We all imagine what happens when there is a danger of a bomb. The emergency teams are usually accompanied by dogs to make detection easier. Their keen sense of smell also enables them to find drugs or missing people. But now an unexpected competition came out. Lobsters could spot bombs, and that has several advantages.
Better sense of smell
A team of scientists studied the lobsters’ ability to detect explosives. One of their conclusions is that these insects outperform dogs in this regard. They’re cheap and don’t require training. Scientists say lobster antennas are much more sensitive. You can easily distinguish smells from different types of explosives. They do not rule out that modified swarms of these sniffing insects will emerge in the future in order to detect bombs.
He Study was carried out by a team of scientists from Washington University in St. Louis. It suggests that it is possible to create an advanced biorobot system from the antennas and brains of lobsters. The research is funded by the US Navy, no less. The investment is more than $ 1.1 million. They really think it is possible to create a bomb tracker with these characteristics.
Antennas with natural technology
Also the publishes the Stars & Stripes portal. Lobsters with their antennae can detect various explosives in incredibly low concentrations. The American lobster used for this study recognizes bombs better when operating in swarms. In a group of seven insects, about 80% gave accurate results. When lobsters were operated on alone, the effectiveness figure dropped to 60%.
Another reason lobsters might spot bombs is because of the antenna they have. It contains 50,000 neurons. This fact enables it to outperform other similar systems developed by engineers.
It wouldn’t be strange if they soon appeared in an action movie as part of an emergency team. Is there a danger of being bombed? Free the Lobsters!
