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 Drones


Chainsaw attached to drone and flown around in terrifying video footage

The Independent - Tech

Nasa has announced that it has found evidence of flowing water on Mars. Scientists have long speculated that Recurring Slope Lineae -- or dark patches -- on Mars were made up of briny water but the new findings prove that those patches are caused by liquid water, which it has established by finding hydrated salts. Several hundred camped outside the London store in Covent Garden. The 6s will have new features like a vastly improved camera and a pressure-sensitive "3D Touch" display


The Army Wants You to Make Its Soldiers Pocket-Sized Drones

WIRED

Drones first glided into the public imagination in the early 2000s when the US Air Force and the CIA started using school bus-sized Predator and Reaper unmanned aerial vehicles for surveillance and airstrikes in the Middle East. These days, the US Army wants something a bit smaller: Pocket-sized drones that soldiers can use in battle zones to see around corners, over hills, or behind trees to aoid ambushes and other surprises. Ideally, soldiers will be able to launch such a nano-drone quickly, the Army says. "It will send real-time video back to the operator to give them real-time situational awareness of what's in the immediate vicinity," says says Phil Cheatham, the deputy branch chief for electronics at the Army's Maneuvers Center for Excellence (MCOE). The Army wants something affordable that can be ordered in bulk to provide a drone to each squad. The Army already uses satellite imagery and larger drones to provide broader battlefield intelligence, Cheatham says.


'The Hive' skyscraper in New York could be covered with a swarm of delivery drones

Daily Mail - Science & tech

Now, a source claims the Small UAV Coalition is recommending the ban be relaxed to encourage commercial development in the area. The recommendations call for creating four categories of small drones that commercial operators can fly over people, including crowds in some cases. The first category of drones would weigh no more than about a half-pound (230 grams). They essentially could fly unrestricted over people, including crowds. Drone makers would have to certify that if the drone hit someone, there would be no more than a 1 percent chance that the maximum force of the impact would cause a serious injury.


Commercial drones could soon be given the green light: Report outlines plans to lift the ban on flying machines over crowds and during deliveries

Daily Mail - Science & tech

'Every TV station in the country wants one, but they can't be limited to flying in the middle of nowhere because there's no news in the middle of nowhere,' said Jim Williams, a former head of the FAA's drone office who now advises the industry for Dentons, an international law firm. Mobile network providers also want to loosen restrictions so drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles, can inspect mobile phone masts, which often are in urban areas. Amazon's vision for package deliveries entails drones winging their way over city and suburban neighborhoods. The AP obtained a copy of the recommendations, which were sent to the FAA late Friday. The agency is not bound by the recommendations and can make changes when it writes the final rules.


Friends make a drone-controlled CHAINSAW and use it to hack at trees

Daily Mail - Science & tech

If there was ever something worthy of being called a chopper, this crazy contraption is truly it. The radio-controlled helicopter not only has rotary blades, but it also has a chainsaw attached to it. The three friends from Finland who made it have nicknamed the invention their'killer drone', and used the test flight to hack at trees, icicles and snowmen. Test-run: The three friends from Finland who made it have nicknamed the invention their'killer drone, and used the test flight to hack at trees, icicles and snowmen Beheaded: The snowmen's heads were immediately reduced to nothing when the chainsaws hit them, sending a cloud of ice and slush flying through the air Miika Ullakko, Henri Kiviniemi and drone pilot Antti Junnari came up with the idea as a joke after seeing videos of drones delivering mail. Miika said: 'Anyone who's ever flown a drone knows how ridiculous the idea of a drone delivering mail is.


APNewsBreak: Move to OK commercial drone flights over people

U.S. News

A government-sponsored committee is recommending standards that could clear the way for commercial drone flights over populated areas and help speed the introduction of package delivery drones and other uses not yet possible, The Associated Press has learned. The Federal Aviation Administration currently prohibits most commercial drone flights over populated areas, especially crowds. That ban frustrates a host of industries that want to take advantage of the technology. "Every TV station in the country wants one, but they can't be limited to flying in the middle of nowhere because there's no news in the middle of nowhere," said Jim Williams, a former head of FAA's drone office who now advises the industry for Dentons, an international law firm. Cellular network providers also want to loosen restrictions so drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles, can inspect cell towers, which often are in urban areas.


10 Things to Know for Monday

Associated Press

An international coalition of media outlets publishes what it says is an extensive investigation into the offshore financial dealings of the rich and famous. The EU agency that's responsible for processing asylum seekers has less than a tenth of the 2,300 officers that it needs to do the job. He's calling for the Ohio governor, who has won only his home state, to drop out of the GOP presidential race. U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, speaking in Cairo during a congressional tour of the region, says that Congress will continue to play a primary role in foreign policy "regardless of what Mr. Trump says or does." The accident just south of Philadelphia kills two Amtrak workers and sends more than 30 passengers to the hospital.


FAA given recommendations, terms for commercial drone flights over people: AP

The Japan Times

WASHINGTON โ€“ A government-sponsored committee is recommending standards that could clear the way for commercial drone flights over populated areas and help speed the introduction of package delivery drones and other uses not yet possible, The Associated Press has learned. The Federal Aviation Administration currently prohibits most commercial drone flights over populated areas, especially crowds. That ban frustrates a host of industries that want to take advantage of the technology. "Every TV station in the country wants one, but they can't be limited to flying in the middle of nowhere because there's no news in the middle of nowhere," said Jim Williams, a former head of the FAA's drone office who now advises the industry for Dentons, an international law firm. Cellular network providers also want to loosen restrictions so drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles, can inspect cell towers, which often are in urban areas.


Should commercial drone flights be permitted to fly over populated areas?

PBS NewsHour

Workers set up a commercial drone display at the AEE Technology booth in the Las Vegas Convention Center for the 2016 CES trade show in Las Vegas, Nevada, January 5, 2016. WASHINGTON -- A government-sponsored committee is recommending standards that could clear the way for commercial drone flights over populated areas and help speed the introduction of package delivery drones and other uses not yet possible, The Associated Press has learned. The Federal Aviation Administration currently prohibits most commercial drone flights over populated areas, especially crowds. That ban frustrates a host of industries that want to take advantage of the technology. "Every TV station in the country wants one, but they can't be limited to flying in the middle of nowhere because there's no news in the middle of nowhere," said Jim Williams, a former head of FAA's drone office who now advises the industry for Dentons, an international law firm.


Obama says U.S. drone strikes killed civilians 'that shouldn't have been'

PBS NewsHour

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks during a conference at Buenos Aires' Town Hall, March 23, 2016. WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama acknowledged Friday that "civilians were killed that shouldn't have been" in past U.S. drone strikes, but said the administration is now "very cautious" about striking where women or children are present. Obama was asked at a news conference about an increase in the number of people targeted in drone strikes against extremists in Libya, Syria, Somalia and elsewhere. "In the past, there was legitimate criticism that the legal architecture around the use of drone strikes wasn't as precise as it should have been," Obama said. "There's no doubt that civilians were killed that shouldn't have been."