Errymath

Drones that look and move like real birds

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Hi-tech drones that look and move like real birds have already flown<br />
<br />
If you’ve ever looked up to the sky and enjoyed the sight of a bird 
gliding above, be warned: it could be a Chinese drone monitoring your 
every move.<br />
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The
 idea might seem far fetched, but robotic birds are very much a reality,
 and China has been using them to surveil people across the country.</div>
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Sources told the <i>South China Morning Post</i>
 that more than 30 military and government agencies have deployed the 
birdlike drones and related devices in at least five provinces in recent
 years.</div>
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One part of the country that has seen the new technology used extensively is the <a href="http://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/2148566/revealed-advanced-surveillance-tech-used-chinas-police" shape="rect">Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region</a>
 in China’s far west. The vast area, which borders Mongolia, Russia, 
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, is 
home to a large Muslim population and has long been viewed by Beijing as
 a hotbed for separatism. As a result, the region and its people have 
been subjected to heavy surveillance from the central government.</div>
 
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The new “spy birds” programme, code-named 
“Dove”, is being led by Song Bifeng, a professor at Northwestern 
Polytechnical University in Xian, capital of northwestern China’s 
Shaanxi province. Song was formerly a senior scientist on the J-20 
stealth jet programme and has already been honoured by the People’s 
Liberation Army – China’s military – for his work on Dove, according to 
information on the university website.</div>
 
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Yang Wenqing, an associate professor at the 
School of Aeronautics at Northwestern and a member of Song’s team, 
confirmed the use of the new technology but said it was not widespread.</div>
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“The scale is still small,” compared to other types of drones in use today, she told the <i>South China Morning Post</i>.</div>
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“We believe the technology has good potential 
for large-scale use in the future … it has some unique advantages to 
meet the demand for drones in the military and civilian sectors,” she 
said.</div>
 
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Unlike unmanned aerial vehicles with fixed wings
 or rotor blades, the new drones actually mimic the flapping action of a
 bird’s wings to climb, dive and turn in the air.</div>
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Another researcher involved in the Dove project 
said the aim was to develop a new generation of drones with biologically
 inspired engineering that could evade human detection and even radar.</div>
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<a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image init-colorbox-processed-processed cboxElement" href="https://cdn1.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/826bd86c-7608-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_image_hires_204148.jpg" rel="gallery-43802378-744c-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143"><span class="image-caption-container image-caption-container-none" style="clear: none; display: inline-block; float: none; width: 486px;"><img class="caption lazyload-processed magic-processed loaded" data-ignore="true" data-original="https://cdn1.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/826bd86c-7608-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_972x_204148.jpg" data-resolution="2" height="414" src="https://cdn1.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/826bd86c-7608-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_972x_204148.jpg" title="China’s “spy birds” programme is being led by Song Bifeng, a professor at Northwestern Polytechnical University in Xian and a former senior scientist on the J-20 stealth jet programme." width="640" /><span class="image-caption hover-processed" style="display: block;"></span></span></a></div>

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The machines in China’s current robot flock 
replicate about 90 per cent of the movements of a real dove, the person 
said, adding that they also produce very little noise, making them very 
hard to detect from the ground, and are so lifelike that actual birds 
often fly alongside them.</div>
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The team conducted almost 2,000 test flights 
before deploying the drones in real-life situations, said the 
researcher, who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the 
programme.</div>
 
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One experiment in northern China’s Inner 
Mongolia involved flying the birds over a flock of sheep – animals that 
are well known for their keen sense of hearing and ability to be easily 
spooked. The flock paid no attention whatsoever to the drone flying 
above, the person said.</div>
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Although the technology is still in its early 
stages of development, its wide range of possible uses – not only for 
the police and military, but also in the fields of emergency response 
and disaster relief, environmental protection and urban planning – means
 the market for the drones could be worth 10 billion yuan (US$1.54 
billion) in China alone, the researcher said.</div>
 
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<a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image init-colorbox-processed-processed cboxElement" href="https://cdn1.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/6e4fdbdc-7516-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_image_hires_204148.JPG" rel="gallery-43802378-744c-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143"><span class="image-caption-container image-caption-container-none" style="clear: none; display: inline-block; float: none; width: 486px;"><img class="caption lazyload-processed magic-processed loaded" data-ignore="true" data-original="https://cdn3.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/6e4fdbdc-7516-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_972x_204148.JPG" data-resolution="2" height="329" src="https://cdn3.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/6e4fdbdc-7516-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_972x_204148.JPG" title="One experiment involved flying the bird drones over a flock of sheep to see how they would react. Photo: Northwestern Polytechnical University" width="640" /><span class="image-caption hover-processed" style="display: block;"></span></span></a></div>
 
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Humans have been obsessed by the idea of flight 
since the dawn of time. And in the century or so since Wilbur and 
Orville Wright briefly took to the skies at Kitty Hawk, engineers and 
scientists have been trying to decode the secrets of bird flight to 
improve aircraft performance.</div>
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Birds are incredibly efficient fliers. The 
bar-tailed godwit, for instance, despite weighing only 290 grams (10 
ounces) flies 11,000km (6,800 miles) non-stop from Alaska to New Zealand
 every autumn. The epic journey takes just eight days.</div>
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In comparison, the Dove drones weigh 200 grams, 
have a wingspan of about 50 centimetres (20 inches), and can fly at 
speeds of up to 40km/h (25mph) for a maximum of 30 minutes.</div>
 
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Each machine is fitted with a high-definition 
camera, GPS antenna, flight control system and data link with satellite 
communication capability. The flapping mechanism comprises a pair of 
crank-rockers driven by an electric motor, while the wings themselves 
can deform slightly when moving up and down, which generates not only 
lift but also thrust to drive the drone forward.</div>
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Specially designed software helps to counter any
 jerky movements to ensure the on-board camera achieves sharp images and
 stable video.</div>
 
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The Dove drones’ ability to seemingly melt into 
the background has attracted a lot of interest in military and 
government circles.</div>
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Professor Li Yachao, a military radar researcher
 at the National Defence Technology Laboratory of Radar Signal 
Processing in Xian, said the movement of the Dove’s wings was so 
lifelike it could fool even the most sensitive radar systems.</div>
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The use of camouflage – perhaps even real 
feathers – on the drone’s outer body could distort the radar signature 
still further, he said.</div>
 
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<a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image init-colorbox-processed-processed cboxElement" href="https://cdn1.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/d0b7326e-7513-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_image_hires_204148.JPG" rel="gallery-43802378-744c-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143"><span class="image-caption-container image-caption-container-none" style="clear: none; display: inline-block; float: none; width: 486px;"><img class="caption lazyload-processed magic-processed loaded" data-ignore="true" data-original="https://cdn2.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/d0b7326e-7513-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_972x_204148.JPG" data-resolution="2" height="320" src="https://cdn2.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/d0b7326e-7513-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_972x_204148.JPG" title="Each of China’s bird drone is fitted with a high-definition camera, GPS antenna, flight control system and data link with satellite communication capability. Photo: Northwestern Polytechnical University" width="239" /><span class="image-caption hover-processed" style="display: block;"></span></span></a></div>
 
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Aware of the dangers such stealth drones pose to
 conventional detection systems, radar scientists have been looking at 
new ways to spot and track small, low-altitude targets flying at slow 
speed.</div>
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These include the holographic radar, which is 
capable of producing three-dimensional images of flying objects and has 
been hailed as a significant step forward in detection technology.</div>
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However, “there is no guarantee” that even a 
holographic radar – or any of the other new technologies in development –
 would be able to detect a drone with a wing-flapping pattern that was 
almost identical to those found in nature, and “especially if it was 
surrounded by other birds”, Li said.</div>
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“It would be a serious threat” to air defence systems, he said.</div>
 
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The Dove is not the only avian drone to have 
been developed in China. In 2012, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and 
Astronautics released “Tian Ying”, a robotic bird about the size of an 
eagle.</div>
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Also, according to information on government 
websites, the Harbin Institute of Technology, China’s top university for
 defence research, is developing a bird drone with a large wingspan and 
the ability to operate in the thin air found on high plateaus.</div>
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But China is not alone in developing robotic birds</div>
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In 2013, the US Army bought more than 30 drones 
from Florida-based Prioria Robotics that were designed to look like 
birds of prey.</div>
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Their likeness to raptors was only cosmetic, however, as they were propelled by turbofans and their wings did not move.</div>
 
