Air Force Buys 1,760 Sony PlayStation3s: Linked By Lab Under Wright-Patterson, Cluster Is Among World's 10 Most Powerful Supercomputers

Sony PS3 Cluster Creates Supercomputer

[UPDATED 11/30/10 8:27 a.m. -- The Plain Dealer's Steve Koff files a report from the Washington Bureau about the PS3 supercomputer.]
CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Toy story, not.  Star Wars, maybe.  The U.S. Air Force plans to dedicate its newest supercomputer -- which has been named Condor -- Wednesday at a facility in Rome, N.Y.  It has clustered 1,760 PlayStation3 consoles to create a 500 teraFLOP device -- it can do 500 trillion operations per second.   That is blazing speed, faster than almost anything on Earth.  Said Mark Barnell, director of Air Force Research Laboratory high power computing:  "Such capability exceeds any other interactive supercomputer currently used by the Department of Defense."

The Air Force spent about $2 million for the PS3s and figures it may have saved up to $40 million by using game consoles rather than buying a typical commercial supercomputer.  The PlayStation3 came on the market just before Christmas in 2006 for playing computer games.  It is quieter than an Xbox360 and louder than a Wii, and probably not quite as popular as either rival.  It costs about $400 and nobody this side of Santa Claus ever expected that the 11-pound PS3 consoles would be enlisted for military service outside a round of Call of Duty. The whole USAF mashup sounds like something out of a James Bond movie.  But the Air Force said the gamers opened the door:

"The gaming marketplace has eagerly funded research and development for their products, resulting in very affordable yet powerful mass-marketed game systems.  The military has discovered that his commercial technology is a quickly reachable low-hanging fruit for its own applications.  The Condor system will be freely available to all DoD users on a shared basis . . . The system will be able to accomplish a wide variety of supercomputing tasks for a fraction of the typical investment."

Here's lots of links about PlayStation3s, which remain on lists as Christmas gifts. And here's the Air Force news release about the project.  One planned use is research into neuromorphic artificial intelligence.  That's a mouthful of a phrase that means a robotic device that mimics natural biological functions for a sense of touch, or sight, or balance and movement.  The eventual goal would be some kind of synthetic consciousness -- for now, far beyond a PS3.

U.S. Air Force Launches Its New Official Motto: 'Aim High . . . Fly, Fight, Win'

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Some Air Force people are at a loss for words today.  They seem to think the money spoent on the new motto was a waste of precious tax dollars.  Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz sees things differently.  He says the new motto is a statement of pride in service.  Others think it falls far short of the Marine Corps' revered motto, Semper Fi.  Schwartz said:  "Airmen indicated 'Aim High' and the response 'Fly-Fight-Win' as indicative of their enduring commitment to do just that in defense of our nation."

On the comments section of AF.mil, the service's official online portal, there was this observation:

"0/8/2010 9:55:37 AM ET
Seriously Billy Mitchell just threw up . I can think of 100 other things these 250 people could have done with their time. Well done USAF. Here is a another motto INITIATIVE AGGRESSION AIR DISCIPLINE."


You can read the official announcement about the adoption of the new U.S. Air Force motto along with all the comments here on the Air Force website. Most of the comments seem to be critical.

Adultery Scandal Rocks Ohio Air Force Base: The Case Of The Randy Chief Master Sergeant Who Shagged Married Subordinates

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- It is still against the law to have sex with a married colleague in the military. And a lot of service members have been scoping out a
brief Air Force news release about hanky panky at Wright Patterson in Ohio. The item -- which offers scant details -- has been among the "most viewed" on the service's official Web site for more than a week. Apparently, the married male sergeant boffed several of his married female subordinates, and there are allegations of sexual harassment. In From the Cold is a blog that follows intelligence matters, and noted that the accused philanderer had served in units with spy missions. It did not suggest he was James Bond. While the randy sergeant faces punishment under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, none of the women have been charged. That news that was dug up by an enterprising reporter, John Nolan of the Dayton Daily News, formerly of the Associated Press in Cincinnati. Compare what Nolan learned versus the Air Force's minimalist press release:

