Technology we didn't know we had...
It's pretty common knowledge that the US Military gets first rights to all new technology innovations, but the problem is that the public typically doesn't know about these advancements until years, sometimes decades, later. For example, the F-22 Raptor is the most advanced aircraft ever built and the technological systems are so classified that even the crew chiefs (aircraft mechanics) don't know anything about them. Those systems, by the way, are 16 years old.
Another piece of military equipment (video above) has just become "semi"-declassified. The Predator UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) has quickly become a staple of the US Military for it's ability to engage targets without risking American lives and, in the case presented here, for discreet surveillance. The declassified information regarding ARGUS nothing less than astounding. The ARGUS camera resolution is equivalent to 225 Iphone 5s recording video simultaneously. This incredible image processing power provides the capability of viewing 65 active video streams over a 15 square-mile area, of objects 6 inches in size, from an altitude of 17,500 ft. Imagine the satellite surveillance scenes from the movie Enemy of the State. Now realize that this is real life technology that has been around for more than 5 years.
Technology we're learning we need...
Not only is it interesting to think about what kind of classified equipment is being currently developed and deployed by the Department of Defense, especially when considering that technological advancements are exponential, but it's more interesting to think what kind of public advancements could be made if the same amount of resources were reallocated for research in the private sector. Using the F-22 Raptor as an example, the total expenditure has been $7.3 billion for 183 aircraft as of 2011. If there was a 10% reduction, minimizing the total expense to $6.57 billion and total aircraft to 164, the $730 million could be awarded to other ventures. What kind of medical advances could be made with such an advancement? How big of an impact could be made on the homeless population? What about roadways and traffic?
In a TEDtalksDirector video, Bill Gates discusses the crisis of CO2 pollution and how the a new style of nuclear reactor can, before the current deadline of 2050, reduce our CO2 creation to nearly 0%, use the former nuclear waste in a responsible way, and decrease the overall cost of energy. Gates indicates that, with proper funding, we can realize this goal within the proposed deadline. The years between 2010 and 2030 will be spent on research and development, while the remaining 20 years will be dedicated to implementation. The aforementioned $730 million would be able to pay for most, if not all, of the first phase of this plan, allowing the researchers to potentially finish ahead of schedule and begin creating these power plants, reducing the damage currently being done by carbon dioxide. For such a small reduction in only 1 category of the defense budget, the reward is enormous. As a gun owner, I would sacrifice buying an extra gun in order to fix a water leak in my home because, in the end, all of the guns in the world would not help me if I didn't have a home to sleep in.
You pulled together some interesting technologies to consider for this post.
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