How do you see the interaction with the limits of current RF front end technology working out? One of the main challenges to the US DoD's JTRS (Joint Tactical Radio System) is packing effective RF PAs and front-ends into a small form factor. You can load DSP software for just about any waveform you desire. Getting that RF in and out of the unit at usable levels is another issue entirely.
DMR is a near term stop-gap system. The DoD longer-term implementation is called Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS). Its supposed to be the all singing/all dancing magic radio of the Objective Force.
From looking at the network diagram it would be logical to place the VoIP/PSTN gateway at the lawyer's office currently providing the interconnection with the upstream ISP.
A PRI from the ILEC (Qwest) would be connected to the media gateway and users would get numbers out of a DID (direct inward dial) block. These blocks are usually purchased in blocks of 10/100/1000. You'd have some issues with LIDB (local information database) fill for the local PSAP (public safety answering point), but it is just more paperwork to coordinate.
I don't know what the local calling scope is for that area of Colorado. If it differs significantly between the subdivision and the law office then you could have some issues. If not then it would work well.
The power cells are called RTGs (Roentgen Thermal Generators) (sp??). They use radioactive decay to produce electricity. Do a search on RTGs and you can find the details..
1 - The former Colombian military EW types have a choice of flipping burgers or building a business comms system. Actually they are likely radio/SIGINT types, but few reporters know the difference.
2 - The flight schedules and flight plans for the P3s and E-2Cs (on loan from the US Navy) have been sold like a commodity for year. Last I heard the E-2C schedules were about $2K a week.
3 - Mapping radar patterns isn't that hard. IIRC, Air America (the second incarnation - not the CIA operation. I believe it was run by a guy named Rick Luytes (??)) Did some early development on modified radar detectors. You aren't going to get anywhere near the efficiency and accuracy of multimillion dollar EW/ESM gear, but you can get close enough.
The key in this application is that the data has to be shared with all the NATO nations participating in the operation (is it still called the "Nato Stabilization Force"??)
All these nations do not necessarily have interoperable crypto systems. You also only have a limited amount of bandwidth on the NATO/DSCS birds. Add in a very broad interest community of all the rear command centers of involved units and their own national command structures. Now you've got a very interesting problem.
Very likely the video is coming back from Bosnia over an encrypted military channel to an uplink station in Europe. One of the features of the DBS signals is that everything on one transponder carrier has to be uplinked by the same station.
One of the best ways to get this data out to all the interested parties is to run it out over an open channel. It requires digital service so its a bit harder to find than most.
There is another very interesting possibity in the story. During Operation Joint Endeavor they had problems with various groups refusing to admit they had military equipment in certain areas when the US/NATA told them to move it. The US got a much better response when the parties were shown pictures of their equipment through AH-64 Apache gun sight cameras. It seems something about the cross-hair centered on their non-existent (according to them) BMP/BDRM2/SA6/etc convinced them it would be a good idea to leave the area.
This is a long way of saying the NATO probably wants folks to see it. If they know they are being watched perhaps they won't cause as much trouble.
Ever been around serious and experienced professional soldiers? They aren't loud mouthed idiots spouting off and getting into brawls at the slightest provocation. They tend to be quiet, but very watchful. When they do decide to commit to battle it is fast, ferocious, incredibly violent, and in general over before the opponent has completely realized it has begun.
People like this (and the character Yoda) don't try to look mean and dangerous. They don't have to. They know who they are and what thy are capable of. They have nothing to prove just a job to do.
Yoda's fight was a classic movie device. How many times in a western have we seen this invloving the nice store keeper in the little frontier town:
- Bad guys come to town - Bad guys create havoc - Bad guys attack/rape/murder storekeeper's loved ones - Store keeper pulls the old trunk out of the barn or from under the bed - opened trunk contains a slightly dust, but very well cleaned and oiled set of weapons, and the badge of (US marshal, Texas Ranger, etc) - Bad guys all dead shorty thereafter.
Verisign doesn't really have a monopoly here. There are several interconnected SS7 networks out there. Iluminet/Verisign just has the biggest one.