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A far more convincing robotic raptor, 
appropriately named “Robird”, has been developed by Dutch tech firm 
Clear Flight Solutions. Although it looks and flies like a real bird, 
the drone, which is currently available only for demonstration purposes,
 requires an operator for take-off and landing, and its battery lasts 
less than 10 minutes.</div>
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According to the company’s website, the device’s primary use is scaring birds away from airports and crops.</div>
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<a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image init-colorbox-processed-processed cboxElement" href="https://cdn4.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/7f967de6-7512-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_image_hires_204148.JPG" rel="gallery-43802378-744c-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143"><span class="image-caption-container image-caption-container-none" style="clear: none; display: inline-block; float: none; width: 486px;"><img class="caption lazyload-processed magic-processed loaded" data-ignore="true" data-original="https://cdn4.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/7f967de6-7512-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_972x_204148.JPG" data-resolution="2" height="380" src="https://cdn4.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/7f967de6-7512-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_972x_204148.JPG" title="“Robird”, developed by Dutch firm Clear Flight Solutions, looks and flies like a real bird, but requires an operator for take-off and landing. Photo: YouTube" width="640" /><span class="image-caption hover-processed" style="display: block;"></span></span></a></div>
 
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In 2011, Germany’s Festo Corporation developed 
“SmartBird”, a robotic herring gull that had the ability to take-off, 
fly and land without the need for human intervention.</div>
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Although it was one of the most lifelike robotic
 birds ever built, it was never released to the market and the company 
was cited by <i>Science</i> magazine as saying it had no interest in making the technology available for military applications.</div>
 
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According to a recent government document seen by the <i>Post</i>, China’s military has tested the Dove system and is impressed with it.</div>
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An evaluation of the system by an unspecified 
military research centre concluded that the drone, with its ability to 
stay in the air for more than 20 minutes and travel 5km, had “practical 
value”.</div>
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Gan Xiaohua, chief engineer at the PLA Air Force
 Equipment Research Institute in Beijing, said Dove’s unique design 
meant it could convert electrical power into mechanical force with “high
 efficiency”.</div>
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It is “the world’s only bionic micro drone 
capable of carrying out a mission all by itself”, he was quoted as 
saying in the government document.</div>
 
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<a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image init-colorbox-processed-processed cboxElement" href="https://cdn2.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/7d97b8f8-7507-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_image_hires_204148.JPG" rel="gallery-43802378-744c-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143"><span class="image-caption-container image-caption-container-none" style="clear: none; display: inline-block; float: none; width: 486px;"><img class="caption lazyload-processed magic-processed loaded" data-ignore="true" data-original="https://cdn2.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/7d97b8f8-7507-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_972x_204148.JPG" data-resolution="2" height="640" src="https://cdn2.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/images/methode/2018/06/24/7d97b8f8-7507-11e8-aa4d-d2a0e82fc143_972x_204148.JPG" title="Germany’s Festo Corporation developed “SmartBird”, a robotic herring gull that had the ability to take-off, fly and land without the need for human intervention. Photo: Festo" width="558" /><span class="image-caption hover-processed" style="display: block;"></span></span></a></div>
 
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Although the <i>Post</i> was unable to reach project leader Song for comment, in an April interview with the Chinese academic journal <i>Aeronautical Manufacturing Technology</i>, he confirmed that Dove and other devices had been deployed in Xinjiang and other provinces.</div>
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“The products … have stimulated change and 
development in sectors including environmental protection, land planning
 … and border patrol,” he was quoted as saying.</div>
 
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Despite the technological advances made on the Dove project, China’s bird-like drones were still far from perfect, Song said.</div>
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Besides being unable to travel long distances or
 maintain course in strong winds, their performance could be badly 
hampered by heavy rain or snow, he said.</div>
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Also, the absence of an anti-collision mechanism
 meant the drones were prone to crash into things when flying at low 
altitude, while their electronic circuitry was vulnerable to 
electromagnetic disturbance.</div>
 
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Nevertheless, researchers were working hard to resolve these problems, and with advancements in <a href="https://www.scmp.com/topics/artificial-intelligence" shape="rect" target="_self">artificial intelligence</a>
 technology, such as deep learning, Song said he hoped the next 
generation of robotic birds would be able to fly in complex formations 
and make independent decisions in the air.</div>
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When that day comes, the Doves would be able to “match or surpass the intelligence of creatures found in nature”, he said.</div>

<div class="print-head-label">
<i>This <a href="http://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/2152027/china-takes-surveillance-new-heights-flock-robotic-doves-do-they" target="_blank">article</a> appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: <span class="print-head-title">Robotic birds take surveillance to a new height</span></i></div>
<br /></div>

Drones that look and move like real birds

Hi-tech drones that look and move like real birds have already flown If you’ve ever looked up to the sky and enjoyed the sight of a bir...

Some scientific explanations for alien abduction that aren’t so out of this world