This is the military version: "WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFNS) -- A former command chief master sergeant for the Air Force Materiel Command here, has been formally charged by Air Force officials with several counts of violating specific articles of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Chief Master Sergeant William Gurney was charged with seven specifications of violation of Article 92, failure to obey an order or regulation and dereliction of duty; two specifications of violation of Article 93, maltreatment; two specifications of violation of Article 120, indecent conduct and wrongful sexual contact; and seven specifications of violation of Article 134, adultery and misuse of official position.These charges are the result of an investigation by Air Force Office of Special Investigation agents that began in November 2009 after a junior enlisted female member came forth with allegations of sexual harassment.Gen. Donald Hoffman, the commander of AFMC, has elected to request transfer of this case to avoid any actual or perceived conflict of interest since Chief Gurney reported directly to him in his previous position. As a result, the case has been transferred from AFMC to Air Mobility Command officials for the administration of military justice."

Now sample a portion of the Dayton Daily News report today:

"Among the accusations:
Gurney, who is married, had sex with two of the technical sergeants, also married, and two of the master sergeants, also married. Adultery violates the Uniform Code of Military Justice, placed in a category of conduct that could be detrimental to the order and discipline of the armed forces, could damage morale or respect for authority, and could bring discredit to the armed forces.
Gurney had sex in the presence of a master sergeant, and repeatedly and deliberately made sexual remarks to the victims."

You Can Do Anything But Stay Off My Green Suede Combat Boots

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Forget wild blue yonder. Researchers at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio have recommended new footwear for troops -- sage-green leather combat boots. The new design would replace suede green boots that have been standard issue for a while. Apparently, the suede can become stained. The Air Force disclosed results of its final combat boot test results two days ago. Sage green it is:

"In 2008, the Air Force Uniform Office here began investigating various options for increasing the stain-resistant properties of the current issue suede ABU combat boots. The first test of a stain-resistant boot was unsuccessful in meeting the needs of Airmen. As a result, AFUO officials conducted a follow-on test with different materials. This follow-on wear and lab testing provided the research and development project team with data to make the best selection for acceptable stain-resistant ABU combat boots. 'The latest test boots have smooth leather, like the old black boots,' said Richard Keefer, AFUO chief. 'The intent was to try a boot that is easy to clean, will not stain and hides scuffs and wear from industrial use.'

The Air Force has gotten six comments about the new combat boots on its AF.mil portal, and three wonder why the footwear is green. One says the color is awful:

1/30/2010 12:58:54 AM ET I think that the fact that the Air Force has invested and continues to invest considerable resources towards the design/development of a distinctive uniform is a clear example of mis-prioritization of funds. In my opinion the expenditure of our taxpayers' money on frivolous activities especially during our current economic downturn borders on being criminal. The Air Force should have let the Army foot the bill for developing the ACU and used it. I'm not pointing blame at just the Air Force-all three services have jumped on the distinctive uniform bandwagon. Distinctive uniforms are great when funds are plentiful but when my troops have issues getting the cold/wet weather gear that they need because of money... well at least I can take comfort in the fact that those sage green boots match my distinctive ABUs.
David, Nellis AFB

1/29/2010 11:25:29 PM ET Let me be the first to say it the green boots look awful. It doesn't matter what style the boots come in - the green boots look strange. What is wrong with the tan or black boots that everyone already has
Capt G, Texas

1/29/2010 5:45:19 PM ET Why must the boot be green We look ridiculous in these sage green boots. I continue to wear my BDU's and highly polished black boots. I hope someone comes along and changes our boots back to black or tan.
Ben Dover, LA

Air Force Researchers In Ohio: Their 'Gay Bomb' Wins Ig Nobel Prize

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- A military research project in Ohio intended to develop a chemical weapon that would make soldiers fall in love with each other on the battlefield has been awarded the Ig Nobel Peace Prize. Sadly, the Pentagon kissed off the program. It decided to stick with guns and explosives. Details here:

"PEACE PRIZE The Air Force Wright Laboratory, Dayton, Ohio, USA, for instigating research & development on a chemical weapon -- the so-called "gay bomb" -- that will make enemy soldiers become sexually irresistible to each other.REFERENCE: "Harassing, Annoying, and 'Bad Guy' Identifying Chemicals," Wright Laboratory, WL/FIVR, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, June 1, 1994, <http://www.sunshine-project.org/ incapacitants/jnlwdpdf/wpafbchem.pdf>PRESS NOTE: The Air Force Wright Laboratory has since been re- organized, and is now called the Air Force Research Laboratory"

For the complete list of all the Ig Nobel awards, and links to the scientific papers, read on.

IG NOBEL PRIZES ARE AWARDED AT HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Literally-bottomless bowl of soup; and "gay bomb" among winners; Also: A net that drops on bank robbers; and vanilla made from cow dung;Winners come from 5 continents

Oct. 4, 2007, CAMBRIDGE, MA. The 2007 Ig Nobel Prizes, honoring achievements that first make people LAUGH, and then make them THINK, were awarded at Harvard University's historic Sanders Theatre tonight before 1200 spectators in a ceremony filled with chickens, eggs, opera singers, and paper airplanes. Around the world, thousands watched via live webcast. This was the 17th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony.�Seven of the ten new winners journeyed to Harvard -- at their own expense -- to accept their Prizes. This year's winners come from five continents. South America, which produced few Ig Nobel winners in the past, made a big splash this year with three Prizes.�The Ig Nobel Prizes were physically handed to the winners by genuine Nobel Laureates Craig Mello (Physiology or Medicine, 2006), Roy Glauber (Physics, 2005), Dudley Herschbach (Chemistry 1986), William Lipscomb (Chemistry 1976), and Robert Laughlin (Physics 1998). Professor Laughlin was the prize in the Win-a-Date-With-a-Nobel- Laureate Contest.�The event was produced by the science humor magazine "Annals of Improbable Research" (AIR), and co-sponsored by the Harvard-Radcliffe Science Fiction Association and the Harvard-Radcliffe Society of Physics Students, and the Harvard Computer Society.�The evening also featured numerous tributes to the evening's theme of "Chicken." Keynote speaker Doug Zongker's talk, titled "Chicken Chicken Chicken: Chicken Chicken," consisted of two solid minutes of repeating the word "chicken," accompanied by technical diagrams. (The complete text and diagrams are online at <http://tinyurl.com/yp2vuv>)�The ceremony included the premiere of a new mini-opera called "Chicken versus Egg" -- a mother-daughter tale starring Gail Kilkelly and Maggie McNeil, professional opera singers who are themselves mother and daughter. They were joined in the rousing conclusion by all the scientists on stage.�Each new winner was permitted a maximum of sixty (60) seconds to deliver an acceptance speech; the time limit was enforced by a cute- but-implacable eight-year-old girl. The winners will try to explain themselves at greater length (five minutes each) in free public lectures on the afternoon of Saturday, October 6 at MIT.�Several former winners were present, greeted with frenzy from the audience. These included: Don Featherstone (creator of the plastic pink flamingo); Kees Moeliker (who reported the first scientifically recorded case of homosexual necrophilia in the mallard duck); Gauri Nanda (inventor of an alarm clock that runs away and hides repeatedly); and Francis Fesmire (the first doctor to cure intractable hiccups by applying digital rectal massage). Also present was the daughter of recently-deceased past winner Robert Lopez (the veterinarian who took ear mites from a cat, inserted them into his own ear, and then carefully observed the results).