Most likely this would be executed as a man-in-the-middle type scenario. SS7 call routing commands would be fed through which would route both the call through a Verisign (probably buying some switches ?DMS-500s? from one of the bankrupt CLECs. Once it hits the controlled switch the call is routed the rest of the way to the targeted destination number. Pen register type taps and associated LIDB dips are even easier.
Verisign is just giving smaller ILEC/CLECs companies a cheaper alternative to full CALEA compliance. I think all the ILEC/CLEC companies just realized that begging for extensions based on cost just got a lot harder. I'd rather see it done this way than bankrupting more companies.
If you don't like it then encrypt everything. I have not idea why some people expect privacy and security when sending anything across a public network.
Of course the company is currently operating under bankruptcy protection, wasted millions to have Bechtel play middle-man, fly 20-30 people in/out EACH WEEK!! from the Denver HQ to Sacramento in order to sit in a big room on conference calls.
Its a great idea. Unfortunately they majorly screwed the pooch on implementation.
Actually the facilities to interconnect those routers certainly cost money. Do you think (insert name of national OC-n provider here) gives away those backbone links for free?
TRUE: 'running 1 bit vs 1 gigabit will not "wear out" the company router faster' on a physical wear-and-tear basis.
Running the interfaces at higher bit rates will certainly consume the capacity of the router at a higher rate. You also reach a top-end where you just can't put any more interfaces in the router and/or you've exhausted the packet forwarding capabilities.
These are very real costs. I'm all for publishing a set of metrics for determing who gets the various classes of service. If I want to ensure I stay in any class other than the highest I can configure traffic-shaping appropriately. If I don't care then I can pay the higher rate.
Now, if all the broadband would take a drink from the clue-bottle and start putting big caches out on their networks and doing some nifty things with DNS balancing then they might just suddenly find they aren't consuming near as much interconnection bandwidth as they once were (for the same customer count and customer interface bandwidth consumption)
1 - Go with a trailer: This lets you use contract prime mover support (tractor). It also drops the sunk cost. You won't have a functional vehicle sitting somewhere if you intend to keep it parked at a single location for a week or two at a time. Trailers are available in various lengths. I'd think that used refrigerated trailer would be a good choice. The insulation on the walls would help with keeping the climate stable. Adding heat would be relatively cheap compared to trying to insulate and cool and normal freight trailer. For the utmost in flexibility take a look at climate controlled intermodal shipping containers. They can be carried by ship, rail, truck, or air. They are built plenty strong (so they can be stacked on rail/ship) and offer many options in on-site setup. If the requirement changed later and it was to be somewhere for say a year then it could be moved off the truck dolly and dropped on a hard pad.
2 - Power generation: You'll definitely want an attached generator. Something small enough to pull behind a pickup truck would be ideal. I'm assuming the Polytechnic is going to be providing an instructor so they can pull the genset behind the truck out to the site and then use the pickup for local mobility. I'm not sure if code inspections would be required each time it was hooked up under NZ electrical codes. A decent UPS is a must of course.
3 - Internal Infrastructure: Rack mount systems for the core are your friend! Behind a partition at the front of the trailer install some cabinets or racks to house the usual suspects. (UPS, servers, network switches, etc) It is a lot easier to properly shock mount the racks then to attempt to bungee cord a lot of loose desktops to tables. At work we do integration of computer/network systems into shelters that are carried on HMMWVs by the US military. That's how they are setup.
4 - Go with work benches across the width of the trailer with an open center aisle. This may need to be modified based on any applicable disabled access laws for NZ. Fixed benches make the wiring job much easier and offer possibilities for display mounting (see below)
5 - Chair can be folding/stacking type and secure tie down transit storage can be provided for them.
6 - The computer systems themselves can be mounted in a short rack under each set of work tables. Say one rack in the left row and one in the right. figuring on 3-4 work stations per row, you can fit those systems in an under-desk rack cabinet easily.
7 - Work Tables: run a steel pole across the back of each worktable (about 6-8" above the work surface) and extend KB/Mouse/Video connections to the back of the desktop. The extended connections will allow you to put the KB/Mouse pairs into transit cases during movement and then quickly plug them in without crawling around on the floor.
