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Slaughterbots 

If this is the future, include me out.

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  • Frank P November 15, 2017, 12:18 PM

    OFT has already ‘counted me out’ but my issue: their issue? Little ad infinitum’ about that prospect, sadly. Eat, drink and be merry …

  • theduchessofkitty November 15, 2017, 1:23 PM

    When I first heard about drones, I paid not much attention to them. Then, I saw the things they’re capable of.

    And suddenly, Revelations 9:1-11 made a lot of sense.

  • Instagram Web Viewer November 15, 2017, 2:08 PM

    OFT has already ‘counted me out’ but my issue: their issue.?

  • John A. Fleming November 15, 2017, 2:26 PM

    Hmm. Better start spending more time at the skeet and trap range. And look into a short-barreled .410 gauge with a 50-rd drum magazine option. That oughta hold ’em off long enough for the personal short-range EMP burster to be invented. Also imagine a little gizmo that emits artificial ball lightning bolts. Woohoo! Don’t worry about what amoral men building warbots can do. Imagine how to scrap ’em by the truckload. Imagine a pile of quivering, sparking smoking, shattered bots and you in front of it. Defense always overcomes, offense advantages are temporary. That’s because those amoral men are not nearly as motivated, and there aren’t enough of them, as all the men who stand in front of home and family.

  • Eskyman November 15, 2017, 2:51 PM

    I have never seen a horror film more frightening than that short video.

    The most un-nerving part is that killer drones as a concept is all too easily believed; in fact someone could build one now. All the parts necessary are already made, it’s just a matter of putting it together.

    Nothing in that video is out of reach of a government, which means that someone is already making them.

    I wonder when we’ll see them deployed? There have already been reports of drones near the White House; are any of them weaponized? I doubt we’ll hear much from those stalwarts of the “unbiased” media!

  • ghostsniper November 15, 2017, 5:50 PM

    “…which means that someone is already making them.”
    ======================================

    That’s right. Have I told you about the “self deploying residential security system” we are developing that will protect your entire property 24/7/365? Yes, it has drones but not like those you have seen. Typical drones have 4 or more rotors, each a liability (weak point), if 1 fails it becomes unmanageable. Ours has 1 rotor, with counter rotating props (thanks Volvo). Smaller, faster, more manageable, heavier payloads. Full xyz 360 degree distortion free fisheye lenses with UV, long distance telephoto – instant zoom, thermal, magnetic, etc. The chips can be wiped and reloaded in flight. Close-in sentinels, perimeter guards, long range patrol, Silent hive, swarm attack, molecular disposal.

    Don’t fear the concept but embrace the opportunity that good always wins. Remember, there are no bad drones, just bad operators (never be distracted by emotions). For the novice, a Remington model 1100 12 ga autoloader with spider-wire nets will suffice https://exoticammo.com/products/12-gauge-net-rounds , if you’re feeling froggy use the signal scrambling 12ga shells http://www.dronemunition.com/ on full auto from an AR12 with 200rd dbl drums.

  • Rob De Witt November 15, 2017, 6:08 PM

    I think everybody’s being too freaked out about the wrong things, and the wrong drones.

    The creepiest parts of that vid are the pajamaboys who applaud every time the bot blows something up. There’s your drones, make no mistake.

  • Snakepit Kansas November 15, 2017, 6:09 PM

    Ghost always has the best answer. He beat me to it, but I would suggest a simple 12 Gauge magnum/high brass cartridge loaded with 2 shot, and a single pull of the trigger, to take out a drone. That load does wonders on crows. Solo shots from a firearm within the city limits are largely unnoticed, or so I am told.

  • Casey Klahn November 15, 2017, 6:25 PM

    It looked to me like a shotgun, even with funny rounds, would be too slow and too few to respond. These bots looked fast and frisky. I’d say some electronic defense is the best choice. The horror story starts out badly, though. Lots of defenseless people out there.

    Gee, I wonder which senators got taken out? Hmmm. Of course we know! Conservatives are the target. I, myself, am a full-fledged nazi according to You Tube. When You Tube gets bot flies, I’m on the target list, fershur.

    Maybe it is time to order a family load of helmets, though.

  • Bill Henry November 15, 2017, 6:28 PM

    I could not watch the whole thing.

    Imagine the worst thing a human being could do and it has been done. People are capable of the utmost outrages. The price of such devices are negligible compared to the damage they can inflict.

    If you can imagine an application for such a device it will be done.

    Bill Henry

  • Donald Sensing November 15, 2017, 7:01 PM

    And Fermi’s Paradox is now solved.

  • edaddy November 15, 2017, 7:36 PM

    Counter-UAS … Google it and relax. $100 buys you a software defined radio. Antennas and amplifiers cost extra. Find a HAM fanatic who knows antennas and teenager who knows how to code and you could probably shove these little boogers right back down their owners throat.

