October 9, 2007

Don't forget to carry a butterfly net when you protest the war

The Washington Post ran an article today titled "Dragonfly or Insect Spy? Scientists at Work on Robobugs" speculating on the existence of high tech surveillance devices disguised as bugs. 

The article does its best to make it seem the technological hurdles are far from being solved, especially a power source ("batteries are heavy" don't you know).  But, while discussing power options, the author fails to mention the obvious possibilities of solar energy powering the bugs.  If DARPA hasn't already figured out how to fabricate wings that double as solar collectors, I'd be surprised.  I suspect DARPA favors dragonfly emulation primarily because of the relatively large wing area available for collecting energy.

Helpfully the WaPost suggests,

Protesters might even nab one with a net -- one of many reasons why Ehrhard, the former Air Force colonel, and other experts said they doubted that the hovering bugs spotted in Washington were spies.

So don't forget a butterfly net when you head out the door to protest.  If you catch one, wrap it in tin foil or pop it into an Altoid tin for safekeeping...

Stray Thoughts from Don Alejandro
who wonders if DARPA needs any other good ideas, such as developing hyper efficient alternatives to the power hungry devices and modes of transportation that leave US addicted to foreign oil