8 - Displays: I'd opt for the LCD panels here. The steel pole running across the back of each work table provides a great mounting surface. In transit the LCD panels can go in fitted foam cushioned transit cases. Upon arrival they can be rapidly attached to the steel poles with quick-release clamps. Like the KB/Mouse the video can plug quickly in to the prepositioned connectors. You'll probably also need a power port there for the panels.
9 - Computer stations: Go with some decent 4U generic rackmount computers. Make sure the HDs are mounted in swappable bays. This way when they are teaching basic computer classes they can swap one drive in. When it's time of advanced courses they can swap another drive in. It's a cheap addition, but it greatly increases flexibility.
10 - OS Choices: Pick what best suits your mission and go with it. I'm not getting into this religous war.
11 - Presentation: Pop a screen at the front of the trailer and wire a (transit caseable of course) projector into the instructor station.
I've probably left a lot out, but this should get things started. You aren't going to be able to do anything with more then 5-6 stations on $20K unless you can get some good donations. Depending on local educational regulations perhaps various companies could donate hardware/software/trailer modifications/etc and in return get their logo painted on the trailer.
Back in about 90-91 I was going through US customs on my way back from an overseas location. The woman in front of me was very impressed with herself. She kept telling the customs officer (initial screener) that she couldn't answer his questions because she had a security clearance. Guess who got to go stand in the longest line for the whole bag and body search?
I answered his questions and added something along the lines of "I've got a clearance too, but you don't really give a sh**". He laughed and waved me straight out the doors.
It's not really a big deal. Remember the first time you got a root password for a system somewhere other than your bedroom? It was a big eal for about a month. Then it just became part of the job. Same thing with a clearance. You feel like humming "Secret Agent Man" for a couple weeks. (Come on fellow spooks, admit it!! ) After that its just part of the job.
The biggest pain in the ass is having to watch what you discuss with family/friends. There is even stuff on CNN that you can't comment on.
You can call it "full of himself" if you like, but I'd say its more of a calm confidence.
I wouldn't trade the time I spent in the USMC for anything. Once you've been under that level of real "mission critical" (ie - screw it up and you, or worse, someone else might end up dead) stress it's just not a big deal meeting the typical corporate deadlines.
Trust me, I've had drill instructors screaming at me, endless inspections, tried to study training material when I could barely keep my eyes open (PT at 0500 the last 3 days), done night patrols in central american jungles, worked through a couple aircraft downings, a few "misunderstandings" involving certain parties shooting at you, etc, etc, etc. When some VP or customer walks into my office blathering (or screaming and attempting to be threatening) it just isn't a big deal.
That confidence comes from discipline, training, discipline, experience, discipline, and the school of hard knocks.
Do you think it's possible that the 22-year old that you find "full of himself" might just be more confident and "sure of himself"?
A buddy of mine made a propane powered pogo stick in a high school engineering class. It was beyond cool.
It was essentially a frame looking like a heavy off-road pogo stick. The piston compressed a cylinder with a propane feed. Once the piston reached a certain level it fired a spark to light it off. Combusion gasses drove the piston down and off you went. There was a trigger on one of the handles so you could bounce normally and then fire it for a "super jump"
There is no such thing as truly humane warfare. I define it is me and mine coming home safe while the enemy doesn't.
When you send ground troops in though they have a much more immediate sense of danger. They know they must fight their way in and fight their way out.
It's good timing with "Black Hawk Down" coming to theaters in the US shortly (next week?). If you think about all the "civillian" casualties the US Army Rangers racked up there it is astronomical.
I would caution though how you define "civillian". Personally I think any civillian not smart enough to get the hell away from an active combatant (ie - shooting at me) has just signed up to catch some stray rounds.
If you look at where conventional (ie - armour and vehicles) bog down it's cities. Once you hit the confined areas of a city it is time to send in the ground troop on LPCs (leather personnel carriers - also known as boots) to root out the bad guys.
This is also where you stack up horrendous casualties. Devices such as this would allow an individual grunt to carry enough body armour to protect him from not only shrapnel, but also rifle rounds and falling debris. He could also carry systems designed to prevent fratricide and increase overall situational awareness.
