Re: [TML] Oh god, it's real!
Grimmund 01 May 2014 12:47 UTC
On Thu, May 1, 2014 at 5:59 AM, Richard Aiken <xxxxxx@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Thu, May 1, 2014 at 4:22 AM, <xxxxxx@shadowgard.com> wrote:
>> Well, someone has done it in the real world
http://www.intellectualventures.com/inventions-patents/our-inventions/photonic-fence/
http://www.wired.com/2010/02/death-star-laser-zaps-mosqitoes-dead/
> It seems that the main objections to it working for it's intended purpose
> (to kill malaria-carrying mosquitoes in Africa) are the high cost - each $50
> laser covers only a ~100 foot radius - and need for reliable electrical
> power. But the per-unit price would like drop once production got going and
> a small solar panel/battery seems likely to be enough to provide it with
> power.
>
> Of course, then you would have the problem of people stealing the solar
> panel/battery unit . . .
> But for zapping mosquitoes/gnats on your porch/patio, it appears as if it
> would work just fine.
>
> Hey! Maybe they could sell them for commercial use, then use the income to
> install them for anti-malaria use. E.g., the Newman's Own Profit Model. :)
>
"The future is already here. It's just not evenly distributed."
-William Gibson.
Dan
--
"Any sufficiently advanced parody is indistinguishable from a genuine
kook." -Alan Morgan