Most read articles on weapons technology
London,
Dec
31:
New
Scientist
has
outlined
a
list
of
its
most
read
articles
on
weapons
technology
in
the
year
2008.
So,
the
top
10
articles
on
weapons
technology
in
2008
are:
Airborne
Laser
lets
rip
on
first
target:
Laser
dogfights
in
the
sky
may
not
be
such
a
long
way
off,
after
a
megawatt
laser
weapon
was
fired
from
an
aircraft
for
the
first
time.
The
plan
is
to
target
"rogue"
missiles,
but
it
could
also
be
used
against
other
planes
or
targets
on
the
ground.
US
boasts
of
laser
weapon's
'plausible
deniability':
The
US
military
is
developing
a
"long-range
blowtorch"
that
could
allow
it
to
incinerate
targets
silently,
invisibly,
and
without
leaving
any
trace
-
allowing
its
users
to
deny
involvement.
Pentagon wants laser attack warnings for satellites: Are spy satellites being "blinded" by ground-based lasers? No one knows for sure, but the Pentagon wants to develop sensors that could detect such attacks.
US considers nuclear-powered assault ships: The Bush administration is pressing ahead with a plan - to make assault ships nuclear so they will not have to pull into hostile ports for fuel. But, putting nuclear reactors into craft that will be in the line of fire is crazy, say critics.
Anti-landmine campaigners turn sights on war robots: Should robots be allowed to make their own decisions about killing people? No, says a major pressure group, which thinks that autonomous offensive weapons should be banned under treaties like those against landmines and cluster weapons.
Packs of robots will hunt down uncooperative humans: Another item on the Pentagon's wish list is a "multi-robot pursuit system" that will let packs of robots search for and detect a non-cooperative human.
'Pre-crime' detector
shows
promise:
Technology
developed
to
monitor
soldiers'
vital
signs
on
the
battlefield
is
being
reworked
to
detect
people
who
might
be
harbouring
hostile
thoughts.
But,
will
it
really
help
to
prevent
terrorist
attacks,
or
is
it
just
"security
theatre"
that
invades
travellers'
privacy?
Planned
cluster
bomb
hunts
targets
down:
A
smart
weapon
being
developed
by
the
US
would
feature
bomblets
that
could
pursue
targets
for
kilometers.
Flickering light could replace rubber bullets: US security forces are backing the development of a new breed of non-lethal weapon that will knock you flat with flickering light.
Fifty years of DARPA: Hits, misses and ones to watch: It pioneered the Internet and driverless cars, but DARPA's spectacular successes have been matched by some equally spectacular failures during the course of its 50-year history.
ANI