by Russ McSpadden / Earth First! Newswire
Traducción español aquí. Traduzione italiana qui.
Pollinators participate in the sexual-reproduction of plants. When you eat an almond, beet, watermelon or sip on coffee, you’re partaking of an ancient relationship between pollinators and flowers. But since the 1990s, worldwide bee health has been in decline and most evidence points to toxic pesticides created by Shell and Bayer and the loss of genetic biodiversity due to the proliferation of GMO monocrops created in laboratories by biotech companies like Monsanto.
But never worry, those real life pollinators—the birds and the bees, as they say—may soon be irrelevant to the food needs of civilization. Harvard roboticists are developing a solution to the crisis: swarms of tiny robot bees made of titanium and plastic that can pollinate those vast dystopian fields of GMO cash crops.
The Harvard Microrobotics Lab has been working on its Micro Air Vehicles Project since early 2009. Borrowing from the biomechanics and social organization of bees, the team of researchers is undergoing the creation of tiny winged robots to fly from flower to flower, immune to the toxins dripping from petals, to spread pollen. They even believe that they will soon be able to program the robobees to live in an artificial hive, coordinate algorithms and communicate amongst themselves about methods of pollination and location of particular crops.
Of course, published reports from the lab also describe potential military uses—surveillance and mapping—but the dime-sized cyber-bees have yet to be outfitted with neurotoxin tipped stingers.
If you think this bee news is strange, be sure to check out this recent article from the newswire: Anarchist Beekeepers Claim Responsibility for U.S. Drone Attack
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EF! DAM
Ecodefense
Earth First! Newswire 
Reblogged this on Family Survival Protocol.
It won’t be long until artificial human beings will occupy an artificial environment. Shared a link to this post on our facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/TheAnimalSpirits
Us human beings have long occupied artificial environments. The reason we both don’t seem to notice this, but do seem to notice something different about “natural things”, is that as a species we are alienated from ourselves.
Reblogged this on Dark Acts Bible: Glass Half Empty, Base Cracked… and commented:
Anaphylactic Shock: Robotic Bees to Pollinate Monsanto Crops
Can’t say I’m too thrilled scientists. If you could just find a way to stop global warming, or just start with no weight gain eating chocolate guarantee all the ladies will love you – breaking stereotype and doing us all a favor – two birds with one stone.
Fucktards, scared of robot bees. This is what we need. Honey bees are stupid and so is this article.
There is so much wrong with this on so many levels it’s scary.
We are in the age of eating food, that’s being genetically modified that ends up changing our own DNA structure. This in and of itself is a horrible thing we could be doing to the human race. Who knows what that will change in our next generations born from eating these foods. More lengthy long term research is needed.
The second thing wrong is this implication that instead of getting to the root problem of what is CAUSING the disappearance of bees and other animals making up our ecosystems, we are putting another band-aid on it. This will not solve the real problems… only accentuate them.
Frank, GMOs cannot change our DNA… GMOs themselves have certain special genes, but the rest of their genome is the same as non-GMO plants of the same species. Changing of DNA typically requires formation of adducts, interactions of DNA with reactive oxygen species, backbone breaking interactions, or intercalation. GMO DNA never even touches our own DNA, so it cannot perform any such interaction. Even the few proteins that have different forms than normal in GMOs are never going to get into the nucleus, as they simply do not have the nuclear import signal sequence.
Also, there is research going on already to find out the cause of (and thereafter the solution to) colony collapse disorder. The Harvard research team is just covering the Plan B case of the bees dying out before we can figure out how to fix colony collapse disorder. As Hollis notes, robotic bee research is still in it’s infancy, and practical systems will not likely be available for another decade. To use your analogy, they are designing a big complex band-aid for the wound while others are trying to figure out how to coagulate the blood, suture the artery back together, and close up the wound, perhaps along with a transfusion. Don’t ignore the brilliant apiarists working to find the surgeon’s solution!
When birds die from one piece of this poison i think butteflies do also.
You know they took the word gullible out of the dictionary, Frank?
Thank you. So true, on both counts.
Very erudite Jimmy, a well thought through response. Work for Monsanto or Bayer by any chance or do you just troll everything?
