The Russian Navy is abolishing an old tradition, known as semaphore, of waving flags as a means of communication. Flag-waving has been used for passing coded messages for more than 115 years, but requires a high level of human expertise. So now instead of waving flags, sailors will use special blinking searchlights. Still, naval experts [...]
Tag: Technology
December 8, 2011
December 8, 2011
Iran shows intercepted CIA drone unscathed (VIDEO)
Days after the Pentagon first denied and then admitted that it lost touch with a high-tech drone aircraft, authorities in Iran are now saying that they have the plane — and its condition is pristine. The unmanned, robotic aircraft — a RQ170 Sentinel drone plane — disappeared last week. American authorities quickly dismissed claims that [...]
December 3, 2011
Russia to spend astronomical sum on new cosmodrome
A new space-shuttle launching site will be built in the Amur Region, costing Russia the astronomical sum of almost $20 billion. The new cosmodrome, called “Vostochny” (“Eastern”), is expected to become Russia’s number-one cosmodrome, boasting sophisticated facilities, launch pads and other technology. Vostochny will allow the country to save on leasing the Baikonur cosmodrome from [...]
December 2, 2011
Russia to build hulls for 2 Mistral-class warships
Russia’s United Shipbuilding Corporation and the Baltiisky Zavod shipyard signed a 2.5 billion ruble ($80 million) contract on Friday to build hulls for the third and fourth French Mistral-class warships for the Russian Navy. The signing ceremony took place in the presence of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. French shipbuilder DCNS said on Wednesday it had [...]
November 30, 2011
France starts building first warship for Russia
French shipbuilder DCNS has received advance payment from Moscow under a $1.2-billion contract and will start the construction of the first warship for the Russian Navy, the DCNS press service said on Wednesday. The two countries signed a contract in June on two French-built Mistral class amphibious assault ships including the transfer of sensitive technology. [...]
November 29, 2011
Russia denies allegations over Indian T-90 tank contract
Moscow is puzzled over Indian media rumors claiming that Russia refuses to fulfill a decade-old contract on licensed production of T-90S main battle tanks in India, a Russian defense industry source said. “The Russian side is timely and completely fulfilling all agreements with India on the licensed production of T-90 tanks, including the delivery of [...]
November 29, 2011
Russian artist explores post-visual trends in modern art
A new exhibition with an unusual name – “Surely you’re joking, Mr Feynman” – has opened the Russian capital, inviting Muscovites to look deep into the new phase of modern art. The event takes the form of a mixed-media exposition, blending traditional sculpture with modern computer-based art. In such a way, the exhibition’s author, Olga [...]
November 24, 2011
November 2, 2011
City lights spy on Farmington Hills, Michigan
In Farmington Hills, Michigan, things just got a whole lot creepier. Officials say the installation of ten new high-tech light posts will curb crime and cut energy costs for the Midwest community. All the townspeople have to do in return is give up their privacy. Farmington Hills just became the first city in America to [...]
October 20, 2011
New video system to track suspects at Siberian airport
New video surveillance equipment able to identify wanted suspects even if they are wearing disguises is to be installed at North Siberia’s Norilsk airport, transport police said on Thursday. The new system will identify biometric data, said Dmitry Suvorov, head of the transport police’s information technology department. “Video cameras of high resolution will screen the [...]
October 15, 2011
Japanese architect to rebuild Moscow sci-tech museum
The creator of the future face of the Polytechnic Museum in Moscow was decided on Friday during a final tour of the tender. Japan’s Junya Ishigami has been given the opportunity to bring to life his green renovation plan. The concept was developed together with Arup architectural bureau, which was involved in structuring the famous [...]
October 14, 2011
Cisco-USAID effort to better Russians’ internet skills sparks controversy
Cisco Systems, the U.S. networking giant, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) have unveiled their plans to spend up to $50 million in the next few years to promote the use of internet among Russian officials and civilians. The deal has stirred a mixed reaction, with pro-democracy activists praising the effort and some [...]
October 13, 2011
Ukrainian scientists use bacteria for bomb disposal
Ukrainian scientists have developed a unique explosives-disposal technology involving the use of bacteria, a researcher said on Thursday. It takes between 15 and 115 days for bacteria to “convert” an explosive substance into an organic fertilizer, Gennady Baranov, a research associate with the Biochemical Laboratory at the Sevastopol Institute of Nuclear Power, said. “It is [...]
October 7, 2011
Is Vladimir Putin’s Eurasian dream worth the effort? | Mark Mazower
In Eric Ambler’s masterly interwar thriller, The Mask of Dimitrios, the puppet master pulling the strings as a seedy Europe slides hopelessly into war is the shadowy Eurasian Credit Trust. The name was deliberately chosen. For most of the last century, Eurasia was scarcely a neutral term: it evoked the whiff of racial degeneration, the [...]