Of all the jarring things I’ve witnessed on the National Mall, nothing will beat the image of the first thing I saw after I cleared security at the Army festival: a child, sitting at the controls of an M119A3 Howitzer, being instructed by a soldier on how to aim it, as his red-hatted parents took a photo with the Washington Monument in the background. The primary stated reason for the Grand Military Parade is to celebrate the US Army’s 250th birthday. The second stated reason is to use the event for recruiting purposes. Like other military branches, the Army has struggled to meet its enlistment quotas for over the past decade. And according to very defensive Army spokespeople trying to convince skeptics that the parade was not for Donald Trump’s birthday, there had always been a festival planned on the National Mall that day, and it had been in the works for over two years, and the parade, tacked on just two months ago, was purely incidental. Assuming that their statement was true, I wasn’t quite sure if they had anticipated so many people in blatant MAGA swag in attendance — or how eager they were to bring their children and hand them assault rifles. WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 14: An Army festival attendee holds a M3 Carl Gustav Recoilless Rifle on June 14, 2025 in Washington, DC. Photo by Anna Moneymaker / Getty ImagesThere had been kid-friendly events planned: an NFL Kids Zone with a photo op with the Washington Commanders’ mascot, a few face-painting booths, several rock-climbing walls. But they were dwarfed, literally, by dozens of war machines parked along the jogging paths: massive tanks, trucks with gun-mounted turrets, assault helicopters, many of them currently used in combat, all with helpful signs explaining the history of each vehicle, as well as the guns and ammo it could carry. And the families — wearing everything from J6 shirts to Vineyard Vines — were drawn more to the military vehicles, all-too-ready to place their kids in the cockpit of an AH-1F Cobra 998 helicopter as they pretended to aim the nose-mounted 3-barrelled Gatling Cannon. Parents told their children to smile as they poked their little heads out of the hatch of an M1135 Stryker armored vehicle; reminded them to be patient as they waited in line to sit inside an M109A7 self-propelled Howitzer with a 155MM rifled cannon.Attendees look at a military vehicle on display. Bloomberg via Getty ImagesBut seeing a kid’s happiness of being inside a big thing that goes boom was nothing compared to the grownups’ faces when they got the chance to hold genuine military assault rifles — especially the grownups who had made sure to wear Trump merch during the Army’s birthday party. (Some even handed the rifles to their children for their own photo ops.) It seemed that not even a free Army-branded Bluetooth speaker could compare to how fucking sick the modded AR-15 was. Attendees were in raptures over the Boston Dynamics robot dog gun, the quadcopter drone gun, or really any of the other guns available (except for those historic guns, those were only maybe cool).RelatedHowever many protesters made it out to DC, they were dwarfed by thousands of people winding down Constitution Avenue to enter the parade viewing grounds: lots of MAGA heads, lots of foreign tourists, all people who really just like to see big, big tanks. “Angry LOSERS!” they jeered at the protesters. (“Don’t worry about them,” said one cop, “they lost anyways.”) and after walking past them, crossing the bridge, winding through hundreds of yards of metal fencing, Funneling through security, crossing a choked pedestrian bridge over Constitution Ave, I was finally dumped onto the parade viewing section: slightly muggy and surprisingly navigable. But whatever sluggishness the crowd was feeling, it would immediately dissipate the moment a tank turned the corner — and the music started blasting.Americans have a critical weakness for 70s and 80s rock, and this crowd seemed more than willing to look past the questionable origins of the parade so long as the soundtrack had a sick guitar solo. An M1 Abrams tank driving past you while Barracuda blasts on a tower of speakers? Badass. Black Hawk helicopters circling the Washington Monument and disappearing behind the African-American history museum, thrashing your head to “separate ways” by Journey? Fucking badass. ANOTHER M1 ABRAMS TANK?!?!! AND