Overall if you've not been moving slowly down a city street in the middle of the night with every hair on your neck standing on end and swiveling your head to see a threat before he can get a round off then you can't really understand how messy it can be.
I think you've pretty much hit the nail on the head. Data is pretty much useless until it gets munged (via many possible means) into information.
Think about some of the NEA projects which are doing their work by computer analysis of old photographic plates. The "data" has been there all along. What was missing was the information.
From the viewpoint of the various world (not just US) intelligence agencies this is a tremendously important activity. IIRC, over 50% of the US CIA's data comes from open sources. It's the ability to put all the pieces together into a coherent picture that is the key.
Some radio frequencies are able to bounce off the ionosphere and thus support operation beyond line-of-sight (LOS). These are the shortwave bands that you may see on some radios. While not particularly popular in the US, they are very popular in some parts of the world.
Throughout the Cold War both sides (or 3-5 sides depending on who is doing the counting) beamed propoganda into each others territory. As a kid I can remember listening to Radio Moscow on a 10/11Mhz frequency from my home in Texas.
Slashdot Mirror
FCS is a whole family of stuff from vehicles to radios and networks. 26B is likely the pricetag for the whole deal.
Here are the sites in Texas:
(neg longitude means W)
89122 BULVERDE BULVERDE TX
Long: -98.4031
Lat: 29.7275
Site Acres: 2.54
Bunker sqft: 22,088
Land Status: Own
Built: 1964
89178 MIDLOTHIAN MIDLOTHIAN TX
Long: -97.0270
Lat: 32.4370
Site Acres: 1.53
Bunker sqft: 5,863
Land Status: Own
Year Built: 1969
89200 RIO MEDINA RIO MEDINA TX
Long: -98.8401
Lat: 29.4333
Site Acres: 19.40
Bunker sqft: 18,310
Land Status: Own
Year Built: 1966
89204 ROSENBERG ROSENBERG TX
Long: -95.8497
Lat: 29.5529
Site Acres: 10.00
Site sqft: 18,310
Land Status: Own
Year Built: 1964
89217 VEGA VEGA TX
Long: -102.2604
Lat: 35.1294
Site Acres: 5.89
Bunker sqft: 18,658
Land Status: Own
Year Built: 1966
How do you see the interaction with the limits of current RF front end technology working out? One of the main challenges to the US DoD's JTRS (Joint Tactical Radio System) is packing effective RF PAs and front-ends into a small form factor. You can load DSP software for just about any waveform you desire. Getting that RF in and out of the unit at usable levels is another issue entirely.
DMR is a near term stop-gap system. The DoD longer-term implementation is called Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS). Its supposed to be the all singing/all dancing magic radio of the Objective Force.
From looking at the network diagram it would be logical to place the VoIP/PSTN gateway at the lawyer's office currently providing the interconnection with the upstream ISP.
A PRI from the ILEC (Qwest) would be connected to the media gateway and users would get numbers out of a DID (direct inward dial) block. These blocks are usually purchased in blocks of 10/100/1000. You'd have some issues with LIDB (local information database) fill for the local PSAP (public safety answering point), but it is just more paperwork to coordinate.
I don't know what the local calling scope is for that area of Colorado. If it differs significantly between the subdivision and the law office then you could have some issues. If not then it would work well.
Beyond these issues its just equipment choice..
The power cells are called RTGs (Roentgen Thermal Generators) (sp??). They use radioactive decay to produce electricity. Do a search on RTGs and you can find the details..
A much simpler method would be to run a fake "Free hot phone sex" post on a few USENET groups with the 800 number attached.
Several years ago I had a user do that for Citibank's multilingual customer service center. Their corporate security was not pleased to say the least.
1 - The former Colombian military EW types have a choice of flipping burgers or building a business comms system. Actually they are likely radio/SIGINT types, but few reporters know the difference.
2 - The flight schedules and flight plans for the P3s and E-2Cs (on loan from the US Navy) have been sold like a commodity for year. Last I heard the E-2C schedules were about $2K a week.
3 - Mapping radar patterns isn't that hard. IIRC, Air America (the second incarnation - not the CIA operation. I believe it was run by a guy named Rick Luytes (??)) Did some early development on modified radar detectors. You aren't going to get anywhere near the efficiency and accuracy of multimillion dollar EW/ESM gear, but you can get close enough.
