Plenty of people have written about overpopulation, but no one has actually demonstrated their dedication to fixing the problem by killing themselves. Go ahead, Tom, lead the way.

Growing up, my friends and I would live for snow days. Why don't you also take away Mom, Dad and apple pie, too? Granted, with global warming, there seems to be fewer big blizzards, anyway. Now kids will have to pray for an increasingly unlikely confluence of events: a major blizzard, plus a major network outage. Sigh.

This was my initial reaction, too. Of course, I also think that if cars were invented yesterday, they'd never get approved for use. Too dangerous. And motorcycles? Forget about it.

This action merely underscores the Saudi Government's technical ignorance of the nature of the Internet.

pi=3

The original post states that the bomb would hit the ground "well beyond twice the speed of sound". I would have thought that even a sleek, heavy object would reach terminal velocity due to air resistance before reaching such speeds. Assuming that it were dropped from 30,000 feet, how fast would it be moving when it hit the ground? (Assuming that it was about 3 ft in diameter and 20 ft long from the information here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massive_Ordnance_Penetrator) Thanks!

"The iPhone 4 - it's to die for!"

Check out the DoD's guidelines for securing classified data:
http://nsi.org/Library/Govt/Nispom.html

Especially pertinent here is Transmission policy for different types of classified data
http://nsi.org/Library/Govt/Nispom.html#link5
and network security
http://nsi.org/Library/Govt/Nispom.html#link8

Not exactly scintillating reading, but them's the rules.

AA is going to have to make policies surrounding a variety of issues like:

• How is AA going to prevent me from setting up my Meraki repeater once I'm aboard and start re-selling their service for a lower price?
• Are people going to be able to access Skype? How loud will they be allowed to talk before I am allowed to garotte them with my $4 headphones?
• If the engines on the plane fail, will I be blocked from twittering "Ahhh! Gonna die!"?

The possibilities are endless.

I think we can all agree that an airship working directly over enemy territory would be terribly vulnerable. Presumably, the ISIS would operate well behind a safety cordon of fighters the same way AWACS and JSTARS planes do.

I assume that the reason the DoD is exploring this option is the operational difficulty in maintaining multiple shifts of AWACS + JSTARS in a warzone. The airship, on the other hand, would be able to maintain its station for days on end, without the need for refueling or returning to base for a new crew.

However, a stickier problem emerges - would it be able to stay on station? According to this site: http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/1999-09/938402041.Es.r.html, winds in the stratosphere are around 100mph. Would solar-powered engines be able to keep the airship in the same place in the sky?

Does anyone have a link to the TED conference talk? I can't find the video on the TED website. Thanks!

Thanks for posting this video. Unfortunately, I don't see this as more than a proof-of-concept. Here's why:

1. Discomfort - Look at Radi's posture when he's walking. He's hunched over, which is bound to cause back pain after continued use. Also, the battery pack prevents him from using the backrests of chairs comfortably when he's sitting. And the forearm controller looks annoyingly cumbersome when he's working at his computer. At least a wheelchair doesn't cause physical discomfort or pain.
2. Battery life - This is a serious concern. Can that small a battery hold a charge for eight hours? At least a wheelchair will never run low on juice.
3. It is clumsy and slow - Notice how slowly Radi's friends have to walk to keep pace with him: they're not so much walking slowly as they are standing very quickly. And he needs to stop every time he wants to do something different.

Even with all these caveats, ReWalk is a promising start - Argo should definitely keep developing it.