I still want to build:
- An array of three microphones for locating mosquitos by sound
- a servo-mounted laser
- Software to combine the two, possibly with a manual mode.
We’re trying to stop bad mosquitoes by raising and releasing good ones
11–20 of 67 posts
Re: We’re trying to stop bad mosquitoes by raising and releasing good ones
#12I still want to build: - An array of three microphones for locating mosquitos by sound - a servo-mounted laser - Software to combine the two, possibly with a manual mode.
(semi-serious question) What happens when the sucker lands on your face and gets detected?
Re: We’re trying to stop bad mosquitoes by raising and releasing good ones
#13This seems like the only way it can work is to completely overwhelm the population with these sterile males, which seems prohibitively expensive.
I'm also a fan of the idea of the idea of locating them with sensors and shooting them out of the air with a cheap laser. It seems like this sort of technology should get very inexpensive pretty soon.
Re: We’re trying to stop bad mosquitoes by raising and releasing good ones
#14I still want to build: - An array of three microphones for locating mosquitos by sound - a servo-mounted laser - Software to combine the two, possibly with a manual mode.
Reminds me of Nathan Myhrvold's mosquito laser :)
Re: We’re trying to stop bad mosquitoes by raising and releasing good ones
#15I still want to build: - An array of three microphones for locating mosquitos by sound - a servo-mounted laser - Software to combine the two, possibly with a manual mode.
Well it does sort of exist: https://www.fastcoexist.com/3059127/what-happened-to-the-mos...
Re: We’re trying to stop bad mosquitoes by raising and releasing good ones
#16I still want to build: - An array of three microphones for locating mosquitos by sound - a servo-mounted laser - Software to combine the two, possibly with a manual mode.
(semi-serious question) What happens when the sucker lands on your face and gets detected?
The laser is very weak, it can't even blast through the exoskeleton, it just destroys their wings. (it is a cheap laser like those used in blu-rays...and it needs to use a minimum of energy)
Also, its sensors are smart...it can tell the difference between male and female mosquitos by beats per second of their wings. So that shouldn't be a problem.
Re: We’re trying to stop bad mosquitoes by raising and releasing good ones
#17I still want to build: - An array of three microphones for locating mosquitos by sound - a servo-mounted laser - Software to combine the two, possibly with a manual mode.
The problem is how to accurately classify mosquitoes, leaving out other insects that are required for the ecosystem to work.
Re: We’re trying to stop bad mosquitoes by raising and releasing good ones
#18The problem I see is that, while this can be used for good, it can also be weaponized.
Zika for example, has existed for thousands of years if not millions of years. How come just in 2015 there's this massive unprecedented outbreak? Just when Oxitec starts releasing their "good mosquitoes"?
What specifically changed and caused this outbreak?
Re: We’re trying to stop bad mosquitoes by raising and releasing good ones
#19I still want to build: - An array of three microphones for locating mosquitos by sound - a servo-mounted laser - Software to combine the two, possibly with a manual mode.
Well it does sort of exist: https://www.fastcoexist.com/3059127/what-happened-to-the-mos...
"Sort of" is right. I remember this being announced years ago, with press releases very much implying it was fully functional and proven.
Seems it is still a prototype.
Re: We’re trying to stop bad mosquitoes by raising and releasing good ones
#20I still want to build: - An array of three microphones for locating mosquitos by sound - a servo-mounted laser - Software to combine the two, possibly with a manual mode.
Well it does sort of exist: https://www.fastcoexist.com/3059127/what-happened-to-the-mos...
The last paragraph says:
Correction: This story used out of date information to claim that the technology had been licensed out. It has not been licensed to date. As well, it formerly stated that the U.S. Commerce Department paid for the company to showcase the technology in Germany. It just invited the company. We regret the errors.