[117280] in Cypherpunks
RE: Orbital Weapons Platform
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Tim May)
Mon Aug 30 20:47:22 1999
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Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 17:32:06 -0700
To: cypherpunks@cyberpass.net
From: Tim May <tcmay@got.net>
Reply-To: Tim May <tcmay@got.net>
[did not appear when I posted to algebra.com, so I am resending to
cyberpass.net...I'm beginning to think the "Distributed" list is a joke.'
At 12:09 PM -0700 1999-08-30, J.A. Terranson wrote:
>As I understand it (and not very well at that), you have highlighted the
>*entire*
>[fatal] flaw in the Reagan "Star-Wars" program: The beams required energy
>levels which could *only* be provided by the detonation of nuclear devices
>(in space).
>
>This meant that (a) each "platform" could only fire it's beam(s) *once*, and,
>(b) each platform was banned by pre-existing treaty(s) prohibiting nuclear
>toys in space...
Nope, you understand incorrectly.
For example, I was invited to fly to Washington, D.C. in 1979 (yes, 1979,
before some of you were born) to present the work I'd done on disrupting
onboard computers--present in nearly all weapons, even ICBMs--with particle
beams having total beam fluences (particles per unit area, and hence a
measure of cumulative energy) several orders of magnitude less than what
Prof. Kosta Tsipis of MIT was vocally saying was the minimum overall beam
energy.
Getting into this topic would require a lot more time than I have now, not
to mention motivation. Not to mention the problems when no blackboard or
the like is available.
And most of you, though not necessarily any particular one of you, lack the
background to see a basic explanation. Too much background would have to be
provided.
--Tim May
Don't tread on me.
---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:----
Timothy C. May | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money,
ComSec 3DES: 831-728-0152 | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero
W.A.S.T.E.: Corralitos, CA | knowledge, reputations, information markets,
"Cyphernomicon" | black markets, collapse of governments.