�Marc Abrahams, master of ceremonies (and editor of the Annals of Improbable Research), closed the ceremony with the traditional, "If you didn't win an Ig Nobel prize tonight -- and especially if you did -- better luck next year."�The event was broadcast live on the Internet, and can be seen in recorded form at <http://www.improbable.com>. [An edited recording of the ceremony will be broadcast on National Public Radio's "Science Friday" program on the day after Thanksgiving.]�For more info see www.improbable.com��============THE WINNERS:============�MEDICINE PRIZEBrian Witcombe of Gloucester, UK, and Dan Meyer of Antioch, Tennessee, USA, for their penetrating medical report "Sword Swallowing and Its Side Effects."REFERENCE: "Sword Swallowing and Its Side Effects," Brian Witcombe and Dan Meyer, British Medical Journal, December 23, 2006, vol. 333, pp. 1285-7.WHO ATTENDED THE CEREMONY: Brian Witcombe and Dan MeyerPRESS NOTE: Prior to coming to the Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony, the two co-winners never actually met each other -- they collaborated via telephone and email.CONTACT: Dr. Brian Witcombe, consultant radiologist Gloucestershire Royal NHS Foundation Trust, Gloucester, GL1 3NN, UK. Phone: Work: (+44) 01452 394245. CONTACT: Dan Meyer, The Sword Swallowers Association International, 3729 Belle Oaks Drive, Antioch, Tennessee 37013, USA. Mobile: (+1) (615) 969-2568. <http:// www.cuttingedgeinnertainment.com/>�PHYSICS PRIZEL. Mahadevan of Harvard University, USA, and Enrique Cerda Villablanca of Universidad de Santiago de Chile, for studying how sheets become wrinkled.REFERENCES:"Wrinkling of an Elastic Sheet Under Tension," E. Cerda, K. Ravi- Chandar, L. Mahadevan, Nature, vol. 419, October 10, 2002, pp. 579-80."Geometry and Physics of Wrinkling," E. Cerda and L. Mahadevan, Physical Review Letters, fol. 90, no. 7, February 21, 2003, pp. 074302/1-4."Elements of Draping," E. Cerda, L. Mahadevan and J. Passini, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 101, no. 7, 2004, pp. 1806-10.WHO ATTENDED THE CEREMONY: Lakshminarayanan Mahadevan, and Enrique Cerda Villablanca's sister Mariela.PRESS NOTE: Lakshminarayanan Mahadevan is a native of India.CONTACT: L. Mahadevan, Lola England de Valpine Professor of Applied Mathematics, Pierce Hall 324, Harvard University, 29 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA. Phone: (+1) 617-496-9599 <http://www.seas.harvard.edu/softmat/>CONTACT: Professor Enrique Cerda Villablanca, Departamento de Fisica, Universidad de Santiago de Chile (USACH) Address: Avenida Ecuador 3493, Estacion Central, Santiago 9170124, Chile. Phone: (+56) 2-7181255 <http://fisica.usach.cl/academicos/ EnriqueCerdaVillablanca.htm><http://www.nolineal.cl/>�BIOLOGY PRIZEProf. Dr. Johanna E.M.H. van Bronswijk of Eindhoven University of Technology, The Netherlands, for doing a census of all the mites, insects, spiders, pseudoscorpions, crustaceans, bacteria, algae, ferns and fungi with whom we share our beds each night.REFERENCES:"Huis, Bed en Beestjes" [House, Bed and Bugs], J.E.M.H. van Bronswijk, Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Geneeskunde, vol. 116, no. 20, May 13, 1972, pp. 825-31."Het Stof, de Mijten en het Bed" [Dust, Mites and Bedding]. J.E.M.H. van Bronswijk Vakblad voor Biologen, vol. 53, no. 2, 1973, pp. 22-5."Autotrophic Organisms in Mattress Dust in the