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<img alt="" class=" lazyloaded" data-id="153589" data-src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/153589/original/image-20170120-5211-1lsq1wv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=926&fit=clip" itemprop="image" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/153589/original/image-20170120-5211-1lsq1wv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=926&fit=clip" /><br />
<br />
Accounts of mysterious flashing lights in the sky, spacecrafts and 
encounters with “real” aliens reflect high levels of public interest in 
UFOs and the belief that there is “something out there”. However, many 
psychologists are less convinced, and think they can provide more 
down-to-earth, scientific explanations.<br />
<br />
Belief in aliens has increased steadily since the birth of modern 
alien research in the 1940s and 1950s, following the news surrounding a <a href="http://www.history.com/topics/roswell">classified US military project at Roswell Air Force Base, New Mexico</a>. Surveys in Western cultures estimated belief in aliens to be <a href="https://yougov.co.uk/news/2015/09/24/you-are-not-alone-most-people-believe-aliens-exist/">as high as 50% in 2015</a>.
 And despite the fact that it is considered rare, a significant number 
of people also believe they have experienced alien abduction.<br />
<br />
Present day awareness of alien abduction dates to the 1961 case of <a href="http://www.library.unh.edu/find/archives/collections/betty-and-barney-hill-papers-1961-2006">Betty and Barney Hill</a>, who witnessed odd lights and experienced “missing time” and “lost memories” while driving. The reported <a href="http://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/vida_alien/ufowarning/ufowarning13.htm">consequences of abduction</a>
 are often loss of memory, missing time, and problems such as sickness, 
sleepwalking, nightmares and psychological trauma. Following their 
experience, Betty and Barney experienced psychological problems and 
subsequently sought therapy.<br />
<br />
Although the accuracy of the numbers is questioned, a <a href="http://www.experiencer.org/mental-health-professionals-and-the-roper-poll/">poll by the Roper Center for Public Opinion Research</a> conducted 30 years after this account said that around 3.7m Americans believed that they too had experienced alien abduction. <br />
Sceptics argue that alien-related encounters are merely hoaxes 
created for financial gain or social advantage. Perhaps Roswell is the 
most famous example. Initial reports from the 1940s left sufficient gaps
 of explanation for Ray Santilli to release in 1995 <a href="http://www.theweek.co.uk/us/59331/roswell-ufo-crash-what-really-happened-67-years-ago">what he claimed was film footage showing an alien autopsy</a>
 from the time, further confusing the issue. He later admitted it was a 
hoax. The incident sparked controversy and prompted claims that an alien
 craft had crash-landed in the New Mexico desert and that US authorities
 were involved in a cover-up.<br />
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The theory that alien abductions are hoaxes may be true in a few 
cases, but there is no reason to assume that the majority of 
“experiencers” are frauds. In fact, psychologists have come up with a 
number of plausible, scientific explanations for people’s supposed alien
 encounters.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Personality traits</h2>
One explanation is that when people believe they have had an 
experience of alien abduction, they have misinterpreted, distorted and 
conflated real and imagined events. Hence, sceptics of alien encounters 
explain them away in terms of psychological processes and personality 
characteristics. <br />
Several <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/sci_tech/2003/denver_2003/2769875.stm">studies</a>
 report that experiencers do not typically differ from non-experiencers 
on objective psychopathological measures – those that assess 
psychological well-being and adjustment – and have no history of mental 
instability. However, one characteristic that is associated with 
abduction experiences is a <a href="http://skepdic.com/fantasyprone.html">proclivity for fantasy</a>.<br />
<br />
Mixed evidence supports the theory that fantasy-prone people engage 
in elaborate imaginings and often confuse fantasy with reality. There 
are also other psychological explanations, such as dissociation – where 
an individual’s mental processes detach from each other and from 
reality, often in response to extreme or stressful life events. A 
tendency towards being fantasy-prone and dissociation has been linked in
 <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1207/s15327965pli0702_9">studies</a> to <a href="http://www.ufoevidence.org/documents/doc15.htm">childhood trauma and hypnotic suggestibility</a>.<br />
Psychologists argue that hypnosis <a href="http://www.lifeandpsychology.com/2011/06/alien-abduction-or-false-memory.html">encourages the creation and recall of detailed fantasies</a>. For example, Betty and Barney Hill’s account was <a href="http://www.susanblackmore.co.uk/journalism/ns94.html">typical of reported alien encounters</a>:
 medical examinations or procedures, communication with alien captors, a
 powerful, mystical feeling, tours of spaceships and journeys to other 
planets before being returned to the car. And it was under hypnosis that
 these “missing memories” were “recovered”. <br />
It’s for these reasons that it’s believed alien abduction experiences
 may arise from a combination of personality characteristics and 
susceptibility to false memories.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Brain sensitivity</h2>
Studies suggest that neuropsychological theories, particularly sleep paralysis and temporal lobe sensitivity, <a href="https://braindecoder.com/post/neuroscience-of-sleep-paralysis-1113306867">also could explain claims of alien abduction</a>.<br />
<a href="http://www.sleepeducation.org/news/2009/07/29/sleep-paralysis-the-devil-the-ghost-the-old-hag">Sleep paralysis</a> is a feeling of being conscious but unable to move, which occurs when a person passes between stages of wakefulness and sleep. <br />
<br />
<figure class="align-right ">
            <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/153611/original/image-20170120-5238-dgnvdj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" />
            <figcaption>
              <span class="caption">Many encounters occur in sleep, much like sleep </span></figcaption><figcaption><span class="caption">paralysis and associated hallucinations.</span>
              <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/nightmare-scared-boy-lying-bed-while-442520794?src=FWYAhcC5FyOCxkoy-LH5Yg-2-11">Shutterstock.</a></span>
            </figcaption>
          </figure>
<br />
Experiencers’ claims share characteristics with sleep paralysis: a 
sense of being awake, not dreaming, and realistic perceptions of the 
environment. The inability to move, a feeling of fear or dread, and the 
sense of another presence – perhaps evil or malevolent – are common 
symptoms. Also common are a feeling of pressure on the chest and 
difficulty breathing, and of being held or restricted to a lying 
position: most sleep paralysis attacks occur while the individual is 
lying on their back.<br />
<br />
Sceptic <a href="http://www.michaelshermer.com/2005/02/abducted/">Michael Shermer</a>
 once collapsed from sleep deprivation following an 83-hour bike race 
and his support team rushed to his aid. Shermer was caught in a “waking 
dream” and so perceived them as aliens from the 1960s television series <a href="http://cinefantastiqueonline.com/2008/05/dvd-review-the-invaders-the-first-season/">The Invaders</a>. It also explains some ghost sightings, such as the “<a href="http://paranormal.about.com/od/humanenigmas/a/Old-Hag-Syndrome.htm">night hag</a>”, often experienced by those who suffer from sleep paralysis. <br />
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/" target="_blank">the conversation</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.healthline.com/human-body-maps/temporal-lobe">Temporal lobe sensitivity</a> is a theory that suggests the temporal lobes of some people’s brains are 
more vulnerable to influence from low-level magnetic frequencies. <a href="http://persingerpublications.com/">Michael Persinger</a>, a neuroscientist at Laurentian University in Canada, is among those who believes that increased <a href="http://www.susanblackmore.co.uk/Articles/alienabduction.html">temporal lobe activity can explain paranormal experiences</a>
 such as alien abduction. His theory is that magnetic fields stimulate 
the temporal lobes, resulting in hallucinatory experiences similar to 
those reported by alien abductees.<br />
<br />
None of this is to say that many people who believe they have 
experienced alien abduction are liars, merely that their accounts and 
experiences can be explained through recourse to theories with a 
scientific basis. There are many logical, plausible scientific 
explanations, none of which rely upon the existence of aliens. However, 
it should also be noted that not all reported alien abduction 
experiences can be easily explained by any of these scientific theories –
 and this throws up many more questions.<br />
<br /></div>

Some scientific explanations for alien abduction that aren’t so out of this world

Accounts of mysterious flashing lights in the sky, spacecrafts and encounters with “real” aliens reflect high levels of public interest ...

Do ghosts really exist? What lies behind ghosts, demons and aliens – according to sleep researchers

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Psychologist claims most late-night paranormal experiences are simply down to sleep paralysis and exploding head syndrome<br />
<br />
<div class="grid-ten large-grid-nine grid-last content-body content entry-content instapaper_body" itemprop="articleBody">
If you believe in the paranormal you might not be surprised if 
you hear stories of deceased loved ones appearing during the night, huge
 explosions heard just as someone is drifting off with no obvious cause,
 and other peculiar occurrences. But what if you don’t?<br />
My interest in the paranormal started with an impromptu coffee with a colleague, <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/christopher-french-168769">Chris French</a>,
 who researches reports of paranormal experiences. He told me stories of
 countless people who had recounted such events. These experiences 
tended to start while lying in bed. Then something unusual would happen –
 perhaps a demon would appear or the environment would seem strange or 
there would be a sensed presence. The person having this experience 
might also report being glued to their mattress, tarmacked into the bed,
 totally unable to move.<br />
<br />
It’s unsurprising that people who experience such things might interpret them as paranormal. But certain phenomena such as <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/sleep-paralysis-9780199313808?q=brian%20sharpless&lang=en&cc=us">sleep paralysis</a>
 provide an alternative to paranormal explanations for such occurrences.
 Hence my interest in the subject, as a sleep researcher.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Sleep paralysis</h2>
When we sleep, we cycle through different stages. We start the night 
in non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep – which gets progressively 
deeper. We then cycle back until we hit rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. 
During REM sleep we are most likely to have vivid dreams. At this stage 
we are also paralysed, perhaps as a safety mechanism to stop us acting 
out our dreams so that we don’t end up attempting to fly.<br />
<br />
But during sleep paralysis, features of REM sleep continue into 
waking life. Those who experience it will feel awake yet might 
experience dream-like hallucinations and struggle to move. This 
experience is pretty common, occurring in around 8% of people (although <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1087079211000098?via%3Dihub">estimates vary dramatically</a> depending on who we are asking). It’s even possible to <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1621022">induce sleep paralysis</a> in some people, by disrupting their sleep in specific ways.<br />
<br />
Certain researchers, French among them, believe that this explains a 
huge number of paranormal accounts. Information about sleep paralysis is
 finally seeping into <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/kendall-jenner-sleep-paralysis_us_580a2833e4b0cdea3d86e413">public awareness</a>, but we now need to understand more about this common complaint. <br />
Our preliminary work, which I recount in my new book <a href="https://bloomsbury.com/uk/nodding-off-9781472946188/">Nodding Off: The science of sleep from cradle to grave</a>, hints at possible <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jsr.12282">genetic and environmental explanations</a>
 for why some people are more likely than others to experience sleep 
paralysis. This now needs to be replicated using much larger samples. 
Reviewing the literature, we have also highlighted a host of other <a href="http://www.smrv-journal.com/article/S1087-0792(17)30112-0/abstract">variables associated with this common experience</a>, including stress, trauma, psychiatric difficulties and physical illnesses.<br />
<br />
<br />
<figure class="align-center ">
            <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/223620/original/file-20180618-85854-xl2b58.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" />
            <figcaption>
              <span class="caption">The worst dreams.</span>
              <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/afraid-young-woman-hiding-white-blanket-106535048?src=oHbLZiN9CMU_8X-qIuLZiw-1-23">Creativa Images/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption><figcaption><span class="attribution"> </span>
            </figcaption>
          </figure>

