The nation’s 18 million recreational boaters may need to register their crafts in a national database and place radio frequency identification tags on their vessels under plans put forth by a stakeholders group convened by the Homeland Security Department.

The new identification and security possibilities are outlined in the report from the DHS National Small Vessel Security Summit, published by the department and recently posted on its Web site. The report was written for DHS by Charles Brownstein, task force leader of the Homeland Security Institute, a nonprofit research group.

The department invited 260 people from the private and commercial boating community and government agencies to the first small vessel summit in June to identify and develop recommendations for recreational-boat security. Terrorism experts have identified a threat to U.S. coastlines and security from possible smuggling of materials and terrorists in such vessels.

The summit report indicates disagreement among recreational boaters on whether and how to use technologies for identification and registration. Recreational boaters participating in the summit objected to expanding the Automatic Identification System run by the Coast Guard to include small craft because it would be costly and impractical. The system currently applies to commercial boats over 65 feet in length.

But the boaters left the door open for limited use of the identification system, for RFID tags on vessels and for the Coast Guard’s Vessel Identification System national boat registration system.

“Some stakeholders did see limited application for the Automated Identification System or similar technology in the vicinity of high-value/high-risk assets within limited geographic bounds in a port or waterway. The Vessel Identification System, RFID technologies and other systems were also mentioned as potential low-cost solutions that might be an acceptable alternative to vessel tracking,” the report said.

Similarly controversial were expanding requirements for operator identification and vessel registration. The boaters were worried about inappropriate requirements that infringe on their civil liberties, cost too much and are too inconvenient, the report said.

Boaters were opposed to new identification requirements as well, but government executives participating in the summit seemed to favor that solution, the report said.

“Several government attendees advocated the development of a nationwide database of U.S. numbered and documented vessels to be used by federal, state and local law enforcement authorities to access boat registration information across the country. They also expressed a need to have uniform boating registration standards shared by all states,” the report said.

The stakeholders also made recommendations for fusion centers to share maritime intelligence, improved situational awareness for boaters, more mechanisms to report suspicious activity and expanded use of technologies to identify radiological and nuclear threats.

If the plans move forward, many of the ideas outlined by the stakeholders group present oppo]]>Sun, 3 Feb 2008 09:01:15 GMThttp://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1239355/navy_tests_incredible_scifi_weapon/index.html

Navy Tests Incredible Sci-Fi Weapon

The U.S. Navy yesterday test fired an incredibly powerful new big gun designed to replace conventional weaponry aboard ships. Sci-fi fans will recognize its awesome power and futuristic technology.

The big gun uses electromagnetic energy instead of explosive chemical propellants to fire a projectile farther and faster. The railgun, as it is called, will ultimately fire a projectile more than 230 miles (370 kilometers) with a muzzle velocity seven times the speed of sound (Mach 7) and a velocity of Mach 5 at impact.

The test-firing, captured on video, took place Jan. 31 in Dahlgren, Va., and Navy officials called it the "world's most powerful electromagnetic railgun."

The Navy's current MK 45 five-inch gun, by contrast, has a range of less than 23 miles (37 kilometers).

The railgun has been a featured weapon in many science fiction universes, such as the new "Battlestar Galactic" series. It has also achieved newfound popularity among the 20-something-and-under generation for its devastating ability to instantaneously shoot a "slug" through walls and through multiple enemies in video games such as the "Quake" series of first person shooters.

The Navy's motivation? Simple destruction.

The railgun's high-velocity projectile will destroy targets with sheer kinetic energy rather than with conventional explosives.

"I never ever want to see a Sailor or Marine in a fair fight. I always want them to have the advantage," said Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Gary Roughead. "We should never lose sight of always looking for the next big thing, always looking to make our capability better, more effective than what anyone else can put on the battlefield."

The railgun's lack of explosives means ships would be safer, said Elizabeth D'Andrea, Electromagnetic Railgun Program Manager.

The Navy's goal is to demonstrate a full-capability prototype by 2018.

Last Updated: Tuesday, January 22, 2008 | 10:29 AM ET

Toyota Mottor Corp. said Tuesday it plans to equip vehicles with a safety feature to make sure drivers aren't asleep at the wheel or looking away from the road.

The new feature uses a driver-monitoring camera and image-processing computer to determine the position of the driver's upper and lower eyelids, the company said.

If the vehicle's pre-crash safety system determines that the driver's eyes are not properly open — or they are not facing forward — and a collision is imminent, it sounds an early warning to the driver.

Toyota said the eye-monitoring system, billed as a world first, would be offered in vehicle models for launch in Japan in the near future.

Toyota said in a statement monitoring the driver's condition is "vital" to vehicle safety.

"Driver condition is seen as a key factor in traffic safety, with driver error being the main cause of traffic accidents," the company said, citing a 2005 report by Japan's Institute for Traffic Accident Research and Data Analysis.

Safety features in the automotive industry are becoming increasingly automated as manufacturers look to reduce accidents caused by driver error. Many car manufacturers already include collision detection technology and some have implemented advanced indicators like blind-spot sensors that flash a light to let the driver know when a vehicle enters their blind spot.

Chris Urmson, the director of technology for Pittsburgh's Carnegie Mellon University's entry in a U.S. government-sponsored robot car race, told CBC News earlier this month that automation was the way of the future.

"It's going to be phased in gradually," said Urmson, whose team's GM SUV won the the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency Urban Challenge. "But we expect a fully autonomous, self-driving car to be on the road in the next decade."