Old Mainstream Articles

 

A) 2003

https://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/20/technology/taking-aim-at-an-enemy-s-chips.html

Date: 2-20-2003

Title: Taking Aim at an Enemy's Chips

~"military experts, the biggest technical revelation of another war in the region may not be improvements to old systems but rather a new category of firepower known as directed-energy weapons... Think invisible lasers, using high-powered microwaves and other sorts of radiation rather than the pulses of visible light common in science fiction. These new systems, which have been under development in countries including Britain, China, Russia and the United States for at least a decade."

~''If there is a war in Iraq, there is no question in my mind that we will see the use of both directed-energy and radio-frequency weaponry,'' said John Arquilla, a professor of defense analysis at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., referring to both the new sorts of weapons and traditional jamming technology. ''Over the last several years, a great deal of research has been undertaken in this area both by the United States but also by other countries, not all of them allied with us.''

~"And while directed-energy weapons are not generally meant to kill people, there are certainly antipersonnel applications. In addition to the anti-electronics weapons, other directed-energy systems under development are meant to use microwaves to make people feel pain in the outer layer of the skin without generally causing physical damage. That pain is intended to inspire an instinct to flee.

~"Military experts say the range of modern directed-energy weapons could generally be measured in thousands of feet.''High-power microwaves have been around since the late 60's, early 70's..""

~"Mr. Hellman estimated that the government has recently been spending ''tens or maybe hundreds of millions of dollars annually'' on directed-energy systems. ''As long as you're not talking billions,'' he added, ''it's not statistically significant"

~"That is why the Pentagon in recent years has intensified its research on possible defenses and countermeasures against an enemy's directed-energy weapons systems."

B)  2003

 https://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/02/science/here-and-there-mysterious-hum-bedevils-unlucky-few.html

 

 C) 2005

 https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4857417?storyId=4857417

• "  Crowd control is a constant challenge to law enforcement -- how to stop potential troublemakers without endangering those who are simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Rubber bullets can kill, tear gas drifts with the wind....Several police departments across America are planning to try a new device that uses focused sound, turned way up. These so-called non-lethal acoustic devices are already in use by U.S. forces in Iraq -- and some are already in place in areas hit by Hurricane Katrina...These devices are more than just fancy speakers. California-based HPV Technologies recently demonstrated a "magnetic acoustic device" or MAD that can broadcast a targeted beam of sound for a more than mile. At close range, the sound from these devices can be terrifying and painful....Earlier this year in Jerusalem, the Israeli Army used a device nicknamed "The Scream" to scatter protest groups. The Scream sends out noise at frequencies that affect the inner ear, creating dizziness and nausea. The device can also cause hearing damage. "
  

 

 D) 2005

•  (June,2005) "Two weeks ago, the Israeli Army used a new weapon dubbed "The Scream" to disperse a demonstration in the West Bank. It's a non-lethal weapon that sends out bursts of sound.Malcolm Davies studies non-lethal weapons at the British Joint Services Command Staff College. Davies says the sound creates vibrations in the organs, which cause nausea and dizziness. He sees "the Scream" as more effective than weapons such as rubber bullets and tear gas." - https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4701588
  

 

 E) 2009

•  " US police spark outrage by using wartime acoustic weapon to disperse G20 protesters in Pittsburgh . Only a few hundreds protesters took to the streets of Pittsburgh to mark the opening day of the G20 summit of world leaders, but the police were taking no chances.Sonic weapons or long-range acoustic devices have been used by the US military overseas, notably against Somali pirates and Iraqi insurgents.But US security forces turned the piercing sound on their own citizens yesterday to widespread outrage. Pittsburgh officials told the New York Times that it was the first time "sound cannon" had been used publicly.The sonic weapon appear to be more effective than the Metropolitan police's highly contentious kettling tactics used against G20 protesters in London. But it is equally controversial.It is feared the sounds emitted are loud enough to damage eardrums and even cause fatal aneurysms.  " - https://www.theguardian.com/world/blog/2009/sep/25/sonic-cannon-g20-pittsburgh
  

 

 

 F) NOV,2005 - BBC 

 " Cruise lines turn to sonic weapon - They also deployed a military-grade sonic weapon...The long range acoustic device, or LRAD, is a high-tech loudhailer capable of causing permanent damage to hearing from a distance of more than 300 metres (984ft).Commissioned and designed after the al-Qaeda attack on the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000, the device's manufacturer, the American Technology Corporation (ATC), calls the LRAD a "non-lethal weapon" with a wide range of uses.The LRAD typifies a new generation of hi-tech weaponry being deployed in conflict zones....