<br />
<h2>
Exploding head syndrome</h2>
Sleep paralysis aside, how else are sleep researchers helping to 
explain paranormal experiences? People sometimes describe experiencing 
huge explosions during the night which simply can’t be explained. There 
is no sign that a shelf has fallen down or a car has backfired. There is
 no one playing the electric guitar next to their head. <br />
Again, this can be linked to our sleep - this time explained by “<a href="http://www.smrv-journal.com/article/S1087-0792(14)00022-7/abstract">exploding head syndrome</a>”, a term <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140673688925512?via%3Dihub">coined relatively recently</a>
 by the neurologist JMS Pearce. When we fall asleep, the reticular 
formation of the brainstem (a part of our brain involved in 
consciousness) typically starts to inhibit our ability to move, see and 
hear things. When we experience a “bang” in our sleep this might be 
because of a <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1468-2982.2007.01522.x">delay in this process</a>. Instead of the reticular formation shutting down the auditory neurons, they might  fire at once. <br />
As with sleep paralysis, this phenomenon is also under-researched. 
For this very reason, in 2017 my colleagues and I joined forces with <a href="http://www.sciencefocus.com/article/mind/qa-sleep-paralysis-and-exploding-head-syndrome">BBC Focus</a> and <a href="http://briansharpless.com/index.html">Brian Sharpless</a>, a leading expert on this phenomenon, to collect data on this topic.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Imps and ghouls</h2>
Finally, what might scientists make of precognitive dreams? We might 
dream of a friend we haven’t seen for years only to have them call us 
the very next day. French thinks science can provide an explanation for 
this too. Referencing work by John Allen Paulos that focuses on 
probabilities, <a href="http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.117.8727&rep=rep1&type=pdf">he explains</a> how such an occurrence may be surprising on any single day, but over time, quite likely to occur. <br />
Researching my book, I spoke to Mrs Sinclair, who is 70, and lives 
alone. She told me about what she had thought was a ghost living in her 
house, an imp throttling her during the night and other things that had 
left her petrified. Having scientific explanations provided her with 
immense comfort and she no longer believes in paranormal explanations 
for the things that she experienced. <br />
Our hope is that scientific explanations of paranormal experiences 
might help others by lowering anxiety. Decreasing anxiety has also been <a href="http://www.smrv-journal.com/article/S1087-0792(17)30112-0/pdf">hypothesised</a>
 as a potential method by which to reduce sleep paralysis. So, perhaps 
providing more information about these unusual experiences might even 
mean that things are less likely to go bump in the night.<br />
<br />
</div>
<br />
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Do ghosts really exist? What lies behind ghosts, demons and aliens – according to sleep researchers

Psychologist claims most late-night paranormal experiences are simply down to sleep paralysis and exploding head syndrome If you belie...

The 'stealth sheets' that can hide soldiers and even vehicles from infrared cameras

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJlEaFbGvr-0lvb06rPTXtNWIEE92sQz1Z05j9IkfZQ_jfCxCgTD9UX5GQ1CRCH2RcSGCaEm1l5u7m9_Ga-r0QI7v77OG-cfJMWh2B1K9bKo-7CXF59XDrlXwVuZ8pMSF6ppM136DkQHk/s1600/4D7613B500000578-0-image-a-1_1529529586836.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="634" height="454" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJlEaFbGvr-0lvb06rPTXtNWIEE92sQz1Z05j9IkfZQ_jfCxCgTD9UX5GQ1CRCH2RcSGCaEm1l5u7m9_Ga-r0QI7v77OG-cfJMWh2B1K9bKo-7CXF59XDrlXwVuZ8pMSF6ppM136DkQHk/s640/4D7613B500000578-0-image-a-1_1529529586836.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison developed a 
'stealth sheet' that can effectively hide humans, cars and other objects
 from detection by a drone's infrared camera<br />
<br />
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
A team of researchers have developed a device that can make soldiers and vehicles disappear. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
Called
 the 'stealth sheet,' it's a paper-thin device that can obscure objects 
from being detected by a drone's infrared cameras. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
The
 sheet measures less than a millimeter wide, making it about as thick as
 10 pieces of paper, but it can effectively make objects invisible from a
 drone's view. </div>
<br />
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
It's made out of bendable silicon and can 
hide about 94% of the infrared light it encounters, according to the 
study, which was authored by researchers at the University of 
Wisconsin-Madison.</div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
They hope that it eventually will be used to help soldiers and their gear stay safe on the battlefield.</div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
'What we have shown is an ultrathin stealth "sheet",' Hongrui Jiang, a co-author of the study, <a class="class" href="https://www.engr.wisc.edu/stealth-sheet-hides-hot-objects-prying-infrared-eyes/" rel="nofollow" style="font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">said</a> in a statement. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
'Right now what people have is much heavier metal armor or thermal blankets.'</div>
<br />
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
Warm objects like the human body or a 
car's engine give off heat as infrared light, which is something that a 
drone can pick up on. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
Other technologies have been developed to obscure these heat sources, but can be cumbersome or expensive.   </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<br /></div>
<div class="artSplitter mol-img-group">
<div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
<div class="image-wrap" style="cursor: pointer;">
<img alt="The 'stealth sheet' can make objects undetectable by night-vision goggles or a drone's infrared cameras. Researchers hope the cloak could have real-life applications on the battlefield" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="423" id="i-b21015eb57dd1ba2" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/20/22/4D76137C00000578-0-image-a-9_1529529642589.jpg" width="634" /><br />
<div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
The 'stealth sheet' can make 
objects undetectable by night-vision goggles or a drone's infrared 
cameras. Researchers hope the cloak could have real-life applications on
 the battlefield</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
The stealth 
sheet improves from these other devices by being able to absorb light in
 the 'mid- and long-wavelength infrared range,' which is the type of 
light emitted by objects that are the same temperature as the human 
body, according to the study.</div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
Researchers also equipped the material with electronic heating elements that can 'trick' infrared cameras. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<br /></div>
<div class="mol-img-group floatRHS">
<div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
<div class="image-wrap">
<img alt="Hongrui Jiang, an author of the study (pictured), said real-life adoption of the sheet will depend on cost and ease of use" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="242" id="i-eb3ae6f0314d0905" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/20/22/4D7613C200000578-0-image-a-12_1529529739932.jpg" width="306" />
  </div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
Hongrui Jiang, an author of the study (pictured), said real-life adoption of the sheet will depend on cost and ease of use</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
'You can intentionally deceive an infrared detector by presenting a false heat signature,' Jiang said.</div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
'It could conceal a tank by presenting what looks like a simply highway guardrail.'</div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
To
 do this, the researchers used black silicon to make the sheet, which is
 created by harvesting silicon crystals on a silicon wafer, according to
 <a class="class" href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2171991-stealth-sheets-can-make-you-appear-invisible-to-infrared-cameras/" rel="nofollow" style="font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">New Scientist</a>.</div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
This creates the appearance of a 'forest' of silicon needles, called nanowires, which reflect very little light. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
The nanowires are created using tiny particles of silver, which are etched into a silicon wafer. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<br /></div>
<div class="artSplitter mol-img-group">
<div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
<div class="image-wrap" style="cursor: pointer;">
<img alt="Warm objects like the human body or a car's engine give off heat as infrared light, which is something that night-vision goggles or a device's infrared camera can pick up on" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="475" id="i-e2e0ce6cd4e3e3b7" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/20/22/4D7613AF00000578-0-image-a-10_1529529648494.jpg" width="634" /><br />
<div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
Warm objects like the human body
 or a car's engine give off heat as infrared light, which is something 
that night-vision goggles or a device's infrared camera can pick up on</div>
</div>
<h3 class="mol-factbox-title">
 </h3>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<h3 class="mol-factbox-title">
<span style="background-color: #d9ead3;">WHAT ARE INFRARED CAMERAS AND HOW DO THEY WORK? </span></h3>
<div class="ins cleared mol-factbox-body">
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
An infrared camera uses infrared radiation to form an image. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
Unlike traditional cameras, they can detect visible light, as well as other wavelengths. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
They detect infrared energy, or a heat signature, and convert it into a signal.</div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
That
 signal is used to calculate a mathematical calculation, which is then 
used to create a color map of an object's temperature. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
The colors are then processed on the camera's display as an image.   </div>
</div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
Air prticles were then built into the black silicon to keep it from overheating. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
The light waves bounce back and forth between the needles, which prevents light from escaping. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
Black silicon has been known to trap visible light, but the researchers realized it could also trap infrared light.  </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
'We didn’t completely reinvent the whole process, but we did extend the process to much taller nanowires,' Jiang said. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
Now, Jiang and the researchers are working to 'scale up their sheet for applications in the real world. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<br /></div>
<div class="artSplitter mol-img-group">
<div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
<div class="image-wrap" style="cursor: pointer;">
<img alt="The stealth sheet improves from these other devices by being able to absorb light in the 'mid- and long-wavelength infrared range,' which is the type of light emitted by objects that are the same temperature as the human body" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="423" id="i-a3cd1c75528e6578" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/20/22/4D76139B00000578-0-image-a-14_1529530237016.jpg" width="634" /><br />
<div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
The stealth sheet improves from 
these other devices by being able to absorb light in the 'mid- and 
long-wavelength infrared range,' which is the type of light emitted by 
objects that are the same temperature as the human body</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
They've already tested the sheet on a model of the human body, as well as a model of a jeep. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
Researchers found that the objects were 'virtually undetectable' during the tests, according to New Scientist. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
Now, they're focusing on working out the object's weight, cost and ease of use. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
'If
 you have someone hidingin the  bush or you have a tank running with a 
hot engine, and someone is trying to detect these objects with a thermal
 camera, this is a counter measure,' Jiang told the New Scientist. <i><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/" target="_blank">dailymail</a></i>  </div>
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="573" id="molvideoplayer" scrolling="no" src="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/embed/video/1662292.html" width="698"></iframe>

