The federal government is reportedly investing at least $22m into developing clothes that “can record audio, video, and geolocation data.” According to a 22 August press release from the office of the Director of National Intelligence’s Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA), the research and development arm of the organisation, “recently launched a cutting-edge program that aims to make performance-grade, computerized clothing a reality”. The DNI touted the SMART ePANTS program, which stands for Smart Electrically Powered and Networked Textile Systems, that “seeks to develop clothing with integrated audio, video, and geolocation sensor systems that feature the same stretchability, bendability, washability, and comfort of regular textiles,” IARPA stated. They will be used by the intelligence community, IARPA wrote. Since the surveillance technology will be woven into the clothing, “Intelligence Community staff will be able to record information from their environment hands-free, without the need to wear uncomfortable, bulky, and rigid devices.” For example, according to the release, the technology could “assist personnel and first responders in dangerous, high-stress environments, such as crime scenes and arms control inspections without impeding their ability to swiftly and safely operate.” The SMART ePANTS program’s mission is to to incorporate “sensor systems” into clothes, like shirts, pants, socks, and underwear. The Intercept reported that the federal government has dedicated at least $22m in funding to the program. It’s unclear just how big of a gamble IARPA might be making with its investment. Its website describes itself as investing “federal funding into high-risk, high-reward projects to address challenges facing the intelligence community.” “A lot of the IARPA and DARPA programs are like throwing spaghetti against the refrigerator,” Annie Jacobsen, author of a book called The Pentagon’s Brain about ​​the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, told the outlet. “It may or may not stick.” Dr Dawson Cagle, an IARPA program manager leading the SMART ePANTS program, said that while he is “proud of the intelligence aspect” of the program, he’s “excited about the possibilities that the program’s research will have for the greater world.” He said that he was inspired in part to create the program by his father, who was a diabetic, and therefore had to monitor his health multiple times a day. His father’s experience paired with the research that supports that the components of a computer “have already been developed, just as individual pieces,” he explained. If you can convert all of the components into a single, wearable device, the program’s goal will have been achieved, Dr Cagle said. Ms Jacobsen warned that the advancement of smart wearables could lead to future concerns over biometric surveillance by the government. “They’re now in a position of serious authority over you. In TSA, they can swab your hands for explosives,” Ms Jacobsen told The Intercept. “Now suppose SMART ePANTS detects a chemical on your skin — imagine where that can lead.” But IARPA pushed back on this assertion, as spokesperson Nicole de Haay told the outlet: “IARPA programs are designed and executed in accordance with, and adhere to, strict civil liberties and privacy protection protocols. Further, IARPA performs civil liberties and privacy protection compliance reviews throughout our research efforts.” Read More Swedish citizen goes on trial on charges of collecting information for Russia Seoul's spy agency says Russia has likely proposed North Korea to join three-way drills with China Biden says he is ‘disappointed’ at Xi Jinping skipping India’s G20 summit Vodafone users say they can’t call people World’s first solar-powered hybrid truck tested on public roads Apple is about to make a huge change to the iPhone that it never wanted to do

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Managerial decisions laced with ego are brutal, and you'll get the chance to make some especially brutal decisions in F1 Manager 23, the second instalment of Frontier's F1 Manager series that looks to do for Formula One what Football Manager did for football - only with the polish of official licensing. In F1 Manager, you swap the driving seat for the boss' headset. You're less Max Verstappen and more Christian Horner. You'll develop cars, hire/fire drivers and staff, build facilites, call-in pit stops, tweak engineering, and lead race-day tactics. In essence, you're doing everything except steering the thing. You're letting your hand-picked disciples carry out your masterplan. So, those decisions? Lance Stroll was out of the door - I'm telling you. Why? Well - I wanted an Aston Martin dream team of my own making. I wanted Fernando Alonso paired with a Lewis Hamilton, a Charles Leclerc, a Lando Norris - even a Daniel Ricciardo. I wanted to transform the brand into a mythical Formula One beast, a team pairing of legend (even if it risked the Hamilton v Alonso disaster of years gone by, but they've both grown up now. I wanted a legend in that car. I prayed I could bring back Sebastian Vettel, but I couldn't. And with all of this whirring in my mind, Stroll did the damnedest thing. It's Saudi Arabia. Race week 2 of the season and my mind is made up. Despite my bias favouring Alonso in terms of car build and strategy, Stroll finishes third. Of course, my instructions nurse him to that position - but he is performing with the deck stacked against him. Monaco comes, and Stroll places ahead of Alonso. The only thing I could do is start to sandbag him and reduce his practice time - or god forbid, refuse to send him out for qualifying. That wouldn't be right though, would it? Here - in my own little world - the idea of F1 emerged in its most maximalist form. A rich playboy starts to lead the pack amongst his gifted peers. Somehow, perhaps only in my world, Stroll had pitched ahead of Alonso. His confidence was greater, and he was performing better. Nothing that F1 Manager 23 can provide will better the stories you make in your own head, but the game provides the tools to see those stories play out in a virtual sandbox - and with results you might not expect. Or be banking on. