Free Republic

In today’s hyper-partisan era, one goal crosses the political divide: the need for more entrepreneurs. Encomia are everywhere: Politicians praise them, Hollywood lionizes them, venture capitalists chase them, universities foster them. Entrepreneurs, from Henry Ford to Elon Musk, are embedded in American lore. In an earlier era they were popularized in Horatio Alger rags-to-riches terms; today it’s the garage-to-tech-titan stories that have legendary status for Millennials. Could it be, however, that we’ve hit peak preoccupation with entrepreneurship? Although entrepreneurial magic is often discussed in “tech” terms, the reality is most startups involve such things as restaurants and lawn services or...

Peter Thiel has been at Donald Trump’s side since the Republican National Convention, guiding the then-candidate on technology policy and brokering a meeting between him and top tech executives. Now Thiel has secured a place for one of his top aides in Trump’s White House — Michael Kratsios, formerly chief of staff at Thiel Capital, will step into the role of deputy chief technology officer. The appointment, first reported by Politico Pro and confirmed by TechCrunch, seems like a natural progression of Kratsios’ work alongside Thiel on the transition team. Prior to his work at Thiel Capital, Kratsios was the...

A team of engineers led by 94-year-old John Goodenough, professor in the Cockrell School of Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin and co-inventor of the lithium-ion battery, has developed the first all-solid-state battery cells that could lead to safer, faster-charging, longer-lasting rechargeable batteries for handheld mobile devices, electric cars and stationary energy storage. Goodenough’s latest breakthrough, completed with Cockrell School senior research fellow Maria Helena Braga, is a low-cost all-solid-state battery that is noncombustible and has a long cycle life (battery life) with a high volumetric energy density and fast rates of charge and discharge. The engineers describe...

How did a country smaller than El Salvador with a population of eight million and few natural resources become a military superpower within a few decades? In The Weapon Wizards: How Israel Became a High-Tech Military Superpower (St. Martin's Press, 2017), authors Yaakov Katz and Amir Bohbot explain this remarkable phenomenon. Calling on their experience as Israel Defense Forces (IDF) veterans and seasoned national security analysts, they present an intriguing and engrossing account of Israel's defense capabilities development. From a country lacking bullets and aircraft, Israel transformed itself into one of the most effective militaries in the world and the...

he new bulletproof shield developed by Howell and his colleagues can be folded compactly when not in use. It is also much easier to deploy and transport. When expanded, which only takes five seconds, the bulletproof shield can offer cover for police officers and shield them from bullets such as the 9 mm, .44 Magnum and .357 Magnum. This new shield is also lightweight, weighing only 55 pounds. It was built with 12 layers of Kevlar and a common creasing origami-like pattern, which makes it foldable into a more manageable size. During tests, the bulletproof shield prototype proved to be...

I am taking a computer course and we are learning networking using the Cisco packet tracer labs. If anyone is familiar with this program, I would love to talk to you. No matter what I do it will not allow me to complete any of the sections that use the command prompt. I have updated Java, allowed the program full permissions on my computer, uninstalled and reinstalled the program several times on different machines - I just don't know what to do. Any suggestions?

The Great Firewall just got more impenetrable.Chinese authorities block access to big-name websites such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and numerous others, and to thwart these restrictions, many residents on the mainland use virtual private networks. Starting this week, that could be a crime. Use of VPNs and special cable connections in China must now be approved by the government, essentially making these services illegal in the country. China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced the new rules on Sunday, as reported by the South China Morning Post. Calling it a "clean-up" of the country's internet connections, the Ministry said...

Apple iPhones will be 'Made in India', and Bengaluru is where this will be taking place, according to the government It is now official: Apple is taking the 'Make in India' route with its iPhones, and Bengaluru is where this will be taking place. The government of Karnataka issued a press release "welcoming the move'. Apple's proposal is to commence initial manufacturing operations in Karnataka. The press statement reads, "Apple's representatives led by Ms. Priya Balasubramaniam, VP iPhone operations, Mr. Ali Khanafer (Head, Government Affairs), Mr.Dheeraj Chugh (Director, iphone operations) and Mr. Priyesh Povanna (Country Counsel) met with Ministers and...

ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. -- For Marine Corps aviators, hydraulics are critical part of performing all the heavy lifting required during aircraft operations. Marine Cpl. Habtamu Sharew and Lance Cpl. Juan Herreragonzalez know that better than anyone. The two are hydraulic mechanics from Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 29 in Jacksonville, North Carolina. They work specifically on the hydraulics systems. Not long ago, they entered their idea for streamlining hydraulic line maintenance into the 2016 Marine Corps Logistic Innovation Challenge. Out of more than 300 entries, theirs was chosen as one of 18 to move to the next step. That brought...

