Spycraft: The Secret History of the CIA’s Spytechs, from Communism to al-Qaeda

This book details the way the CIA built and used technologies to spy on other people and countries.

a former head of the CIA’s Office of Technical Service (OTS) and an internationally acclaimed espionage historian join forces to tell the story of the covert devices critical to America’s intelligence operations for more than half a century. SPYCRAFT recounts never before revealed details of the early false starts and frustrations OTS overcame to achieve eventual technological breakthroughs and operational successes unequaled in the shadowy world of espionage. SPYCRAFT traces the development and deployment of spy gear from secret writing and bugging devices to subminiature cameras and covert internet communications. Often incorporating technology that would not appear in consumer goods for two or more decades later, the remarkable devices of OTS were instrumental in winning the Cold War and fighting terrorism from South America to Moscow and in the jungles of Vietnam to the mountains of Afghanistan.

Nowadays most of the “devices” are software on PC’s, but this is a world of serious James Bond shit!

The Secret History of Star Wars

This is a totally unofficial look at the Star Wars universe, how it was created and what motivated Lucas and the film companies as they built the franchise.

The Secret History of Star Wars traces all the way back to 1973 to examine how the first 14-page treatment that began the series came to be and was slowly built, draft by draft, year by year and movie by movie. Covering a period of over four decades, you will discover how George Lucas got his ideas for the original film, how Darth Vader was made into Luke Skywalker’s father in 1978 and forever altered the arc of the story, what happened to the infamous third trilogy in the series and how the prequel stories came to be. The book also reveals the style and method of Lucas himself and how his personal life affected and shaped the story, for better and worse.

Matrox Extio F1240 remote graphics unit

The Matrox Extio™ F1240 multi-display Remote Graphics Unit enables the extension of two dual-link video displays, audio and six USB devices, such as keyboard and mouse, by up to 820 feet (250 meters) via a single fiber-optic cable. Designed with passive (fanless) cooling, the Extio 1240 provides a quiet, secure and high reliability environment that delivers uncompromising image quality and performance. Ideal for professional and mission critical environments, the Extio series of products achieve an experience that parallels having the computer situated at the users’ desk.

Uber KVM Switching Unit!

Star Control II

This game – quite possibly one of the best sci-fi games of all time: with an awesome 2 player mode behind one computer and storyline

is NOT DEAD!

The Sourcecode was released some time ago and The Ur-Quan Masters have gotten to a re-released version 0.6.2 which has been ported to all OSses out there almost. They’re now working on releasing it for PSP! And it’s free! AND it’s moddable, so there are loads of user extra’s, such as newly balanced ships, sound tracks, etc.

The fansites are huge and active:

The Pages of Now and Forever are a fairly sane sample of the gaming population

The Frungy Championships are a manga crazy on on speed type cult following the game.

Surprisingly, both sites are updated almost daily!

Finally, Toys for Bob (the creators of SC 1 and 2) have a petition going on asking for support to build a new Star Control game! Go sign it!

Camouflage Paint Hides Vehicles From Radar, Subsequent Missiles

A German inventor has developed a paint called AR 1 that can hide a vehicle from radar, and most importantly, “all militarily relevant frequencies.” How it works is unclear, though one test researcher proposes it’s either by reflecting radar waves in a pattern so they cancel one another out, or by utilizing microscopic magnets to absorb radar radiation.

Military: Camouflage Paint Hides Vehicles From Radar, Subsequent Missiles

The art of seduction

After having read ‘the Game’ by Neal Strauss, I decided to look if the internet communities he describes on the pickup game really exists and back up his claims. These guys have taken a good look at what works when picking up women and tried to apply rules to their behaviors, drastically improving their chances of a successful pickup.

The mASF forums are a good source of information,

including their instructions on what to do to get into the community first.

The have the guide – a sort of howto.

Everyone reccomends David D’angelo’s “Double your Dating”. Buy it here.

Cliff’s List is an archive (and still growing) newsletter for the speed seductionist.

Dutch Seduction is the Dutch lair of pickup artists with a lively local forum.

Natural Game has a lively forum going on as well.

The seduction community toolbar by Diabolik is a labour of love, allowing you to search techniques through the community without hitting strange Google results.

