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Google Pays for Drones To Bust African Rhino Poachers

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Re: Google Pays for Drones To Bust African Rhino Poachers

#61

Post by vaxdigitalnh »

knowledgesale wrote: post #40
philwelch wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well yeah, NASA is a research agency and SpaceX is a company trying to commercialize space technology. That's like saying the Human Genome Project cost billions of dollars but you can get your genome sequenced for $99 from 23andMe, so obviously the Human Genome Project was a waste of money.

You have no clue what you are talking about. Human Genome project is an example of complete DNA sequencing while 23andMe only tests for specific variations at specific loci. 23andMe and similar companies use commercially available solutions like DNA microarrays [1] with probes preprogrammed [2] for specific target variations and they cannot "read" arbitrary DNAs. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNA_microarray [2] ht…

This is why I often feel it is an utter waste of time to read HN. Alas, people like you are not always around to correct people like Mr. Welch and reign in the ignorance. God only knows how many readers will read comments like his and think he actually does know what he's talking about. They might even rely on name recognition or "karma" to ascertain the validity of his statements.

Sad.

Re: Google Pays for Drones To Bust African Rhino Poachers

#62

Post by dodo53 »

_djo_ wrote: post #57

This is welcome from Google, as focused aid of this sort can often have an outsize effect, but we must be careful to avoid believing this can solve the problem. For one, sophisticated UAVs that are much more capable than those the WWF is getting are already being used to combat rhino poaching. SANParks, the state agency responsible for South Africa's state-run national parks, has deployed the Seeker II military-spec…

Maybe they could follow the rhinos with UAVs to cut down on patrol-space? (or spend the money flooding the market with fake-rhino-horn?)

Re: Google Pays for Drones To Bust African Rhino Poachers

#63

Post by rmc »

malbs wrote: post #5

I watched a doco a while back about a bloke named Damien Mander, who was ex-SAS and served in Afghanistan/Iraq, and was now living in South Africa training wardens to protect the elephants and rhinos. He said that the one tool he wished he had access to was predator UAVs like the ones they had in Afghanistan, because the amount of ground it could cover in one flight was huge compared to troops on-foot (or even in gro…

But if a poacher shoots it down, then they have just alerted the wardens to their presence.

Re: Google Pays for Drones To Bust African Rhino Poachers

#64

Post by _djo_ »

dodo53 wrote: post #62
_djo_ wrote: post #57

This is welcome from Google, as focused aid of this sort can often have an outsize effect, but we must be careful to avoid believing this can solve the problem. For one, sophisticated UAVs that are much more capable than those the WWF is getting are already being used to combat rhino poaching. SANParks, the state agency responsible for South Africa's state-run national parks, has deployed the Seeker II military-spec…

Maybe they could follow the rhinos with UAVs to cut down on patrol-space? (or spend the money flooding the market with fake-rhino-horn?)

Too many rhinos dispersed across too far a distance. Unlike elephants rhinos don't necessarily herd in large groups. Many of the rhinos killed were either alone or in a small group of 2-4.

I'm not sure flooding the market with fake rhino horn is feasible as the underworld will develop its own authentication methods, but one suggestion that has been discussed is to flood the market with rhino horns from the huge stockpiles collected from rhinos who've died from natural causes in the hope that it'll lower the price and reduce the incentive to poach.

Re: Google Pays for Drones To Bust African Rhino Poachers

#65

Post by sandGorgon »

_djo_ wrote: post #57

This is welcome from Google, as focused aid of this sort can often have an outsize effect, but we must be careful to avoid believing this can solve the problem. For one, sophisticated UAVs that are much more capable than those the WWF is getting are already being used to combat rhino poaching. SANParks, the state agency responsible for South Africa's state-run national parks, has deployed the Seeker II military-spec…

>demand for rhino horn from Asia

I think that is better classified as "traditional Chinese medicine".

The other (more scientific?) traditional medicine in Asia - Ayurveda - has no usage of elements like rhino horn, tiger blood, etc.

Re: Google Pays for Drones To Bust African Rhino Poachers

#66

Post by willyt »

lwhi wrote: post #54

I can't help feel there are tangential aims for a project like this. Surely part of the reasoning for making an investment in a project like this, is the advancement of the technology involved? Bearing in mind the premier use for similarly advanced unmanned aircraft, is it too cynical to believe the project might end up advancing military aims?

Public relations. It's obviously an investment in PR to generate public goodwill towards Google and at $5m, much cheaper than a TV advertising campaign.

Re: Google Pays for Drones To Bust African Rhino Poachers

#67

Post by podperson »

btilly wrote: post #26
podperson wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

SpaceX's 2010 technology sure kicks NASA's 1975 technology's butt. Look, I love Elon Musk and SpaceX as much as the next guy but probably most of the cost advantage has to do with improved technology (especially materials science).

According to Elon Musk the biggest single difference is the economic incentives of fixed priced bids (SpaceX) versus cost+ bids (traditional aerospace). With traditional NASA bidding procedures there are very few to no incentives to contains costs. Military procurement has the same issue, combined with stringent requirements that preclude off the shelf for virtually anything. (Off the shelf is not, of course, an opti…

NASA's definitely hampered both by organizational and political issues that SpaceX isn't, but as other posters have pointed out NASA has also managed to do some amazing things on a comparative shoestring budget in recent years and -- unlike SpaceX -- these are things no-one has ever done before with relatively few failures.

Re: Google Pays for Drones To Bust African Rhino Poachers

#70

Post by [deleted] »

philwelch wrote: post #37
pmorici wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The government isn't exactly known for procuring things at an economical price or designing for efficiency. I mean just look at the cost difference between a space shuttle launch vs SpaceX.

Well yeah, NASA is a research agency and SpaceX is a company trying to commercialize space technology. That's like saying the Human Genome Project cost billions of dollars but you can get your genome sequenced for $99 from 23andMe, so obviously the Human Genome Project was a waste of money.

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