In one of the most p?oignant posts I have run across in a while, The Tech Prepper has shared a video on how to set up a Windows computer for off-grip computing.
While most of our personal machines weren’t affected by the Crowd Strike/Microsoft trainwreck yesterday, there are myriad conditions that could negatively affect our ability to access and use computing at the edge. His video shows you how to enable that access, regardless of where you are.
Carryology has shared a great video about the NASA x Mission Workshop BASALT EVIB.
In 2016, Mark Falvai, co-founder of Mission Workshop, received a call he’d always dreamed of. On the other side of the line was an engineer named Mike Miller. He worked for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. A government organization known to the world as NASA.
Mike had a top secret project and he needed Mark’s help. NASA was preparing for a Mars Landing, and they needed the perfect backpack designed for the mission.
And many months later, the NASA x Mission Workshop BASALT EVIB was born.
Read the full article here: www.carryology.com/projects/carry-collaborations/mission-to-mars-designing-backpacks-for-nasa
Black Hills Designs has shared instructions for the Salt and Pepper Wireless Camera System, a DIY project.
Salt and Pepper is a live streaming camera system which can be assembled relatively easily using readily available components and can be mass produced at an affordable price. As of this publication the Salt and Pepper camera unit costs under $25 and the support equipment to control several cameras costs under $50.
The camera system utilizes no existing infrastructure such as cell networks, WiFi, or SATCOM making them ideal for austere conditions and disaster scenarios. It utilizes its own network.
Salt and Pepper is capable of >200m of line of sight and 8 hours of continuous use with recommended battery.
For full instructions, including a video and links to components, visit www.blackhillsdesigns.net/product/salt-and-pepper-wireless-camera-system.
Made in the UK, the Wor-Rig Quick Tape Sling keeps your tape handy for quick repairs. Comes with a roll of waterproof Black PVC tape.
PALS compatible, the tape sling is available in Coyote, Olive Green, and Black.
allyness.com/products/wor-rig-quick-tape-sling
Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD – The Makerspace program at the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Chemical Biological Center (DEVCOM CBC) provides state-of-the-art equipment and technology to enable the workforce to develop mission-related product prototypes and specialty items.
“This is an innovation space. We want people to come in and share their ideas so we can help them do a proof of concept, which can then go on and become a bigger project or a bigger program,” explained Bradley Ruprecht, lead of the Makerspace program.
Innovation is the core of Makerspace. In 2012 and 2019, the Center’s Makerspace program was awarded the Distinguished Innovator Operators (DINO) Award. It is the Additive Manufacturing User Group’s (AMUG) most prestigious honor, recognizing those with the highest levels of experience and expertise in the industry who dedicate a willingness to share their knowledge through contributions to AMUG and its members. Makerspace has earned two of the Army’s three DINO Awards.
Located in the Advanced Design and Manufacturing Rapid Technologies Lab, the Makerspace program has led and supported numerous successful large-scale projects by utilizing the program’s robust equipment with updated technologies and material developments. For example, the program played a major role in enabling the replacement of ion drift tubes in handheld sensors for the Defense Logistics Agency.
The program continues to support such major projects using the products developed in the lab and encourages the CBC community to bring their ideas into the space, where the team can assist in teaching and training on new skills. “Our mission this year is workforce development because we’re training folks on new skills,” Ruprecht said. “Chemists, biologists, engineers – anyone and everyone – are learning new skills like 3D printing and CAD 3D modeling.”
The equipment at the facility enables products to be fully customizable at a low cost, which allows for flexibility during project development and offers a high degree of conformity among custom-developed units. Makerspace aims to own and develop its own processes, materials, and products to support CBC missions. Lessons learned while supporting projects throughout the Center will be an asset for upcoming projects within the Army.
In a recent project, Ruprecht aided in the development of organoids from living cells using the lab’s recently acquired bio-printer. The capability of the bio-printing machine allows it to print living cells, which can then grow and multiply to create an organoid or other bodily structures. The project used tooling to create a custom organ-on-a-chip, where a silicone microchip connects to small fluidic channels with specific organ cells – such as the heart or lungs – to mimic human physiology. The idea of the project is to develop and design the organ on a chip in-house at Makerspace.
In addition to bio-printing, Makerspace provides access to 3D scanning and printing, laser cutting, metal bending, and painting as well as design and engineering services. The materials at the workshop range from liquid resin to stainless steel metal, carbon fiber, nylon, and more. Ruprecht encourages the workforce to visit the facility, where experienced professionals can introduce individuals to the lab and even match them up with programs or engineers to target the particular needs of a project or idea.
Funded by CBC, Makerspace is open for walk-ins and is a freely available resource for the CBC workforce to use. Ruprecht plans to host classes in the Makerspace lab to share his expertise with the community and develop skills within the workforce.
By Aeriel Storey
Recently, the Airborne Innovation hosted its first Introduction to Microcontrollers Course.
Students were taught the basic background of electronics principles and operations, circuit diagrams, line-by-line code review, circuitry analysis.
This course focused on specifically on the low-cost Arduino microcontroller.
Lessons occurred through lessons and hands-on practical applications, through various challenge projects, culminating in a capstone build.
Other courses include Basic and Advanced Additive Manufacturing.
www.army.mil/82ndAirborne#org-airborne-innovation-lab
Sold as a Multi-tool for Geeks, Flipper Zero started out as a Kickstarter campaign and has transitioned to a full-time product with pre-orders currently open.
In a nutshell, Flipper Zero is used to probe access control systems, RFID, radio protocols, and debug hardware using GPIO pins. Use it for hardware exploration, firmware flashing, debugging, and fuzzing.
It is controlled with the 5-Position directional pad with common scripts and functions are available from the menu. Or, you can connect to Flipper via USB. There is an LCD screen, which is visible in sunlight and has an ultra-low power consumption of 400nA with the backlight turned off.
It features a sub-1 GHz transceiver which is the operating range for a wide class of wireless devices and access control systems, such as garage door remotes, boom barriers, IoT sensors and remote keyless systems.
Additionally, it has an integrated 433MHz antenna, and a CC1101 chip, which makes it a powerful transceiver capable of up to 50 meters range. It also uses 433 MHz to communicate with other Flippers.
It does lots more. Read up on its capabilities at flipperzero.one.
This image of a modified Air Force Female Service Dress Blouse has been making the rounds on social media. The intent was obvious. Without garter straps connecting the hem of the shirt to the socks, the shirt will invariably come untucked. I find the modification ingenious, but many have called it crazy.
What say you?
