Since antiquity, biological warfare decimated the opposition. The Assyrians developed fungus that poisoned enemy forces while the Mongols threw fallen soldiers over city walls to spread disease. However, present day treaties and protocols have banned biological weaponry for military use.
Unfortunately, the modern age introduced a new threat: Bioterrorism.
Members of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force’s Special Weapons Protection Unit (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Tyler S. Giguere/Released)
Security agencies around the world struggle to detect biochemical agents. Terrorists can easily create anthrax and smallpox to inflict mass hysteria in enclosed areas such as airports or schools.
Anthrax acts as a potent nerve agent (destroys the body’s nervous system), while smallpox can infect millions of people, killing 30% of those afflicted. Thus, governments have responded by creating defence organizations tasked with combating this emerging threat.
“He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster.” – Nietzsche
To me, this quote best describes the proper way of fighting back. I believe using destructive weaponry to annihilate terrorists does not make us any better than them. A fine line must exist, that separates us from becoming the very monsters, we fear ourselves.
So far, military research has focused more on prevention over elimination of the enemy. Particularly, in the field of spectroscopy which studies how light interacts with physical objects.
A study done in 2011 by researchers from the Defense Science & Technology Laboratory United Kingdom developed PD-SORS (Point Detection – Spatially Offset Raman Spectroscopy), a new technique that can detect traces of urine hidden in containers from distances of up to 20 cm away. Very similar to the Tricorder from Star Trek (a portable scanning sensor).
SORS works like this: a laser beam fires from a box and hits an object (encased by a barrier) which then scatters around its container before returning back to the box for analysis. A variety of barriers were tested: ranging from paper envelopes, jiffy bags and complex chemical compounds. To great effect, the detector picked up urine traces in all different types of containers!
Raman spectra of drugs. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
SORS serves a crucial role in defence because traditional Raman spectroscopy excels in transparent and open-air settings. However, most threats hide from the public eye. Terrorists will place dirty bombs in suitcases, jackets and even coffee cups!
The ability to detect sub-surface threats proves invaluable in thwarting potential terrorist attacks. This practical application will allow airport security to improve their efficiency and accuracy when screening for potential threats at checkpoints.
Fighting headstrong may have worked in ancient times, but bioterrorism will require a different strategy. The key lies in prevention, where the greatest victory requires no battle.
