Wednesday, January 26, 2022

Yet Another New Technology to Learn

 As one of the third age, I have seen so much development in my lifetime in so many areas of my life with computing, medicine, agriculture and others changing the way we live. So, it should not be a surprise that yet another major development is on its way and  we will  start hearing more and about quantum computing, quantum sensors and the like.

Quantum sensing covers motion – including acceleration, rotation and gravity – electric and magnetic fields, and imaging.. By measuring electric and magnetic fields very accurately across many frequencies. there is no need to calibrate.

Militaries and defense companies are already producing, in some cases, and close to producing in others, practical, significant defense technologies using quantum sensors.

Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. cannot discuss most of its operational focuses on-record, but it can confirm that it is interested in quantum sensors for navigation in GPS-denied environments.


Quantum computing and quantum sensors can be seen as cousins in a quantum physics revolution that will be no less significant than the space race.


Rafael Quantum Technological Center Head Ran consider that quantum sensor technology could be two years or less away from being deployed by a military somewhere. But quantum computing may be five, 10 or more years away from having practical real-world applications outside of the finance sector.


“Our Quantum Center is focused on trying to develop quantum sensors and quantum technology that would enhance IDF’s abilities in defense .


Ran said that new advances in quantum sensors for submarine and other sea vessels’ navigation systems may be two years off.


An increasing number of IDF land vehicles operate using networked and artificial intelligence technologies for everything from navigation to targeting, and publicly available sources indicate that militaries using such technologies could be vulnerable to certain kinds of classical jamming without upgrading to quantum sensors.


Classical jamming technology works on classical detection technology in order to create noise, spoofing and to mimic enemy units with a large volume of false positives that results in losing the ability to locate the real targets.

Wednesday, January 12, 2022

BDS Gets it Wrong Again

 

Elbit Systems reorganises its UK business activities.

Palestine Action’s BDS sustained campaign of direct action against Elbit Ferranti in Oldham proves ultimately successful as Elbit sell the subsidiary and pack their bags.”
 
So reads the headline by the Palestinian Action group in the UK. However, this could not be further from the truth. 

Quite clearly Elbit is not going anywhere, they are staying in th UK and as they report “maintaining an impressive footprint across the UK, providing a range of advanced systems for the UK Ministry of Defense and will also allow the company to meet the future capability needs of the UK Armed Forces” 
 
Elbit Systems UK has revealed a restructuring of its UK operations to focus on the growth of its core business.

As part of the reorganisation process, the company has sold its subsidiary Ferranti Technologies’ Power and Control business to TT Electronics for a cash consideration of approximately $12m (£9m).

The transaction was dependent on customary post-completion working capital adjustments.

Ferranti’s remaining business, including training and simulation, display systems, aircrew survival systems, avionics, and few others, is intended to be integrated into Elbit Systems UK.

According to Elbit Systems UK, the deal confirms the company’s strategy to develop its core business through continued investment.

These changes will enable the company to concentrate on new and innovative technology solutions development.

It will also allow the company to meet the future capability needs of the UK Armed Forces.

Elbit Systems UK CEO Martin Fausset said: “We are pleased to confirm continued successful progress in implementing Elbit Systems UK’s strategy.

“Elbit Systems UK already has an impressive footprint across the UK, providing a range of advanced systems for the UK Ministry of Defense.

Wednesday, January 5, 2022

Rabbi resigns after 30 years at BBC over ‘inexcusable’ anti-Semitism

 

“Rabbi YY Rubinstein’s courageous and principled decision to resign as a broadcaster at the BBC is just the latest sign of the collapse in the Jewish community’s confidence in the corporation," Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) said in a statement.

A rabbi who has worked for the BBC for decades has tendered his resignation with the British Broadcasting Corporation in response to their handling of a story about a Hanukkah night attack on a group of Jewish teens.

In a letter, Rabbi YY Rubinstein, who has worked for both BBC radio and television, said, “This is a very sad moment for me as I have been a BBC broadcaster for some 30 years. … The current crisis over anti-Semitism at the corporation and its attempts to turn the victims of the recent anti-Semitic attack on Jewish children in London and claim that the victims were actually the perpetrators, was and is inexcusable. The obfuscation, denial that followed, was and is utterly damning.

“ … I simply don’t see how I or in fact any Jew who has any pride in that name can be associated with the corporation anymore,” he continued.

 His decision to leave follows a plethora of criticism stemming from a broadcast in which BBC staff attempted to paint the teenage victims of a Nov. 30 anti-Semitic attack on a busy London street during Hanukkah as the offenders.

Video clips of the incident show men attacking the bus carrying the teens to an event. In its on-air reporting, BBC stated that the Jewish teens made racial slurs against Muslims, despite there being no evidence to support the claim.

 The broadcast led to a protest rally outside the BBC, organized by the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA), with people demanding the BBC stop blaming the Jews and tell the truth.

A spokesperson for CAA responded to news of the resignation saying, “Rabbi Rubinstein’s courageous and principled decision to resign as a broadcaster at the BBC is just the latest sign of the collapse in the Jewish community’s confidence in the corporation. No self-respecting Jewish person wants to be publicly associated with the BBC after it yet again demonstrated its bias against Jews in its recent reportage of an anti-Semitic incident on Oxford Street in Central London.

“We have written to the BBC and held a rally …. But the BBC has only doubled down and refused to accept its error or apologize, adopt the international definition of anti-Semitism or accept anti-Semitism training,” the spokesman continued. The BBC “is once more attempting to bludgeon the Jewish community into silence by hiding behind layers of unaccountable bureaucracy. With the support of a furious Jewish community, we will continue to pressure the Corporation to change its ways and live up to its legal obligations.”

Just last week, the Simon Wiesenthal Center named the British Broadcasting Company in its “Global Anti-Semitism Top 10.”

Tuesday, January 4, 2022

FM Warns of Labeling Israel as Apartheid State in 2022

 



On Monday, Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid complained about the increasing scrutiny Israel is facing for its crimes against Palestinians and warned that 2022 will see an intense effort to label Israel as an apartheid state.

“We think that in the coming year, there will be debate that is unprecedented in its venom and in its radioactivity around the words ‘Israel as an apartheid state,'” Lapid told reporters. “In 2022, it will be a tangible threat.”

Israel pointed to the probes by the International Criminal Court into Israeli war crimes and the UN Human Rights Council’s to establish a commission of inquiry into Israel’s treatment of Palestinians. The Human Rights Council will also investigate Israel’s May 2021 bombing campaign in Gaza, known as Operation Guardian of the Walls in Israel, which killed over 250 Palestinians, including over 60 children.

“The commission of inquiry into Guardian of the Walls is unprecedented because it doesn’t have a time limit, it doesn’t have a limit of scope, and it is well-funded with many people working on it,” Lapid said.

With US backing, Israel usually goes on the offensive to combat criticism of its war crimes and slow de facto annexation of the West Bank through settlements. Israel has been working hard against the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which calls for international boycotts to pressure Israel.

Over 30 US states have anti-BDS laws on the books, and Israel had asked US governors to enforce them after the ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s announced it would stop selling its product in illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Several states have obliged Israel and taken action against Unilever, the British conglomerate that owns Ben & Jerry’s.

More on this at https://tinyurl.com/bdw4cem3