TO FORTUNATE SON??!?!? “They got me fucking hooked,” a young redheaded man said behind me as the crowd screamed for the waving drivers. (The tank was so badass that the irony of “Fortunate Son” didn’t matter.)Members of the U.S. Army drive Bradley Fighting Vehicles in the 250th birthday parade on June 14, 2025 in Washington, DC. Getty ImagesWhen you listen to the hardest fucking rock soundtrack long enough, and learn more about how fucking sick the Bradley Fighting Vehicles streaming by you are (either from the parade announcer or the tank enthusiast next to you), an animalistic hype takes over you — enough to drown out all the nationwide anger about the parade, the enormity of Trump’s power grab, the fact that two Minnesota Democratic lawmakers were shot in their homes just that morning, the riot police roving the streets of LA.It helped that it didn’t rain. It helped that the only people at the parade were the diehards who didn’t care if they were rained out. And by the end of the parade, they didn’t even bother to stay for Trump’s speech, beelining back to the bridge at the first drop of rain.The only thing that mattered to this crowd inside the security perimeter — more than the Army’s honor and history, and barely more than Trump himself — was firepower, strength, hard rock, and America’s unparalleled, world-class ability to kill.See More:

There are wireless earbuds in tons on the market – virtually leaving you frustrated which one fits your requirements the closest. The recent trend of see-through earbuds has caught up with the early adopters who love the visual intricacy of rejoicing the innards of their loved gadgets. Nothing sparked off this long-buried fad with their maiden earbuds that caught world’s attention. The Arctis GameBuds Glorange makes you fall in love while the Moondrop Pill tingles your compulsive instinct to make the purchase right away. Somewehre in between these two options sits the Moondrop’s another pair of earbuds that has gone under the radar but is no slouch by any stretch of imagination. Perfect for space phantasy enthusiasts, the pair has a retro-modern charm with the impressive specifications that will interest audiophiles. Designer: Moondrop Moondrop Ultrasonic is a pair of earbuds in contention for being one of the most balanced visual pleasers. It is a hybrid between a see-through look and the sci-fi aesthetic dominated pair of buds. The dual-driver hybrid TWS tuned by professional engineers has a combination of DD+BA drivers on each side to deliver high-quality sound. Add to the equation a FRA Lithium-Magnesium alloy balanced armature tweeter and your search for a natural sounding high frequency spectrum is a given. The 13mm sapphire diaphragm full-frequency dynamic driver promises a thump that rivals even the most sought-after over-ear headphones. These earbuds support LDAC lossless high-resolution audio ( 24-Bit/96kHz) and an advanced high-end Bluetooth SOC chipset that enables highly efficient performance with stable Bluetooth V5.3 connectivity. A low-latency rating of 55ms means the buds are ideal for the odd gaming session, playing highly competitive FPS titles. The Moondrop UltraSonic features wide-band Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) powered by advanced Single-Feedforward ANC technology. Leveraging a next-generation flagship SoC chipset and refined acoustic engineering, it delivers robust noise-cancellation performance. The transparency mode has also been enhanced, precisely tuned to better amplify human voices and ambient sounds. Additionally, the upgraded MitsuYuki voice prompts offer a more intuitive and seamless user experience for connectivity and operation. The earbuds are very comfortable to wear for long listening sessions and the passive noise isolation is also good. Battery life on the buds is also acceptable, with 6 hours on the buds and an additional 18 hours with the charging case. The only complaints being the plastic housing of the earbuds and case, and the average battery life, which might not be deal breakers for users. In more ways than not, the Ultrasonic earbuds are a worthy successor to the Space Travel buds. Carrying a price tag of $75 make them well worth the investment and a deal maker even with the little disadvantages. The post Retro Modern Moondrop Ultrasonic earbuds will be the perfect pair for a Mission to Mars first appeared on Yanko Design.