Sorry, posting from my phone.

n 1971, Intel, then an obscure firm in what would only later come to be known as Silicon Valley, released a chip called the 4004. It was the world’s first commercially available microprocessor, which meant it sported all the electronic circuits necessary for advanced number-crunching in a single, tiny package. It was a marvel of its time, built from 2,300 tiny transistors, each around 10,000 nanometres (or billionths of a metre) across – about the size of a red blood cell. A transistor is an electronic switch that, by flipping between “on” and “off”, provides a physical representation of the...

A new collection of transportation agencies and universities is taking one small step toward transforming the Rust Belt into a place associated with the future instead of the past. Eleven agencies and institutions located in Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania have formed the Smart Belt Coalition, which will spur joint efforts on the testing and deployment of autonomous and connected cars. The collaboration comes on the heels of a legislative overhaul of Michigan regulations last month, which have been relaxed to spur the testing of self-driving technology on the state’s public roads. Ohio and Pennsylvania do not have laws on the...

ItÂ’s the leftÂ’s secret weapon in the continuing resistance. While Facebook is getting a lot of the credit for making last weekendÂ’s WomenÂ’s March happen, a somewhat obscure tech platform called the Action Network was critical to organizersÂ’ efforts. And in the wake of that worldwide protest, the platform is already helping to push the movement forward. A nonprofit created by progressives who hoped to build a political movement with staying power, the Action Network offers tools for sending emails, organizing marches and events, fundraising, creating petitions, conducting surveys and connecting with other organizers. Activists who use the tools can...

Blue Origin, the aerospace company owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, is using 3D printing to build the BE-4, a next-generation rocket engine fueled by liquefied natural gas. The engine will power Blue Origin’s New Glenn orbital rocket and potentially a United Launch Alliance rocket too. Christmas is an understandably busy time for Amazon, the online megastore and one-stop destination for media, electronics, and last-minute gifts that are guaranteed to arrive by December 24. But now that the festive season is over, founder Jeff Bezos can busy himself with other matters, such as his Washington-based aerospace manufacturing company, Blue Origin....

Ref: Drone SWARM technology https://www.google.com/amp/compositesmanufacturingmagazine.com/2017/01/department-of-defense-successfully-tests-composite-drones/amp/

Semiconductors are essential to everything from home appliances to cars, satellites and fighter aircraft. The U.S. has led the industry since its start in the 1950s, with firms like Intel, Qualcomm and Apple today accounting for nearly 50% of global sales, worth about $165 billion a year, and employing some 359,000 Americans. Semiconductors are the fourth-most valuable U.S. export behind airplanes, petroleum products and cars. China hopes to change this through state subsidies and predatory trade practices. The White House report, drafted by industry and policy experts, warns that “Chinese policies are distorting markets in ways that undermine innovation, subtract...

#CalExit just received a big boost from an unlikely source: Peter Thiel, billionaire tech buddy of President-elect Trump. In a “Confirm or Deny” interview with the New York Times’ Maureen Dowd, the 49 year-old Thiel confirmed that he believed California should secede. Maureen Dowd: California should secede. Peter Thiel: Confirm. I’d be fine with that. I think it would be good for California, good for the rest of the country. It would help Mr. Trump’s re-election campaign. Apparently Thiel’s comment that “…it would help Mr. Trump’s re-election campaign” was made rather tongue-in-cheek. But it does raise an interesting question. With...

Into the future By Udo Gollub at Messe Berlin, Germany I just went to the Singularity University summit. Here are the key points I gathered. Rise and Fall: In 1998, Kodak had 170,000 employees and sold 85% of all photo paper worldwide. Within just a few years, their business model disappeared and they were bankrupt. What happened to Kodak will happen in a lot of industries in the next 10 years – and most people don’t see it coming. Did you think in 1998 that 3 years later you would never take pictures on paper film again? Yet digital cameras...

ANY sufficiently advanced technology, noted Arthur C. Clarke, a British science-fiction writer, is indistinguishable from magic. The fast-emerging technology of voice computing proves his point. Using it is just like casting a spell: say a few words into the air, and a nearby device can grant your wish. The Amazon Echo, a voice-driven cylindrical computer that sits on a table top and answers to the name Alexa, can call up music tracks and radio stations, tell jokes, answer trivia questions and control smart appliances; even before Christmas it was already resident in about 4% of American households. Voice assistants are...

Shh! you may want to turn down your television set because Alexa the internet-connected home assistant device may be listening. The Amazon Echo system which does everything from getting your weather report to ordering more laundry detergent can also do some things you don’t want it to. When it comes to answering those tough questions or getting that extra help around the house, Alexa, the voice service that powers Amazon Echo is just a voice-command away. Meyali Sanchez helps sell the system at Best Buy and even uses it at home. “She is kind of like my little right hand....