[Mb-civic] "Active Denial System"

[Jim Burns]

This is....  Interesting....
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"Active Denial System Has Researchers Worried"

The 'Sheriff' Active Denial System (ADS), due to be implemented in Iraq
by 2006, has some scientists and researchers expressing concerns. ADS is
a non-lethal, counter-personnel directed energy weapon; it projects a
focused beam of millimeter-sized waves to induce an intolerable heating
sensation on the skin of adversaries. 
 
"What happens if someone in a crowd is unable for whatever reason to
move away from the beam?" asked Neil Davison, coordinator of the
nonlethal weapons research project at Britain's Bradford University. 

"How do you ensure that the dose doesn't cross the threshold for
permanent damage? Does the weapon cut out to prevent overexposure?"


According to a paper provided by the government, great care has been
taken to make sure that Active Denial Technology system does not harm
human beings: 

A large portion of the investment, about $9 million, has been devoted to
characterizing the effects of this technology on the human body. This is
to ensure the effects of millimeter waves are well understood, and that
a wide safety margin exists between levels that provide operationally
useful effects and those that may cause injury. Animals and humans have
been used in the extensive test program, which has been conducted in
strict compliance with the procedures, laws and regulations governing
animal and human research. The tests have been reviewed and approved by
a formal Institutional Review Board with oversight from the Air Force
Surgeon General's Office. An independent panel of nongovernmental
medical experts also periodically reviewed and advised on the planning
aspects and results of the research and test activities.

In tests carried out on Wednesday at Kirtland Air Force Base in New
Mexico, participants were asked to remove their glasses and contact
lenses to protect their eyes. In other tests, participants were asked to
remove metal objects like coins from their clothing. 

Science fiction fans have been concerned about energy weapons since H.G.
Wells originated the idea of a heat ray in War of the Worlds. 

The Active Denial System has been in development for almost fifteen
years; early development was done by the Air Force Research Laboratory
and the DoD Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate. 


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