pathdoc - stock.adobe.com News DSIT makes £5.5m of funding available to new projects The government is focusing on easing the regulatory burden that can often hamper the introduction of innovative technologies in the public sector By Cliff Saran, Managing Editor Published: 22 May 2025 15:45 The government has announced £5.5m of funding to support projects that will be streamlined by the Regulatory Innovation Office (RIO) to cut bureaucracy.  The RIO, headed by David Willetts, was set up by the government to cut red tape, remove barriers to innovation and accelerate the time it takes to bring emerging technologies to market. Willetts, who took on the role of chair of the RIO in March, hopes to shape regulatory approaches that empower new technologies, supporting Labour’s pledge to bring the UK’s most promising new technologies to the public quickly and safely while kickstarting economic growth. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) said it would offer funding between £50,000 and £1m on regulator-led and local authority-led projects, which run from six to 12 months. The projects must start from 1 October 2025 and end by 30 September 2026. The deadline for applications is 31 July 2025, and DSIT is expected to start awarding funding from 1 October 2025. This is the fourth round of funding. In the last round, funding helped Milton Keynes trial local authority drone deliveries for urgent medical supplies and environmental monitoring. The trial included exploring low-risk test flights and sensors to track the drones’ path to safely test and approve these services.  “Thanks to the RPF [Regulators’ Pioneer Fund], we’ve been able to start building the groundwork for using drones to make services more efficient,” said Shanika Mahendran, cabinet member for planning and placemaking and Milton Keynes City Council. “It’s given us a chance to explore what safety checks and rules we need to follow so we can move from just testing drones to using them in the long-term.” Read more about DSIT initiatives DSIT aims to bolster expertise with year-long secondments: To drive forward its Plan for Change, the Labour government is looking to hire 25 experts for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology Fellowship programme. Interview – Feryal Clark, AI and digital government minister, DSIT: Computer Weekly talks to the parliamentary under-secretary about digital identity, the importance of trust and utilising the power of artificial intelligence. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s (MHRA’s) exploration of the use of synthetic data in clinical trials was another project in the third funding round. The project used computer-generated data to replace some of the participants who would normally receive a placebo. The MHRA said this approach can make trials quicker, cheaper and more inclusive, while still ensuring safety and effectiveness. Puja Myles, director of the clinical practice research datalink at the MHRA, said: “The RPF grant has given us a better understanding of the scenarios when synthetic data could be used to boost sample sizes of clinical trials. “This project is part of the MHRA’s work to promote innovation and embrace emerging technologies in clinical trials, to help get new treatments to patients faster.” The fourth round of the Regulators’ Pioneer Fund is open to regulators and local authorities across the UK, and will include projects in key growth areas such as artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare, engineering biology, space, and connected and autonomous vehicles. “Smarter, more agile regulation is key to businesses bringing ideas to market faster, while giving the public confidence in new technologies,” said science minister Patrick Vallance.  “These projects show how regulators can work with industry to unlock breakthroughs – from autonomous drones improving emergency services, to AI that cuts the cost and time spent on clinical trials. “By backing this kind of innovation, we’re helping to make the UK the best place in the world to launch, test and scale new ideas, and drive the economic growth we need to improve lives and deliver our Plan for Change,” he said. In The Current Issue: UK critical systems at risk from ‘digital divide’ created by AI threats UK at risk of Russian cyber and physical attacks as Ukraine seeks peace deal Standard Chartered grounds AI ambitions in data governance Download Current Issue Microsoft entices developers to build more Windows AI apps – Cliff Saran's Enterprise blog Red Hat launches llm-d community & project – Open Source Insider View All Blogs