<br />
<div class="item" data-track-module="am-external-links^external-links" id="external-source-links">
<b>Read more:</b>
  <br />
<ul>
<li><a class="js-tl" href="https://www.engr.wisc.edu/stealth-sheet-hides-hot-objects-prying-infrared-eyes/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">'Stealth sheet' hides hot objects from prying infrared eyes - College of Engineering - University of Wisconsin-Madison</a></li>
<li><a class="js-tl" href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2171991-stealth-sheets-can-make-you-appear-invisible-to-infrared-cameras/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Stealth sheets can make you appear invisible to infrared cameras | New Scientist</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<br /></div>

The 'stealth sheets' that can hide soldiers and even vehicles from infrared cameras

Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison developed a 'stealth sheet' that can effectively hide humans, cars and othe...

World’s economic problem of people with IQ below 83

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<img alt="" class="attachment-featuredfull size-featuredfull wp-post-image" height="430" src="https://www.nextbigfuture.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/18cf67058fca8bee223e9c02c38ad8a5-730x430.png" title="" width="730" /><br />
<br />
<br />
Jordan Peterson described how the US military determined that people 
with an IQ below 83 (1 in 10 people in the USA) could not be trained for
 anything at any level of the organization that was not 
counter-productive.<br />
<br />
* the military is highly motivated to bring as many people as possible into the organization<br />
* the military has used 100 years of statistical analysis to determine 
that bringing in people with IQ below 83 is a net negative<br />
* if the military is as cognitively complex as the rest of society, then
 this means US society has a problem determining what to do with 10% of 
the population<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5-Ur71ZnNVk" width="560"></iframe>

<br />
<br />
<b>India and Africa have more with IQ below 83 because of brain damage from malnutrition and disease</b><br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.nextbigfuture.com/" target="_blank">Nextbigfuture</a> will point out with global economic competition that 
India, large parts of Africa and some other nations that have problems 
with malnutrition, high disease levels and stunting cause less brain 
development and lifelong IQ loss. This increases the number of people 
with IQ below 83 sometimes as high as 50% or more.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://unicef.in/Whatwedo/10/Stunting">India has made some progress against stunting from 48% of children a decade ago to about 38.6% today.</a><br />
They are improving stunting prevention by about 2.2% per year. Stunted 
children age and become stunted adults. Their brains remained damaged.<br />

Stunting reflects chronic undernutrition during the most critical periods of growth and development in early life.<br />
<br />
It is defined as the percentage of children, aged 0 to 59 months, 
whose height for age is below minus two standard deviations (moderate 
and severe stunting) and minus three standard deviations (severe 
stunting) from the median of the WHO Child Growth Standards. In India, 
38 per cent of children younger than five years of age are stunted, a 
manifestation of chronic undernutrition. Stunting and other forms of 
under-nutrition are thought to be responsible for nearly half of all 
child deaths globally.<br />
<br />
India has the highest number of stunted children in the world, (46.8 
million children) representing one-third of the global total of stunted 
children under the age of five.<br />

Stunting starts from pre-conception when an adolescent girl and who 
later becomes mother is undernourished and anaemic; it worsens when 
infants’ diets are poor, and when sanitation and hygiene are inadequate.
 It is irreversible by the age of two. Child survival and health is 
inseparably connected to reproductive and, maternal health.<br />
<br />
As high as 70 per cent of adolescent girls in India are anaemic and 
half of adolescents are below the normal body mass index, which has an 
impact on the health of their future pregnancies and children.<br />
<br />
<b>Child Survival is linked to Water, Sanitation and Hygiene</b> <br />

A lack of adequate food is a primary cause of death, under-nutrition 
and stunting; but the story of child mortality and malnutrition in India
 is not just one of poor diets. The lack of water, sanitation and 
hygiene practices – which leads to illnesses and life-threatening 
diseases like diarrhoea – is thought to cause of up to 50 per cent of 
all child malnourishment. 2.5 billion cases of diarrhoea in children 
under-five are recorded worldwide every year.<br />
<br />
The avoidable deaths in the developing world are still about 14 
million people per year from diseases of poverty and malnutrition. Many 
who survive are unhealthy and partially brain damaged.<br />

The <a href="https://doctor.ndtv.com/nutrition/national-nutrition-week-stunting-malnutrition-and-its-impact-on-india-s-workforce-1746373">Health Initiative, Observer Research Foundation </a>
 wrote Stunting, Malnutrition And Its Impact On India’s Workforce in 
2017 and it was published on NDTV. The article was the second in a 
four-part series discussing key issues on providing nutrition in India. 
It is a joint effort by scholars from the <a href="https://www.orfonline.org/research/stunting-malnutrition-impact-on-india-workforce/">Observer Research Foundation – Oommen C Kurian, Priyanka Shah, Tanoubi Ngangom and Dr Malancha Chakraborty</a> – with inputs from the International Food Policy Research Institute.<br />
<br />
<img alt="" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-145988" height="1128" src="https://www.nextbigfuture.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/beab208704cd2c0f2fc1a9e8a38ee01b.png" width="958" /><br />
<br />
<a href="http://faculty.wcas.northwestern.edu/~sjv340/height.pdf">India’s stunting situation is worse than in poorer countries in Africa.</a>
 Data on over 168,000 children show that, relative to Africa, India’s 
height disadvantage increases sharply with birth order. They posit that 
India’s steep birth order gradient is due to favoritism toward eldest 
sons, which affects parents’ fertility decisions and resource allocation
 across children. Researchers show that, within India, the gradient is 
steeper for high-son-preference regions and religions.<br />
<br />
<b>China mostly avoided mass malnutrition and stunting and had high levels of literacy prior to economic catchup</b><br />

<a href="https://knoema.com/atlas/China/topics/Education/Literacy/Adult-literacy-rate">China had 91% adult literacy by 2000.</a> India is currently at about 72% adult literacy which is about China level in the 1980s.<br />

<a href="https://www.chinadialogue.net/article/show/single/en/4927-China-s-stunted-children">China was in the range of 10% of the population being stunted and it is now down to about 4.6%.</a><br />
<br />
<b>What do these statistics mean ?</b><br />

It is massively difficult to uplift people from poverty. It seems impossible to uplift unhealthy poor people with IQ below 83.<br />

Unhealthy and malnourished populations will be a permanent underclass throughout their lives.<br />

The world is trending to even greater economic competition with more 
Artificial Intelligence and robotics putting pressure on the global 
competition for jobs. <br />

This means rising levels of capabilities will be needed to remain productively useful.<br />
<br />
<b>SOURCES</b>-  Jordan Peterson – Youtube Interview, 
Northwestern University, Health Initiative, Observer Research 
Foundation, Unicef, World Health Organization, American Economic Review 
Why Are Indian Children So Short? The Role of Birth Order and Son 
Preference By Seema Jayachandran and Rohini Pande<br />
<br /></div>

World’s economic problem of people with IQ below 83

Jordan Peterson described how the US military determined that people with an IQ below 83 (1 in 10 people in the USA) could not be train...

