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User: Wyatt+Earp

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Comments · 5,740

  1. Re:Countermeasures? on Why Drones Could Be the Future of Missile Defense · · Score: 1

    Ocean reconnaissance drones, patrol planes and cargo facilities have radiation detectors.

    A ship going 20 knots will have many chances to be detected.

    Also, as different nuclear reactors have different radionuclide signatures, if they bust your cargo crate nuke, they'll figure out really fast where your materials came from. Then they'll find you.

  2. Re:Airborne Laser (ABL) is dead... on Why Drones Could Be the Future of Missile Defense · · Score: 1

    You are confusing "dead" with "the visible system for public and international consumption ran it's course, our black projects are more readily militarized so we'll just put this 747 out here in the desert and no one is the wiser."

  3. Re:Parent post written by anti-US propagandist on Why Drones Could Be the Future of Missile Defense · · Score: 1

    Except the Soviets kept their ABM site around Moscow and have upgraded it since 1969.

    The US version, Safeguard was only on line for about four months.

  4. Re:Parent post written by anti-US propagandist on Why Drones Could Be the Future of Missile Defense · · Score: 1

    The Soviets and now Russian Federation have an advanced, multilayer ABM system around Moscow.

    So why are you pointing at the United States as being the bad player in the missile defense game?

  5. Re:More iffy Slashdot editorial on Larry Page Issues Public Update On Google Changes · · Score: 2

    I'm no MS fan boy, but you are 100% on about Microsoft Research. When I lived in the Seattle area, a friend of a friend got me on the focus testing list for MS Research and I got to go down to Redmond a few times to talk about the Xbox webpages and live.com.

    It's an amazing place with extremely dedicated researchers.

  6. The hell with video on On Slashdot Video, We Hear You Loud and Clear · · Score: 1

    Video is a terrible medium for teaching people about something new.

    The written word is much better, but I know, that doesn't justify all the toys like cameras and upgraded storage devices and new networking purchases.

    I hate video and audio (podcasts) when they don't add value, so thats why this old timer isn't ever going to give "slashdot video" a click.

  7. No system is 100% on U.S. Missile Defense Against Iran Makes China/Russia Mad, Might Not Even Work · · Score: 1

    When dealing with missile systems, nothing works 100% of the time, nor do they hit a target every time it's fired, to think otherwise is pure fantasy. This isn't Quake or Unreal.

    The first thing to remember is that the United States isn't the only country working on these systems. The Russian Federation has a ring in place and is expanding their advanced S-300 and S-400 deployments around cities, India is working on systems with tests scheduled for this year, the Japanese have access to all of the Patriot and Standard R&D and test data and are adopting them too, Israel is working on SRBM and MRBM interception missiles.

    Even when dealing with nuclear weapons, no warhead hits the target directly or close enough to destroy it 100% of the time, this is why when dealing with force and counter force calculations, multiple warheads are targeted at a point.

    Adding interceptor weapons, something the Russian Federation already has batteries of around Moscow and St Petersburg, to the US arsenal gives the US a chance to intercept a small decapitation strike, or to attrit it enough that it isn't guaranteed to be 100% effective.

    For small nuclear arsenals like North Korea or a nuclear Iran, a battery of interceptors could be better than ~70% per interceptor, eliminating a small arsenal's threat value. For medium sized arsenals like France, Great Britain, Pakistan, India, Israel and China, interceptors would make them devote more of their force and counter force warheads into a strike.

    The Russian Federation getting so upset by a handful of interceptors either means their current ICBM and SLBMs are very vulnerable to boost and post-boost interception or they only plan on using a handful of missiles in decapitation strikes, which is the only thing US ABMs could deal with in regards to the Russians.

  8. Only 8000? on Satellites Expose 8,000 Years of Civilization · · Score: 4, Informative

    The Barada river area has been settled for at least 11,000, Jericho for at least 11,000, Byblos for at least 9,000.

  9. Re:Questions on X-37B Space Plane Marks One Year In Space · · Score: 1

    Yep, that or the hardware to leech off Russia, French, Israeli and Chinese recce satellites is 2 x 1m now.

  10. Re:Questions on X-37B Space Plane Marks One Year In Space · · Score: 5, Informative

    1. No idea, payload bay is 2.1 × 1.2 m and its launch weight is 5000 kg
    2. Hundreds of millions to billions - "Details on the funding level remain within the Air Force's classified budget request"
    3. Launch vehicle is an Atlas V (~$13,000 per kg to LEO - $65 million per launch)
    4. Yes, supposedly, OTV-1 came back, has not launched again yet, OTV-2 is still up there

    http://www.space.com/8239-details-secretive-37b-space-plane-revealed.html

  11. Re:Supremacy Clause on State Legislatures Attempt To Limit TSA Searches · · Score: 1

    Sorry, I forgot.