Fireworks burst in the background behind a Bradley fighting vehicle at the 2019 Salute to America event that was initially supposed to be a military parade. Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images 2025-05-21T21:31:44Z Save Saved Read in app This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? The Army is preparing for a massive 250th birthday parade in Washington, DC, on June 14. The event, designated a national security special event, coincides with President Donald Trump's birthday. The parade will feature tanks, aircraft, and 6,700 soldiers from all Army units. The US Army has shared new details for its massive 250th birthday celebration, which is set to be a mind-boggling logistical feat, with Abrams tanks, artillery, Strykers, horses, and a lot more descending on the nation's capital.The week-long celebratory event is officially designated as a "national security special event," a term used for major events like the Super Bowl or presidential inaugurations. These require extensive inter-agency coordination.This event has been in the works for two years, but was only recently updated to include a parade on June 14 that will coincide with President Donald Trump's birthday. Army officials on Wednesday did not specify to reporters whose idea it was to insert the military parade into the already-planned events.Trump made it known during his first term that he wanted a major military parade. That event never came to fruition.At least 200,000 people are expected to attend the upcoming event, officials said.The parade will start in the early evening and will proceed along Constitution Avenue and continue near the National Mall, a shorter route than previously expected.Here's what's coming to DC for the parade:There will be 28 M1A1 Abrams tanks, each roughly 70-ton tracked vehicle equipped with a 120mm cannon, among other armaments, as well as 28 Bradley Fighting vehicles, lighter tracked armor with 25mm M242 Bushmaster chain guns. Additionally, 28 Strykers will also be included, flexible 20-ton eight-wheeled vehicles with mixed armaments used for a range of missions.Abrams tanks, Strykers, and Bradley infantry fighting vehicles form the backbone of two of the three types of Army "brigade combat teams," self-sufficient units that can fight and maneuver on the battlefield. Some are centered on infantry, others on "armor" like the Abrams and Bradley, and others on the versatile Strykers. A Bradley fighting vehicle sits as a static display at the 2019 Salute to America event. BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images The parade will also feature 4 Paladins, tracked self-propelled 155mm howitzers each weighing over 27 tons. There will also be "several" pieces of towed artillery including M777s and M119s. Fifty aircraft are expected to participate, including helicopters like the multi-mission Black Hawks, heavy-lift Chinooks, and attack Apaches. Army officials told reporters they are working closely with the FAA and DC's Reagan National Airport for parade flyover deconfliction, though final details regarding impact to local airports are still being hashed out.All weapons systems will be disabled and inspected by the Secret Service prior to the event, officials told reporters. No ammunition, be it blank or live rounds, will be distributed to soldiers.Roughly 6,700 soldiers — including active duty, reserve, National Guard, Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC), and special operations forces — are expected to participate.Some soldiers will wear historical uniforms specially made for this event, officials shared Wednesday, to reflect US Army traditions from the Revolutionary War through the Global War on Terror.World War II-era equipment including M4 Sherman tanks, B25 bombers, P51 Mustang fighter planes, and C47 Skytrains, will also be featured.Army equine units from across the country are also expected, including Arlington National Cemetery's Caisson Platoon.The Army's prestigious Golden Knights parachute team will end the celebration with a jump and will present a folded flag to the president. Folded flags are usually presented to grieving military families during funerals, but they are also sometimes presented at military retirement ceremonies or other milestone events as a gesture of respect.

Macworld At a glanceExpert's Rating Pros Robust Construction Effective fan Good data transfer rates Informative display Cons Not many extra ports Fan not silent No carrying case Our Verdict Anyone who opts for the Smart USB-C Hub 7-in-1 will do so mainly because of the option to integrate an NVMe SSD. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Price When Reviewed129 Dollar Best Prices Today: Dockcase Smart USB-C Hub 7-in-1 with M.2 SSD Enclosure Retailer Price Dockcase 129,00 € View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket At first glance, what stands out most about the Smart USB-C Hub 7-in-1 with M.2 SSD Enclosure hub is its relatively large case with an equally large display. The 4.3 by 2.3 centimeter display shows, among other things, the connected devices and the current data transfer rate. It also serves as a touchscreen for settings such as data protection and fan speed. The large display looks playful, but is very informative. An integrated SSD health monitor issues early warnings. Speaking of that integrated SSD, inside the hub is a connector for an M.2 SSD module that you provide. It supports the compact 2230 and 2242 NVMe SSDs with a maximum