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Unlimited FTA: Free TV Programming

Satellite TV

Once in a while a deal comes along that really is as good as it sounds. While many satellite television companies offer really good promotions from time to time, FTA is honestly as good as it gets if you are a television lover. FTA is the abbreviation for the phrase “Free to Air,” which refers to unencrypted digital or analog signals freely available to anyone with the proper equipment. FTA systems are specifically designed to receive unencrypted signals broadcast from all over the world. With no contracts, no program packages, and no subscription to pay each month, FTA makes free viewing a reality. Unencrypted signals are not restricted so FTA users are able to view all programming without limitation.

The main factor that enables FTA is that all around the globe there are signals broadcast by TV and radio stations in unencrypted format. The unencrypted signals are received by satellites floating around in space and rebroadcast over North America where they may be picked up for free by anyone with FTA satellite systems. Pay per view satellite services use encrypted signals to control access to their programming. You pay them to decode their signals so you may view their programs. Stations that broadcast unencrypted signals do so intentionally to spread information, an ideology or for entertainment.

Since FTA signals are generated world wide, many of the available channels are foreign language programming. To date there are over 40 languages found on FTA. For those who enjoy foreign language channels, FTA is the optimum source. English language programming is abundant and represents a wide cross section of interests such as PBS, local channels from the US, UK and Australia, politics and religion as well as entertainment.

Your FTA system will not cost you a small fortune, FTA systems are very affordable. There are two types of systems and the type you choose is dependant on your viewing plans. It is recommended that before you decide which type system to buy, you go online and research FTA websites to review the satellite lists. A complete satellite list will include the channels each satellite provides. This information will help you determine whether you intend to watch mainly one satellite’s programming or whether you will be watching more than one satellite.

If you determine that you will be watching mainly one satellite, a stationary system would be appropriate for you. For only $130 a high quality, state of the art, complete, ready to install system can be yours. A complete system includes the receiver, dish and all hardware necessary to get your system set up.

For those who prefer to watch programming from multiple satellites a motorized or rotor system will be required. Motorized systems enable the user to switch between satellites with a touch of the remote control. A simple, high quality, ready to install motorized system will cost upwards of $150. For the very high end motorized systems you could pay as much as $450. These powerful systems are WiFi ready and include an Ethernet port for Internet access.

FTA really is as good as it sounds. Don’t miss out; get your system and enjoy unlimited viewing from all over the world today.

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Wartime Intelligence Gathering Through Data Recovery

In international intelligence operations, there is nothing more beguiling than a computer hard drive. Computers log an immense amount of information on their hard drives, and this information can be difficult to dispose of permanently so as not to fall into the wrong hands.

While it is a well-known common sense fact that computer hard drives need to be erased before being repurposed or disposed of, in reality, it doesn’t always happen. Computer users can get lazy, distracted or too busy to properly dispose of the data. Even if they do erase the drive, advanced techniques can still recover the data unless the drive is thoroughly degaussed. These situations are like striking gold for intelligence agents trying to increase their knowledge base of the other side.

This was never more true than in the War Against Terror. The common impression of al Qaeda and the Taliban is that of disorganized groups of militants with rudimentary weapons and tools, however, the reality is that both groups have used computers extensively throughout the conflict.

Traditional methods of intelligence gathering have not worked as they have in the past, namely intercepting communications and physical identification. Both al Qaeda and the Taliban have improved signal scrambling to the point where it is difficult to intercept and interpret messages. The nature of the war makes physical identification a challenge as enemy movements are camouflaged and take place under the proverbial radar.

On the other hand, al Qaeda and Taliban computers captured by American intelligence in the war have yielded a wealth of information about subversive activities both on the international stage and in the United States itself. Raids on al Qaeda strongholds have produced computer hard drives that contain strategic information including troop movements, planned attacks, and a plentitude of information on the identities and movements of major players in the war.

Because of intercepted computer data, coalition forces have been able to disable supply networks, cutting off the flow of weapons and tools to insurgents. They have also been able to use the information to supply proof of connections between individuals and to get a better understanding of the enemy’s strategy and command structure.

Although intelligence gathering in war has existed for thousands of years, the era of the computer, along with users’ lack of care and security around data, has made it possible to gather more strategic information about the other side than ever before.

Computers can be a valuable tool in organizing a war effort but they can also be valuable to the other side when data is left to be recovered. Computers are increasingly capable of holding vast amounts of sensitive information and are far easier to capture than rooms full of filing cabinets. Information has become the most valuable commodity of war and intelligence gathering has evolved from agents sneaking around spying on the enemy to interpreting the data they carelessly leave behind.

