Archive for the 'Infrastructure' Category
The Cyberthreat Under the Street
November 8th, 2015It’s a bit of a worry that a nearly point-by-point facsimile of my 2002 warning about this has just appeared in the New York Times… God damn conspiracy theorists! If the whole thing suddenly goes pop, just know that the feds knew about this at least as far back as the mid-1990s, when I was […]
U.S. Announces Plans to Deal with EMP Threat
November 2nd, 2015In other news, Naval Academy Reinstates Celestial Navigation. Via: USA Today: Space weather, which can disrupt satellites, stifle communications networks and paralyze the electric power grid, is getting some special scrutiny from the Obama administration. The White House announced a new strategy Thursday to identify and respond to interstellar phenomena such as solar flares that […]
Washington: How a Group of Neighbors Created Their Own Internet Service
November 2nd, 2015Via: Ars Technica: When you live somewhere with slow and unreliable Internet access, it usually seems like there’s nothing to do but complain. And that’s exactly what residents of Orcas Island, one of the San Juan Islands in Washington state, were doing in late 2013. Faced with CenturyLink service that was slow and outage-prone, residents […]
Morocco Poised to Become a Solar Superpower with Launch of Desert Mega-Project
October 26th, 2015Disclosure: I sell solar power systems in New Zealand. — Via: Guardian: When the full complex is complete, it will be the largest concentrated solar power (CSP) plant in the world , and the first phase, called Noor 1, will go live next month. The mirror technology it uses is less widespread and more expensive […]
Ask the Cryptogonners: Run Freezer Off Van and 12v Inverter? [Confirmed: Yes.]
October 11th, 2015Update: Success! I bought a NOMAD MOBILE 1500w pure sine wave inverter from waveinverter.co.nz (I have no affiliate relationship with them, I’m just a customer). For testing, I unplugged the freezer (Westinghouse WCM5000WC) for a couple of hours and let it warm up a bit. Then I connected the inverter to our van’s battery terminals […]
CITE: The $1 Billion City That Nobody Calls Home
October 7th, 2015Via: CNN: In the arid plains of the southern New Mexico desert, between the site of the first atomic bomb test and the U.S.-Mexico border, a new city is rising from the sand. Planned for a population of 35,000, the city will showcase a modern business district downtown, and neat rows of terraced housing in […]
Hacking Risks to Nuclear Power Plants
October 6th, 2015haha. Somehow, I thought the control systems for nuclear power plants were air-gapped. This article says that’s a, “Pervading myth.” Via: Computer World: The risk of serious cyber-attacks on nuclear power plants is growing, according to a new report by think-tank Chatham House. If you follow this type of news, then this is probably not […]
Australia: Electricity Networks Propose Connection Fees for All Homes – Including Off-Gridders
September 28th, 2015The mask comes off. Behold… Via: SolarChoice: Australia’s major power networks are calling for compulsory connection fees for all homes and businesses – even if they are not connected to the grid – and penalties for those who disconnect, as part of a last-ditch effort to protect their declining revenue streams. The Energy Networks Association […]
New Zealand: Fair Go for Solar Initiative
September 27th, 2015Disclosure: I sell solar power systems in New Zealand. — For people in New Zealand: Please consider getting the word out about the Fair Go for Solar Initiative by the Greens.
American Airlines Flights Grounded Nationwide
September 17th, 2015Via: CBS: The Federal Aviation Administration said Thursday that American Airlines has grounded flights nationwide due to computer issues. American Airlines sent out a tweet responding to customers, saying it was “working to resolve technical issues.”
