SOS

SOS is the international Morse code distress signal (· · · – – – · · ·). This distress signal was first adopted by the German government in radio regulations effective April 1, 1905, and became the worldwide standard under the second International Radiotelegraphic Convention, which was signed on November 3, 1906, and became effective on July 1, 1908. SOS remained the maritime radio distress signal until 1999, when it was replaced by the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System. SOS is still recognized as a visual distress signal.

The SOS distress signal is a continuous sequence of three dits, three dahs, and three dits, all run together without letter spacing. In International Morse Code, three dits form the letter S, and three dahs make the letter O, so "SOS" became an easy way to remember the order of the dits and dahs. In modern terminology, SOS is a Morse "procedural signal" or "prosign", and the formal way to write it is with a bar above the letters: SOS.

In popular usage, SOS became associated with such phrases as "Save Our Ship" or "Save Our Souls" or "Send Out Succour". SOS is only one of several ways that the combination could have been written; VTB, for example, would produce exactly the same sound, but SOS was chosen to describe this combination. SOS is the only nine-element signal in Morse code, making it more easily recognizable, as no other symbol uses more than eight elements.

21st Special Operations Squadron

The 21st Special Operations Squadron is a unit within the 352d Special Operations Group (352 SOG), United States Air Force, United States European Command, and was based at Royal Air Force base RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk, eastern England.

Mission

The 21st Special Operations Squadron, which fell under the 352nd Special Operations Group, RAF Mildenhall, UK, was inactivated on 31 October 2007 with the inactivation ceremony taking place at RAF Mildenhall, UK on 9 October temporarily ending the Air Force Special Operations vertical lift mission in Europe.

The inactivation of the Dust Devils was the first step in preparation for the arrival of the CV-22 tilt-rotor aircraft.

The 21st Special Operations Squadron's mission consisted of day or night, all-weather, low-level penetration of denied territory to provide infiltration, exfiltration, resupply, or fire support for elite air, ground, and naval forces. The unique capabilities of the MH-53J permitted the squadron to operate from unprepared landing zones.

16th Special Operations Squadron

The 16th Special Operations Squadron (16 SOS) is part of the 27th Special Operations Wing at Cannon AFB, New Mexico. It operates AC-130H Spectre aircraft in support of special operations.

Mission

Train and maintain its combat-ready force to provide highly accurate firepower in support of both conventional and unconventional forces.

History

The 16th ferried aircraft from factories to units in US and Canada and conducted pilot training from April 1942 – April 1944. It flew combat aerial transportation missions from India into Burma and China from December 1944 – October 1945.

The 16th flew combat missions in Southeast Asia where it was charged with attacking convoys on the Ho Chi Minh Trail, the defense of hamlets and fire bases, providing close air support to troops in contact with the enemy, providing convoy escort, and battlefield illumination, November 1968 – July 1974. As the war drew to a close the squadron supported Operation Eagle Pull, the evacuation of Phnom Penh, Operation Frequent Wind, the evacuation of Saigon and figured prominently in the rescue of the Mayagüez. In all 53 members of the 16 SOS were killed in action during the Vietnam War.

Medium

Medium may refer to:

Communication

Natural science

Medium (season 7)

The seventh and final season of Medium, an American television series, began broadcasting September 24, 2010 on CBS. The seventh and final season ended on January 21, 2011. The season premiered to only 6.10 million viewers while the season and series finale got 7.87 million viewers the highest in over a year since 6.12 on January 15, 2010.

Plot

Medium (company)

Founded as Cross Computer Consulting on January 1, 1999, incorporated as Coptix Inc. on January 1, 2002, and re-branded as Medium on April 9, 2009, Medium is a Chattanooga, Tennessee based graphic design, web design, and web development company with clients such as Rock/Creek, Chattem, redbox, Olan Mills, Hardee's,PGi, Alberto-Culver, and Yanmar. Medium is a member of the AIGA & the American Advertising Federation.

Bill Cahan Spoofs

Medium gained attention throughout the design community when in January 2007 it produced and distributed via YouTube a series of video spoofs of the Cahan & Associates promotional video featuring noted designer Bill Cahan.

Karl Rove Photo Hoax

Medium gained national media attention in April 2007 after a prank in which, the previous month, they photoshopped a photo of White House advisor Karl Rove to make him appear to be holding a folder with the Coptix (the former named of Medium) logo on the cover. Blogs such as Wonkette - which called the hoax photo "a crime scene" - and DailyKos ran the doctored photo and claimed (as Wonkette put it) that it proved "without a doubt that Karl Rove is illegally running all the White House e-mail through a private company" to avoid the automatic archiving of the White House email system. Sites that fell prey to the hoax had failed to notice Sleestaks also had been added to the photograph in a television shown in the background.