e
Killing Mosquitoes With Lasers
Sooo satisfying to watch
In this last week on the farm, I have been bitten by mosquitoes more times than in the past few years of living in the city. Even when I am able to spot and slap a 'skeeter flat, it's sort of like killing a gangbanger in self-defense--the relief of victory is quickly replaced by the dread of knowing the rest of the posse will come looking for you.
Would it not be amazing if you could instantly kill an infinite amount of mosquitoes with pinpoint accuracy? Why yes, it would, and that's why Intellectual Ventures Laboratory, a sort of tech skunkworks outside of Seattle, invented this system of assassinating mosquitoes via laser beam:
The Photonic Fence, as IVL calls it, was originally designed to combat malaria. (IVL's skipper is Nathan Myhrvold, Microsoft's ex-CTO; his buddy Bill's Gates Foundation put out an open call to combat malaria.) You'll notice that the video above is dated 2010, so, eight years later, where the heck is this wonder device?
Enter a caption (optional)The full tale of why the Photonic Fence has yet to reach market is here. (The tl;dr version is: It's expensive, there are bugs--haha, hoho--to be worked out, and Myhrvold has a lot of other things on his plate.)
-
oFavorite This
-
Q5Comment
Directory Company Profiles
Core77
Industrial Design
Resources
Industrial Design
Resources
-
Core77 Directory
Find the Best Industrial Design CompaniesGo -
Curve ID
Curve ID is a New York City based studio, offering a complete industrial design consultancy service....
-
HS Design
HSD believes the future is based on teamwork across many disciplines and collaboration with multiple...
-
WhipsawWhipsaw, under the leadership of design visionary Dan Harden, is a highly acclaimed strategy, indust...
-
Bluemap Design
BlueMap design is a multi-disciplinary product development firm. Founded by Simon Yan in 2001, the f...
-
Olivialand Studio
Olivialand Studio, founded by Olivia Blechschmidt, is a boutique industrial design consultancy that ...
-
RKS Design
RKS is an award-winning global product design firm and innovation consultancy specializing in indust...
-
Tactile
Tactile is a product and UX design firm founded in 2004. Blending physical and digital design, we cr...
K
{Welcome
Create a Core77 Account
Already have an account? Sign In
By creating a Core77 account you confirm that you accept the Terms of Use
K
Reset Password
Please enter your email and we will send an email to reset your password.
Comments
As a remedy for malaria I've always thought this is a silly idea. It's advanced technology for areas that don't have access to reliable electricity.
No need to be grumpy George. It was a playful article about a first and third world problem. A ‘holistic (systems) thinking’ approach to this worldwide problem of biting insects is still under development. In the meantime brute force has to suffice keep us humans bite free and healthy.
This will be great to eradicate Wasps from this planet!!
Kill them with nano bots on your skin surface. Maybe not kill, just bend their proboscises.
Hi Rain. Every time you mention being upstate, I can't help wondering if you're near me. Are you by any chance in Sullivan County? Would love to grab a drink with you and talk shop.