Catching up on your reading

Here are some items of general interest that we have found or have had brought to our attention by readers. Thank you!

• Mahdi Army uses “flying IEDs” in Baghdad - The Long War Journal


• Persistent Surveillance a Key Topic at DHS Conference - Amy Zalman


• USAF agency deploys alert system - GCN


• Russia's 'Cans of Whup Ass' - Wired


• Cyber B52 strikes mooted as response to Chinese infowar - The Register


• A faltering thin red line of 'eroes - Asia Times

Sources: As cited

Catch up on your reading

Here are some items of general interest that we have found or have had brought to our attention by readers. Thank you!

• DoD reviewing Apple's bid for PA Semi - EETimes
• 26 years after Gibson, Pentagon defines 'Cyberspace' - Danger Room
• Arrests in bomb scare at Swedish nuclear plant - Yahoo News
• FCC seeks input on new auction for public safety spectrum - GCN
  
• Committee accuses DHS of double-counting small business figures - GovExec

Sources: As linked

New concrete buster

Raytheon Company has developed and demonstrated a rapid concrete breaking technology to advance capabilities for urban search and rescue teams in disaster situations.

The Controlled Impact Rescue Tool, or CIRT, uses shock waves to pulverize concrete, which enables rescue workers to remove the material more quickly than using existing techniques.

"This revolutionary approach decreased by 50 percent the time it takes to reach a victim trapped by concrete, increasing the probability of a successful rescue," said Guy DuBois, vice president of Raytheon's Operational Technologies and Solutions business.

Developed under the rapid technology application program of the Department of Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate, the rapid breaching technology meets the need for increased speed in breaching concrete walls and barriers.

Raytheon demonstrated the CIRT prototype to DHS, Federal Emergency Management Agency and urban search and rescue officials recently. During the demonstration the CIRT smashed through concrete in 13 minutes, while conventional methods took 29 minutes or more.

Editor's Note: The Boston Globe has a short video here.

Sources: Raytheon and Boston.com