Inside America's Armageddon bunkers

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixnrl1rVuteaywWea39kCFE96u4QoCPirBzUz4fZnUwml1pRvF8rQmrBjH3-qfmEwjaeESrDUvl1DHDa6syiita76PqoOyfl9qhVrwFtfb_ePQbA6fSwoy6nluRRecVZ5kV252ASZ4y1s/s1600/4D5BEF5500000578-5857087-image-a-25_1529334742569.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="641" data-original-width="962" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixnrl1rVuteaywWea39kCFE96u4QoCPirBzUz4fZnUwml1pRvF8rQmrBjH3-qfmEwjaeESrDUvl1DHDa6syiita76PqoOyfl9qhVrwFtfb_ePQbA6fSwoy6nluRRecVZ5kV252ASZ4y1s/s1600/4D5BEF5500000578-5857087-image-a-25_1529334742569.jpg" /></a></div>
The site of a former nuclear 
bunker known as Mount Pony, where the Federal Reserve secretly 
stockpiled billions of dollars in cash, which they planned to use to 
replenish currency supplies in the wake of Armageddon, in Culpeper, 
Virginia. In 2007, the facility was converted to the Library of Congress
 Packard Campus for Audio-Visual Conservation; it now provides 
underground storage for the Library's vast collection of films and audio
 recordings.<br />
<br />
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
These astonishing images offer a glimpse 
inside the bunkers built by the United States government that were 
designed to withstand a nuclear war.  </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
Though
 officials keep the details of the country's post-doomsday planning 
classified, evidence of their decades-long effort - some abandoned, some
 active - are hidden in plain sight around Washington DC, and beyond.   </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<br /></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
In
 Washington terminology, it's known as 'continuity of government,' or 
COG - and it's meant to ensure that America continues to operate as a 
constitutional democracy with its 'leadership visible to the nation' and
 its military able to defend the US 'against all enemies, foreign and 
domestic.'</div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
It was first developed 
during the Truman Administration, in the early days of nuclear weapons 
development. COG measures expanded greatly during the Cold War. </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<br /></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
The US government built secret doomsday bunkers for federal employees in Virginia, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania.   </div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
They
 constructed nuclear-hardened communications towers throughout the 
Washington region, so the White House could reach other top-level 
survivors.</div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
And they also developed 
weaponry with 'second-strike capability' that would launch post-doomsday
 to prevent further attacks, a strategy known as mutually assured 
destruction, or MAD.  </div>
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</div>
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<br /></div>
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    <img alt="The room that would have served as the House of Representatives in the event of a nuclear war inside a once-secret Cold War nuclear bunker built for members of Congress beneath the Greenbrier, a four-star resort near White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. The 112,544-square-foot (34,303-square-meter) bomb shelter, completed in 1961, included enough beds and supplies to accommodate all 535 lawmakers, as well as one staffer each. There were also decontamination chambers, an intensive care unit and a communications briefing room, all surrounded by three to five feet (one to one and a half meters) of concrete" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-93399e142ac56e8b" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF91500000578-5857087-image-a-23_1529334684156.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
The room that would have served 
as the House of Representatives in the event of a nuclear war inside a 
once-secret Cold War nuclear bunker built for members of Congress 
beneath the Greenbrier, a four-star resort near White Sulphur Springs, 
West Virginia. The 112,544-square-foot (34,303-square-meter) bomb 
shelter, completed in 1961, included enough beds and supplies to 
accommodate all 535 lawmakers, as well as one staffer each. There were 
also decontamination chambers, an intensive care unit and a 
communications briefing room, all surrounded by three to five feet (one 
to one and a half meters) of concrete</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
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    <img alt="A dormitory for lawmakers inside a once-secret Cold War nuclear bunker built for members of Congress beneath the Greenbrier, a four-star resort near White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia " class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-fd1a6e6e690bc7e" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF56700000578-5857087-image-a-48_1529334860503.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
A dormitory for lawmakers inside
 a once-secret Cold War nuclear bunker built for members of Congress 
beneath the Greenbrier, a four-star resort near White Sulphur Springs, 
West Virginia </div>
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<br /></div>
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    <img alt="The north entrance portal - part of a two-mile long tunnel blasted through solid granite - serves as the primary entrance for the North American Aerospace Defense Command's (NORAD) facility inside the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA, 10 May 2018. The secret government complex is built 2,000 feet beneath the summit of the mountain, in a bunker that can withstand a 30-megaton nuclear bomb, an electromagnetic pulse, and chemical, biological, and radiological attacks" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-a7ec66d9eac02a67" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF74400000578-5857087-image-a-27_1529334754026.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
The north entrance portal - part
 of a two-mile long tunnel blasted through solid granite - serves as the
 primary entrance for the North American Aerospace Defense Command's 
(NORAD) facility inside the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in 
Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA, 10 May 2018. The secret government 
complex is built 2,000 feet beneath the summit of the mountain, in a 
bunker that can withstand a 30-megaton nuclear bomb, an electromagnetic 
pulse, and chemical, biological, and radiological attacks </div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
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    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
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    <img alt="Lyle Goodman closes the door on a former US Army munitions bunkers, which a developer is repurposing into a doomsday community for civilians called Vivos xPoint, near Edgemont, South Dakota. Vivos estimates that its 575 bunkers can hold 5,000 people, making it 'the largest survival community on earth'" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-d68b30bed6ac4726" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF80C00000578-5857087-image-a-35_1529334802233.jpg" width="962" />
  </div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
Lyle Goodman closes the door on a
 former US Army munitions bunkers, which a developer is repurposing into
 a doomsday community for civilians called Vivos xPoint, near Edgemont, 
South Dakota. Vivos estimates that its 575 bunkers can hold 5,000 
people, making it 'the largest survival community on earth'</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
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    <img alt="The B entrance portal into Raven Rock Mountain Complex, a massive, 650-acre nuclear bunker and national security site built inside a hollowed-out mountain near Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania. Constructed during the Cold War, the facility was conceived as a backup for the Pentagon and built to house military leadership, as well as the president, in the event of a nuclear disaster. Entry is through one of four portals, each protected by a 34-ton blast door" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-a210bfa862d7b2b3" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF61500000578-5857087-image-a-30_1529334773864.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
The B entrance portal into Raven
 Rock Mountain Complex, a massive, 650-acre nuclear bunker and national 
security site built inside a hollowed-out mountain near Blue Ridge 
Summit, Pennsylvania. Constructed during the Cold War, the facility was 
conceived as a backup for the Pentagon and built to house military 
leadership, as well as the president, in the event of a nuclear 
disaster. Entry is through one of four portals, each protected by a 
34-ton blast door </div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
  <div class="image-wrap fff-pic" style="cursor: pointer;">
    <img alt="Former US Army munitions bunkers, which developer Robert Vicino is repurposing into a doomsday community for civilians called Vivos xPoint, near Edgemont, South Dakota" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-d408d1b5f9feffc0" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF7AC00000578-5857087-image-a-33_1529334796108.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
Former US Army munitions 
bunkers, which developer Robert Vicino is repurposing into a doomsday 
community for civilians called Vivos xPoint, near Edgemont, South Dakota</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
  <div class="image-wrap fff-pic" style="cursor: pointer;">
    <img alt="A nuclear-hardened communications tower and bunker known by the codename 'Corkscrew,' atop Lamb's Knoll near Park Hall, Maryland. Corkscrew was one of a network of towers secretly built during the Cold War to facilitate communications between the White House and other continuity of government facilities, such as Raven Rock and Mount Weather, in the event of a nuclear disaster. The tower has since been deactivated and the site is now used by the FAA" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-50f1a4fe86aa60ab" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF45B00000578-5857087-image-a-32_1529334790163.jpg" width="962" /></div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
A nuclear-hardened 
communications tower and bunker known by the codename 'Corkscrew,' atop 
Lamb's Knoll near Park Hall, Maryland. Corkscrew was one of a network of
 towers secretly built during the Cold War to facilitate communications 
between the White House and other continuity of government facilities, 
such as Raven Rock and Mount Weather, in the event of a nuclear 
disaster. The tower has since been deactivated and the site is now used 
by the FAA</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
  <div class="image-wrap fff-pic" style="cursor: pointer;">
    <img alt="The intensive care unit inside a once-secret Cold War nuclear bunker built for members of Congress beneath the Greenbrier, a four-star resort near White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. The 112,544-square-foot (34,303-square-meter) bomb shelter, completed in 1961, included enough beds and supplies to accommodate all 535 lawmakers, as well as one staffer each. There were also decontamination chambers and a communications briefing room, all surrounded by three to five feet (one to one and a half meters) of concrete" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-6c38b4a3e6c5f9cc" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF92600000578-5857087-image-a-38_1529334808473.jpg" width="962" /></div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
