“Solutions” like these are fun technological toys treating the symptoms of the damage we’ve done to the ecosystem. Far better, and more difficult because it’s less fun, is changing culture so we do less damage. There are many other living things that will gladly eat mosquitoes, they just need homes.
Predict 3D position of flying bugs and pest to shoot down them with a laser
61–70 of 124 posts
Re: Predict 3D position of flying bugs and pest to shoot down them with a laser
#62Earlier quoted context omitted.
That sounds like a big risk to aircraft.
How long of a pulse is required to disable an insect? How long to be a danger to airplane pilots?
Also, can we get a laser that's collimated badly enough that the beam is ~harmless at distances where an aircraft can be, while still collimated well enough to fry the insect? (In the spirit of "the best radiation shield is r squared".)
Re: Predict 3D position of flying bugs and pest to shoot down them with a laser
#63Earlier quoted context omitted.
You might be able to create a vortex cannon with enough shear force to rip their wings off.
After abandoning the laser idea due to the aforementioned “fully automated blindness / house fire machine” issues, I’ve often idly wondered if you could use a phased array of small subwoofers to generate a precisely targeted region of extreme pressure drop. That way you could just instantaneously and explosively decompress the suckers in such a way that’s probably safe for mammals.
That's a fascinating idea! Do you have an idea about the intensity and how "loud" the system would need to be to generate the compression/rarefaction necessary for that effect (or could the Hz be lower than audible threshold)? Also, I'm uncertain what behavior the array would yield (other than maybe expanding the area of effect)? Apologies if my questions are too deep in the well of ignorance to address.
Re: Predict 3D position of flying bugs and pest to shoot down them with a laser
#64Please stop killing insects. Seriously.
Targeted stuff like this is fine.
What's not is actively destroying eco systems with poisons, emissions, warming, etc, etc.
Using a targeted system to remove them from a room/growth facility? It's fine.
Re: Predict 3D position of flying bugs and pest to shoot down them with a laser
#65I've heard enough parables to know how this will play out, if it does happen: lots of dead bugs on the ground, bugs that will feed another species in the food chain. The lack of mosquito population and reproduction will starve species that depend on them. That change in the dynamic will ultimately be worse for ag production... I'm all for reducing toxic chemicals from the food supply chain and this approach looks som…
It doesn't have to be used to kill all insects, just the few mosquitos that are in my bedroom when I try to sleep. I'll remove any dead mosquitos the next morning and probably won't really alter the ecosystem, while it can make sure I have a good night's sleep. Edit: after re-reading the article I see the main subject is killing moths to improve agriculture, not mosquitos in my bedroom
For indoor pests we have had good results with diffusing lavender oil at night and peppermint oil by day. Mosquitoes in particular hate those smells and it makes it difficult for them to smell CO2 emitted from your skin pores which is their main attractant.
We also eliminated a source of standing water by our home and that pretty much ended the issue.
Re: Predict 3D position of flying bugs and pest to shoot down them with a laser
#66Earlier quoted context omitted.
We use lasers in lots of consumer products, we don't really have any with exposed lasers. You just can't guarantee that someone doesn't flip a quarter and blind themselves. It's a cool idea but pretty impossible to be safe.
I think the chances of a quarter’s reflection aligning to your eye while the laser is on and pointing at it are pretty damn slim. If that’s still too high, you better eliminate all corners in your kitchen because someone is going to lose an eye. And don’t get me started on forks.
The laser is designed to shoot small things in the air.
If you flip a coin, and the system has a bug that determines the coin is a bug then it'll shoot. Since you're surely planning on caching the coin, you'll look directly at it in flight.
Now... you're blind.
Re: Predict 3D position of flying bugs and pest to shoot down them with a laser
#67“Solutions” like these are fun technological toys treating the symptoms of the damage we’ve done to the ecosystem. Far better, and more difficult because it’s less fun, is changing culture so we do less damage. There are many other living things that will gladly eat mosquitoes, they just need homes.
The damage we've done to the ecosystem is also causing insects to die. If we repair this damage (and we absolutely should) I would expect an increase in mosquitoes.
Re: Predict 3D position of flying bugs and pest to shoot down them with a laser
#68Re: Predict 3D position of flying bugs and pest to shoot down them with a laser
#69Earlier quoted context omitted.
You might be able to create a vortex cannon with enough shear force to rip their wings off.
After abandoning the laser idea due to the aforementioned “fully automated blindness / house fire machine” issues, I’ve often idly wondered if you could use a phased array of small subwoofers to generate a precisely targeted region of extreme pressure drop. That way you could just instantaneously and explosively decompress the suckers in such a way that’s probably safe for mammals.
Domestic freak wave. Interesting idea!
Re: Predict 3D position of flying bugs and pest to shoot down them with a laser
#70Earlier quoted context omitted.
Everytime this idea comes up, I can’t imagine a laser powerful enough to kill even small insects not running the risk of collateral damage, burning things around it.
Maybe if several low power lasers were fired together, to converge at the predicted position, it would moderate the risk of collateral damage. Even a few millimeters away from the target position, the radiative flux (W/m²) would be much lower, likely at safe levels.
What if all of those lasers converge to hit someone's eye?
I don't see how a laser can have enough power density to kill a mosquito but still be eye safe.