capacity of 2TB. An optional read-only mode prevents unwanted changes or deletions and thus protects sensitive data, if required. An integrated, temperature-controlled fan and ventilation openings ensure efficient cooling of the NVMe SSD. Installtion an SSD module is effortless and Dockcase provides a small screwdriver. The ports on the Smart USB-C Hub are one USB-C and USB-A (both USB 3.2 Gen 2 at 10GBps), a 100W Power Delivery USB-C power, an HDMI 2.1 port with support for 4K at 120Hz, an SD card slot, and a TF port. If you want a hub that gives you more connectors, other hubs and docks are better suited in our Best USB-C hubs and adapters for Mac 2025 roundup. Not everyone needs a lot of extra ports; primarily, this is an external SSD enclosure with a few useful ports. The data transfer rate of the integrated NVMe SSD impresses across the board in the AJA System Test Lite with 875MBs for writing and 955MBps for reading. The fan occasionally starts up in the read/write endurance test; it is relatively quiet, but not silent. In our endurance test, however, the small NVMe SSD can get very warm after more than 30 minutes of intensive use. The write rate then decreases significantly. However, this is a respectable performance for a USB-C hub. With the fan deactivated for the test (the temperature was read via the internal sensor), the temperature rose during continuous operation of the SSD. After a short time, a warning was displayed at 69 degrees Celsius, and the data transfer rate dropped significantly in some cases. At 72 degrees Celsius, we activated the fan to protect the SSD and within a short time, the temperature dropped to below 60 degrees Celsius. The full metal housing is robust and also ensures good temperature equalization thanks to the many ventilation slots. However, the fan can be noisy and annoying to sensitive ears. Dockcase provides a fan control with four sppeds or the ability to turn it off completely–but doing so puts the SSD at risk. With an OWC Ultra SDXC memory card, we measured 253MBps for writing and 284MBps for reading–an excellent performance. with a Lexar Armor 700 USB-C SSD, the 890MBps for writing and 939MBps for reading are only aabout 100MBps below the values directly on the MacBook Air M3. Should you buy the Dockcase Smart USB-C Hub 7-in-1 with M.2 SSD Enclosure? Anyone who opts for the Smart USB-C Hub 7-in-1 will do so mainly because of the option to integrate an NVMe SSD. If you need an external storage device and could use card reader slots and an extra charging port, the Smart USB-C hub may work. But there are plenty of other options out there if you want to add more ports.

Cutting corners: Now that Samsung has unveiled the Galaxy S25 Edge, attention has turned to Apple's upcoming ultra-thin rival handset, the iPhone 17 Air. The device is expected to debut this fall with a thickness almost half that of a normal iPhone. According to rumors, this doesn't mean every element will have compromises, but there will be areas that could disappoint, especially the battery life. Samsung has made a lot of headlines with the release of the Galaxy S25 Edge, which measures just 5.8mm thick, not counting the camera bump. But Apple's iPhone 17 Air – expected to launch this fall – is said to be even thinner at 5.5mm. That level of thinness means the Air won't be able to match the model it's replacing, the iPhone 16 Plus, in every area. However, it will have a 6.6-inch OLED display with LTPO, making it the first non-Pro iPhone to do so. There will also be features such as 120Hz ProMotion and always-on functionality. Elsewhere, the iPhone 17 Air is expected to pack the same A19 chip as the rest of the iPhone 17 lineup. It will also come with 8GB of RAM and MagSafe wireless charging. Finally, the price of the iPhone 17 Air is believed to be under $1,000, possibly around $899. But it was recently reported that Apple is going to increase the prices of its next generation of iPhones, though it will avoid blaming Trump's tariffs for the hikes, so this rumor may prove wrong. That's the good news. The bad news is that the iPhone 17 Air will have a single rear camera: a 48MP sensor with 2x optical zoom. Something else the iPhone Air will only have one of is a speaker. There will be a single, enhanced earpiece speaker as the phone is too thin for a second speaker to be placed at the bottom. // Related Stories Another potential disappointment is the iPhone 17 Air's lack of support for mmWave 5G. The handset will be one of the first iPhones to use Apple's in-house 5G modem, the C1. The iPhone 16 Plus uses Qualcomm's Snapdragon X75 5G modem, which supports mmWave 5G. Then there's what could be the biggest drawback of them all: the battery life. Reports state that between 60% and 70% of users will be able to use the handset for a full day on a single charge, whereas that figure is between 80% and 90% for other iPhones. Apple may use Apple Intelligence to improve the Air's battery life, and Cupertino plans to introduce a new battery case accessory specifically for the iPhone 17 Air.