Police agencies seek right to jam cell signals
Science & Technology

Police agencies seek right to jam cell signals

Technology tamfitronics As President Obama's motorcade rolled down Pennsylvania Avenue on Inauguration Day, federal authorities deployed a closely held law enforcement tool: equipment that can jam cellphones and other wireless devices to foil remote-controlled bombs, sources said. It is an increasingly common technology, with federal agencies expanding its use as state and local agencies are pushing for permission to do the same. Police and others say it could stop terrorists from coordinating during an attack, prevent suspects from erasing evidence on wireless devices, simplify arrests and keep inmates from using contraband phones. But jamming remains strictly illegal for state and local agencies. Federal officials barely acknowledge that they use it inside the United States, and the few federal agencies that can jam signals usually must seek a legal waiver first. The quest to expand the...
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10 Hilariously Over-Engineered Solutions to Simple Problems
Science & Technology

10 Hilariously Over-Engineered Solutions to Simple Problems

Technology tamfitronics We’ve all been there—facing a minor problem and coming up with a solution that’s a little over the top. It’s human nature to sometimes overthink things, especially when we have the tools and technology. This list is a celebration of those moments when inventors and engineers took simple problems and threw everything they had at them, resulting in solutions as impressive as they are unnecessary.Take, for example, a keyboard that costs more than a month’s rent or a mousetrap that looks like it belongs in a sci-fi movie. These are the kinds of inventions that make you chuckle and think, “Was that really necessary?” Yet there’s something endearing about them. They remind us of the joy of tinkering, of pushing boundaries just to see what’s possible, even if it means creating something utterly...
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