mosquitoes

Scientists to fight malaria via spermless mosquitoes

Female mosquitoes just don't get to have any fun. They mate only once, lay eggs, and eventually die.

In an effort to combat malaria, researchers at Imperial College London hope to take advantage of the female mosquito's plight--and reduce the mosquito population--by engineering spermless males. They say the key is that the females don't seem able to tell the difference; they still mate with the sterile males and proceed to lay eggs that never hatch.

This is an improvement over previous attempts to engineer sterile males, the team said, because that process often exposed the males to … Read more

Bogus bug protection

We love you, Download.com users, but we don't love you enough to take our laptop outside and see if Anti Mosquito actually works. Oh, we would if we thought there was a chance that it might actually keep mosquitoes away; they are the bane of our existence during the summer, and even as we write this we are trying to avoid scratching the multiple bites that we currently have. But do even the most basic research on this topic and you'll find that there's no evidence that programs or devices that emit sound do anything to … Read more

Watch a laser gun kill mosquitoes

You can actually find useful things on eBay.

This has undoubtedly been proven by an extremely clever person, Nathan Myhrvold. At the TED 2010 conference, Myhrvold revealed that his invention company, Intellectual Ventures, had developed a mean, heartless, and very sophisticated laser gun, one that might remind you of your favorite science fiction movie. (Which, in my case, is "Galaxy Quest.")

This laser gun has, unlike so many other guns, a rather positive purpose. It kills mosquitoes. It zaps them like the deadly little flying worms that they are.

In fact, on the Intellectual Ventures site, there is some mind- and body-blowing footage of a mosquito being dispatched to its Hades by this gun. (I have embedded it here because it's just so mesmerizing.)

One of the more ingenious aspects to this fine Death Star creation is that it was made from parts bought on eBay and other similar sites. The components largely consisted of parts from such devices as laser printers, Blu-ray Disc writers, camcorders, and video game consoles.… Read more

This laser gun zaps mosquitoes

With news of a new kind of dengue emerging in Singapore, this sounds like a job for...a mosquito laser zapper! Punnily dubbed a "weapon of mosquito destruction" (WMD), scientists are finally declaring a Cold War against malaria and all mosquito-related ailments.

This particular one appears to take a Death Star leaf out of the "Star War" book, with the laser designed to detect the audio frequency of beating wings, zero in on the culprit, and burn it on the spot. The good news is the WMD will be capable of sweeping an entire area or … Read more

TED conference: Gates, Gore, robot wars

Bill Gates released mosquitoes into the audience, Naturally 7 recreated the sound of musical instruments with their voices, and Al Gore admonished the coal industry for its "clean" image campaign.

All in all, it was just another day at the Technology, Entertainment, Design (TED) Conference, a premiere and exclusive gathering of visionaries and luminaries that is taking place this week in Long Beach, Calif.

Wednesday started on a sobering note with Juan Enriquez, a philosopher and researcher, who explored how the U.S. economy is floundering but encouraged people to "dance through the flames" and focus … Read more

Army's new mosquito trap exploits "irrepressible urge"

The world may be gaining ground in its war against the mosquito, specifically Aedes aegypti- the planet's main vector for dengue-thanks to a new trap developed by the US Army.

The Tiger Trap, created and marketed under license by Spring Star, Inc. exploits the Aedes' "irrepressible urge" to lay their eggs mainly on the sides of water filled containers. This characteristic allows them to be second guessed and lured into contact with a tiny dose (1 millionth of a kilogram) of lethal insecticide. Not only is this an improvement over the conventional method of spraying insecticide … Read more

Mosquito repellant for the true believer

Some years ago, after a particularly bad outbreak of bug bites, we purchased a $500 propane-powered mosquito-repellant system that was supposedly effective enough to be used by the military. (Is that an official gadget cliche yet?) We never got it to work, naturally, and it sits in a corner of the garage mocking us daily.

So we're somewhat dubious about any device that claims to eradicate the winged leeches unless it involves mass quantities of highly toxic industrial-strength pesticides. But this mosquito repeller claims to do just that with ultra-sonic sound in adjustable frequencies.

Please forgive our skepticism, but … Read more

File this mosquito-repelling gadget under 'too good to be true'

This orange abomination might look like a really ugly iPod speaker, but it's actually a device that promises to keep mosquitoes away and restore your summer evenings to a more sanguine state by emitting a "natural, chemical-free" odor. (But it doesn't say how bad it smells.) You can clip the Mosquito Shield onto your belt (um, dorky) or put it on a nearby table or porch in an attempt to declare hegemony over your exposed skin when the bugs might be biting.

Here's the problem: I doubt it actually works.

You see, mosquitoes are vehement … Read more

RC 'Dragonfly' may be in the wings

When we started seeing remote-controlled mini-helicopters and mosquito choppers buzz into the market, we kiddingly warned that a locust-like invasion must have been imminent. We're now sorry to say that the joke may be on us.

RoboCommunity is reporting that WowWee--maker of the hugely popular Robosapien--has submitted applications with the FCC for a remote-controlled "FlyTech Dragonfly." Quoting a user manual submitted to the agency, RoboCommunity says the device "has wings (like a dragonfly) and a tail rotor like on many helicopters, and is supposed to be 'crash-proof' due to what they term the 'high-flex' design. … Read more

Destroy all flying alarm clocks

What could be more annoying than a remote-controlled mosquito helicopter? A flying alarm clock that buzzes like one, as seen on Newlaunches. Think about it: Not only would you have a foreign object bouncing off your bedroom walls and ceiling, but it would be blaring its irritating alarm the whole time.

If this were in our house, it would only go off once. After that, it would be thrown out the window--open or not. So if you absolutely must have a flying alarm clock, we recommend this one instead. As Shiny Shiny points out, it's tethered to the ceiling … Read more