It was bought by the US Navy in 2003, and is regularly used by US and UK forces 

US troops have also used the LRAD in action in the Iraqi cities of Falluja and Baghdad, and it was deployed for crowd control in New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

The LRAD uses a high energy acoustic beam - in layman's terms, a very loud noise - to disable and disorientate a opponent or a crowd.

The units, which measure 33 inches across and weigh 45lb, cost roughly $30k each.

The shrill sound of an LRAD at its loudest sounds something like a domestic smoke alarm, ATC says

The manufacturers say the device can also be used as a loudspeaker, enabling operators to be heard "with authority" above the din of a battle, whether in the desert or on the high seas.

"Most of the security guys [on cruise ships] are retired US and British naval officers. We show them the latest and greatest and they've decided it's something they can use," said Mr Ballard.

"We train all the crew in how to adequately operate the device. This time the head of security was an ex-Gurkha from Nepal, and he made some good quick decisions."

 

G)

 https://www.nbcnews.com/science/cosmic-log/reality-check-russias-zombie-ray-gun-program-flna677150

Date: 4-6-12

Title: Reality Check on Russia's "zombie ray gun"

~ "Such weapons purport to take advantage of the effect that pulsed microwaves can have on brain activity. Some researchers have reported an effect known as microwave hearing, in which a directed beam of radiation produces a sensation of buzzing, clicking or hissing in the head. 

"This technology in its crudest form could be used to distract individuals," 


according to a declassified Army review of non-lethal weapons."

~ "Theoretically, electromagnetic beams could cause an epileptic-type seizure, or involuntary eye motion leading to dizziness and nausea. 

Military researchers have also looked into using infrasound or laser beams to confuse or incapacitate a foe

 — but when you start going down this road, before you know it, you're talking about remote viewing, ESP and all the way-out concepts chronicled in "The Men Who Stare at Goats." 

~ "The Russians have looked into these potential technologies at least as deeply as the Pentagon has... top Russian officials started talking about psychotronic weapons a couple of weeks ago."

~ "The development of weaponry based on new physics principles — direct-energy weapons, geophysical weapons, wave-energy weapons, genetic weapons, psychotronic weapons, etc. — is part of the state arms procurement program.."

~ " "The military capability of a country in space or information countermeasures, especially in cyberspace, will play a great, if not decisive, role in determining the nature of an armed conflict. In the more distant future, weapons systems based on new principles (beam, geophysical, wave, genetic, psychophysical and other technology) will be developed.."

~ "research into electromagnetic mind control"

~ "The Mail also quoted Anatoly Tsyganov, head of the Military Forecasting Center in Moscow, as saying microwaves could make for "a highly serious weapon":

"When it was used for dispersing a crowd and it was focused on a man, his body temperature went up immediately as if he was thrown into a hot frying pan. Still, we know very little about this weapon and even special forces guys can hardly cope with it." "

~ "..millimeter-wave "pain ray" that the U.S. military has been working on for years. As we noted a couple of weeks ago, the beam of radiation can be directed at a crowd, producing a severe burning sensation on the skin that forces the target to jump away instinctively."

~ "The bottom line is that Russia certainly seems to be on track to set up its own DARPA-like "Department of Mad Scientists," working on heat rays, mind-altering electromagnetic beams and heaven knows what else."

 H)

https://news.yahoo.com/blogs/technology-blog/5-real-life-weapons-straight-sci-fi-movie-215550863.html

Date: 4-10-12

Title: 5 real-life weapons straight out of a sci-fi movie

~ "These five crazy, futuristic, and veritably frightening weapons may sound like they come from epic sci-fi flicks, but they're no mere figments of the imagination — they actually exist."

1.Speech-suppressing gun

2.Vomit ray

3.Pain ray

4.Mind-control gun

5.Self-guided bullet

~ "For starters, all current weaponized laser technology uses wavelengths of light that are invisible to the human eye. They can cause damage to a target, but you'd never be able to actually see the damaging rays the weapons generate. Second, ... you'd never actually be able to see the distinct glowing bars that are so common in futuristic firefights."

~ "Most of the weapons in this list may not be created to inflict fatal wounds, but they sure have terrifying implications. We know we don't want to experience awful pain, be turned into a zombie, or have our right to free speech taken away. Still, these creations represent fascinating advancements in science and technology. Let's just hope they don't fall into the hands of someone who has dreams of global domination."