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It's a bit like a botnet. 3 killer drones probably isn't a WMD. Maybe 100 is. 10,000, yeah I think so. Thought there wouldn't be a whole lot of destruction lik
by hnick 6y ago
It's a bit like a botnet. 3 killer drones probably isn't a WMD. Maybe 100 is. 10,000, yeah I think so.
Thought there wouldn't be a whole lot of destruction like older weapons. Maybe it's more of a WMM (M is for Murder).
Thought experiment: What's the MVP for killer drones? Single use explosives like the Slaughterbots video? Or are there viable reusable weapons systems on drones that fit in your hand?
- Hello71 6y agothat doesn't seem like a useful definition. by that logic, any sufficiently large army is a "WMD", basically rendering the term meaningless.
- nsajko 6y agoNot sure that "weapon of mass destruction" is itself a useful term, but you are wrong because an army (composed of people) is not a weapon.
- mc32 6y agoTo be fair the swarms themselves without payload are also not weapons. It’s the capability to carry weapons autonomously in great swarms coupled with an inability to only target military installations/personnel. Obviously depending on the type of drone traditional WMDs could be deployed with them.
- hnick 6y ago> inability to only target military installations/personnel. I think that's a good point that I missed. The "mass" part of it. But even if we coded drones to only target military, this could be turned off or changed. Maybe we need code signing and weapons inspectors before determining if a swarm is a WMD or not.
- hnick 6y agoMost would say an army isn't a weapon, it has weapons. (Edit: completely missed my chance for a composition-over-inheritance joke here!) Given that mass destruction can be performed, the distinction to me is whether the "WMD" is a weapon (and not a collection of weapons). Like a MIRV with many warheads, we consider that one WMD don't we? If instead it had thousands of drones in it, what's the difference?
- rolph 6y agofast flyby with a sharp edged surface perhaps two passes per second per drone
- imtringued 6y agoThe kinetic energy of a 250g drone is insignificant unless you let it fall from a great height.
- rolph 6y agohow much kinetic energy is required for a razor blade to cut vulnerable areas? speed is a bigger payoff double mass == double force ; double speed == 4times the force. basically a rapier attack
- dodobirdlord 6y agoBee swarm? Small, lightweight, fast drones with no projectile weapons, just a foot long sharp narrow blade. Kill by swarming with precise diving stabs, detach the blade if it gets stuck.
- trianglem 6y agoThis but they explode when they make contact with the target.