Strange Science: Weaponizing Insects

Calliphora sp.

JJ Harrison (https://www.jjharrison.com.au/) CC-by-sa-3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)

Our Monday story from Rick Tobin hypothesized about weaponizing insects, but he recently ran across an article that suggests that some believe that the United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) could be doing just that.

DARPA spearheads a program called Insect Allies, through which insects are used to carry genetically modified viruses into fields to alter plant chromosomes. The intent is to ensure longevity and stability of food crops. At present, the work is all being done in biosecure greenhouses.

Perhaps these scientists are incorrect in their assertion, but there is certainly the possibility that this technology, like any technology, could be abused by others in order to, for example, weaponize insects.

You can read more about the work being done by DARPA and the scientists who have expressed concerns over said work here.

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