    So let me rephrase.

    A Alaska Seaplane Services float plane going from Juneau to Angoon could "theoretically fly down to Moscow", so it's interstate commerce.

  12. Re:Supremacy Clause on State Legislatures Attempt To Limit TSA Searches · · Score: 1

    A Alaska Seaplane Services float plane going from Juneau to Angoon can't "theoretically fly down to Washington", so it's not interstate commerce.

    Oh it could if it stopped in X, Y and then Z to get fuel, but thats not a scheduled flight.

  13. Re:Supremacy Clause on State Legislatures Attempt To Limit TSA Searches · · Score: 1

    If its an airline they have to comply with TSA rules at the current time if they depart from an America airport, doesn't matter if it's flying to Nome or Quebec.

  14. Re:Finally on State Legislatures Attempt To Limit TSA Searches · · Score: 1

    The Coasties will stay in Alaska just because they are adrenaline junkies and like the challenge.

    The Marines won't come up here because it's too cold. The cold weather Marines are all in Atlantic Fleet.

  15. Re:States can't legislate to the federal governmen on State Legislatures Attempt To Limit TSA Searches · · Score: 1

    The thing you and all the other "Federal Law trumps State Law" posters are missing is that the TSA rules about scanning, being touched, etc are not Federal Laws.

    They are rules imposed by a Federal Agency and are not laws which have been passed by Congress and signed into law by the President. The fact that Congressmembers have been talking about passing laws to limit the TSA clearly shows that what the TSA imposes on travelers are not Federal Law.

  16. Re:Finally on State Legislatures Attempt To Limit TSA Searches · · Score: 2

    Alaska Air Guard has no fighters.

    HH-60G, C-130, C-17, KC-135, HC-130

    Alaska National Guard have military police, helicopter, battlefield intelligence, WMD support and training units, no "light infantry" units.

    Alaska State Troopers don't have "50 caliber machine guns", but they do have some Remington 700 sniper rifles.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska_State_Troopers#Equipment

  17. Re:Supremacy Clause on State Legislatures Attempt To Limit TSA Searches · · Score: 2

    That doesn't fly, up here in Alaska we have airlines that just operate in the State of Alaska, yet TSA rules apply to those as well.

    Hell they are talking about putting body scanners in tiny airports like Nome.

  18. Re:Sucks for Lightsquared on FCC Bars Lightsquared From Using Airwaves · · Score: 1

    Reliably of navigational aids trumps non-military communication networks.

  19. Re:you're a troll but even so.... on Pentagon: 30,000 Pound Bomb Too Small · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Israel is fighting with Hamas and Hezbollah, you know, Arab groups. While Iranians are not usually Arabs.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_and_ethnicities_in_Iran

  20. Re:No, no, no! on Pentagon: 30,000 Pound Bomb Too Small · · Score: 2

    B-2A is the designated carrier, but it has been dropped by B-52Hs in testing.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:B-52_releases_the_MOP_during_a_weapons_test..jpg

  21. Re:This on Russian Rocket Fleet Grounded Again · · Score: 1

    You know people at NASA or you've followed NASA leadership and their two decades of indecision and failure to replace Shuttle?

    Shuttle C, DC-XA, Venture Star, the last 26 years are littered with failed programs because NASA couldn't decide what it wanted.

  22. Re:This on Russian Rocket Fleet Grounded Again · · Score: 1

    Because NASA wants to be the only way for humans to get into space from the United States and they were all about Shuttle. From 1986 on, NASA was recommended to move away from Shuttle or find a replacement and despite Congressional and industry they never did.

    Virgin Galactic and Scaled Composites have had to fight tooth and nail with the FAA for clearances because NASA has been lobbying the FAA to lock them down.

  23. Re:Not a bubble. Inflection point. on Apple Announces Most Profitable Quarter in History · · Score: 1

    Actually, for most of the time we had "fixed line phones" in western Europe and North America, they were leased from the phone companies, not sold to the customer.

    When they did finally start being sold, they were already feature filled and would last a decade or more, so not many were sold.

    Feature phones, not smart phones are where massive volumes are being moved in rural China, Southeast Asia, South Asia, Africa and Latin America. Also 60% of cell phones sold in the US are feature phones, not smart phones.

  24. Re:Not a bubble. Inflection point. on Apple Announces Most Profitable Quarter in History · · Score: 1

    Actually, feature phones outsell smartphones planet wide with no end in sight.

  25. Re:Bubble? on Apple Announces Most Profitable Quarter in History · · Score: 1

    Selling mp3s, apps and movies doesn't have a ton of costs.