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Boston Dynamics is well known for its robot creations, but its latest effort shows how close we are getting to human-like machines. You may remember the dog-like robot called BigDog the company created back in 2007. It was capable of navigating rough terrain and could walk, run, climb, and carry heavy loads with its four legs. BD has built upon the BigDog technology and has now created a two-legged robot called PETMAN which you can see in the video above. PETMAN has been developed for use by the US Army to help test chemical protection clothing. It performs realistic human-like...

Click to watch on You TubeWASHINGTON, Oct. 11, 2009 -- Embedded above is a b-roll video of the ATV MRAP in Afghanistan. Scenes include the vehicle driving through the base and interviews. (Courtesy Video, American Forces Network Afghanistan. Length: 00:01:38.)

KABUL, Afghanistan - International Security Assistance Forces have responded to false accusations that a U.S. service member burned the Quran last week in the Maydan Shar district, Wardak province. In response to accusations that international forces dishonored the Quran after striking an improvised explosive device in Wardak province Oct. 14, ISAF troops conducted an investigation in conjunction with local Afghan National Army commanders and found the claim groundless. A spokesman for the Governor of Wardak, Mohammad Alim Fadayee, and Mullah Qari of the ANA unit in Wardak, publicly stated that ISAF troops were not responsible for the desecration and found...

Cunning new UK technology will see British troops' vehicles in Afghanistan protected from armour-piercing rocket warheads - by cloth. The MoD was pleased yesterday to unveil its new TARIAN "textile based" vehicle protection system, which will see lightweight cloth attached to the sides of military vehicles in Afghan combat. TARIAN is expected to resist strikes from RPGs*, shoulder-fired antitank rockets in common use among the Taliban. That might seem to be impossible, as an RPG warhead can blast a hole through thick armour plate. But in fact TARIAN, already on trial in Afghanistan, apparently works well. That's because it's actually...

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Oct. 17 -- Pakistan's army launched a ground offensive Saturday morning aimed at rooting out Islamist insurgents in the lawless tribal region of South Waziristan, an intelligence official in the area said. The military had been planning the operation for months, amassing nearly 30,000 troops in the area and attempting to soften targets with aerial strikes. Military officials and security experts estimate that between 5,000 and 10,000 "hardcore" Taliban and al-Qaeda insurgents are based in the area, which the United States views as a terrorism hub and has targeted with unmanned drone strikes. The offensive comes after two...

Recognizing the 8 Signs of Terrorism - The CELL

Jarrette Schule was cutting down trees on his rural property Tuesday in Comal County when he noticed a green metallic tube on the muddy ground. “I had never seen it before,” said Schule, a 34-year-old Web developer. “I looked at it, and it kind of looked like a missile launcher.” Schule took a closer look. It was a long, forest-green metal tube. A decal on it read: “Guided Missile and Launcher, Surface Attack.” The discovery was the start of a surreal journey for Schule. Somehow, an unarmed anti-tank weapon — or a very good fake — wound up on his...

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – James and Maria Ivory's dreams of a relaxing retirement on Florida's Gulf Coast were put on hold when they discovered their new home had been built with Chinese drywall that emits sulfuric fumes and corrodes pipes. It got worse when they asked their insurer for help — and not only was their claim denied, but they've been told their entire policy won't be renewed. Thousands of homeowners nationwide who bought new houses constructed from the defective building materials are finding their hopes dashed, their lives in limbo. And experts warn that cases like the Ivorys',...

The Taliban have released a clever piece of disinformation today, which clearly is aimed at US policymakers as well as the American public as the Obama administration decides on a new path forward in Afghanistan. In this latest statement, the Taliban are claiming they have no aspirations to be involved in the global jihad. From the Voice of Jihad, the Taliban's official propaganda arm online: We announce to all the world, our aim is obtainment of independence and establishment of an Islamic system. We did not have any agenda to harm other countries including Europe nor we have such agenda...

The Jihadists plotting terror attacks against the west, including US soil, may no longer be those with origins from Middle East as what it was for the 9/11 terror attack, but from South Asia, Pakistan and Afghanistan in specific, hinting more involvement of Taliban. In the 9/11 terror attack, the plan was engaged and orchestrated by Arabs with origins of Middle East. However, in the London Bombings engaging transportation system, the terror was launched by non-Arabs, and with more interaction with Pakistan. Mohammed Sidique Khan, Shehzad Tanweer, and Hasib Hussain, and Jamaican-born Jermaine Lindsay were involved in the London bombings....

