It's the future, Jim, but not as we know it
[Having just watched the notorious WikiLeaks Collateral Murder video, I worry that this post is probably in very poor taste. But on the other hand, a stupid blog post in poor taste is hardly the worst of the world's problems, and writing this out is the only way to get it out of my head. So: go, watch, and see what's being done in your name; donate to WikiLeaks, if you feel so inclined, and then we can get on with geeking out on cool tech, albeit with slightly heavier hearts.]
For reasons that began with playing Modern Warfare 2¹ at a friend's house the previous weekend, I spent far more time than I should last week reading Wikipedia's astonishingly extensive collection of articles on military uniforms. And I've gotta say, modern military uniforms - and especially modern American military uniforms - are seriously Gucci. Lightweight, breathable, moisture-wicking: all the good stuff that the discerning purchaser of civilian outdoor gear now expects, but with additional features suitable for a military context - like being fireproof, at least somewhat bulletproof, incorporating Identification Friend or Foe systems, fractal camouflage patterns, and infrared signature minimisation. Yep, you read that right - even the US infantry has Stealth technology now.
Now, science fiction has been telling us for years that this kind of thing is coming. But it's always been predicted to come in the form of armoured, powered exoskeletons, like those worn by Heinlein's Mobile Infantry or Warhammer 40k's Space Marines. DARPA (and their mates in the military-industrial complex) have done it with fabric.
¹ Again, I had serious doubts about the tastefulness of a game based on The War Against Terror; but these were swiftly overshadowed by my incandescent rage at the astonishingly irritating control system. Never send a joypad to do a mouse's job... Also, don't try to ice-climb like that in reality: your arms will quickly get pumped out, and then where will you be when the Russian² commandos emerge to kill you?. As in all climbing, the arms should be used mainly for balance, and the upward force should come from the legs. Oh, and you might like to use a rope, too.
² Seriously - the Russians are the bad guys? What is this, 1984?
For reasons that began with playing Modern Warfare 2¹ at a friend's house the previous weekend, I spent far more time than I should last week reading Wikipedia's astonishingly extensive collection of articles on military uniforms. And I've gotta say, modern military uniforms - and especially modern American military uniforms - are seriously Gucci. Lightweight, breathable, moisture-wicking: all the good stuff that the discerning purchaser of civilian outdoor gear now expects, but with additional features suitable for a military context - like being fireproof, at least somewhat bulletproof, incorporating Identification Friend or Foe systems, fractal camouflage patterns, and infrared signature minimisation. Yep, you read that right - even the US infantry has Stealth technology now.
Now, science fiction has been telling us for years that this kind of thing is coming. But it's always been predicted to come in the form of armoured, powered exoskeletons, like those worn by Heinlein's Mobile Infantry or Warhammer 40k's Space Marines. DARPA (and their mates in the military-industrial complex) have done it with fabric.
¹ Again, I had serious doubts about the tastefulness of a game based on The War Against Terror; but these were swiftly overshadowed by my incandescent rage at the astonishingly irritating control system. Never send a joypad to do a mouse's job... Also, don't try to ice-climb like that in reality: your arms will quickly get pumped out, and then where will you be when the Russian² commandos emerge to kill you?. As in all climbing, the arms should be used mainly for balance, and the upward force should come from the legs. Oh, and you might like to use a rope, too.
² Seriously - the Russians are the bad guys? What is this, 1984?