(RDD) is a combination of conventional explosives (dynamite) and radioactive components (The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 2014). A RDD is any device that causes the resolute diffusion of radioactive material without a nuclear detonation (REMM, 2016).Terrorist who have utilized RDDs have labeled them as dirty bombs (Ready, 2016). However, the United States military recognizes RDDs as Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) (Burton, 2006). The radioactive materials in RDDs have been extensively…
Knee Wraps: The Benefits and Drawbacks What are knee wraps? The knee wrap is similar to the wrist wrap regarding the logic that applies to both. Knee wraps are also to an “Ace” bandage, except that they are much thicker and stronger. The elastic material that is used to make the knee wrap is the same found in wrist wraps. The allowed width for knee wraps is 8 cm (3 inches), although they can sometimes be 2.0 meter, 2.5 meters or even 3.5 meters long. Advantages of using knee wraps The primary…
Lead is a toxic metal that can enter the body by inhalation of lead dust or ingestion when touching the mouth with lead-contaminated hands. If leaked onto the ground, acid and lead particles contaminate the soil and become airborne when dry. Children and fetuses of pregnant women are most vulnerable to lead exposure because their bodies are developing. Excessive levels of lead can affect a child’s growth, cause brain damage, harm kidneys, impair hearing and induce behavioral problems. In adults,…
the lives it can take with the hazards involved with it. Some background on the MRAP and what it was made for. The MRAP was designed in a way to help defeat some of the deadliest things on the road during a deployment and these are improvised explosive devices IED’s. MRAPs come in multiple different weights and shapes of vehicles produced by a variety of domestic and international companies…
Bomb disposal is the process in which explosive devices are rendered safe and are properly disposed of. Bomb disposal teams, more commonly referred to as Bomb Squads have the job to identify, defuse and dispose of an explosive device. Bomb squads can be found in each branch of military as well as in our local and state police. Bomb disposal teams in the navy and airforce tend to work on the disposal of explosive chemicals more than they do explosive devices. The Army and Marines are trained more…
The Oklahoma City Bombing happened on April 19, 1995. This terrorist attack was the worst terrorist attack to happen before 9/11. The truck was packed with 4,800-pounds of explosives which consisted of diesel-fuel and fertilizer (ammonium nitrate). The bomb was detonated on April 19, 1995 just outside Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City shortly after 9am (Nacos, 2016). This catastrophic blast killed one hundred sixty-eight people and injured hundreds more (Nacos,…
Improvised explosive device (IED) attacks in Iraq produced up to 80% of U.S. casualties. Mine resistant and ambush protected vehicles (MRAPs), fielded to route clearance units prior to the war, were designed to protect occupants from IEDs. However, a protracted conflict between the requirements based Defense Acquisition System and the politically charged “moral imperative” to reduce causalities, delayed further MRAP fielding for nearly 3-years. This delay resulted in 1,600 preventable U.S.…
Submarines are a huge part of naval warfare because they are essential in carrying materials and supports attacks. They also help out in doing reconnaissance and establishing blockades against other nations (Chow). Other offensive technologies, such as the RPG (rocket propelled grenade), are often used in combatant settings. They are incredibly…
The Fire Scout was commissioned by the Department of the Navy to provide them with Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Target Acquisition (RSTA), and Aerial-Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (A-ISR) missions to support Commanders on the ground and at sea. The Fire Scout is a unique type of Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) as it has Vertical Takeoff & Landing (VTOL) capability. This alone gives ground Commanders the ability to have a larger UAS at their disposable in most situations…
The New York Times finishes an update on Saturday’s bombing in New York by quoting an unnamed official, “We don’t understand the target or the significance of it,” the police official said. “It’s by a pile of Dumpsters on a random sidewalk.” It’s a valid question - why here? So often we’ve seen terrorist attacks (and this is a terrorist attack) take on symbolic importance: two of the largest buildings in New York, a concert, a football game, an airport. We understand the choice of target and…