| I saw this story a few months back when I was back home in Finland and was impressed with the simplicity of this minesweeper. The Mine Kafon by Massoud Hassani is an amazing invention, if you think about how much they cost compared to other minesweeping technologies. Essentially, it is a tumbleweed like minesweeper, as reported by CNN, which is moved around by the wind and goes wherever the wind takes it, just like a tumbleweed. And besides looking very cool (personal opinion, I like spheres!) it also takes out landmines which could harm innocent civilians. While I first believed that it was mimicking tumbleweeds, as the CNN title might lead you to believe, it was inspired from children's toys in Afghanistan. If you watch the video on the right (and you should!) you will hear everything about the Mine Kafon, how it came to be, and what the potential future uses are. Ever since this story came out, the Mine Kafon has received a lot of attention internationally. It has been covered on major news outlets in the US and Europe. What started of as a design project now has turned into an effort of saving innocent lives, funded by Kickstarter backers. While one Mine Kafon can take out up to 4 mines in theory, it is a far cry short of what a full size, military grade minesweeper can achieve. However, not every village in war ravaged countries can afford these minesweepers, therefore the Mine Kafon can help in many places where help was not affordable before. Oh, and it is biodegradable, how about that? |
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Janne PfeiffenbergerPhD Student @ Temple University. Biological Science Archives
May 2013
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