Walkie-talkies, radios, solar gear turn into bombs in Lebanon, US to restore WWII airfield used in Japan atomic bombing, US Army intelligence unit probes Russian tank tech

INTERESTING ENGINEERING SHOP

A new series of explosions rocked Lebanon on Wednesday afternoon, seemingly targeting handheld radios, a day after thousands were injured when their pagers exploded in a coordinated attack.

Lebanese officials reported that at least 20 people were killed and thousands were wounded in Wednesday’s second wave of blasts.

On Wednesday, there were reports of explosions in phones, laptops, walkie-talkies, radios, solar energy systems, and fingerprint-reading devices. Dive deeper into this Must-Read.

🔥Today’s job of the day as featured on jobs.interestingengineering.com:

> SENIOR NETWORK ENGINEER
> Software Integration Engineer

Reading Time: 4 mins

Did a friend forward this e-mail to you? Subscribe here.

MUST-READ

📱 After pagers, walkie-talkies, radios, solar gears turn into bombs in Lebanon

An AP photographer in the southern coastal city of Sidon observed a car and a mobile phone shop damaged by exploding devices inside them.

“A number of walkie-talkies exploded in Beirut’s southern suburbs,” a source told Reuters. Hezbollah-affiliated rescuers confirmed that the devices had exploded inside two cars in the area.

Images circulating online appeared to show different and larger devices than the pagers that exploded on Tuesday. A security source stated that the handheld radios, which exploded, were purchased five months ago, around the same time as the pagers.

US to restore WWII airfield used in Japan atomic bombing as China tensions rise

The US Air Force is bringing back the Pacific island airfield that launched the atomic bombings of Japan back into commission. The long-dormant World War II airfield, North Field, is based on Tinian Island.

The remote island of Tinian, which is less than 40 square miles in size, is one of the three principal islands in the Northern Mariana Islands. These are a string of sparsely populated islets in the Western Pacific Ocean that make up the US’s westernmost frontier, along with its major military hub of Guam, located approximately 100 miles to the south.

The US Air Force recently signed a $409 million contract with Fluor Corporation to restore North Field. The Tinian airfield played a significant role during World War II as a launch site for major air operations.

Soviet T-72 on American soil: US Army intelligence unit probes Russian tank tech

The US Army’s military intelligence soldiers, assigned to the 203rd Military Intelligence Battalion (Technical Intelligence), Military Intelligence Readiness Command, inspected a Soviet-era-designed T-72 main battle tank (MBT) during a recent training mission at Camp Grayling, Michigan.

According to the photos published by the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service of the US Department of Defense (DoD), the tank looks like a Ukrainian T-72AMT MBT.

However, the way the tank ended up in the US needs to be made clear.

Love what you're reading, but too many emails? Sign up to IE+ to get Blueprint Weekly, our exclusive weekly premium newsletter that gives all the insights you love in a more digestible weekly format– plus, enjoy an Ad-Free experience on our website. Try IE+ today for just $1 in the first month. Subscribe here

HOT TOPICS OF THE DAY

SCIENCE

> After an extensive analysis, the Large Hadron Collider has announced a new measurement of the W boson’s mass, “one of nature’s force-carrying particles.” This measurement resolves a long-standing mystery by confirming the W boson’s mass aligns with the predictions of the Standard Model. (More)

> Astronomers have discovered the largest known black hole jets, stretching an astonishing 23 million light-years. To put it in perspective, that’s the length of 140 Milky Way galaxies aligned end-to-end. (More)

> Using a new method exploiting the capabilities of the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE), astronomers have detected 307 new supernova remnants, including seven rare oxygen-rich ones. (More)

ENERGY

> Researchers from a university in Japan have designed a high-performance, water-soluble, densely functionalized polymer-based electrode binder for lithium and sodium-ion batteries. (More)

> Researchers at the University of Michigan have developed a new artificial photosynthesis system that can bind two carbon atoms together into a hydrocarbon. (More)

> South Korea is homing in on the right formula to catapult the country towards becoming the world’s first gigascale floating wind nation, some developers believe. (More)

INNOVATION

> The replacement for bulky night vision goggles has been discovered. Researchers have developed a new type of organic light emitting diode (OLED) that’s lightweight and compact. Developed by University of Michigan researchers, the new OLED is cheaper and more practical for prolonged use. (More)

> Lung cancer diagnosis waits may be shortened by months with a new robotic tool that detects the disease in its early stages. Wythenshawe Hospital in Manchester has become one of the first medical facilities in Europe to employ the advanced Ion Endoluminal System developed by Intuitive. (More)

> Beijing residents will soon be able to taste fried food prepared by robot chefs after the city granted its first food service licence for humanoids. (More)

VIDEO

> One of the world's most active volcanoes has erupted again at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. The eruption occurred in a remote wilderness area, which is 6 miles (10km) from the nearest road. (More)

> The winners of the Nikon Small World in Motion video competition have been announced, with zoologist Dr Bruno Vellutini's video showing the processes of fly embryogenesis taking first prize. (More)

IE QUIZ: THE RESULTS

In yesterday’s quiz, we asked you to find the number of triangles.

The answer is: 14

Ready for more brainy challenges? Gear up for future IE quizzes by following us on Instagram and Facebook! 

FROM THE WEB

> Before adopting their bamboo diet, pandas lived in Europe and ate meat

> Samsung to launch its first 'rollable' phone in 2025 while Apple yet to launch its first foldable

> NASA's Voyager 1 probe swaps thrusters in tricky fix as it flies through interstellar space

> China unveils first analysis of moon’s hidden far side from Chang’e-6 samples

> Earth Had Rings Like Saturn Millions of Years Ago, Study Suggests

> Researchers discover new blood group system - MAL