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Rewrite history The entire point of sport management simulations is to write your own history and make your own story, but new to F1 Manager this year is the entertaining ability to re-write history. The new 'Race Replay' mode offers players the perhaps 'easier' task of taking over the pitlane control and strategy for one team per real-life race weekend. Fancy taking McLaren over the finish line at the recent British Grand Prix? You can! Will you pit Norris for fresh tyres or hope he struggles to hold the pack up for Piastri to complete a 'Papaya Podium'? It's your call (I put Norris on fresh tyres and forgot about Piastri, thus failing the challenge). There are two modes within Race Replay - one, where you can plan glory from your chosen team's starting position, another where you can dive mid-race into a selected scenario. The point is this: It lets you put your money where your mouth is. Especially if you've been losing it at Ferrari's decision making over the years (rightly so). It's an entertaining mode for the week-in and week-out fan - and a very welcome addition Practice makes perfect - and career mode is a blast (again) The meat of F1 Manager 2023 takes place in the career mode, which is simple enough to understand; but has grown quite brutal in some aspects. Not a great deal has changed - but very much like Football Manager releases, there's extra layers of polish and additional depth. The new addition of tyre temperatures adds even more discomfort to race weekends. There are fully simulated feeder leagues so that you can plan for the future. Sprint races are also a thing in-game. It also appears that the financial structures from last year have been adjusted. The cost cap is more of a presence, and you certainly feel the budget impact as a 'weaker' team when a driver whacks a car into a wall, because it will scupper your car development plans. The driving AI feels much improved, and opposition cars and managers will try to game you with pit stops and tyre changes. The pit stops are also a 'new feature' as, just like your car, you can improve your pit staff to increase your marginal gains. All of this builds into a fairly dramatic experience come raceday. The outcome hinges on your decisions, and there are a few more tactical options this time around. You can demand that Lance Stroll - for instance - defends hard against the chasing pack to make room for Fernando Alonso to catch up or progress ahead. You could tell Alonso to give it his all in overtakes. Likewise, you can tell them to cool off - in addition to the existing options of pushing tyres and fuel, All of this will have an impact on your lap times, and of course, tyre condition. Race days can be slightly boring if you're starting from the back, but there's as many unique thrills in snatching a point as there are fighting for a podium. When your strategy pays off - with help from inclement weather and drivers - it feels incredible. When a driver slips off track, or when you get your calls wrong it feels awful, plain and simple. When drivers compliment the car setup during practice, it's a neat win. When they diss it, it's a pain. And that in itself is perhaps F1 Manager's greatest achievement. It captures the intensity of race weekends in a bottle. Verdict F1 Manager could look better. It could be deeper. It could feature more customisation (likely hamstrung by licensing anyway), and certainly more audio lines from engineers and drivers to avoid robotic 2024/2025/2026 seasons. You should be able to add your own team like in the F1 2023 series. The 'jank' which comes with the territory of a math-based game engine rather than a physics-based engine is all-too noticeable once you see a race car crash (as it was last year). However, there is genuine brilliance within F1 Manager 23. Particularly for newcomers who might be put off by the depth of the game. Unlike last year, they can now can live their Drive To Survive fantasy with the Race Replay feature before jumping into career-mode Diehards can enjoy it all the same, and then get to grips with the lurking threat of tyre temperatures and tactical options. By next season, ideally we'll be talking about an F1 Manager game that is complete with all the features needed to land the perfect Formula 1 sandbox. What we have, though, is a game that is in the slipstream to greatness. It's a game that ticks all the boxes for F1 fans, who can put their knowledge to the test and enjoy building a great car, and a great team. 8/10 Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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