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WWV Shortwave Time Broadcasts May Be Slashed In 2019 (qrz.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the budget-cuts dept.

New submitter SteveSgt writes: A forum thread on QRZ.com indicates that the shortwave time broadcasts by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) from stations WWV (Colorado) and WWVH (Hawaii) may be slashed in budget year 2019. [One of the proposed reductions includes "$6.3 million supporting fundamental measurement dissemination, including the shutdown of NIST radio stations in Colorado and Hawaii."] While the WWV broadcasts may seem like an anachronism to some Slashdotters, they remain a crucial component in many unexpected services, from over-the-air broadcasters and traffic signals, to medical devices, wall clocks, and wrist watches. The signals serve as standard beacons for radio propagation, and as a frequency reference for alignment of a broad range of communications equipment. It's easy to imagine that not even the NIST knows every service and device that could be impacted by this decision.

4 of 305 comments (clear)

  1. WTF? by asackett · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This, coincident with a $717B Defense Authorization?

    We need to have a very serious conversation with the god who blessed America. Fucker's high on something.

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    1. Re: WTF? by youngone · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I assume it's partly an overreaction to the awful treatment of troops returning from Vietnam.

      I assume it's because the US military learned a lesson from Vietnam, which was that they needed to control the narrative.
      That is why reporters were "embedded" during the Gulf Wars, and also why the US military pays the NFL so much money every year for those very strange "salute to service" games which look an awful lot like Nuremberg rallies to those of us who live outside the US.

      It's called propaganda and the US has the most effective propaganda machine the world has ever known.

  2. Make no mistake by PopeRatzo · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "$6.3 million supporting fundamental measurement dissemination, including the shutdown of NIST radio stations in Colorado and Hawaii."]

    The NIST is under the Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, who is a cryptkeeper who only stays alive through daily applications of graft and corruption. Here's an article about just how corrupt this ancient swamp thing really is.

    https://www.forbes.com/sites/d...

    The $6,3 million saved will pay for a lot of KFC Gravy Bowls on Air Force One. Plus, Colorado and Hawaii voted for Hillary, so fuck them libs, amirite? Trump is just that kind of petty degenerate..

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  3. WWV[H][B[ by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    NIST is taking a gigantic budget hit. WWV/etc is just one victim. We are headed back to the scientific dark ages...

    From what I've read, there was no mention of WWV-B, the VLF broadcast that such gadgets as people's clocks depend on. Is that on the chopping block too? (probably. grr)