How can the internet be used as an instrument of bloodshed??
Pretty simply actually. If you read the full article you will see that some kid had control of Roosevelt dam's SCADA gateway system.
Step 1 - Open the flood gates
Step 2 - Once the panic starts turn out the lights
Step 3 - If possible combine with a physical hit to destroy the gateway system
The bloodshed from the panic will likely be higher than from the direct effects of the act.
The key in this application is that the data has to be shared with all the NATO nations participating in the operation (is it still called the "Nato Stabilization Force"??)
All these nations do not necessarily have interoperable crypto systems. You also only have a limited amount of bandwidth on the NATO/DSCS birds. Add in a very broad interest community of all the rear command centers of involved units and their own national command structures. Now you've got a very interesting problem.
Very likely the video is coming back from Bosnia over an encrypted military channel to an uplink station in Europe. One of the features of the DBS signals is that everything on one transponder carrier has to be uplinked by the same station.
One of the best ways to get this data out to all the interested parties is to run it out over an open channel. It requires digital service so its a bit harder to find than most.
There is another very interesting possibity in the story. During Operation Joint Endeavor they had problems with various groups refusing to admit they had military equipment in certain areas when the US/NATA told them to move it. The US got a much better response when the parties were shown pictures of their equipment through AH-64 Apache gun sight cameras. It seems something about the cross-hair centered on their non-existent (according to them) BMP/BDRM2/SA6/etc convinced them it would be a good idea to leave the area.
This is a long way of saying the NATO probably wants folks to see it. If they know they are being watched perhaps they won't cause as much trouble.
I think you're right on target!
Ever been around serious and experienced professional soldiers? They aren't loud mouthed idiots spouting off and getting into brawls at the slightest provocation. They tend to be quiet, but very watchful. When they do decide to commit to battle it is fast, ferocious, incredibly violent, and in general over before the opponent has completely realized it has begun.
People like this (and the character Yoda) don't try to look mean and dangerous. They don't have to. They know who they are and what thy are capable of. They have nothing to prove just a job to do.
Yoda's fight was a classic movie device. How many times in a western have we seen this invloving the nice store keeper in the little frontier town:
- Bad guys come to town
- Bad guys create havoc
- Bad guys attack/rape/murder storekeeper's loved ones
- Store keeper pulls the old trunk out of the barn or from under the bed
- opened trunk contains a slightly dust, but very well cleaned and oiled set of weapons, and the badge of (US marshal, Texas Ranger, etc)
- Bad guys all dead shorty thereafter.
Verisign doesn't really have a monopoly here. There are several interconnected SS7 networks out there. Iluminet/Verisign just has the biggest one.
Most likely this would be executed as a man-in-the-middle type scenario. SS7 call routing commands would be fed through which would route both the call through a Verisign (probably buying some switches ?DMS-500s? from one of the bankrupt CLECs. Once it hits the controlled switch the call is routed the rest of the way to the targeted destination number. Pen register type taps and associated LIDB dips are even easier.
Verisign is just giving smaller ILEC/CLECs companies a cheaper alternative to full CALEA compliance. I think all the ILEC/CLEC companies just realized that begging for extensions based on cost just got a lot harder. I'd rather see it done this way than bankrupting more companies.
If you don't like it then encrypt everything. I have not idea why some people expect privacy and security when sending anything across a public network.
Of course the company is currently operating under bankruptcy protection, wasted millions to have Bechtel play middle-man, fly 20-30 people in/out EACH WEEK!! from the Denver HQ to Sacramento in order to sit in a big room on conference calls.
Its a great idea. Unfortunately they majorly screwed the pooch on implementation.
Actually the facilities to interconnect those routers certainly cost money. Do you think (insert name of national OC-n provider here) gives away those backbone links for free?
TRUE: 'running 1 bit vs 1 gigabit will not "wear out" the company router faster' on a physical wear-and-tear basis.
Running the interfaces at higher bit rates will certainly consume the capacity of the router at a higher rate. You also reach a top-end where you just can't put any more interfaces in the router and/or you've exhausted the packet forwarding capabilities.
