Posted by Courtney E. Howard
Looking back over my life, I realize that, in the interest of saving time and being as efficient as possible, I have missed out on a lot. I don't mean family and friends, or memories I haven't made. I spent valuable time with them, doing just that. I am talking about entertainment. When I ponder the path or route I have taken in life, I find a "pot hole" or two of sorts.
I have opted to work late, sleep longer, and enhance my education, rather than join the rest of the populace in celebrating the latest and greatest films or books, as examples. Just this week, in fact, I watched Aliens for the first time. It was made in 1979. Why did it take me 30 years to see it?! I followed up that piece of cinematic history with a viewing of Aliens 2.
I was impressed with the visual effects for the time and the prospect of harnessing alien technology for biological weaponry, and yet the movie fell a bit flat with its interpretation of what a combat vehicle would look like in 2157. It was none too impressive; I liken it to a squashed version of a tank. How did they fit all those people and the equipment in there?! Bah.
Thankfully, innovators in the military and defense market (not to mention the automotive industry) have succeeded in delivering far more capable, flexible, and responsive combat vehicles and vetronics in short order. Be certain to keep your eye out for the September issue of Military & Aerospace Electronics for information about the latest and greatest vetronics technologies and applications.
Another fine piece of cinematography worthy of your time would be "Starship Troopers" (1997). On the downside, although they've perfected space travel in this movie's timeframe, they have only seemed to advance handheld weapons technology to roughly the equivalent of a 30-caliber machine gun. On the upside, the military has coed showers.
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