Dubai, 5 October (AKI) - United States president Barack Obama is deceiving Muslims and committing crimes that violate human rights, just like his predecessor George W. Bush, Al-Qaeda's second-in-command said in a new video message on Monday. "Barack Obama is tricking us. He is responsible for crimes against human rights, just like Bush," Ayman al-Zawahiri said in a ten-minute video posted to Muslim extremist websites. The video is dedicated to Ibn al-Sheikh al-Libi, a Libyan Al-Qaeda militant believed to have died recently in prison in his native Libya. He was handed over Libyan authorities by the US, who bought him...

TOKYO (Nikkei)--The Japanese government decided Saturday to relax its rules on arms exports to allow more joint development and production of weapons with other nations and enable shipments to countries with which Japan co-develops arms. The move is aimed at reducing procurement costs and stimulating the domestic defense industry by promoting joint development and production of key arms, such as next-generation fighter jets, with the U.S. and Europe. Japan currently bans almost all weapons exports. Exceptions include those for the missile defense system being jointly developed with the U.S. In 1967, then Prime Minister Eisaku Sato introduced a policy prohibiting...

A year ago, Robert Novak mentioned secret vault of information of Obama's sex scandal hidden in the hands of Hillary Clinton. According to Robert Novak, Agents of Sen. Hillary Clinton are spreading the word in Democratic circles that she has scandalous information about her principal opponent for the party's presidential nomination, Sen. Barack Obama, but has decided not to use it. The nature of the alleged scandal was not disclosed. The secret vault was never to be used, and Hillary Clinton retreated from the race for President candidate of Democrat Party. The issue has not gain much attention afterward by...

Your office or bedroom holds telltale signs of whether you are a conservative or a liberal, finds a new study. While political conservatives tend to keep a tidy, organized office, political liberals favor colorful, more stylish but cluttered spaces. ADVERTISEMENT A person may hide their political ideology from others, including from pollsters, but the researchers were delighted to learn that a peek into subjects' living quarters or even workspaces could give that away. Conservatives and liberals leave behind distinct "behavioral residue" that can be picked up by savvy scientists and possibly other observers, according to the study by New York...

The mystery of the half-filled stands at many events at the 2008 Olympic Games has been solved, according to Chinese internet users, who say it is the result of a policy to prevent the gathering of large and possibly uncontrollable crowds. They claim ticket sales to the public were secretly restricted. Blocks of tickets went to government departments, Communist party officials or state-owned companies, which have quietly obeyed orders not to hand them out. “People are so angry because they slept all night outside ticket booths and got nothing and now they see this,” said one blogger, Jian Yu. Official...

Marines visiting a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant. Scenes include troops walking inside the restaurant and KFC workers preparing and frying chicken and french fries. Click link to see video clip

PESHAWAR, Pakistan - Afghanistan has been drawing a fresh influx of jihadi fighters from Turkey, Central Asia, Chechnya and the Middle East, one more sign that al-Qaida is regrouping on what is fast becoming the most active front of the war on terror groups. ADVERTISEMENT More foreigners are infiltrating Afghanistan because of a recruitment drive by al-Qaida as well as a burgeoning insurgency that has made movement easier across the border from Pakistan, U.S. officials, militants and experts say. For the past two months, Afghanistan has overtaken Iraq in deaths of U.S. and allied troops, and nine American soldiers were...

TEHRAN (AFP) — Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he met two military commanders from US-led forces on his trip to Iraq in March and that they even took souvenir pictures to commemorate the encounter. His claims were published on Saturday in reformist newspapers and the conservative Jomhouri Eslami, which said the comments came in a speech he made over a month ago that was first broadcast by state television late on Wednesday. There was no immediate confirmation of the comments from the Iranian presidency or any further reaction on Sunday. Ahmadinejad has already said he was the target of an...

In Chicago, pan pizza rules. But in Iraq it's more like panned pizza, as the military serves a ketchup/sliced hot dog mutant. (At least the crust isn't a bun.) Retired Air Force Master Sgt. Mark Evans of Elk Grove Village and teen son Kent decided to deliver, hoping to ship pan pizzas to troops for Independence Day. They did it with cash donations and help from DHL and Lou Malnati's. Here's how the mission unfolded. 2145 hours, May 30: Evans and his son are chowing down on Lou Malnati's when they hear a news report on Iraq. Kent wonders about...

Soldiers in Iraq, Showing The A Team still live on! British Army - Basra click to view