Pentagon works on cyber soldiers for future battles
[link to archive.gulfnews.com]

11/16/2008 07:23 PM | By Arno Maierbrugger, Staff Writer

Dubai: It sounds like science fiction, but for Dr John Parmentola, Director of Research and Laboratory Management with the US Army's science and technology office, it is very close to reality.

His researchers - neurobiologists, physicians and medics - have been studying for several years on projects one would easily consider as having a touch of the paranormal, but now are apparently at the point to release some of their results.

Parmentola wrote in a blog related to the US Department of Defence (dodbuzz.com) last week that his laboratory has developed several techniques capable to commence a complete new era of warfare.

"We are making science fiction into reality", Parmentola said, suggesting the Army may use realistic holographic images of soldiers, mind communication, self-regenerating body parts and the erasement of traumatic memories in the soldiers' brains.

In fact, Parmentola's no-nonsense approach to this - let's say - outer limit science will take him to present his researchers' ideas and developments at the 26th Army Science Conference in Orlando, Florida, from December 1-4, 2008 (See agenda at www.asc2008.com).

Army scientists have been diving deep into the matters of biomedicine and neurobiology. One of Parmentola's team, Dr Joe Tsien, has conducted animal experiments on mice to find a way to erase memories subjected to traumatic experiences by applying electronic impulses on certain parts of the brain.

This could be "useful" for soldiers, Parmentola said: "Imagine people who have horrifying memories. It would be great if we could eliminate them so they're not plagued by such memories uncontrollably."

Soldiers suffering from post traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injuries could be relieved by using this method, Parmentola said.

Another project is focusing on the possibility to regrow lost limbs or other body parts, even internal ones.

Parmentola said his researchers "aren't far away" from using a technique of regenerating body parts that have been lost or were injured in combat or in accidents.

The scientists are trying to imitate the ability of certain amphibians like salamanders which are able to regrow lost limbs.

"We're beginning to understand how this occurs," Parmentola said. It could be scenario where molecular or nano particles are used as a scaffolding to support the regrowth of human body parts and dissolve afterwards.

Mind impulses

Another stunning technique is the idea of mind communication between soldiers or for controlling machines and weapons.

Troops may be equipped with a cap that is sensitive to electrical impulses coming out of a soldier's brain. Detailed Army experiments have shown that "certain thoughts" produce such impulses on the surface of the scalp.

The special mind communication caps could pick up those impulses, amplify them and send them wirelessly as a commando to another soldier or to a military device.

Soldiers could be trained in thinking intensely of a certain command like "shoot" or "turn on" or the like to enable the mind cap wiring to receive, translate and send the correct impulse pattern.

The next project is the "cyber soldier", a further stage of the concept of transferring a holographic image of a person that follows commandos given into a computer located in safety distance from the battle ground.

But this special project is far more than a simple holographic duplication because it is designed to use large quantum computers to generate "fotorealistic virtual soldiers" or "photon ghost images" of troops that are designed to even have a kind of own "consciousness" based on artificial intelligence.

This kind of technology would enable the Army to create as much images of personnel as it likes in a step to unsettle the enemy.

Parmentola's team has announced to use popular online battle games such as World of Warcraft as an experimental laboratory for his ghost troops.

If they successfully pass themselves off as "human players", then their test mission is accomplished.


[link to archive.gulfnews.com]