Ever since Theodore Maiman built the first laser in 1960, people have been dreaming up clever ways to use them. In the past 50 years, we’ve seen the invention of many devices that user lasers: the laser pointer, laser levels, CD and DVD players, and even “frickin’ sharks with frickin’ lasers on their heads“.
But, finally, someone has come up with what is probably THE BEST USE OF LASERS EVER. It’s so cool and so geeky at the same time; I actually drooled on my keyboard a little when I saw it.
Intellectual Ventures Labs has come up with a way to fight malaria by literally shooting mosquitoes right out of the air with a laser. The device can detect the vibrations of the wings of a single mosquito, accurately locate it and literally blast it out of the sky with a laser (see the video below. I don’t know how anyone can ever top this (unless Apple builds this into the iPhone).
In all seriousness, this device does have a real purpose. It is a way to fight a very serious disease (malaria) without using any pesticides. Believe it or not, many people (mainly children) still die of malaria every day. It’s this sort of out-of-the-box thinking that can help. I think it’s a great idea.
What do you think?
photo credit, tanakawho