  • el baboso November 15, 2017, 7:43 PM

    You hope that terrorists would use them first and hope also that the wave of public revulsion would cause any large scale production to be shut down. We didn’t use chemical weapons in WWII. We haven’t used nukes since ’45.

    There are already anti-drone jammers available commercially: https://www.droneshield.com/dronegun/

    The link takes you to jammer, which might not work against an autonomous drone swarm (a GPS jammer option is available,which might work if the swarm has to get to a given location before attacking), but if you have enough power, you could make a maser weapon that could fry the circuits.

    Battery life is a big limiting factor. I’m guessing that micro-drones like the ones shown have an effective range of a few hundred meters, plus or minus depending on wind speed and direction. Loiter time would be extremely limited. Of course if the drone is autonomous, your drone could have solar cells and go into a quiescent mode if no targets were available, waiting for days or even months before engaging.

    I decided about six months ago that I am a techno-pessimist. I’d be pretty happy going back to vacuum tubes, microfilm, and paper books.

  • Howard Nelson November 15, 2017, 9:06 PM

    Proposed solutions:
    1. Become one of the faceless pimps running aspects of our government or financial system.
    2. Surgery is now available to place nano-implants in your anus to move your eyes to randomly selected positions at the back of your head and armpits — defeating the face recognition of the bots. Premium implants will also shift positions of nose, lips, ears, cheekbones, …
    3. Least costly solution is to trade in your current visage for appearance as an assassin-bot. Other bots are not programmed to assassinate their bot brethren; Isaac Asimov would not approve, nor would the bot manipulators.
    4. Wear and frequently change design of your full-face masks. This will be a burden only for those who are two-faced.

    Please submit your other ideas before the holiday rush to termination judgements.

  • Howard Nelson November 15, 2017, 10:14 PM

    H/t to Hedy Lamarr, coinventor of a torpedo control system using frequency randomizing signals to prevent detection by Axis enemy vessels. System first used after WW2 by US Navy, although available for adaptation during WW2.

  • Casey Klahn November 16, 2017, 8:05 AM

    Don makes a good point @ lack of evidence. For my part, I had no room in my brain for the takeover of robots theme in contemporary culture. When Terminator came out, I just thought it good fun, but some were seeing it as a bellwether.

    Now, with AI, I am just beginning to wonder if some extra-human entity couldn’t get into some mayhem for real. It is the stuff of 1950s B Grade movies, but I also feel that no machine could ever match the evil available to men. The human fund of perversity, shown in history, is well enough stocked.

  • Jack November 16, 2017, 9:00 AM

    Snakepit, your #2 shot out of a 3.5″ magnum idea is too large and it’s too much umph for most gunners. Stick with field loads stoked with 7.5s or 8s out of an IC barrel and a kid can manage that.

  • pbird November 16, 2017, 10:25 AM

    Rob De Witt
    Exactly

  • Joyful November 16, 2017, 10:50 AM

    I sincerely hope this crazy doest come to pass. After the Paris terrorist attack at the Balaclava my then 19 yo son said, “Yeah, that’s terrible, but my bigger concerns are when those bastards start to use A.I.” That just stuck with me and i am reminded time and again how much i simply do not know or have the time to learn.

    I do know this, thanks be to God, that my earthly life was never intended to last forever. I also believe there is a Way out of it so that “In light of heaven, the worst suffering on earth will be seen to be no more serious than one night in an inconvenient hotel.” (St. T of A)

    Receive the sacraments.

  • ghostsniper November 16, 2017, 7:57 PM

    Jack has a point. All you have to do is hit one rotor blade with one grain of salt to disable the whole thing. I’ve seen hundreds of drones and all of them have minimal rotor blades. Minus one blade it becomes instantly unstable and throws off the gyro software. 2 years ago I knocked one of the blades off my workshop ceiling fan that had 4 blades with a sheet of plywood and it became unstable with the wobble so severe the other blades started hitting the ceiling until I could throw the switch. I took off the damaged stub and the opposite blade and stability returned and dare I say it now pushes more air?

    In your mind, envision how rotor blades work, they are basically identical segments of a screw thread with airspace between the segments. To use this system properly the segments should be elongated so that the leading edge of each segment slightly overlaps the trailing edge of the segment in front of it. More weight, yes, but more power, more lift, more stability, quicker maneuverability. In smoke filled wind tunnel simulations using standard segmented blades you can see jetty’s peeling off the trailing edges of the blades, which is counter to a smooth rotation – the blades actually buffet. Air from the trailing edge should slide smoothly over the surface of the next blade so that a continuous flow of air is produced rather than rapid fire puffs. Filmed at 1000 fps the puffs are apparent.

  • Frank November 17, 2017, 3:01 AM

    I envision a future where everyone will wear a beekeeper hat, and carry a supersoaker and a flyswatter.

  • Roland Deschain November 19, 2017, 10:34 PM

    What were those people in the audience cheering about? Did they think the robots were only going to be used to take out their enemies? Wrong! We will all become enemies if the state sooner or later, for one lame reason or another.

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