Author: Braxton Taylor

The U.S. may cede its technological superiority to China if it does not speed up the development and deployment of artificial intelligence, the former head of the Pentagon’s office for accelerating AI adoption said Monday. During an emerging-technology summit at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center, Radha Plumb — who served as the Defense Department’s chief digital and AI officer during the final year of the Biden administration — said competition with China, in particular, necessitates “an all-hands-on-deck moment” for the U.S. government and industry partners, given Beijing’s military and economic strength. Whether it’s firms building cloud environments or physical infrastructure, Plumb said “all…

Last week, the U.S. Senate voted down an amendment that would have blocked a proposal to sell public land to build affordable housing. You may have seen headlines about this, but the whole story is a little confusing, so stick with me.A few weeks ago, some Republican senators floated the idea of selling public land and using those funds to reduce the national deficit. This isn’t a new idea, but they wanted to include it in this year’s budget bill. That’s a big deal.Thanks to some complicated congressional rules I’m not going to explain here (mostly because I don’t quite…

People Always Looking At Their Phones During a previous career, I spent a number of years commuting into a major city and would, at times, take the train. While observing others, I was always amazed at the complete and utter lack of situational awareness by seemingly 99% of the commuters. Amidst the sea of commuters, each with their head buried in their phones, I found myself intrigued by their behavior. While I would occasionally read or gaze out the window, they seemed to be in a world of their own, disconnected from the present moment. This contrast in our actions…

The Coast Guard is planning a radical redesign that includes more personnel, improved technology and acquisition systems, and changes to its organization that include a service secretary.Exact details of the service’s transformation, known as “Force Design 2028,” have not been released, but plans call for changes in personnel policy, including modernization of the Coast Guard Reserve and civilian management; restructuring at the headquarters level; and improvements to acquisitions processes and information technology systems, according to an April 3 news release.”We are executing transformational change to renew the Coast Guard,” Acting Commandant Adm. Kevin Lunday said in a statement to Military.com…

A decade ago, three out of four of the Navy’s fighter and electronic warfare jets weren’t fit for combat, prompting the service to set a goal for 80-percent mission-capable rates. They got there in a year. Now the service is hoping to make similar magic happen again—this time with its surface and submarine fleets.To pull it off, the Navy is looking at some of the lessons-from its aviation readiness crisis—like cutting down the amount of time a platform spends in scheduled maintenance. “By thinking, acting and operating differently, we decreased maintenance-hour turnaround time by 59 percent,” Adm. Jim Kilby, the acting…

It doesn’t matter how much post-season scouting I do, I always regret not adding more deer hunting spots to my list. While I think there’s merit in compiling historical data and spending time on a few properties, you can never have too many hunting spots for various reasons. Habitat changes from year to year, properties change hands, and hunting pressure heats up. Even drastic weather conditions might alter the way deer use (or don’t use) the landscape in a given year. I’ve seen one or a combination of these factors turn honeyholes into deserts in a matter of a single…

Bear Creek Arsenal is launching a new line of AR10 uppers and rifles in a new bolt-action style. This new line is designed to offer precision, reliability, and versatility to shooting enthusiasts and professionals alike. The new bolt action AR10 uppers and rifles will be available in five popular calibers: .308 Win, 6.5 Creedmoor, 8.6 BLK,.243 Win, and .22-250 Rem. Each caliber has been carefully selected to meet the diverse needs of hunters, competitive shooters, and those who live in states with restrictive gun laws. Bear Creek Arsenal Bolt-Action AR-10 Features: Precision engineering: The bolt action style design ensures e…

It is a truth universally acknowledged that everybody hates you when you are 23. (Doubters, please consult Blink-182’s “What’s My Age Again?”) However, if you are a military member retiring after 20+ years of service, you might suspect that nobody likes you when you are 43 or 53, either.Why? Because at these two stages of your life, you only understand enough about civilian work to be dangerous and dissatisfied — and you don’t even know it.Confused about what employers do want from veteran job seekers? Sign up for our free master class, “Translation Lab: How to Translate Your Military Experience for a…

If your performance in two of the three fitness test events (plank and push-ups) is borderline pass/fail, or you can almost max the test, you might be tempted to shout a curse word (or three). While it will definitely help soothe the burn of a failing grade, it turns out a perfectly timed expletive may be the difference between passing and failing in the future. In fact, the sailor’s superpower may now be an effective tool for never failing a fitness test again.Science has linked cursing to physical fitness test improvements, which is particularly helpful if you are in the…

Ace Virtual Shooting and SIG Sauer are releasing the SIG Experience, which features SIG Sauer replica handsets and optics. The ACE marksmanship simulator lets fans experience SIG Sauer products in an all-new, groundbreaking environment. For current members of the thriving Ace community, this collaboration unlocks more opportunity to build skills and connect with SIG Sauer enthusiasts from wherever you are. This Ace/SIG collaboration includes licensed replica P320 X-Five Legion and P365 X-Macro Comp handsets. Users can equip their virtual handset with a SIG Romeo3Max red dot optic or other available options and shoot through hundreds of courses of fire in…