I've looked at USFS evaluations of sensors, and for a sensor monitoring a fairly narrow trail, false hits aren't too big a deal. Bear aren't a major concern, and deer could probably be distinguished from at least adult humans.
Chances are you're only going to be looking over the past 24 hours or so of events, and I don't think wildlife is going to be a significant factor.
As for the amount of woods, I'm really only concerned with a few trail segments. For example, there's a trail that forks at one point and has a somewhat ambiguous sign (the forest service refuses to change it), and fairly often people take the wrong trail and find themselves several miles out when they were expecting to complete the loop in a mile or two.
Because not everyone who sets off on these trails has a clue. A surprising number of people are mentally compromised in one way or another before they even get lost. Even among the general population, I'd guess that half the people setting off for a day hike on these trails have nothing more than a cellphone on them, if that. They take off with a liter of water and a t-shirt, never expecting to be out past sunset. They get injured, the weather turns bad, they make a wrong turn, or whatever, and then it's up to us to go find them.
Re:Depends what you're detecting...
on
Privacy in the Woods?
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· Score: 2, Informative
The former. Sensors like this exist now, but I've never seen one that reported in real time, and to a publicly accessible network, hence my concern over public reaction.
I wish. Keep in mind that trees block IR as well as visible light, and there are plenty of other heat sources in the woods (e.g., deer.) And someone bundled up against the cold doesn't emit a lot of heat to be seen.
Still, I'll happily take a FLIR-equipped aircraft if one is available. But it's hardly a silver bullet for SAR.
Re:How about making the sensors voluntary?
on
Privacy in the Woods?
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· Score: 2, Informative
Highly visible sensors are highly visible vandalism targets. Especially in hunting areas, people will shoot at anything.
Candidate sensor types are through-beam IR, passive IR, and seismic. Retroreflective IR has the disadvantage of requiring a very visible reflector, and can be confused by reflective clothing. Seismic sensors have the advantage of being almost undetectable when they're buried under or beside a trail, and they can probably be calibrated to not trigger on lighter animals.
Power will be either batteries or solar. Existing trail loggers are generally battery powered, with 6 to 18 months battery life. Since these sensors will need antennas anyway, it would probably make sense to install a small solar panel along with the antenna, somewhere off the trail and out of sight.
And that's why I'm considering buried seismic sensors. Trail sensors are out there now, mostly for monitoring seasonal usage. At least one company sells similar sensors to hunters for monitoring game.
This is exactly the idea. There's quite a bit of statistical data out there already on how lost people behave (except for mountain bikers - God knows what they're going to do when they get lost) and based on factors like point-last-seen and terrain conditions you can divide your search area and assign probabilities. This is simply a tool to provide one more data point in generating this model.
Easy contest to define, but maybe not so easy to win. Just specify the material properties needed for a practical space elevator, and offer a sizeable prize to the first group to present a sample of a certain size.
Also, you could offer annual prizes for the best results each year, even if they don't meet the final prize criteria. At least that'd give the research groups a short-term goal to reach for.
Hah! You've obviously never worked with the government. And the problem's not with my coworkers - my boss was the only other one there. This debate was solely among the assorted government representatives.
Hah! I'm halfway through my current project, as indicated by the constantly shrinking schedule, and I haven't even had to have ANY specifications or requirements to get to this point!
However, they HAVE managed to change the name of the project on me at least three times, and our last two-hour meeting was consumed by a lively debate on what to call a particular form, so it's not like these critical planning issues are being neglected.
I never got into D&D much (my group was a bunch of whining backbiting dweebs that couldn't ever hold a decent game together), but I do remember that the school librarian absolutely forbade any copying of D&D materials on the library's copier. God forbid she should catch you with any of that devil-worship stuff in HER library.
Years ago, with another company, we ran L0phtcrack on the NT domain for the first time. Cracked like 70% of the passwords in 2 minutes. The whole list was full of this sort of thing, but one really got us.
I was reading down the list, and came across the name of a guy that we all knew. Great guy, friendly and personable. His wife, on the other hand, was an ice queen - she worked in the building too and we all knew her. None of us ever figured out how those two got together.
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I've looked at USFS evaluations of sensors, and for a sensor monitoring a fairly narrow trail, false hits aren't too big a deal. Bear aren't a major concern, and deer could probably be distinguished from at least adult humans.
Chances are you're only going to be looking over the past 24 hours or so of events, and I don't think wildlife is going to be a significant factor.
As for the amount of woods, I'm really only concerned with a few trail segments. For example, there's a trail that forks at one point and has a somewhat ambiguous sign (the forest service refuses to change it), and fairly often people take the wrong trail and find themselves several miles out when they were expecting to complete the loop in a mile or two.