Netherlands," B. van de Lustgraaf, J.H.H.M. Klerkx, J.E.M.H. van Bronswijk, Acta Botanica Neerlandica, vol. 27, no. 2,� 1978, pp 125-8."A Bed Ecosystem," J.E.M.H. van Bronswijk, Lecture Abstracts -- 1st Benelux Congress of Zoology, Leuven, November 4-5, 1994, p. 36.WHO ATTENDED THE CEREMONY: Dr. Johanna E.M.H. van BronswijkCONTACT: Prof. Dr. Johanna E.M.H. van Bronswijk. Department of Architecture, Building & Planning, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands. Phone: (+31) 40 2472008. Mobile (+31) 6 22458496. <http://www.phe.bwk.tue.nl/Research/CV/Bronswijk.htm>�CHEMISTRY PRIZEMayu Yamamoto of the International Medical Center of Japan, for developing a way to extract vanillin -- vanilla fragrance and flavoring -- from cow dung.REFERENCE: "Novel Production Method for Plant Polyphenol from Livestock Excrement Using Subcritical Water Reaction," Mayu Yamamoto, International Medical Center of Japan.WHO ATTENDED THE CEREMONY: Mayu YamamotoPRESS NOTE: Toscanini's Ice Cream, the finest ice cream shop in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has created a new ice cream flavor in honor of Mayu Yamamoto. The flavor is called "Yum-a-Moto Vanilla Twist." For details: Gus Rancatore, Toscanini's Ice Cream, , (+1) 617-491-5877. [NOTE: Toscanini's will offer a free public tasting on Friday -- see below for details.]CONTACT:Ms. Mayu Yamamoto, 1-8-18 Nishikata, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0024, Japan.Phone/fax: +81-3-3816-4802. CONTACT: Her father: Kenji Yamamoto, Director General, Research Institute, International Medical Center of Japan, 1-21-1 Toyama, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Japan.Mobile: (+81) 090-2238-5504. �LINGUISTICS PRIZEJuan Manuel Toro, Josep B. Trobalon and N�ria Sebasti�n-Gall�s, of Universitat de Barcelona, for showing that rats sometimes cannot tell the difference between a person speaking Japanese backwards and a person speaking Dutch backwards.REFERENCE: "Effects of Backward Speech and Speaker Variability in Language Discrimination by Rats," Juan M. Toro, Josep B. Trobalon and N�ria Sebasti�n-Gall�s, Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes, vol. 31, no. 1, January 2005, pp 95-100.WHO ATTENDED THE CEREMONY: The winners could not travel to the ceremony, so they instead delivered their acceptance speech via recorded videoPRESS: NOTES: The work was done in Spain. Juan Manuel Toro is a citizen of Colombia. He now lives and works in Italy.CONTACT: Juan Manuel Toro Soto, Settore, Neuroscienze Cognitive, SISSA (Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati), via Stock 2/2, 34135 Trieste, Italy.Phone: (+39) 040 3787 603. <http://people.sissa.it/ ~jmtoro/>CONTACT: Josep Batista Trobalon, Universitat de Barcelona, 08035 Barcelona, Spain. <http://www.ub.es/pbasic/sppb/ingl/cv/ pepb.htm>CONTACT: N�ria Sebasti�n Gall�s, Dept. de Psicologia B�sica, Universitat de Barcelona, 08035 Barcelona, Spain.Phone: + 34 93 312 51 42. <http://www.ub.es/ pbasic/sppb/ingl/cv/sebastia.htm>�LITERATURE PRIZEGlenda Browne of Blaxland, Blue Mountains, Australia, for her study of the word "the" -- and of the many ways it causes problems for anyone who tries to put things into alphabetical order.REFERENCE: "The Definite Article: Acknowledging 'The' in Index Entries," Glenda Browne, The Indexer, vol. 22, no. 3 April 2001, pp. 119-22.WHO ATTENDED THE CEREMONY: Glenda BrowneCONTACT: Glenda Browne, Blaxland, Blue Mountains, NSW, Australia. Phone: (+61) 2 47398199 and (+61) 0425350421. <http://www.webindexing.biz/glenda.htm>�PEACE PRIZEThe Air Force Wright Laboratory, Dayton, Ohio, USA, for instigating research & development on a chemical weapon -- the so-called "gay bomb" -- that will make enemy soldiers become sexually irresistible to each other.REFERENCE: "Harassing, Annoying, and 'Bad Guy' Identifying Chemicals," Wright Laboratory, WL/FIVR, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, June 1, 1994, <http://www.sunshine-project.org/ incapacitants/jnlwdpdf/wpafbchem.pdf>PRESS NOTE: The Air Force Wright Laboratory has since been re- organized, and is now called the Air Force Research Laboratory.