The Department of Defense (DoD) and the Office of Naval Research (ONR) have teamed up to fund the design of Web applications that will help countries better protect and police their local waters.
Dr. Augustus Vogel, associate director of ONR Global Latin America, told us that the DoD will provide $1 million to the ONR’s International Collaborative Development for Enhanced Maritime Domain Awareness (ICODE MDA) project. The project is working with partners in Chile, South Africa, Ghana, and other countries to create maritime protection applications.
Suspected pirates surrender to the Navy off the coast of Turkey from the Japanese-owned commercial oil tanker M/V Guanabara in March 2011. The Office of Naval Research is hoping to stop pirates with Web applications being designed through the International Collaborative Development for Enhanced Maritime Domain Awareness project to provide real-time information in Chile, Ghana, South Africa, and other countries. (Source: US Navy)
Specifically, the program will fund projects by graduate students from universities in those countries -- such as the Technical University of Federico Santa Maria in Chile and the University of Ghana -- to create Web-based data analysis apps, or widgets, that sailors and maritime operators can use to combat specific problems in coastal waters. “The key thing in working with the partners is each one of them has maritime challenges off their coast,” Vogel said.
The idea behind the project is to provide real-time access to information to help naval and other maritime operators keep a closer eye on activity, identify anything suspicious, and aid in search-and-rescue operations, he said. Maritime operation centers would use the apps on an Internet device in their offices and provide information to ships in the area.
In Ghana, naval and coastal operators face problems with illegal fishing, Vogel said. Graduate students there are working on an app that can identify ships from satellite imagery and compile environmental information about the location to help fisheries see where ships are clustering. This could help officials protect overfished waters and enforce other policies to manage fishing in the area, Vogel said.
Other students in the ICODE MDA program are working on technology that can match satellite imagery of ships with signals from the automated identification system (AIS) beacons most ships use for safety. If naval or maritime operators see ships without AIS beacon signals, “you would wonder why they would turn off their beacon,” Vogel said. This could help identify illegal or nefarious activity, such as drug or arms trafficking or piracy.
The ONR also is working with the University of Pretoria, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research in South Africa, and the University of Mauritius.
Beth, I agree that for fresher’s and college students needs hands on experience and it matters a lot for their career development. But I don’t prefer student’s involvements in any mission critical or vital security application developments for the account of hands on experience. I think you are aware that the procedure for recruitments with any of the government or defence labs. The main intention and reason for such thorough back ground security is to make sure that non involvements of un trusted strangers (Am not blaming any students in particular but generally).
@mydesign: No doubt there needs to be some professional oversight to make student-based innovations/projects commercial, yet tapping their brain power to get the idea and to give them hands-on experience is really important. But you are absolutely right that it's highly unlikely they won't get to the commercialization stage without a hand--that is unless you are Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg or dozens of other enterprising enterpreneurs!
I agree it is good to use students for real life projects. I think these types of projects really bring a good marriage between classroom learning and real world.
Beth, such crucial projects has to be getting done through professional and not by students. Ofcource as a part of cost control they can use student's knowledge and skills. But I don't think they can do it in a professional way unless and until some professionals has to do the design works and guide them.
Elizabeth, we know that pirate attacks are more in African coastal areas and most of the countries like US, India etc are trying to safe guard the vessels passing through these area. What I would suggest is instead of web application they have to use surveillance cameras; GPRS based systems and satellites for keeping a watch over the entire area and for safe guarding the ships.
Bandwidth is always a concern for database applications on the web, however that is undoubtedly part of the design of the web app. Or at least you hope it works that way.
Good point, Al, that student's modern skills in HTML5 and the like make them natural candidates to get this job done. I'm wondering, though, if the screen size and processing power of the smart phone/app combination is enough to provide enough actionable data to make any kind of difference.
Beth, I would suspect they are targeting smartphones and tablets, using those interfaces to get real-time information almost anywhere. Students would be ideal for this task, as the design of some web apps are using emerging technology solutions using a combination of web technologies primarily HTML5 & CSS3 style sheets along with databases to speed development.
Beth, I agree - I think its great that this task has been placed with university students. I am also appreciative of the global initiative - it's great to see countries working together to solve a problem. Piracy is a very real problem and this is yet another opportunity for technology to make a difference.
Love the fact that they're tapping student brain power to get this done. Solves the ever-present budgetary challenges all of these countries face in terms of channeling dollars towards new projects while giving students a real opportunity to get hands-on learning and do some good in the process.
Are these real apps, meaning they run on smart phones or tablets, or are they Web-based applications for traditional laptops?
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