The Hummingbird Spy Drone and Other Robot Animals
Hummingbird Spy Drone Developed by DARPA Funding
This just in— the military has created a robotic hummingbird to spy on its enemies. Actually, the military has had robotic hummingbirds for a couple of years now, but this time the little critter can stay in the air for more than 20 seconds. The new prototype, created by AeroVironment with funding from DARPA (the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) can stay in the air for a whole eight minutes and looks surprisingly like a real hummingbird. Watch a video of the
development process! AeroVironment's project manager is saying that a decade from now their birds will “easily carry out complex and difficult reconnaissance missions.”
This charming little spy cost taxpayers $4 million dollars to develop, yet recent research suggests the spending has only just begun. By 2016 military robot markets will total an excess of $8 billion, according to ABI Research. In a time when the House is suggesting cuts to Americorps, NPR, and Planned Parenthood, military spending remains recession-proof. The Air Force Research Laboratory is hoping to have its flock of drones ready to go by 2015.
Giant Flower Beetle Cyborg
Robot spy critters can come in many forms. According to a recent interview with Tel Aviv University's zoology professor Amir Ayali, cockroaches and caterpillars provide the latest inspiration for robotics. Cockroaches have one of the “most stable ways to walk” because of their tripod gait (three of their six legs on the ground at any given time.) But the caterpillar may be an even better model, because of their “endless degrees of freedom of movement.” We always think of robots as being stiff and rigid, but soft squishy caterpillar robots might be the wave of the future.
Or, if building the insect is too laborious, there's always the option to install electronics inside living bugs. Only last year, scientists at the University of California implanted electrodes into the optic lobes and flight muscles of a giant flower beetle, turning it into a remote-controlled cyborg. The beetle was considerably bigger than an eraser, allowing it to carry a microprocessor, radio receiver, battery, and circuit board. Similar experiments have been conducted with moths, who receive their electric implants when they are still pupae.
Who Will Receive This Robot Surveillance?
When we think about our little robot friends scampering across rubble in Afghanistan, looking for hostages, they seem like a great idea. When we consider using them on American citizens, however, the issue becomes more controversial. According to a Pentagon project summary highlighted in Wired.com, (Noah Shachtman, 4/2010) these robot birds could be very beneficial to police officers on a manhunt. “During the search, multiple... MAVs could be deployed and land on various structures throughout the search area. Even after the law enforcement personnel seem to call off the search, the MAVs would remain on their perches, keeping watch for the criminal/fugitive.”
Dragonfly Spy Robot
A couple years ago, the Washington Post published an article about suspicious-looking dragonflies showing up at an anti-war rally in Lafayette Square. These dragonflies were unusually large, flew in perfect formation, and had a row of spheres the size of small berries attached along their tails. Their existence was independently confirmed by a number of eyewitnesses, but nobody was able to prove anything and government agencies all refused to comment or issued sarcastic denials. One snide Defense Department representative said that if the protesters actually discovered robot insects, they should ''let him know.'' If it were any other paper, it would be tempting to laugh it off as a paranoid conspiracy theory, but the Washington Post has a tremendous reputation.
Cyber Espionage, Cyber Attacks, and Threats to Our Privacy
Robot hummingbirds and dragonflies are pretty glamorous, especially to science-fiction loving minds. But actually the biggest threat to our privacy comes not from robot bodies, but from robot minds. The millions of computers that run the internet are “robots” in a mental sense, electronic thinking machines. Who knows what information they might be persuaded to divulge? A cunningly written piece of malware might worm out information in places where the robotic hummingbird dare not flutter its pretty wings. Check out the sequel to this piece later in the week where we cover Cyber Espionage: Advanced Electronic Surveillance.
