Monday, March 10, 2008

I, Moth

Sometimes amazing and scary things are dreamed up in the name of science. Take, for instance, the technology that in the near future may allow something as small as a moth (or bee, butterfly, or beetle) to carry video cameras for the purpose of surveillance.

Though the applications for real life are sobering, in a Big Brother sort of way, this is muse rocket fuel for writers of Sci-Fi.

See the link and article below from Switched for more info.

http://www.switched.com/2008/03/09/tiny-camera-implants-turning-everyday-insects-into-spies-on-the/

Tiny Camera Implants Turning Insects Into Spies
Posted Mar 9th 2008 9:02AM by Evan Shamoon

According to this week's New Scientist, the future of spying may rest in the hands (or legs) of insects and rodents. In an attempt to build the ultimate super(small)spy, moths, beetles, rats, pigeons and sharks have been installed with electrodes, batteries, and even video cameras. "[A moth] may look like an innocent visitor, irresistibly drawn to the light in your room, but it could actually be a spy -- one of a new generation of cyborg insects with implants wired into their nerves to allow remote control of their movement.

"These mechanized animals (read: cyborgs) have plenty of advantages over traditional robots. Sharks, moths and rats, for example, have an amazing sense of smell that allows them to detect the faintest traces of chemicals. And if humans can figure out how to hide the controls within the creature's bodies ... well, they would become perfect spy.

Man, the future is gonna be awesome(ly apocalyptic and scary).

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