What the hell is wrong with you Harvard. Did you stop teaching your ETHICS classes?
I’m a bee researcher, and I can tell you for sure that the folks trying to create these robotic bees are a LONG way from actually being able to pull this off. These kinds of projects might sound cool to the public (and to funding agencies) but they usually fizzle out after a few years without producing any tangible results or making any major contributions to society. Further, in my opinion it’s pretty stupid to poor money into projects like this while the actual bees, which we know are capable of effective pollination, are in serious trouble, but we don’t fully understand why and we’re not taking the necessary steps to try to stop their decline.
Lets hope you are right. Unfortunately, within the last few years, projects that usually seemed to fall short of their futurist promises have begun to come true. While these “bees” probably won’t be buzzing in the extremely near future, they or some next generation version will probably hit the skies in the next 10 years.
Hollis, How can you say we don’t fully understand why? The why is the obnoxious amounts of pesticides being sprayed on all the GMO foods grown on HUGE industrialized farms. Its simple logic. Before farming became such a regulated industry, with the Get Big or Get Out mentality; colony collapse wasn’t an issue. My family farmed until I reached my teenage years in the 80’s, we grew organic food, no pesticides; our animals were not pumped full of hormones, steroids or antibiotics either. If we could return to this kind of farming across America, there wouldn’t be a colony collapse issue and that you could bank on. It is pesticides that kill the bees, plain and simple; why spend billions trying to prove its not pesticides? Cause maybe you work for one of those businesses that need bee researchers to say it’s not pesticides.
This is why some people are farmers and others are scientists. look up the fallacy “post hoc ergo propter hoc”
Tracy, You are correct in my estimation, However, those Get Big or Get Out farmers HAVE to “feed the world”.
Let’s hope so.
Well, let’s hope it fizzles out — before it does much damage. (It’s all about the grant money, really.) But, it does kind of remind me of those old ’50’s B-movies — “Attack of the Robotic Bees”?
“They’ve figured out how to reproduce, AND they have no predators.”
(Ah, for the good old days!. All we had to worry about BACK THEN was nuclear annihilation.)
Yes, the priority should be bringing our bees back, definitely.
Thanks.
It is about time successive governments stopped sucking up to the bio-giants and started thinking for themselves about what sort of planet we need. In my opinion it is not one with robot bees, created to prop up useless GMO policies devised by greedy people who want to control the world’s food supply and make themselves more money than anyone can ethically justify.
It’s so insane – creating another problem to fix a problem (I don’t mean the robot bees) – I mean going against nature rather than working within natural laws. Common sense seems to be very rare amongst profit-seeking corporations.
Excellent! You have discovered the “Culture of Death” that the modern societies embrace- to kill, and destroy everything possible- for their own profit, or power!
We must all strive to stop this “Culture of Death” and embrace the “Culture of Life” instead!
Hello- I did this sculpture in 2003- I saw this coming. This was my prototype for the nano pollinator. Thanks for checking it out.
Riddle
http://www.riddleriddle.com/paris.html
Artists are usually the first to lay out a pretty telling vision of the future…to bad you were right on this one…
Nice try, but your VIRUS was stopped. People like you sicken me. Why do you feel the need to destroy people’s belongings?
ATTENTION EVERYONE – DO NOT GO TO HIS LINK. If you do, be sure your virus scanner is up-to-date. Mine just caught “Exploit Pharmacy Spam Site” – That’s what AVG says it is, and thankfully my virus scanner blocked it. It’s threat level is SEVERE!
Sometimes, real life is stranger than fiction
*sigh… with comments like the one from ‘Jimmy’ I wonder what will it take to wake some people up!
their death will be there waking up call
Agree about the articulate (choke choke) ‘Jimmy’. Although I’m not a huge fan of bees I understand the need for what they do. Wonder how this will affect the need for ‘local honey’ for those who use it to combat allergies in a natural way.
Then they can just program robots to be consumers and they won’t have to worry about the effects of GMO crops.
This is even scarier than North Korea with nukes.