Because not everyone who sets off on these trails has a clue. A surprising number of people are mentally compromised in one way or another before they even get lost. Even among the general population, I'd guess that half the people setting off for a day hike on these trails have nothing more than a cellphone on them, if that. They take off with a liter of water and a t-shirt, never expecting to be out past sunset. They get injured, the weather turns bad, they make a wrong turn, or whatever, and then it's up to us to go find them.
The former. Sensors like this exist now, but I've never seen one that reported in real time, and to a publicly accessible network, hence my concern over public reaction.
I wish. Keep in mind that trees block IR as well as visible light, and there are plenty of other heat sources in the woods (e.g., deer.) And someone bundled up against the cold doesn't emit a lot of heat to be seen.
Still, I'll happily take a FLIR-equipped aircraft if one is available. But it's hardly a silver bullet for SAR.
Highly visible sensors are highly visible vandalism targets. Especially in hunting areas, people will shoot at anything.
Candidate sensor types are through-beam IR, passive IR, and seismic. Retroreflective IR has the disadvantage of requiring a very visible reflector, and can be confused by reflective clothing. Seismic sensors have the advantage of being almost undetectable when they're buried under or beside a trail, and they can probably be calibrated to not trigger on lighter animals.
Power will be either batteries or solar. Existing trail loggers are generally battery powered, with 6 to 18 months battery life. Since these sensors will need antennas anyway, it would probably make sense to install a small solar panel along with the antenna, somewhere off the trail and out of sight.
And that's why I'm considering buried seismic sensors. Trail sensors are out there now, mostly for monitoring seasonal usage. At least one company sells similar sensors to hunters for monitoring game.
This is exactly the idea. There's quite a bit of statistical data out there already on how lost people behave (except for mountain bikers - God knows what they're going to do when they get lost) and based on factors like point-last-seen and terrain conditions you can divide your search area and assign probabilities. This is simply a tool to provide one more data point in generating this model.
Please.
Everyone knows Airstream trailers make better pressure vessels.
Besides, NASA's already got some on hand.
Easy contest to define, but maybe not so easy to win. Just specify the material properties needed for a practical space elevator, and offer a sizeable prize to the first group to present a sample of a certain size.
Also, you could offer annual prizes for the best results each year, even if they don't meet the final prize criteria. At least that'd give the research groups a short-term goal to reach for.
Don't believe IRC is evil? Just try logging on with an even remotely female-sounding nick sometime.
I asked my dentist that once. He kind of shrugged and said, "I don't know. To let you know when it's time to go to the dentist, I guess."
Hah! You've obviously never worked with the government. And the problem's not with my coworkers - my boss was the only other one there. This debate was solely among the assorted government representatives.
Hah! I'm halfway through my current project, as indicated by the constantly shrinking schedule, and I haven't even had to have ANY specifications or requirements to get to this point!
However, they HAVE managed to change the name of the project on me at least three times, and our last two-hour meeting was consumed by a lively debate on what to call a particular form, so it's not like these critical planning issues are being neglected.
I'd suggest the short story "The Dream of Nations" by Wil McCarthy, Analog, April '97. It covers a scenario very similar to this.
Yeah, but it's murder when they want to ride the kiddie roller coaster.
I never got into D&D much (my group was a bunch of whining backbiting dweebs that couldn't ever hold a decent game together), but I do remember that the school librarian absolutely forbade any copying of D&D materials on the library's copier. God forbid she should catch you with any of that devil-worship stuff in HER library.
>I cannot tell you how important factors like "pink" and "small" and "easy to use" are to people outside of the 18-25 yr old males.
:q!
Hey, I'm almost 27 and I can still figure this technical stuff out!
.
quit
exit
bye
^X^S
^C^C
On the other hand, as much as 30% of Canada may someday become habitable if this trend continues.
Not to be confused with Night of the Lepus.
EVERYONE is going to die!
Eventually.
Years ago, with another company, we ran L0phtcrack on the NT domain for the first time. Cracked like 70% of the passwords in 2 minutes. The whole list was full of this sort of thing, but one really got us.
I was reading down the list, and came across the name of a guy that we all knew. Great guy, friendly and personable. His wife, on the other hand, was an ice queen - she worked in the building too and we all knew her. None of us ever figured out how those two got together.
His password? 'Nosexforme'.
At the last IT firm I worked for, the CEO had a four-letter password. I'm not going to say what it was, but it was the name of an animal.
That was bad enough, but it was the name of an animal he had tattooed on his forearm.
I did set one up once, but all I got out of that was knowing how some weird dude pronounces 'leenucks', whatever that is.
Exodus 3:2
Sounds more like a fireproof bush than a non-consuming fire to me.
Forget water that doesn't get stuff wet.
What we need is fire that doesn't burn stuff.