Rise of the machines

Last summer I reported on a competition organised by the MoD on Salisbury Plain to enourage companies and universities to come up with a robot which could help the army fight urban wars.
My posts on this are here.
Last week the BBC reported on some of the projects the MoD was looking at funding generally and several competition winners had been given extra resources. It shows that the event itself was more than just a PR stunt  but a very serious attempt to rope schools, universities and small companies into defence projects.
Scientists for Global Responsiblity have just published a further piece by me on this.
Other items in their spring newsletter are:
*Dr Stuart Parkinson looks at the potential for a sustainable, low-carbon economy to be created through efforts to tackle the current global economic problems.
*Prof Sandy Halliday traces the evolution of the principles behind sustainable design, and argues for their much wider use.
*Social housing projects could learn from past successes Past collaborative efforts of architects and policy-makers have produced elegant social housing solutions by Kate Macintosh MBE Dip Arch.
*Dr Nick Ritchie outlines the serious flaws in the logic of nuclear deterrence upon which the proposed replacement of Trident is based.
Non-members can et a copy for £3.50 from the SGR.