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The Science of Sound

The speed of sound is 768 miles per hour. Of course, that is the speed of sound through air at about 68 degrees Fahrenheit. If the air temperature is warmer sound moves a little faster. Although it varies with temperature, it does not change with altitude even though the air pressure may be different. Knowing that the speed of sound is constant under these conditions and the fact that light travels so fast as to be nearly instantaneous for all practical purposes, we can tell how far away an event is from us by the difference in time between when we see it and when we hear it.

The classic example is lightning and thunder. Thunder is the sound of the air being superheated by the incredible energy of a lightning bolt. The sound is created simultaneously with the flash of lightning. However, since light travels so much faster than sound we see it well before the sound reaches us. Most people have a little formula they use to tell how far away lightning is. They count seconds between the visible lightning flash and the thunderclap. Some say every second it takes means the lightning was one mile away. Others use different figures.

If we know the true speed of sound, then we can calculate the correct distance. 768 miles per hour is 12.8 miles per minute or 0.213 miles per second. So every second that passes between the lightning flash and the time when we hear the thunder means the lightning was 0.213 miles away. Rounding for convenience, then we can say that the lightning is a little more than one mile away for every five seconds that we count between the flash and the sound.

If you can’t get to one second before hearing the thunder, then the lightning was closer than 1100 feet. Sometimes, though, the sound and the flash seem to happen at the same instant. When this happens, the lightning is very close indeed!

The same calculation can be used for any event that we see happen at a great distance. This same effect is often why the sounds we hear at a concert may seem to be a little out of phase with the performers on the stage (if we have seats that are relatively far away from the stage that is).

Another fun example of this phenomenon happens every Fourth of July. We can actually tell approximately how high up the fireworks are when they explode by using an accurate digital stop watch which measures in increments of a tenth of a second or less. A full second equates to about 1100 feet so every tenth of second is about 110 feet. Remember that with fireworks, you are getting not just the height above the ground, but the distance between your ears and the firework explosion. If it isn’t exactly overhead then you are including some sideways distance as well.

It can also be fun to try to figure out how far away a distant canyon wall is by the time it takes an echo to return to us. Remember when using echoes the sound is going there and back again so we need to divide the time by two to get the right result. A little applied science can be fun and give us a reason to keep our math skills sharp.

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The Doctor’s Bag

For over 200 years, a doctor was most often identified by his doctor’s bag- usually well-used and softened by time, the smell of the rich leather a comforting reminder to patients that all will be well soon. A doctor and his bag were seldom apart. Before the advent of the modern doctor’s office with its clinical feel and cold steel examining tables, before open-back gowns and administrators and waiting rooms, there was only the doctor, ready to make a house call carrying nothing but his doctor’s bag.

But the doctor’s bag was so much more than just a bag. It was a miniature hospital and contained everything the doctor needed to assess and treat his patients. There were stethoscopes, tongue depressors, medications, bandages, ointments and- always- candy for the children. Families knew that healing would come from the bag, whether through a tonic or through a peppermint wrapped in paper with a twist. When the doctor came down the street with bag in hand, it was a sign that someone close by was ill and also that they were on their way to recovery.

The classic shape of the doctor’s bag hasn’t changed over time. Flat on the bottom, the sides come up to a closure at the top- a cross between a satchel and a duffel bag. The top opens with the aid of an internal metal frame that holds the bag open, making it easier for the doctor to rummage around inside. Leather has always been used for doctor’s bags as it is durable and can stand up to the daily abuse a family doctor on the go can give it. Black or brown are to this day the most popular colors. If the bag was a gift from family, often at graduation, it may have carried the doctor’s initials, stamped into the smooth leather. Rugged, practical, but beautiful just the same.

Doctor’s bags are still being manufactured today and are still as popular as ever with many groups of people, not just doctors. Their classic look and rugged design make them great overnight bags and they are becoming popular as large handbags for women. New doctors still receive them from family at graduation just like a century ago. They are still passed down from father to son at retirement.

While today’s fast-paced world has left doctors’ house calls in the dust, most doctors still carry a doctor’s bag. It is still a necessity for doctors in countries where hospitals or clinics may be miles away. Big city doctors are more likely to stow it in their car for those rare occasions when an emergency occurs in their everyday life and they need to assist. But most doctors still carry a doctor’s bag to remind them of a slower time when occasionally, all it took to make a child better was a peppermint.

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