Free Republic

Scientists from NTU Singapore and Waseda University have developed a flexible "diving suit" for cyborg cockroaches, enabling the insects to survive and move underwater and in low-oxygen environments for up to three hours. Published today in Nature Communications, the study could expand the use of cyborg insects in search-and-rescue missions, especially in disaster zones where flooded rubble, puddles or partially submerged spaces can block access for conventional robots. Cyborg insects are living insects fitted with electronic controllers that guide their movement. Because they use the insect's own muscles to move, they require far less power than small artificial robots, which...

1911: Chester E. McDuffee’s patented diving suit The suit of Chester E. Macduffee is a fantastic suit to see. Although Macduffee patented 4 inventions and pictures of the actual diving suit are still available it is very strange nothing could be found about the inventor. In the book from Hermann Stelzner there are some references to Macduffee. The name of the inventor is often written in different ways. Stelzner calls him Macduff. He is also called McDuffie – MacDuffie – MacDuffy – Macduffie but the true name of the man was Macduffee. Stelzner wrote: Macduffs ADS was tested in 1915...

Notwithstanding former President Jimmy Carter's recent statement to the contrary, Undersecretary of State John Bolton's remarks about Cuba's biological weapons capabilities underscore lingering concerns with the rogue island only 90 miles from the United States. Bolton, on May 6, told an audience at the Washington, D.C.-based Heritage Foundation that the U.S. is suspicious about Cuban biomedical laboratories and their ability to transfer biological weapons technology to Iraq, Syria and Libya, all countries that Cuban President Fidel Castro visited last year. Bolton also made remarks, which may be interpreted as a clear signal of hardening State Department policy toward Cuba, faulting...