�NUTRITION PRIZEBrian Wansink of Cornell University, for exploring the seemingly boundless appetites of human beings, by feeding them with a self- refilling, bottomless bowl of soup.REFERENCE: "Bottomless Bowls: Why Visual Cues of Portion Size May Influence Intake," Brian Wansink, James E. Painter and Jill North, Obesity Research, vol. 13, no. 1, January 2005, pp. 93-100.REFERENCE: Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think, Brian Wansink, Bantom Books, 2006, ISBN 0553804340.WHO ATTENDED THE CEREMONY: Brian Wansink.CONTACT: Prof. Brian Wansink, 110 Warren Hall. Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA Office: 607.254.6302 E-mail: bcw28@cornell.edu> <http://mindlesseating.org/ <http://aem.cornell.edu/faculty_content/ wansink.htm>�ECONOMICS PRIZEKuo Cheng Hsieh, of Taichung, Taiwan, for patenting a device, in the year 2001, that catches bank robbers by dropping a net over them.REFERENCE: U.S. patent #6,219,959, granted on April 24, 2001, for a "net trapping system for capturing a robber immediately."PRESS NOTE: The Ig Nobel Board of Governors has attempted repeatedly to find Mr. Hsieh, but he seems to have vanished mysteriously.CONTACT: as listed in his patent: 5F, No. 241 Changan Road Sec. 2, Taichung, Taiwan.�AVIATION PRIZEPatricia V. Agostino, Santiago A. Plano and Diego A. Golombek of Universidad Nacional de Quilmes, Argentina, for their discovery that Viagra aids jetlag recovery in hamsters.REFERENCE: "Sildenafil Accelerates Reentrainment of Circadian Rhythms After Advancing Light Schedules," Patricia V. Agostino, Santiago A. Plano and Diego A. Golombek, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 104, no. 23, June 5 2007, pp. 9834-9.WHO ATTENDED THE CEREMONY: Diego A. GolombekCONTACT: Dr. Diego Golombek, Departamento de Ciencia y Tecnolog�a, Universidad Nacional de Quilmes, Roque S. Pe�a 352, (1876) Bernal, Pcia de Buenos Aires, Argentina. Tel: (+54) 11-4365-7100 ext. 154. ��===============RELATED EVENTS===============�ICE CREAM INTRODUCTION - FRIDAY, October 5, 2007, 11:00 am.Toscanini's Ice Cream, Central Square, 899 Main Street, Cambridge, MA.Toscanini's Ice Cream will have a free public tasting of the new flavor -- "Yum-A-Moto Vanilla Twist" -- they invented to honor 2007 Ig Nobel Chemistry Prize winner Mayu Yamamoto.For details: Gus Rancatore, , (+1) 617-491-5877.��THE IG INFORMAL LECTURES -- SATURDAY, October 6, 2007, 1:00 pm.MIT Building 10, Room 250, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge. FREE ADMISSION. An afternoon of free public lectures at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in which the new winners will explain, as best they can, why they did what they did. They will be joined by several past Ig winners.�Lecture Details: <http://www.improbable.com/ig/2007/2007- details.html#informal-lectures>��=====LINKS=====�Ceremony and Lecture Details:<http://www.improbable.com/ig/2007/2007-details.html>�Ig Nobel Prize home page: <www.improbable.com/ig/ig-top.html>�Past winners: <www.improbable.com/ig/ig-pastwinners.html>�Annals of Improbable Research: <www.improbable.com>��