Nice, but I'll wait for the kit, without all the Hollywood plastic casing.
I was heartened by the number of commenters on the site of the original post who seem to grasp that being able to do something interesting with technology is often reason enough to do it. This outlook is largely responsible for every technological advance humanity has ever made. And conversely there has always been the "discouragement fraternity" warning that nuclear power, the internal combustion engine, electricity, the wheel, fire, or the atlatl is immoral, illegal, sacreligious, dangerous, or fattening. The price of progress, I suppose.
I wonder what the Next Model will be like 10w and a 1 mi.range then I´ll getting one. In the meantime I´ll be watching development. Did you notice the comments posted. All this thing does so far is burn and blind and some of the collectivists are already screaming about banning.
Think of it as the same basic effect as a magnifying glass in sunlight, only more portable and without the pesky critical focal distance. The problem with energy weapons is and always has been the question of energy density, ie how much power can you pack into a shot. With a laser you either have to have the target hold very still for a long time, or have a major generating facility as your power source. Chemically powered kinetic energy weapons, ie gunpowder and bullets, are still many times more efficient.
This tool represents a very interesting tactical M.O. Remote, wireless, radio signal free ignition. All you need is line of sight with the initiator. Now if they could make the invisible light LEDs like the one in my mouse as powerful....
root - you don't want to know what the gummint has. Nasty toys along this line, suffice to say - i.e. one-shot lasers that can literally blast holes in mountains (I worked with a guy that did the tests out in the Mojave). What's already on "Star Wars" platforms out in space would make a lot of people nervous, if they knew.
1 watt (continuous) in either visible or near UV or IR is VERY powerful, compared to the little 5 MILLIwatt pointer lasers (class 1 devices) - 200 times more powerful. But even 5 mW pointers can blind you, if you look at them long enough, and that's what the idea of MPE (maximum permissible exposure) is about. The classification goes in stages of possible damage to biological material, as well as the wavelengths and what kind of biodamage can result (mostly to the cornea and retina of the eye, but also to skin), and these lasers are the highest - class IV. See here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_safety
I worked with a few Quantel Nd:YAG lasers in my research position and learned how fast one of these puppies could permanently blind you - literally in one tenth of a second at the rep rate of 10pps. Doesn't take much. Laser specs can be very misleading, as most folks think in terms of broad spectrum lighting as in incandescent bulbs. Lasers are coherent, so all their energy is concentrated in a very small area, and it doesn't take much to be a very powerful laser. For example, a laser with very short pulses (around 20 picoseconds) and "low" energy (around 20 millijoule) will still yield power in the megawatt range. That's concentrated in a beam width of about the size of a pencil. Anybody using my lab was responsible for knowing where ALL beams and reflections were at all times, as even the reflections had enough energy to blind us. I got a nasty burn one time by just barely touching the edge of a beam with my finger.
A 1 watt laser in blue wavelengths will also have a FAR greater range than a mile, depending on atmospheric conditions, dust and water vapor in the air, the wavelength, etc. These things WILL blind night-time airline pilots at cruising altitude just from the light refraction across the plastic canopy. And yes, if you could get somebody to hold still long enough, it would burn a hole in your skin and probably set the underlying tissue on fire just from vaporizing and igniting the fat, not to mention what it woud do to clothing or any other flammable material.
I can see that this probably won't be on the market very long, as some ignorant fool will blind himself, or worse, his neighbor's kid (or a cop in a passing patrol car) and then the distributor will be sued for he's worth, signed disclaimer notwithstanding.
But damn they'd be fun to play with! So get one now before they're not available any more. That's a good price, too, for the assembled unit.
I suggest you devote a chapter in Absolved to characters using one of these. This could be a very useful tool for resistance to tyrany. These are not going to be visible in daylight for more than 100 yards. This could be effective against govt thugs - particularly those running road blocks. Blind a few minions and the next bunch might not be so willing to work the roadblock. This is also a countermeasure against helicopters and aircraft. While they do have goggles that protect against certain laser wavelengths, they don't protect against blue laser wavelengths.
15 comments:
If mere mortals like us can play with these lasers, imagine what the Gummint has:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62cdpR0o_tA
Nice, but I'll wait for the kit, without all the Hollywood plastic casing.
I was heartened by the number of commenters on the site of the original post who seem to grasp that being able to do something interesting with technology is often reason enough to do it. This outlook is largely responsible for every technological advance humanity has ever made. And conversely there has always been the "discouragement fraternity" warning that nuclear power, the internal combustion engine, electricity, the wheel, fire, or the atlatl is immoral, illegal, sacreligious, dangerous, or fattening. The price of progress, I suppose.