The intensive care unit inside a
 once-secret Cold War nuclear bunker built for members of Congress 
beneath the Greenbrier, a four-star resort near White Sulphur Springs, 
West Virginia. The 112,544-square-foot (34,303-square-meter) bomb 
shelter, completed in 1961, included enough beds and supplies to 
accommodate all 535 lawmakers, as well as one staffer each. There were 
also decontamination chambers and a communications briefing room, all 
surrounded by three to five feet (one to one and a half meters) of 
concrete</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
  <div class="image-wrap fff-pic" style="cursor: pointer;">
    <img alt="An incinerator that could handle 'pathological waste,' a kind way of saying the remains of dead lawmakers, inside a once-secret Cold War nuclear bunker built for members of Congress beneath the Greenbrier, a four-star resort near White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-9bb2b9cb874b306a" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF92F00000578-5857087-image-a-42_1529334828312.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
An incinerator that could handle
 'pathological waste,' a kind way of saying the remains of dead 
lawmakers, inside a once-secret Cold War nuclear bunker built for 
members of Congress beneath the Greenbrier, a four-star resort near 
White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
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    <img alt="A passing truck's headlights and taillights color a long exposure image of the Mount Weather Emergency Operations Center, near Bluemont, Virginia. The top-secret, 564-acre facility includes underground bunkers, which would serve as a relocation site for members of the executive branch, including those from Homeland Security, in the event of a nuclear war. Though no journalists have visited the site, they became aware of its existence in 1974, when a TWA airliner crashed into the mountain, killing all 92 people aboard" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-9a6aa578977676c1" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF99200000578-5857087-image-a-39_1529334818632.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
A passing truck's headlights and
 taillights color a long exposure image of the Mount Weather Emergency 
Operations Center, near Bluemont, Virginia. The top-secret, 564-acre 
facility includes underground bunkers, which would serve as a relocation
 site for members of the executive branch, including those from Homeland
 Security, in the event of a nuclear war. Though no journalists have 
visited the site, they became aware of its existence in 1974, when a TWA
 airliner crashed into the mountain, killing all 92 people aboard</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
  <div class="image-wrap fff-pic" style="cursor: pointer;">
    <img alt="The north entrance portal - part of a two-mile long tunnel blasted through solid granite - serves as the primary entrance for the North American Aerospace Defense Command's (NORAD) facility inside the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in Colorado Springs, Colorado" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-a4e98160a6992124" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF85200000578-5857087-image-a-44_1529334834883.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
The north entrance portal - part
 of a two-mile long tunnel blasted through solid granite - serves as the
 primary entrance for the North American Aerospace Defense Command's 
(NORAD) facility inside the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in 
Colorado Springs, Colorado</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
  <div class="image-wrap fff-pic" style="cursor: pointer;">
    <img alt="A little green alien inside a glass jar adorns the North American Aerospace Defense Command's (NORAD) alternate command center inside the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in Colorado Springs, Colorado" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-eb145ea649a82ea8" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF90D00000578-5857087-image-a-46_1529334845908.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
A little green alien inside a 
glass jar adorns the North American Aerospace Defense Command's (NORAD) 
alternate command center inside the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station 
in Colorado Springs, Colorado</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
  <div class="image-wrap fff-pic" style="cursor: pointer;">
    <img alt="One of two 23-ton blast doors that serve as the primary entrance for the North American Aerospace Defense Command's (NORAD) facility inside the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in Colorado Springs, Colorado" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-292e0d994768cbfb" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF95E00000578-5857087-image-a-63_1529336326916.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
One of two 23-ton blast doors 
that serve as the primary entrance for the North American Aerospace 
Defense Command's (NORAD) facility inside the Cheyenne Mountain Air 
Force Station in Colorado Springs, Colorado</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
  <div class="image-wrap fff-pic" style="cursor: pointer;">
    <img alt="More than 300 people work inside Cheyenne Mountain, which they access via a two-mile long tunnel, and two 23-ton blast doors. NORAD is tasked with aerospace control of North America, including the detection of an incoming missile attack" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-ee6af4e9146572b0" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF8F700000578-5857087-image-a-64_1529336348364.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
More than 300 people work inside
 Cheyenne Mountain, which they access via a two-mile long tunnel, and 
two 23-ton blast doors. NORAD is tasked with aerospace control of North 
America, including the detection of an incoming missile attack</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
  <div class="image-wrap fff-pic" style="cursor: pointer;">
    <img alt="The entrance to the North American Aerospace Defense Command's (NORAD) facility inside the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in Colorado Springs, Colorado" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" height="641" id="i-f1f16684801bcbd4" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF8EE00000578-5857087-image-a-67_1529336374533.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
The entrance to the North 
American Aerospace Defense Command's (NORAD) facility inside the 
Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in Colorado Springs, Colorado</div>
</div>
<br />
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
  <div class="image-wrap fff-pic" style="cursor: pointer;">
    <img alt="A military aid (R) carries the so-called nuclear football in his left hand as he follows US President Donald J. Trump across the South Lawn of the White House toward Marine One in Washington, DC. The satchel, which has a small antenna protruding from the back, contains a black binder with nuclear strike options, a list of classified bunkers for the president to take shelter, and a plastic card with nuclear launch codes" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" data-track-pos="16" height="641" id="i-6c1645df55be0750" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF06E00000578-5857087-image-a-68_1529336404255.jpg" width="962" />
  </div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
A military aid (R) carries the 
so-called nuclear football in his left hand as he follows US President 
Donald J. Trump across the South Lawn of the White House toward Marine 
One in Washington, DC. The satchel, which has a small antenna protruding
 from the back, contains a black binder with nuclear strike options, a 
list of classified bunkers for the president to take shelter, and a 
plastic card with nuclear launch codes</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
  <div class="image-wrap fff-pic" style="cursor: pointer;">
    <img alt="North American Aerospace Defense Command's (NORAD) alternate command center inside the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA, 10 May 2018" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" data-track-pos="17" height="641" id="i-c50e03fe78605deb" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF60300000578-5857087-image-a-71_1529336426761.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
North American Aerospace Defense
 Command's (NORAD) alternate command center inside the Cheyenne Mountain
 Air Force Station in Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA, 10 May 2018</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="mol-img-group xwArtSplitter">
    <div class="mol-img" style="position: relative;">
  <div class="image-wrap fff-pic" style="cursor: pointer;">
    <img alt="An armored and unceremonious exit (R) from the White House in the back of the Treasury Annex, now known as Freedman's Bank, in Washington. The bank connects to the White House via two tunnels - one under Pennsylvania Avenue to the Treasury Building (L), the second under East Executive Avenue from the Treasury Building to the East Wing of the White House. According to the White House Historical Association, the escape tunnel to the Treasury, which was built shortly after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, went out of favor with the construction of the bunker-hardened Presidential Emergency Operations Center beneath the East Wing of the White House" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" data-track-pos="18" height="641" id="i-213504d8945ec9e4" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/18/16/4D5BF55400000578-5857087-image-a-73_1529336454388.jpg" width="962" /><div class="overlay-icon mobile-gallery">
<span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="imageCaption">
An armored and unceremonious 
exit (R) from the White House in the back of the Treasury Annex, now 
known as Freedman's Bank, in Washington. The bank connects to the White 
House via two tunnels - one under Pennsylvania Avenue to the Treasury 
Building (L), the second under East Executive Avenue from the Treasury 
Building to the East Wing of the White House. According to the White 
House Historical Association, the escape tunnel to the Treasury, which 
was built shortly after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, went out of favor 
with the construction of the bunker-hardened Presidential Emergency 
Operations Center beneath the East Wing of the White House </div>
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A black tarp blocks drivers' 
views of the Mount Weather Emergency Operations Center along Blue Ridge 
Mountain Road near Trapp, Virginia</div>
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The press 
briefing room inside a once-secret Cold War nuclear bunker built for 
members of Congress beneath the Greenbrier, a four-star resort near 
White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia</div>
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Inside America's Armageddon bunkers

