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Senators Slam Bernanke Over Joblessness, but Fed Chief's Job Seems SafeThe United States and other countries have spent billions developing high-tech tools for battling terrorists around the globe. Some work, others fall flat. On Tuesday The New York Times reported on one case of highly questionable technology being used by the Iraqi military: an explosives-detecting "wand" that critics dismiss as a dangerous sham.
There have been plenty of other dubious ideas in the war on terror. From the insanely bad to the merely ineffective, here are 10 ideas that have fallen short:
1) Sniffex: Like the wand being used by Iraqi forces, Sniffex was a device that claimed to ferret out improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, even though tests failed to show any scientific basis for the device. Critics called it an example of a "dowsing rod," a bogus device meant to detect water or oil underground. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleged the company selling Sniffex, which was bought by the U.S. military, was little more than a stock sham.
2) Lightning Zapper: Arizona-based Applied Energetics, formerly known as Ionatron, built the Joint IED Neutralizer, which used artificial lightning to detonate IEDs. The problem? To zap the IEDs, the vehicle carrying the device had to be dangerously close to the bomb. The weapon is now cited as an example of a high-tech solution gone awry, and the company recently settled a lawsuit with investors who alleged the company hid information about the device's problems.
3) Pain Ray: The Pentagon has spent over a decade and tens of millions of dollars to develop a nonlethal weapon that uses microwave energy to create an intense burning sensation. Despite extensive testing to prove its safety and effectiveness, the Active Denial System, which has had problems working in wet weather and very hot weather, still hasn't been deployed.
4) Universal Translator: The Phraselator translation device, deployed with soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, spits out useful phrases in Arabic or other languages. Though praised as a promising technology, it does have one major shortfall: For now, it only translates one way.
5) Death Beam: The United States and Israel spent hundreds of millions of dollars to develop a high-powered laser that could shoot down rockets at the speed of light. But the Mobile Tactical High Energy Laser was eventually canceled when military planners decided it was too unwieldy to use. Despite a proposal to send it to Iraq, the dangerous chemicals needed to power the laser -- not to mention the cost -- ultimately killed the idea.
An element of the Tactical High Energy Laser, pictured in White Sands, N.M., in 2002.
6) Water-Cooled Body Armor: The name says it all. But the fact is that body armor so oppressively hot that it requires an integrated air conditioning system may be impractical. The Cupola Protective Ensemble, which was used by soldiers in Iraq, provided full body protection, but at a high cost in weight and mobility. Soldiers liked the helmet, but balked at wearing the rest of the suit.
7) Copperhead: It's a technology so sensitive that the Pentagon won't elaborate on how it works, but the head of the Pentagon agency tasked with fighting IEDs admitted last week to Congress that Copperhead -- a sensor system mounted on an unmanned aerial vehicle -- hasn't worked quite as planned. The sensor "tested very well in Yuma [Proving Ground] and has had a tough time in Afghanistan," said Lt. Gen. Thomas F. Metz, the head of the Pentagon Joint IED Defeat Organization.
8) Puke Ray: The Department of Homeland Security bragged that it was developing a weapon that flashed bright lights and would make people nauseous. The problem? There's little more than anecdotal evidence to support claims that such lights can make people instantly sick.
9) Bee Hunters:The Pentagon has been studying ways to use trained bees to hunt explosives. As a scientific question it's interesting, but it's not clear it will ever lead to practical applications. One obvious problem: Unlike trained dogs, who can work for years, bees have a short life span.
10) A Non-Nonlethal Weapon: In the 2002, Russians employed the chemical fentanyl to knock out Chechen terrorists who took hundreds of people hostage in a Moscow theater. The drug, which was supposed to be nonlethal, ended up killing more than 100 of the hostages.
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