has a number of mechanical soldiers on the drawing board and presently they are testing some versions in the field.

The DOG in a mechanical quadruped designed to help soldiers transport heavy loads across difficult terrain.

The BEAR is a somewhat humanoid track vehicle that is capable of gently lifting and carrying loads of up to 500 pounds across extremely difficult terrain.

The SWORD is a small track vehicle with telescopic eyesight that can be armed with a 50 caliber machine gun, ground-to-air rockets or anti-tank rockets.   In all test this super deadly killing machine has scored 100% in accuracy.

Even more intriguing are the micro-drones.   The old adage of “a fly on the wall” has become a reality, for a micro-drone could be programmed to fly into a room and attach itself to a wall or ceiling, and broadcast video and audio.

There is even speculation about micro-micro drones that could each be programmed for a specific reconnaissance objective and flown in a swarm, sharing information like a hive.   The possible uses of these mechanical insect clouds are limited only by the imagination.

It is not only land and air, for the Navy is developing unmanned submarines, and surface vehicles capable of protecting surface ships, tracking enemy submarines or being used for search and rescue at sea.

I find all this interesting, but also a sad comment on our nation: can you imagine what we could accomplish if our priorities were to channel federal money into technology and research for the benefit of human kind rather than for war and killing.

the Ol'Buzzard

HE' BACK

Well hell, for what it’s worth the Ol’Buzzard is back.

Perhaps it's what all bloggers go through – like mid-blog crisis – it seems you’ve said it all and it’s a repeat of the same old shit. You’re sick of the same political crap – it just rehashes and becomes the same theme with different names. Nothing changes and nothing is going to change.



Facts we must live with:

1) All senators and congresspersons are primarily interested in reelection – the only way to truly move the government toward serving the people would be TERM LIMITS…and it ain’t going to happen. Just as there is a test for teachers, lawyers and doctors, there should be a test for political office – most would never pass it.

2) Education is the only way to seriously address the long term unemployment crisis – and the government doesn’t have a clue how to do it. If you truly want to know how to effectively educate the population: ask a teacher. A one size fits all policy and standards for a diverse population is ludicrous. However, government will never relinquish education to the educators – it is to good of a platform to run for reelection on. (never end a sentence with a preposition – fuck it.)

3) One half of the American population falls on the back side of the intellectual bell curve, and one quarter of the population is functional but borderline retarded.

4) Education credentials are not an indicator of intelligence: look at the Republican Presidential candidates.

5) Religion is the archenemy of civilization: It is the base of almost all intolerance and bigotry. Religion would choose to move civilization backwards toward the dark ages and away from science and enlightenment.

6) Gender equality doesn’t exist. Males and females are two alien creatures that must exist in a symbiotic relationship; but, we don’t have the same aggressive tendencies, the same emotions, the same physical abilities, the same sex drives, the same outlooks or the same priorities.

7) Growing old doesn’t suck. It is just the expectation of disability and death that sucks. The main problem with growing old is that young women don’t want to fuck you any more.

The Ol’Buzzard


Oct. 26, 2011