The site of a former nuclear bunker known as Mount Pony, where the Federal Reserve secretly stockpiled billions of dollars in cash, whi...

The curious case of the reappearing Dark Sword

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy7H3XiNHaa0sZY5F8JtIiSXTHym1IXCWuORB9gOpr6avTM68FaEj1uVfQzD64yw0N-ykcsYcJu8dvbIfzC-ahId4ueE9IZ6DgrkPK6kVlpudCIRYY133oGAHHUoG_EGdweR41kzguo8U/s1600/Dark+Sword+++++Anjian.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="405" data-original-width="641" height="404" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy7H3XiNHaa0sZY5F8JtIiSXTHym1IXCWuORB9gOpr6avTM68FaEj1uVfQzD64yw0N-ykcsYcJu8dvbIfzC-ahId4ueE9IZ6DgrkPK6kVlpudCIRYY133oGAHHUoG_EGdweR41kzguo8U/s640/Dark+Sword+++++Anjian.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
    Dark Sword/Anjian<br />
<br />
Images of a remotely piloted fighter jet designed by Chinese aircraft makers caused immediate paranoia on Tuesday at <a href="https://www.businessinsider.sg/chinas-dark-sword-fighter-jet-is-a-nightmare-for-the-us-military-2018-6/?r=US&IR=T" target="_blank">Business Insider</a>, which dubbed the aircraft a “nightmare for the US.”<br />
<br />
The Dark Sword jet brings several threats to the table, BI reported. For
 example, the aircraft has supersonic flight performance, as indicated 
by "F-22-style vertical stabilizers," air combat expert Justin Bronk of 
British think tank Royal United Services told the outlet.<br />
<br />
The US Navy initiated an unmanned combat aircraft program in the early 
2000s, but it was eventually terminated. Northrop Grumman's X-47B 
aircraft demonstrator conducted flight tests in 2013 from an aircraft 
carrier, but the Navy decided to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zW_O2nbii7c" target="_blank">develop a drone</a> to perform aerial 
refueling missions for carrier operations instead. That program, now 
known as the MQ-25A Stingray, aims to put drone tankers onto carriers by
 the mid-2020s.<br />
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<img alt="This is what the US wants its new drones to do. Not as exciting, is it?" class="bi_image size-medium wp-image-1051337 td-animation-stack-type0-2" id="image-5ac658fafc23b32d008b4725" src="https://static.businessinsider.sg/2018/06/06/5ac658fafc23b32d008b4725.jpg" /><br />
<br />
In addition to its speed, Dark Sword could give China an edge by 
relieving Beijing from having to train so many pilots, Bronk said, 
especially if the fighter-style drones can be mass produced. Large 
numbers of Dark Swords could "at the very least soak up missiles from US
 fighters," he said. "If you can produce lots of them, quantity has a 
quality of its own."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnJZHqprYzrkyHjHTU_cG2qVFWsOuRyapUX4AcLg1fCtFI_Ks7agzSAzbhWXYLRGc4nDxwjUGKcFuz29Qi0t-U0bFnqT2Ue4sw4B2WFLyMy24H2xDH7J66WsWdncdG_yXy017raGg3YSA/s1600/uav++Dark+Sword+++debut+at+the+Zhuhai+Airshow+in+2006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1196" height="410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnJZHqprYzrkyHjHTU_cG2qVFWsOuRyapUX4AcLg1fCtFI_Ks7agzSAzbhWXYLRGc4nDxwjUGKcFuz29Qi0t-U0bFnqT2Ue4sw4B2WFLyMy24H2xDH7J66WsWdncdG_yXy017raGg3YSA/s640/uav++Dark+Sword+++debut+at+the+Zhuhai+Airshow+in+2006.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Dark Sword debut at the Zhuhai Airshow in 2006<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Pcal2NDySP9Wgnwpt0a5SmCnCMAIjU4ItQagtOXFtUm5jm4NxEUJ6g0ufDSf1xj7j4rWCKOJQXiWtWTOLxjRS7EnVPwysJ1WmOgmhtXbsdnP7A1zlg-AHMrI1NxKidfsLExWOZeeq00/s1600/uav++Dark+Sword+++sub-scale+remote+model+of+the+vehicle%252C+leaked+in+2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1271" height="386" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Pcal2NDySP9Wgnwpt0a5SmCnCMAIjU4ItQagtOXFtUm5jm4NxEUJ6g0ufDSf1xj7j4rWCKOJQXiWtWTOLxjRS7EnVPwysJ1WmOgmhtXbsdnP7A1zlg-AHMrI1NxKidfsLExWOZeeq00/s640/uav++Dark+Sword+++sub-scale+remote+model+of+the+vehicle%252C+leaked+in+2011.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Sub-scale remote model of the vehicle, fly in 2011<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJYykAX_aSmYGeU8uEtbN_fpEKw73WDi_Ot2GdWy2idVmTCLsKymV00MIHju8ktX_mrSOB0QTIiOtNjxH1XpvbrSgifWii4KE4cbmtOJOoA9HQFCuOE_GbgxS-nz1sZnGpn_BexNSX7SA/s1600/uav++Dark+Sword++++%25281%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1007" height="488" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJYykAX_aSmYGeU8uEtbN_fpEKw73WDi_Ot2GdWy2idVmTCLsKymV00MIHju8ktX_mrSOB0QTIiOtNjxH1XpvbrSgifWii4KE4cbmtOJOoA9HQFCuOE_GbgxS-nz1sZnGpn_BexNSX7SA/s640/uav++Dark+Sword++++%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
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The curious case of the reappearing Dark Sword/Anjian 🤔 <a href="https://t.co/5uQd7WZPb3">pic.twitter.com/5uQd7WZPb3</a></div>
— Rick Joe (@RickJoe_PLART) <a href="https://twitter.com/RickJoe_PLART/status/1003888633164648449?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<br />
"At the very best," the supersonic plane would become a viable fighter 
aircraft in its own right, Bronk noted, in which case the US could be 
confronting a massive force of remotely piloted supersonic aircraft that
 might even exhibit greater maneuverability than manned adversaries 
since there is no pilot physically inside the plane whose vitals must be
 protected, BI reports. Piloted aircraft are limited in their 
maneuverability by g-forces exerted on the pilots inside, as too sharp a
 turn can force blood out of the pilot's head and cause loss of 
consciousness.<br />
<br />
Nevertheless, the expert said that since "we only see what the Chinese 
want us to see," the plane's specifications on paper don't imply its 
actual fighting capabilities.
<br />
<br /></div>

The curious case of the reappearing Dark Sword

Dark Sword/Anjian Images of a remotely piloted fighter jet designed by Chinese aircraft makers caused immediate paranoia on Tuesday...