Talk:Mosquito laser

Current Implementation

Are there currently any field tests of this product being done either in the States or abroad? Randischieber (talk) 17:12, 8 April 2010 (UTC)

Yes, check out there: Mosquito laser#Prototype in 2021 --Angerdan (talk) 12:12, 10 April 2021 (UTC)

Photo

Do you have any photos at all of the Mosquito Laser or any of the proposed prototypes? Is the current prototype the one that flies through the air, or does it remain stationary? Are there several prototypes? A video was mentioned; could this video or a link be posted for more clarification to show the wings melting off? This would give a better idea of how the wings were melted off or how the laser worked... — Preceding unsigned comment added by Stephaniedar (talk • contribs) 04:25, 15 April 2010 (UTC)

Malaria

How do mosquitoes end up carrying malaria or the West Nile Virus? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Stephaniedar (talk • contribs) 04:25, 15 April 2010 (UTC)

That's two separate questions -- malaria is caused by a protist, and West Nile is caused by a virus -- but they effectively have the same answer: the mosquito drinks blood from an infected person, and then spreads the infectious organism to every other person she bites ('she' => remember, only female mosquitoes drink blood). As for where the infectious organisms came from in the first place, that's a much trickier question; I recommend reading plasmodium for details on malaria. DS (talk) 14:36, 8 May 2010 (UTC)

Clarification

In the Initial Vision sections to what laser is the quote "The laser, referred to by some as a WMD (Weapon of Mosquito Destruction)" referring? If it refers to the Fence prototype, perhaps this paragraph would be better in that later section. Randischieber (talk) 17:23, 8 April 2010 (UTC)

In the cost section - this WMD :-) "COULD be manufactured" with standard shelf parts IF the software was available, maybe it is, but this important point should be addressed. Greg0658 (talk) 09:29, 8 April 2012 (UTC)

Needs better citations

I am an expert in the field (PhD in laser insect monitoring), the lack of proper citations in this page significantly lower the quality and credibility of the project. I am unable to refer to a single peer-review publication describing the instrument. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 146.232.216.140 (talk) 11:45, 12 March 2013 (UTC)

These are useless: ^ Guth 2009, p. ??. ^ (Lorie, 2000) ^ (MicrobiologyBytes, 2010) ^ (Azuike, 2010) ^ (Guth, 2009) ^ (Allen-Mills, 2009) ^ (Finkel, 2007) ^ (Guth, 2009) ^ (Johanson, 2010) ^ (Guth, 2009) ^ (Intellectual Ventures Team, 2009) ^ (Guth, 2009) ^ (Guth, 2009) ^ (Microbiology Bytes, 2010) ^ (Lee, 2010) ^ (Microbiology Bytes, 2010) ^ (MicrobiologyBytes, 2009) ^ (Johanson, 2010) ^ (Lee, 2010) ^ (Microbiology Bytes, 2010) ^ (Kare, 2010) ^ (Johanson, 2010) ^ (Jeremy, 2010) ^ (Guth, 2009) ^ (Lorie, 2009) ^ (Jeremy, 2010) ^ (Allen-Mills, 2009) ^ (Lee, 2010) ^ (Lorie, 2009) ^ (Johanson, 2010) ^ (Azuike, 2010) — Preceding unsigned comment added by TheThomas (talk • contribs) 22:22, 18 July 2011 (UTC)

Why laser is lethal to mosquitos

The article suggests, without citation, that 1) the mechanism for how lasers kill mosquitoes is not understood, and 2) lasers may kill by damaging the DNA of mosquitoes. With respect to no. 2 above, the claim is facially wrong. DNA damage could cause problems with cell replication, growth, and reproduction, but there is no way for DNA damage to result in instant death, any more than destroying the blueprint for a building in-progress can cause its immediate collapse.

Moreover, while I don't have the expertise to say for sure how lasers kill mosquitoes, I strongly suspect the mechanism is well-understood and that the absorption of the laser frequency by body tissue causes intense local heat and cell destruction.

Without citation to adequate authority, this portion of the article should be excised. 76.117.51.247 (talk) 14:40, 10 August 2011 (UTC)

Agreed. I'd have just excised. Gherson2 (talk) 16:42, 3 September 2011 (UTC)

Agreed. DNA damage does not cause a rapid death as seen in the various YouTube videos of this device in operation. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 134.174.140.63 (talk) 22:59, 29 September 2011 (UTC)

Agreed. I cannot see any validity to the claim, not only does DNA damage kill slowly, but this laser is not based on ionizing radiation. So it's hardly plausible. As it seems this has been agreed upon for a while now, and as no-one has aced yet I've removed the content Elvegaro (talk) 08:37, 24 November 2011 (UTC)

Also requested citation concerning the claim that the cause of death is unknown as this, too, appears highly unlikely. Elvegaro (talk) 10:21, 24 November 2011 (UTC)

Blue vs red/green lasers

The sentence 'Blue lasers are used in preference to other color lasers, such as green and red because they have higher energy, and they also minimize the amount of power used.' Does not make sense.

Although blue photons have more energy than red/green, the power of a lasers output is related to the number of photons emitted per unit time. Thus red/green or blue lasers can all have similar powers. As the mechanism of the phototoxicity is unknown, it is unknown whether the extra energy per photon leads into an increase in the lethality.

Secondly the source citated only mentions that blue lasers have potential as they are being developed for blu-Ray players, and more highly powered blue lasers are available.

I suggest the sentence is removed or replaced with 'blue lasers are preferable as higher powered ones are more available than red, and cheaper due to them being used in the blu-ray industry.' — Preceding unsigned comment added by 109.152.216.13 (talk) 13:59, 26 January 2014 (UTC)

Laser works with using sensor

By using this technology we are going to kill mosquitoes rapidly detecting by the sensors which is connected in Laser. It shoots when active the sensor for the mosquitoes. We are safe for deadly mosquitoes.

Thank You — Preceding unsigned comment added by 117.211.59.44 (talk) 06:10, 20 November 2014 (UTC)