These are very real costs. I'm all for publishing a set of metrics for determing who gets the various classes of service. If I want to ensure I stay in any class other than the highest I can configure traffic-shaping appropriately. If I don't care then I can pay the higher rate.
Now, if all the broadband would take a drink from the clue-bottle and start putting big caches out on their networks and doing some nifty things with DNS balancing then they might just suddenly find they aren't consuming near as much interconnection bandwidth as they once were (for the same customer count and customer interface bandwidth consumption)
Of course they also plug you up so well that you won't take a dump for a week.
Equator as it would be the sub-satellite point.
Thoughts in no particular order:
1 - Go with a trailer: This lets you use contract prime mover support (tractor). It also drops the sunk cost. You won't have a functional vehicle sitting somewhere if you intend to keep it parked at a single location for a week or two at a time. Trailers are available in various lengths. I'd think that used refrigerated trailer would be a good choice. The insulation on the walls would help with keeping the climate stable. Adding heat would be relatively cheap compared to trying to insulate and cool and normal freight trailer. For the utmost in flexibility take a look at climate controlled intermodal shipping containers. They can be carried by ship, rail, truck, or air. They are built plenty strong (so they can be stacked on rail/ship) and offer many options in on-site setup. If the requirement changed later and it was to be somewhere for say a year then it could be moved off the truck dolly and dropped on a hard pad.
2 - Power generation: You'll definitely want an attached generator. Something small enough to pull behind a pickup truck would be ideal. I'm assuming the Polytechnic is going to be providing an instructor so they can pull the genset behind the truck out to the site and then use the pickup for local mobility. I'm not sure if code inspections would be required each time it was hooked up under NZ electrical codes. A decent UPS is a must of course.
3 - Internal Infrastructure: Rack mount systems for the core are your friend! Behind a partition at the front of the trailer install some cabinets or racks to house the usual suspects. (UPS, servers, network switches, etc) It is a lot easier to properly shock mount the racks then to attempt to bungee cord a lot of loose desktops to tables. At work we do integration of computer/network systems into shelters that are carried on HMMWVs by the US military. That's how they are setup.
4 - Go with work benches across the width of the trailer with an open center aisle. This may need to be modified based on any applicable disabled access laws for NZ. Fixed benches make the wiring job much easier and offer possibilities for display mounting (see below)
5 - Chair can be folding/stacking type and secure tie down transit storage can be provided for them.
6 - The computer systems themselves can be mounted in a short rack under each set of work tables. Say one rack in the left row and one in the right. figuring on 3-4 work stations per row, you can fit those systems in an under-desk rack cabinet easily.
7 - Work Tables: run a steel pole across the back of each worktable (about 6-8" above the work surface) and extend KB/Mouse/Video connections to the back of the desktop. The extended connections will allow you to put the KB/Mouse pairs into transit cases during movement and then quickly plug them in without crawling around on the floor.
8 - Displays: I'd opt for the LCD panels here. The steel pole running across the back of each work table provides a great mounting surface. In transit the LCD panels can go in fitted foam cushioned transit cases. Upon arrival they can be rapidly attached to the steel poles with quick-release clamps. Like the KB/Mouse the video can plug quickly in to the prepositioned connectors. You'll probably also need a power port there for the panels.
9 - Computer stations: Go with some decent 4U generic rackmount computers. Make sure the HDs are mounted in swappable bays. This way when they are teaching basic computer classes they can swap one drive in. When it's time of advanced courses they can swap another drive in. It's a cheap addition, but it greatly increases flexibility.
10 - OS Choices: Pick what best suits your mission and go with it. I'm not getting into this religous war.
11 - Presentation: Pop a screen at the front of the trailer and wire a (transit caseable of course) projector into the instructor station.
I've probably left a lot out, but this should get things started. You aren't going to be able to do anything with more then 5-6 stations on $20K unless you can get some good donations. Depending on local educational regulations perhaps various companies could donate hardware/software/trailer modifications/etc and in return get their logo painted on the trailer.
You'll probably need to look outside the Colorado Springs area. Take a look at the OPM site and broaden your search.
