1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:07,839 Amateur radio. I mean, is that what truckers use to spot bears on their six? 2 00:00:05,759 --> 00:00:12,240 Not quite. Most truckers actually use Citizens Band or CB radio, an unlicensed 3 00:00:10,559 --> 00:00:17,680 set of channels set aside for use by the general public. Amateur Radio, also 4 00:00:14,639 --> 00:00:20,160 known as ham radio, is a non-commercial 5 00:00:17,680 --> 00:00:26,000 but licensed radio service which uses allocated frequencies that aren't being 6 00:00:22,800 --> 00:00:28,480 used by things like AM and FM to allow 7 00:00:26,000 --> 00:00:33,040 radio enthusiasts to provide emergency communications, improve their technical 8 00:00:30,640 --> 00:00:37,440 skills, and enhance international goodwill by having discussions across 9 00:00:35,360 --> 00:00:41,600 country borders about national snack foods or whatever the case may be. Now, 10 00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:46,640 you may be wondering then, why is amateur radio still relevant when I can 11 00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:50,879 just go on my computer and talk or play games with my friend across the border 12 00:00:48,399 --> 00:00:57,199 like that? Well, believe it or not, even in 2016, there are over 700,000 13 00:00:54,800 --> 00:01:04,080 licensed ham radio operators in the United States, over 1.2 million in 14 00:01:00,800 --> 00:01:06,479 Japan, and an estimated combined 3 15 00:01:04,080 --> 00:01:12,159 million worldwide. And part of the reason there's still a vibrant amateur 16 00:01:08,799 --> 00:01:14,080 radio community is due to its simplicity 17 00:01:12,159 --> 00:01:19,680 compared to things like the internet. Ham radio relies on no pre-established 18 00:01:16,799 --> 00:01:23,920 communication grids and a simple radio can be made out of spare electronic 19 00:01:21,280 --> 00:01:28,720 parts in a pinch. Not to mention that ham radio can be quite reliable compared 20 00:01:26,880 --> 00:01:33,600 to some more modern forms of communication in times of crisis. For 21 00:01:31,520 --> 00:01:39,200 example, during the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center, cell phone service 22 00:01:35,840 --> 00:01:41,439 was overloaded and utterly crippled. So, 23 00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:45,759 amateur radio operators helped victims contact their families and provided 24 00:01:43,600 --> 00:01:49,840 communications for emergency personnel participating in search and rescue 25 00:01:47,439 --> 00:01:54,799 operations. And while emergency communications is normally cited as a 26 00:01:52,560 --> 00:02:01,119 primary reason for amateur radio, it's not by any means the only aspect of the 27 00:01:57,520 --> 00:02:03,280 hobby. There are radio sport contests 28 00:02:01,119 --> 00:02:08,160 where operators try to contact as many people as possible during a certain 29 00:02:05,040 --> 00:02:11,680 period of time. Um, some operators enjoy 30 00:02:08,160 --> 00:02:13,040 making a game out of making contacts 31 00:02:11,680 --> 00:02:19,520 which they'll use to get different awards such as, you know, worked all US 32 00:02:16,080 --> 00:02:21,200 states or worked all continents. And if 33 00:02:19,520 --> 00:02:25,920 you operate on the high frequency spectrum in combination with a computer, 34 00:02:23,520 --> 00:02:30,800 you can actually send digital signals including data packets. Amateur radio 35 00:02:28,640 --> 00:02:35,200 has even found uses well above the Earth as astronauts aboard the International 36 00:02:32,879 --> 00:02:40,560 Space Station are ham radio operators and occasionally use it to make contact 37 00:02:37,599 --> 00:02:45,840 or send pictures. Other operators have moon bounce or EM and meteor scatter 38 00:02:43,920 --> 00:02:52,319 setups where they bounce signals off the moon and meteors to make contacts around 39 00:02:48,959 --> 00:02:55,440 the world repurposing space rocks as 40 00:02:52,319 --> 00:02:57,360 satellites. Cool, right? I mean, not to 41 00:02:55,440 --> 00:03:00,800 everyone, but to some people for sure. But whether you're sending signals into 42 00:02:58,879 --> 00:03:05,519 outer space or just talking to someone down the street, the point is there's a 43 00:03:03,280 --> 00:03:09,680 great deal of flexibility and fun in the ham radio hobby. And it can be, I mean, 44 00:03:08,000 --> 00:03:14,400 like anything, it can get expensive, but it can be done quite affordably. Many 45 00:03:12,159 --> 00:03:18,879 operators are running DIY setups consisting of Arduinos, Raspberry Pies, 46 00:03:16,720 --> 00:03:23,280 and other microcontrollers. These can be utilized to build GPS trackers which are 47 00:03:21,360 --> 00:03:27,280 placed in their cars or even high altitude balloons to transmit their 48 00:03:25,200 --> 00:03:31,920 location through amateur radio. You can even rig up a ham to extend the range of 49 00:03:29,680 --> 00:03:36,720 a drone if you find that your Wi-Fi connection just isn't powerful enough. 50 00:03:34,799 --> 00:03:40,000 So, if any of this sounds intriguing and you're already sitting there coming up 51 00:03:38,159 --> 00:03:44,239 with ways you would use an amateur radio license, getting a license is actually 52 00:03:42,400 --> 00:03:48,480 relatively easy depending on which country you live in. So being in charge 53 00:03:46,400 --> 00:03:52,879 of your own little radio station sounds appealing. Check it out. Just make sure 54 00:03:51,200 --> 00:03:57,680 that you do have your license first as you don't want a dark suited Gman at 55 00:03:56,159 --> 00:04:03,040 your door because you are making, you know, pirate radio broadcasts about how 56 00:04:00,080 --> 00:04:07,680 much your ISP is ripping you off. Speaking of ISPs, don't you hate it when 57 00:04:05,760 --> 00:04:12,400 your ISP is snooping on what you're doing on the internet? Well, Tunnel 58 00:04:09,920 --> 00:04:16,799 BearVPN lets you encrypt your connection and while you're at it, tunnel your 59 00:04:14,560 --> 00:04:21,199 connection in one of 20 different countries, allowing you to keep the 60 00:04:19,519 --> 00:04:25,759 internet sites that you visit and the online services that you use private 61 00:04:23,520 --> 00:04:30,479 from your internet provider, as well as the aforementioned websites and 62 00:04:27,840 --> 00:04:35,360 services. They have easy to use apps for iOS, Android, PC, and Mac. 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