INNOVATION- EAGLE SCOUT CREATES COOL, USEFUL IPHONE APP

 Eagle Scout Creates Cool, Useful iPhone App

If you’re in the wilderness and you can barely get a signal on your cell phone, there’s a chance you may you have an easier time sending a text message.
That’s because text messages don’t require the same amount of data that a phone call does.
So, if you’re in the remote wilderness and you find yourself in an emergency situation, it makes sense that it might actually be easier to send a text message for help, instead of trying to call 911.
Nick Entin, an Eagle Scout from Troop 128 in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif., has created an iPhone app that — with just a few clicks — will send a text message to a number of recipients with your GPS coordinates and a message stating that you need immediate help.
Instead of fighting your way through a 911 call with a limited signal, you can send a more reliable message with just a few clicks. That frees you up to concentrate of staying safe until help arrives.

An issue regarding compatibility of the gps locator feature with iOS 5 has been reported. A fix has been submitted to Apple and will be available for download as soon as it is reviewed by Apple. Remember, updates are free once you buy the app, so download and enjoy today!

Emergency Beacon is a vital app for all outdoor enthusiasts. Emergency Beacon was made as a tool to help victims of natural disasters, falls, avalanches, or any other incident where they need to be rescued. The app features the ability to send your current gps coordinates by email or sms to a list of preset contacts, a built-in emergency survival guide, and an audible alarm to help rescue teams find your exact location.*

Why not just call 911? According to Gizmodo, a 1-minute phone call is 460,800% larger than a text message. After a natural disaster, cell phone calls often cannot be made due to overloaded cell towers. Text messages and emails don't require as strong a signal and will more easily be put through in a natural disaster.

Emergency Beacon is available for purchase ($.99) on the iOS App Store. Check it out and download today! If you like it, give it a rating and help spread the word!

If you have any questions or comments, or if you have technical issues with the application, let us know through our support page.

Click here to purchase it through iTunes.

OF INTEREST - 2012 EGLE SCOUTS GET SPECIAL BADGE

2012 Eagle Scouts Get Special Badge

If you earn your Eagle Scout rank in 2012, you’ll get a special commemorative rank patch.

2012 is the 100th anniversary of the first-ever Eagle Scout, a young man named Arthur Eldred who earned his Eagle in 1912. So, if you earn your Eagle during the 100th anniversary year, you’ll get a patch that no Eagle before or after you will ever earn.

The special-edition patch will be available at Scout shops after the first of the year.

Remember: Planning and executing an Eagle project takes time. Start working on yours now!

NEWS - OKLAHOMA BOY SCOUTS LEARN ART OF HAM RADIO (VIDEO INCLUDED)

Oklahoma Boy Scouts learn art of ham radio

Amateur radio enthusiasts taught Boy Scouts from Guthrie the art of ham radio during a three-day marathon.

BY CARRIE COPPERNOLL

Published: October 24, 2011

A group of Oklahoma Boy Scouts used sticks, barbed wire and a hand-held radio to say hello to an astronaut in space.
“The boys were so excited that we got to talk to an astronaut, even if only for a few seconds,” said Doug Cook, an optometrist and an assistant scoutmaster from Guthrie.
The contact was part of the 52nd annual Jamboree-on-the-Air, an international Scouting event dedicated to the art of radio. Members of the Last Frontier Council gathered at Camp Nichols in southwest Oklahoma City.
Scouts learned to operate ham radios and tracked radio transmitters in the woods. They also performed radio surgery — on a pickle. They removed the pickle's bumps the same way Cook would remove bumps on the eyelids of his patients.
One of the projects was to contact Mike Fossum, an astronaut aboard the International Space Station. Fossum, who was an Eagle Scout, was participating in the jamboree and trying to contact as many Scouts as possible. Cook pointed the makeshift antenna toward the station and heard Fossum's voice through the static. He tried twice before Fossum returned his call.
Cook said he put a microphone to the radio for the Scouts to hear. The boys responded by shouting in unison, “Hi, Mike!”
In addition to that thrill, the boys especially loved using radios to contact other Scouts around the world, Cook said.
“Our Scouts can chat with a Scout from Australia or Great Britain or Indonesia,” Cook said. “It bridges the gap between them so that they can learn about other people, other cultures. It kind of makes the world a smaller place.”
Scout Carey McCachern, 17, was part of the jamboree. The Deer Creek High School student earned his ham radio technician license about a year ago, and he upgraded to a general license in April. He said he enjoyed introducing other Scouts to amateur radio.
“I believe that amateur radio and Scouts fit hand-in-hand because they encourage emergency preparedness, innovation, and goodwill toward others,” McCachern said.
Jeff Woolsey, executive for the Boy Scouts Last Frontier Council, said he hopes the jamboree sparked an interest in the boys.
“Technology today is so readily available that boys take it for granted,” Woolsey said. “Most kids do. It's important for them to learn the roots of where all this came from.”