I ended up in Georgia working for a defense contractor.
Back in about 90-91 I was going through US customs on my way back from an overseas location. The woman in front of me was very impressed with herself. She kept telling the customs officer (initial screener) that she couldn't answer his questions because she had a security clearance. Guess who got to go stand in the longest line for the whole bag and body search?
I answered his questions and added something along the lines of "I've got a clearance too, but you don't really give a sh**". He laughed and waved me straight out the doors.
It's not really a big deal. Remember the first time you got a root password for a system somewhere other than your bedroom? It was a big eal for about a month. Then it just became part of the job. Same thing with a clearance. You feel like humming "Secret Agent Man" for a couple weeks. (Come on fellow spooks, admit it!! ) After that its just part of the job.
The biggest pain in the ass is having to watch what you discuss with family/friends. There is even stuff on CNN that you can't comment on.
You can call it "full of himself" if you like, but I'd say its more of a calm confidence.
I wouldn't trade the time I spent in the USMC for anything. Once you've been under that level of real "mission critical" (ie - screw it up and you, or worse, someone else might end up dead) stress it's just not a big deal meeting the typical corporate deadlines.
Trust me, I've had drill instructors screaming at me, endless inspections, tried to study training material when I could barely keep my eyes open (PT at 0500 the last 3 days), done night patrols in central american jungles, worked through a couple aircraft downings, a few "misunderstandings" involving certain parties shooting at you, etc, etc, etc. When some VP or customer walks into my office blathering (or screaming and attempting to be threatening) it just isn't a big deal.
That confidence comes from discipline, training, discipline, experience, discipline, and the school of hard knocks.
Do you think it's possible that the 22-year old that you find "full of himself" might just be more confident and "sure of himself"?
A buddy of mine made a propane powered pogo stick in a high school engineering class. It was beyond cool.
It was essentially a frame looking like a heavy off-road pogo stick. The piston compressed a cylinder with a propane feed. Once the piston reached a certain level it fired a spark to light it off. Combusion gasses drove the piston down and off you went. There was a trigger on one of the handles so you could bounce normally and then fire it for a "super jump"
There is no such thing as truly humane warfare. I define it is me and mine coming home safe while the enemy doesn't.
When you send ground troops in though they have a much more immediate sense of danger. They know they must fight their way in and fight their way out.
It's good timing with "Black Hawk Down" coming to theaters in the US shortly (next week?). If you think about all the "civillian" casualties the US Army Rangers racked up there it is astronomical.
I would caution though how you define "civillian". Personally I think any civillian not smart enough to get the hell away from an active combatant (ie - shooting at me) has just signed up to catch some stray rounds.
If you look at where conventional (ie - armour and vehicles) bog down it's cities. Once you hit the confined areas of a city it is time to send in the ground troop on LPCs (leather personnel carriers - also known as boots) to root out the bad guys.
This is also where you stack up horrendous casualties. Devices such as this would allow an individual grunt to carry enough body armour to protect him from not only shrapnel, but also rifle rounds and falling debris. He could also carry systems designed to prevent fratricide and increase overall situational awareness.
Overall if you've not been moving slowly down a city street in the middle of the night with every hair on your neck standing on end and swiveling your head to see a threat before he can get a round off then you can't really understand how messy it can be.
I think you've pretty much hit the nail on the head. Data is pretty much useless until it gets munged (via many possible means) into information.
Think about some of the NEA projects which are doing their work by computer analysis of old photographic plates. The "data" has been there all along. What was missing was the information.
From the viewpoint of the various world (not just US) intelligence agencies this is a tremendously important activity. IIRC, over 50% of the US CIA's data comes from open sources. It's the ability to put all the pieces together into a coherent picture that is the key.
Some radio frequencies are able to bounce off the ionosphere and thus support operation beyond line-of-sight (LOS). These are the shortwave bands that you may see on some radios. While not particularly popular in the US, they are very popular in some parts of the world.
Throughout the Cold War both sides (or 3-5 sides depending on who is doing the counting) beamed propoganda into each others territory. As a kid I can remember listening to Radio Moscow on a 10/11Mhz frequency from my home in Texas.