Dave
III
I wonder what the Next Model will be like 10w and a 1 mi.range then I´ll getting one. In the meantime I´ll be watching development.
Did you notice the comments posted. All this thing does so far is burn and blind and some of the collectivists are already screaming about banning.
Dennis
III
Texas
"Apparently the laser is so high powered that shining it on fleshy parts will cause them to burst into flames."
Well, yes, if you can get them to hold still while you light a teeny-tiny spot. Lots more heat energy in a candle flame.
So all those reports of spontaneous human combustion are revealed as testing ops for this device?
Think of it as the same basic effect as a magnifying glass in sunlight, only more portable and without the pesky critical focal distance.
The problem with energy weapons is and always has been the question of energy density, ie how much power can you pack into a shot. With a laser you either have to have the target hold very still for a long time, or have a major generating facility as your power source. Chemically powered kinetic energy weapons, ie gunpowder and bullets, are still many times more efficient.
Right on, Uncle Lar. I think I'll wait for the 4 megawatt-second version. That'll be something to see (for a very brief moment...)
That looks cool... but would be really awkward in a holster. Guess I'll wait until they are shaped like pistols. :)
Oh, and I want the kind that disintegrates the target. So much neater. Would give "stop the threat" a truly serious punch.
And it comes with a warning:
DO NOT LOOK DIRECTLY INTO LASER WITH REMAINING EYE!
This tool represents a very interesting tactical M.O. Remote, wireless, radio signal free ignition. All you need is line of sight with the initiator. Now if they could make the invisible light LEDs like the one in my mouse as powerful....
For now.
root - you don't want to know what the gummint has. Nasty toys along this line, suffice to say - i.e. one-shot lasers that can literally blast holes in mountains (I worked with a guy that did the tests out in the Mojave). What's already on "Star Wars" platforms out in space would make a lot of people nervous, if they knew.
1 watt (continuous) in either visible or near UV or IR is VERY powerful, compared to the little 5 MILLIwatt pointer lasers (class 1 devices) - 200 times more powerful. But even 5 mW pointers can blind you, if you look at them long enough, and that's what the idea of MPE (maximum permissible exposure) is about. The classification goes in stages of possible damage to biological material, as well as the wavelengths and what kind of biodamage can result (mostly to the cornea and retina of the eye, but also to skin), and these lasers are the highest - class IV. See here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_safety
I worked with a few Quantel Nd:YAG lasers in my research position and learned how fast one of these puppies could permanently blind you - literally in one tenth of a second at the rep rate of 10pps. Doesn't take much. Laser specs can be very misleading, as most folks think in terms of broad spectrum lighting as in incandescent bulbs. Lasers are coherent, so all their energy is concentrated in a very small area, and it doesn't take much to be a very powerful laser. For example, a laser with very short pulses (around 20 picoseconds) and "low" energy (around 20 millijoule) will still yield power in the megawatt range. That's concentrated in a beam width of about the size of a pencil. Anybody using my lab was responsible for knowing where ALL beams and reflections were at all times, as even the reflections had enough energy to blind us. I got a nasty burn one time by just barely touching the edge of a beam with my finger.
A 1 watt laser in blue wavelengths will also have a FAR greater range than a mile, depending on atmospheric conditions, dust and water vapor in the air, the wavelength, etc. These things WILL blind night-time airline pilots at cruising altitude just from the light refraction across the plastic canopy. And yes, if you could get somebody to hold still long enough, it would burn a hole in your skin and probably set the underlying tissue on fire just from vaporizing and igniting the fat, not to mention what it woud do to clothing or any other flammable material.
I can see that this probably won't be on the market very long, as some ignorant fool will blind himself, or worse, his neighbor's kid (or a cop in a passing patrol car) and then the distributor will be sued for he's worth, signed disclaimer notwithstanding.
But damn they'd be fun to play with! So get one now before they're not available any more. That's a good price, too, for the assembled unit.
-JRM III
Any bets on how long it takes the gubbmint to ban these?
...For the children of course.
Given the Anarchists and Socialists attempts to blind police in Greece with lasers. I strongly suggest eye protection.
Mike,
I suggest you devote a chapter in Absolved to characters using one of these. This could be a very useful tool for resistance to tyrany. These are not going to be visible in daylight for more than 100 yards. This could be effective against govt thugs - particularly those running road blocks. Blind a few minions and the next bunch might not be so willing to work the roadblock. This is also a countermeasure against helicopters and aircraft. While they do have goggles that protect against certain laser wavelengths, they don't protect against blue laser wavelengths.
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