Remote Control Cockroaches Could be Used For Search And Rescue... or..?

I don't know about you guys, but I'm not a big fan of cockroaches. It seems here that they may have a little bit more of good use than running around your house leaving fecal matters and bacteria everywhere.

The next time you're about to stomp a cockroach, you might want to think twice. A team of scientists from North Carolina State University has developed technology that may one day enable the insect to save lives.

Using video game technology, researchers have figured out how to put the roaches on autopilot, directing them along a pre-designed path. They hope that one day, the technology could be used to send the bugs into areas that are unsafe for humans to enter, such as collapsed buildings or other disaster areas.

So basically with the use of a circuit board and a kinect they were able to tap into the roaches sensory appendages, and send small electrical signals to the antenna to steer them in the right direction. They are able to control it using video game technology in real time.

"We want to build on this program, incorporating mapping and radio frequency techniques that will allow us to use a small group of cockroaches to explore and map disaster sites," Bozkurt said in the statement. "The autopilot program would control the roaches, sending them on the most efficient routes to provide rescuers with a comprehensive view of the situation."

But, with great power comes great responsibility

It seems like a novel idea, and it could benefit people in need, but I feel DARPA will snatch this up, and use cockroaches to possibly spy on people in their homes.. I mean, this ability to control roaches with a kinect and some video game software is kind of scary.

I know there is a plethora of other small drone type animal replicas and what not, but they actually are able to control a REAL cock roach, it's not a drone.. it's the real deal. So next time you see some roaches, I don't think you should feel bad for ending it's existence, because it could turn out to be a surveillance roach.

Full Article: Researchers Use Video Game Software to Steer Cockroaches

reply to post by eXia7


This story sounds like an easy transition into taking a peek into people's homes that are in question......Bypass privacy laws by claiming to help in search and rescue missions....TO START!!

If used for good only, this could be very beneficial.....But TPTB always turn good into greed or evil.....They will rationalize it with national security excuses.....

reply to post by eXia7


The last thing I would want to see as I lay trapped under a pile of rubble would be a freaken cockroach.

I can handle anything, snakes, spiders and all the other life that creeps people out.....just can not deal with roaches. It's a serious phobia that I have.

Next roach I see with a big PCB on its back gets stomped. Man, that's high tech right there.

I remember seeing a very similar article when I first joined ATS, only it was rats instead of cockroaches. They were touting it under the guise of 'search and rescue' there as well, and they were using the then somewhat recent 9/11 as an example of what their tech could be used to help with. While that's correct, I have a feeling any use of such technology would be for far less noble purposes.

talk life about intimating art.

Originally posted by DragonsDemesne
I remember seeing a very similar article when I first joined ATS, only it was rats instead of cockroaches. They were touting it under the guise of 'search and rescue' there as well...

Yeah, that one goes back to the late 90s IIRC, and we bid that the first time it hit the bid circuit. I don't recall if it was DARPA or agency. We got turned down, you had to have veterinary surgeons and techs on staff as well as a decked out animal hospital, we had bid using the university's crew for the animal phase with us doing the design work.