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"I feel like I've been very fortunate in that I've stuck like a burr to the dog-leg of the next generation of nerdism. I've been carried into the XXIth century on Bill Gates' pants-cuff."
- William Gibson
 |
| Copseye | ||
| A small floating "eye-in-the-sky" surveillance drone used by police in an extensive park. |
In this near-future story, areas are set aside as anarchy zones. Police use a special kind of remote surveillance drone watch to ensure that there is no physical violence, but are otherwise uninvolved.
| Someone at police headquarters had expected that. Twice the usual number of copseyes floated overhead, waiting. Gold dots ageist blue, basketball-sized, twelve feet up. Each a television eye and a sonic stunner, each a hookup to police headquarters, they were there to enforce the law of the Park. No violence. |
| From Cloak of Anarchy,
by Larry Niven. Published by Analog in 1972 Additional resources -
|
This story is an interesting exploration of the concept of anarchy in a real setting. Makes for an interesting contrast with the same kind of setting in Robert Heinlein's Coventry (if you did not agree to live up to the rules of society, you were given the choice to live with the asocials in a fenced-in environment).
Remote drones are under development to serve a variety of purposes.
The Traffic Surveillance Drone project in Georgia has a ducted fan drone under development; it uses an aluminum chassis with a carbon composite body structure to provide stability.
You might also want to check out the endearing entry for little bird, from Darwin's Children by Greg Bear.
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Additional
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More Ideas
and Technology from Cloak of Anarchy
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and Technology by Larry Niven
Tech news articles related to Cloak of Anarchy
Tech news articles related to works by Larry Niven
Copseye-related
news articles:
- Small Robot Surveillance Balloons Like Niven's Copseye
- Eye Ball R1 Remote Surveillance Camera
- SkySeer UAV Drone Soars Over L.A.
- Hovering Crowd Control Beam
| Panopticlick Browser Ident-Key You Didn't Know You Had |
| Herti Drones To Surveil UK Civilians |
| HAMLeT Hazardous Material Localization And Person Tracking |
| DEXI Scanner Looks Inside Air Travelers |
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