My Kingdom for a Drone
Never mind. There's one over there, watching me!
A few years back I was working in a research center where everyone was encouraged to learn about new technology. My boss might stick his head into my office (I still worked in an office back then. I don't anymore.) and ask what I was working on. I might say, "I downloaded a brand new programming language that simulates quantum computing!" And he would smile and say, "That sounds like fun! Let me know if you need anything." No one would bat an eye that I wasn't working on a ticket for some new feature for some defined project.
Too bad jobs like that are so hard to come by. At my current job they actually expect me to work!
Anyway, one technology I spent a lot of time playing with back then was Bitcoin. Or more precisely, blockchain, which is underneath Bitcoin. It's sort of the way the tires are underneath your car. You might have something slick and spiffy and futuristic looking with a great stereo and heated seats but without wheels it's just a very expensive lawn ornament. Driveway ornament? Are those real? Never mind.
At the time, I noticed that practically everybody I mentioned Bitcoin to would say something like, "Isn't that just a scam?" Or, "Isn't that just for criminals?"
Well, not exactly. There are some very interesting things you can do with blockchain tech that are perfectly legal and useful. I even managed to patent a couple of them. Trying to get patents was a normal thing at that job. I haven't applied for any since leaving it.
The thing is, though, that using a blockchain to make a (digital) coin that you intend to use to scam people, is easy. Or using a legitimate coin, like Bitcoin, to pay for drugs or something else illegal isn't just easy, it's hard to trace. Not impossible. Just hard. Some people like those kinds of things.
Here's the dirty little secret: There has never been a technology that someone couldn't figure out how to use to con, rob, or hurt people with. And there never will be. Humans are wonderfully creative that way!
Think about it. Fire? Arson. Rope? Tying people up. The pencil? Forgery. The camera? Blackmail pictures. The spoon? That's a tough one. I know it can be used to fight crime (The Tick: Spoon! ) but - wait! I got it! You can use a spoon to dig a tunnel out of prison! Or to make a shank, which is like a knife only made from something unknifelike.
One of the first inventions was the atlatl (Which I may or may not have spelled correctly. Please don't ask me to pronounce it.). This is basically a piece of wood with a groove in it. You stick the end of a spear in the groove, then fling really hard. The atlatl, which stays in your hand when the spear goes flying off, in case that wasn't clear, gives some extra oomph to the spear. It can fly farther or hit harder. Great when you're hunting buffalo and would rather not get too close. Even better when you're at war and want plenty of head start to run away from the other guy if your spear misses.
I mention this just so you understand that there's a long history of tech being used in ways that might not be considered 100% wholesome. ANYTHING can be used badly. And probably will be.
There's no end to the crimes you can commit from a computer keyboard. And now drones are being used as lookouts for burglars. I wasn't even looking for crime news when I ran cross this article: Using Drones for Peeping, Burglaries on Rise: “It’s Gotten Dramatically Worse”. It mentions that drones have been used to get video footage of famous people when they think they're in private, for a long time. But the use of drones in crimes like burglary is going way up. After all, the price of drones is going down while their capabilities are going up.
In a couple years, instead of using a drone to case the target, or to keep a lookout while you're inside, it will be possible to send a drone to do the entire robbery for you. Won't that be a great day for evil? Look for insurance companies to start exempting payment for drone-assisted losses. Meanwhile, security companies will charge a premium for counter-drone drones to protect your property. Maybe gated communities will also have drone patrols flying, watching for unapproved drones. They'll have to make their footage available to the police, of course. So don't do anything illegal or risque on your roof.
Maybe the police drones will be licensed to shoot down the other drones. That will at least make for an interesting show. Just watch for falling drone-bits. Especially the flaming ones. They may look nice but it's inconvenient when they land on something you'd rather keep. Like your head.
The good news is that most of us don't have to worry about such things. We can't afford to live in a gated community and the most expensive things we own are probably the house (if you have one) or the car (if you can afford to feed one). The criminal-drones will glance at us and keep going, turning up their little electronic noses at such small stakes. After all, the purchase. operation and maintenance of a burglary drone adds quite a bit of overhead. You have to pay for them somehow. Robbing the proletariat just won't cut it!
High tech crime brings with it high tech prices.
Except when they don't. Did you know that you can buy night vision goggles for kids? Really. ArtCreativity Night Vision Glasses for Kids.
Isn't it wonderful starting kids in the family business young? By the time they grow up, not only will they be able to graduate to "big boy" night vision googles, they'll have smaller and better drones to help them, too!
You may think I'm kidding and maybe I am. But that doesn't mean it's not going to happen. The wonderful thing about technology is that it lets us do whatever we can think of. The horrible thing about technology is that it lets us do whatever we can think of. So don't worry. All we have to do is think good thoughts and everything will be fine!
This is my first time working with Open AI's new image maker. It was dog slow but the results were very realistic. And when I asked for a modification, it made it without changing everything else. That's a nice change from the old way.
This new version doesn't rewrite the prompt like the old one did, or if it does, it doesn't show the result. So there's no more prompt to show.
Lest you forget that I write more (and sillier) stuff than just Technoscreed:
From the author of the Mauser and Keeg Adventures, Tree of Bones and Shadow of a Dream comes All Our Magic Dark and Strange, a collection of fantasy short stories all set in the same dark and strange world.