As a professor of biology and a collaborator on this project I have paid very close attention to the rising ethical questions regarding robotics, from military drones to robot biodiversity. I think you all are afraid of these robot bees because you are afraid of the reality of the future of life which will be more mechanical than purely biological. At least if we create robotic bees there will be some physical memory of the creatures once they are all gone, which is inevitable. Bees are not going to survive but they will be honored by these robobees.
Like honey bees and heirloom plants, you all who are reading this are, effectively, an evolutionary dead end. You’ve served your purpose but it will soon be time to move on.
Dr. Joseph Ayers
lobster@neu.edu
Are you for real Mr Ayers. You’re view of the world and the future is very sick. The future is not pre-determined – it’s what we make of it. Your vision is simply evil.
You read my mind, Michael.
I believe your time is long past due. The end of nature will be the end of a life worth living. I see your robobees as a mercenary that is meant for the highest bidder. That bidder won’t be the masses. We will be left to suffer till the price can be paid. Your ethics need improving, perhaps reading the Bible or Qur’an or even Marx and Gueverra.
The machine does not evolve without the evolved and is therefore the actual dead end. Harvard should rethink where they put their money.
this doesn’t sound at all affordable. in fact, it sounds like an invitation for bad karma.
It’s to the point where we HAVE to do something, we have fucked up too much for shit to fix itself. I hate Monsanto but pollenating machines are probably going to be necessary soon with the rate real bees are dying.
The Earth will always find a way to fix itself given a chance. We need to stop corporations like Monsanto, Bayer and Syngenta denying it any chances. Gandhi said “Be the change you want to see” so I guess it is in our hands.
https://www.facebook.com/TruthEnlightens
Why a pollinating machine would have to fly I don’t know – wouldn’t a ground-based model be a little easier? Lots of long skinny arms. Besides, I just don’t want to run in to a robot horse fly one day…
I really hope these bees will enter the consumer market one day. I’d love to eat a big bowl of gmo corn flakes in my backyard and watch the robobees pollinate my Monsanto sunflowers…
I think all this fear-mongering about Monsanto is ridiculous. They are saving the planet and these bees will also save the planet.
Who’s paying you Carlos? Come on, fess up, you’re a plant/disinformationalist. You and your cohorts are downright scary … and sick.
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don’t recognize about. You controlled to hit the nail upon the top and outlined out the entire thing without having side effect , folks could take a signal. Will likely be back to get more. Thank you
this is plain stupid. come on, really monsanto. hope that someday you morons will be stung by your own neurotoxin bees.
really monsanto. just another way to make our life more miserable. they should instead encourage real bee farming. screw this. today is earth day
I will find these bees and I will tip their stingers with small pox!
I think we can use these to assassinate Obama!
It’s truly a nice and useful piece of information. I will buy some of these bees to put into my ear.
I can only hope they will make the bees large enough to make love to.
If you go to http://www.freebees/robos you can win a dozen of these little cute robobees
Reblogged this on The Awakened Zombie.
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No need to weaponize the bees because the GMO plants and the pesticides on them contain plenty of NEUROTOXINS!!!!
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/25/roundup-health-study-idUSL2N0DC22F20130425?feedName=OutloudFeed&feedType=RSS
And when, on that fateful day that Skynet becomes self-awareness, the bees will be turned off.
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The Human side of this robotic state of existence is the 2045.com initiative. The Movie, “Avatar” comes to life. Life as we know it now will no longer be as it moves towards this direction.
This is really awful. Keep in mind that the bees are needed for our survival. i can’t imagine that an artificial bee can do the work that God intended. Figure out the problem of the real thing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Everyone loves it when individuals come together and share thoughts.
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So instead of being responsible, they are finding ways to justify their ill-gotten booty and savaging the Earth.
Now if anyone wants to grow crops, from a garden to a family-owned farm, they must now pay tribute to the corporations that destroyed it to begin with.
Hunger Games anyone?????
Reblogged this on How 2 Be Green and commented:
Great post. TY
Reblogged this on Any Port in a Storm.
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Reblogged this on It Is What It Is and commented:
Here they are!!! ROBOTIC BEES!!! …. from Monsanto! Trust them??
I think its Bush’s fault? I think!
GMO crops probably deserve robotic bees.