Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Latest By
Category:
Armor
Artificial
Intelligence
Biology
Clothing
Communication
Computers
Culture
Data Storage
Displays
Engineering
Entertainment
Food
Input Devices
Lifestyle
Living Space
Manufacturing
Material
Media
Medical
Miscellaneous
Robotics
Security
Space Tech
Spacecraft
Surveillance
Transportation
Travel
Vehicle
Virtual
Person
Warfare
Weapon
Work
"None of us, no matter what continent or island or ice cap, asked to be born in the first place, and that even somebody as old as I am, which is 80, only just got here."
- Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
 |
| Garbage-can Banger | ||
| An elaborate noise-based weapon. |
This non-lethal weapon was dreamed up by PKD in 1965.
| "...Frankly, I think we ought to drop a Garbage-can Banger on New Moscow.
"It's a missile that wide-cracks in the atmosphere... above the popcen - the population center - which it's aimed at. We place the Judas Iscariot IV above New Moscow, set to wide-crack at half a mile, and it rains down minned - miniaturized - h'd, that means homeostatic -" "...They're about the size of gum wrappers. They drift throughout the city... "They're cam - that is, chameleon; they blend, colorwise, with whatever they land on. So you can't detect them. There they lie, until nightfall, say around ten o'clock at night... "they start. Each pellet, fully cammed, begins to emit a sound... a horrid sneering sound. Buzzing... The point is, it keeps you awake... I mean wide-awake. Once the noise of a Garbage-can Banger gets to you, for example... you never sleep again... You can't perform your job. You're no good to anyone, yourself included." |
| Technovelgy from The Zap Gun (Project Plowshare),
by Philip K. Dick. Published by Galaxy Publishing in 1965 Additional resources -
|
As it turns out, our government is hard at work on the Garbage-can Banger. The long range acoustic device sonic weapon developed by American Technology Corporation is a non-lethal means of crowd dispersal. The device weighs about forty-five pounds and emits its beam from a 33 inch diameter pad (not yet minned). At its maximum volume of 105 dB at 300 meters, it creates an intolerable noise similar to that of a smoke detector.
(LRAD Long Range Acoustic Device on USS Typhoon)
The LRAD device has been tested in Baghdad, Fallujah and New York City. The luxury cruise ship Seabourn Spirit used an LRAD to repel pirates who attacked the ship off the coast of Somalia in November, 2005.
Found this connection here.
Comment/Join this discussion ( 2 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This |
Additional
resources:
More Ideas
and Technology from The Zap Gun (Project Plowshare)
More Ideas
and Technology by Philip K. Dick
Tech news articles related to The Zap Gun (Project Plowshare)
Tech news articles related to works by Philip K. Dick
Garbage-can Banger-related
news articles:
- Cognitive Enhancement (For Us) Vs. Degradation (For The Enemy)
| Is The Seattle Ultrasonics C-200 A Heinlein Vibroblade? |
| Man Builds 200 Foot Basement Firing Range |
| Russians Create Robot Tank Platoons |
| Unmanned Boats Attack At Sea |
Want to Contribute an
Item?
It's easy:
Get the name of the item, a
quote, the book's name and the author's name, and Add
it here.
| <Previous | Next> |
|
|
|
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Science Fiction Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
|
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
"The robot solemnly hit a ball against the wall, picked it up and teed it, hit it again, over and again...'
'There was a wall ahead... It was riddled with holes that were the mouths of tunnels.'
'...support the interior human structure against Jupiter’s pull.'
'Anything larger than a BB shot it picked up and placed in a tray...'
'The German chemists have discovered how to supply the needed elements in compact, undiluted form...'
'Compounds devised by the biochemists for the rapid building of bone...'
'The car faltered as the external command came to brake...'
'It is about the size and shape of a kitchen stool, gyro-stabilized...'
