Stealthy Insect Sensor Project unleashes bees to sniff out bombs

While homemade nuke detectors patrolling our waterways seems sufficiently plausible, remote-controlled rats searching for explosives is certainly pushing the bounds of acceptability, but to expect a swarm of "highly trained" bees to sniff out destructive material (without getting medieval on somebody) sounds like an awful lot of buzz. Nevertheless, an 18-month research study -- dubbed the Stealthy Insect Sensor Project -- at the US Energy Department's Los Alamos facility has just concluded, and team members have announced resounding success in teaching your average bee to "stick their proboscis (that tube they use to feed on nectar) out in the presence of explosives." The DHS sees potential in using the little buggers to "find dynamite and C-4 plastic explosives" as well as relatively dodgy "Howitzer propellant grains." Scientists have used a reward system to train the animals, by offering up a "sugar treat" each time they correctly signify explosive material, and suggest that teams of detectors (read: incensed bees) could be carried about in "portable containers about the size of a shoebox." While theoretically, this plan may seem sound, what happens when our enemies start covering their tracks in nectar -- or worse, when the insects unleash a painful revolt against our own brethren?

[nick @ Nov 30th 2006 1:31PM]

Our Tax Dollars at work... Hope they didn't give up on the chimps.. but, I think something more electronic with a bit more control would probably be a better idea..

(nicholas)
http://www.tingog.com

[Phree @ Nov 30th 2006 1:46PM]

Dont look too far into this, with less than a year to the release of Halo 3 this is Bungie's second attempt at ilovebees.

[Steve Wiseman @ Nov 30th 2006 2:00PM]

It is an interesting idea. Many of the 'sensors' created in nature are better than anything man has ever made. I remember a body sniffing dog that was used here in Michigan could successfully find bodies in deep water - Once thought impossible because of the very low number of parts per million of scent in the air above the lake. I think it will be decades or even 100s of years before we even get close to sensors of this caliber.

Steve Wiseman

[booger62 @ Nov 30th 2006 2:11PM]

I for one welcome our bomb-sniffing bee overlords.

[Kathleen Weaver @ Nov 30th 2006 2:45PM]

Actually this is not that far fetched.

At the beginning of World War II, pigeons were trained in order to guide bombs. They were quickly replaced by electronics. I actually knew one of the people who worked on the project -- she passed away the week of September 11th, entirely unrelated.

She also worked on a project where cats were trained to become recorders. A recording device and transmitter were actually placed in the cat. These day they could include a camera.

They actually did some tests where cats were dropped off in American airports, travelled to their destination and listened to conversations.

In the area of detection, desert rats have been trained to detect land mines -- they are used as they are not heavy enough to set off the land mine and the average handler isn't as attached to the rate even if it did.

[hesh @ Nov 30th 2006 2:55PM]

@ Kathleen Weaver...

Funny you should mention the cat project. I believe it was damninteresting.com that had an article about that (or at least mentioned it in another article). Anyway, if I remember what I read correctly, the only real working prototype was actually hit by a car while crossing the street. I think it was trying to get close to the Russian embassy or something like that.

[auBois @ Nov 30th 2006 4:06PM]

Now, if someone could just be clever enough to use Africanized Killer Bees (instead of looking into a box that has bees in it with a camera), then when they sniff out the explosive and don't get the sugar water they expect, they could swarm around the person carrying the bomb. That person would begin to wave their arms around, attempting to bat away the bees which would enrage them even further. Then, even if the "insurgent" isn't allergic to bee stings they'd still fall dead after four steps, having completely forgotten the switch for the bomb.

Unless, of course, they are using "dead man's" switches which they undoubtedly are... And then there's that problem with "collateral damage". But still, it makes a remarkable image.

[Luke @ Nov 30th 2006 4:53PM]

Former beekeeper here.

I think it could work great. Bees are cheap and easy to care for, and contrary to popular opinion, honey bees are rather docile unless you deliver a Chuck Norris round-house kick to their hive. Away from their hive, you really have to be trying to get stung to provoke any aggresive. They're too busy to care.

My question is how quickly they can be trained, after all in the summer the female worker bees only live a few weeks.

[Doc Wonabbey @ Dec 1st 2006 10:00AM]

It would have been nice to mention that the idea and initial development came from a clever little British outfit guys! Rule Brittania and all that, what.

[ZworT @ Dec 2nd 2006 4:43PM]

I worked as a maintenance guy in the building where they were developing transistors small enough to stick to the individual bees (with their own beeswax, even). That way they could locate plastic explosive based landmines (is there even such a thing?) based on how many trained bees swarmed around certain areas.