I’m not a big fan of USA Today, but I see their headlines on my way to work, and I saw that they had on the front cover a device that can see through walls. This is not technically true, as the Range-R motion detector can only detect whether you are moving or breathing.
It reminds me of the movement detectors held by the doomed soldiers in the film Aliens, and it doesn’t have X-ray capability. However, this device has apparently been in use for years by the FBI and U.S. Marshals to check some place before a big raid.
It works using radar pulses, and it can classify you as a “mover” or a “breather”. Yes, as a human being, you can hardly ever escape motion. This device can even work on block, brick, wood, stucco glass, adobe, and even dirt.
You might like that we have this technology that looks like it has been plucked out of science fiction, but with great gadgets comes great responsibility. It looks like those law-enforcement groups that use this device might be breaking a few constitutional rules.
I think USA Today was trying to create a sensational story with this device, and I often ignore their sensationalistic style, but I can’t deny that the use of the Range-R does seem to step on the toes of those that support the private rights of citizens. It looks like I have found my next “hot-button” issue, and this probably won’t be the last time we hear of the Range-R.
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