Happy sarging!

Bedding quality

So if you want to sleep comfortably, one of the ways to get a better sleep is by looking at your sheets.

The factor we all know about is thread count – how many threads per square inch of fabric. Nowadays manufacturers are coming out with 1000 / 1600 thread count materials. This is not the whole of the story though. You need to also look at

– ply
– yarn size
– type of cotton
– how it’s woven

If it’s 2 ply, then it becomes heavier and is kind of cheating, as they up the thread count by first interweaving two threads and then weaving the fabric.

Large yarn is better.

Sea Island, Egyptian (Ashmouni) or Pima (US) cotton is best as the cotton strands (the “staple”) themselves are longest. Some people prefer sateen, which has polyester in it, making it slightly less ‘slippery’ or silky than pure cotton.

There are four main types of ELS (Extra Long Staple) cotton:- American upland , Egyptian, Sea Island and Asiatic.

(1) American upland is a plant with green coloured flowers. It gives a large yield with white fibres 7/8”-1-1/4 inches in length.
(2) The Egyptian cotton has lemon coloured flowers and produces long silky light tan fibres
1-1/2” in length. The American variant of this strain is Pima Cotton which yields fibre of 1-3/8” & above in length.
(3) Sea island cotton is grown in the West Indies . It has yellow flower and is a slow grower and the white fibres are 1-3/4” in length used for high quality textile.
(4) The Asiatic strain produces a low yield of short, coarse, harsh fibre.

Egyptian cotton seems to be grown in Karnak.

For more information:

Soleilmavis on thread count

The ebay guide to terms and differences for cotton linens

Best in Bedding FAQ

about Pima cotton and how it was bred

The four types of cotton

A Heart Device Is Found Vulnerable to Hacker Attacks

To the long list of objects vulnerable to attack by computer hackers, add the human heart.

The threat seems largely theoretical. But a team of computer security researchers plans to report Wednesday that it had been able to gain wireless access to a combination heart defibrillator and pacemaker.

They were able to reprogram it to shut down and to deliver jolts of electricity that would potentially be fatal — if the device had been in a person. In this case, the researcher were hacking into a device in a laboratory.

The researchers said they had also been able to glean personal patient data by eavesdropping on signals from the tiny wireless radio that Medtronic, the device’s maker, had embedded in the implant as a way to let doctors monitor and adjust it without surgery.

Official URL Link

Saudi King Abdullah drops quiet bombshell; U.S. media sleep through it

On April 13, Reuters reported the following from Riyadh:

Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah said he had ordered some new oil discoveries left untapped to preserve oil wealth in the world’s top exporter for future generations…

“When there were some new finds, I told them, ‘no, leave it in the ground, with grace from god, our children need it’,” King Abdullah said…

Saudi production capacity stands at around 11.3 million bpd, and is scheduled to rise to 12.5 million bpd next year.

The King’s remarks seem to confirm a statement made last year by Saudi oil minister Ali al-Naimi who, when asked “How high can your production go?” replied, “We’ll get to 12.5 million barrels a day and then we’ll see.”

If the Saudi announcement was a bombshell, American nearly newspapers ignored it. We decided to canvass experts we respect to see what they thought.

Official URL Link

From the Runway to the Road: Terrafugia Redefines the Flying Car—Make that Drivable Airplane

Don’t call it a flying car. It’s a “roadable aircraft.”

It’s named the Transition, and the first full-scale model is taking shape inside a former machine shop on an industrial back alley in Woburn, MA. Between now and late July, the 10 employees of angel-funded startup Terrafugia will be spending “a lot of long days, nights, and weekends” in that shop, says CEO and founder Carl Dietrich. That’s because they want to show off their concept vehicle at AirVenture—the world’s largest aviation festival, held annually in Oshkosh, WI—and there’s a lot of work to finish first.

When I visited Terrafugia yesterday, technicians were shaping the grooves in the fuselage’s carbon-fiber skin that will hold the straps for the vehicle’s rocket-fired emergency parachute. They hadn’t yet attached the folding wings to the fuselage or the fuselage to the empanage (which will hold up the dual tails), and they had yet to figure out where to put the engine’s exhaust system. “It’s crunch time,” says Dietrich.
…………

Official URL Link