REAL LIFE NEWS: TREES CALL FOR HELP
by Hazed
Trees in Brazil can now call for help when they are cut down illegally, thanks to small mobile phones that are being hidden in their branches.
Illegal logging is a big problem in the Amazon rainforest, but since the area is approximately the size of the US it’s not easy to police. Existing monitoring systems which use satellite images are often too late to be any use in tracking down the culprits.
The Invisible Tracck is the size of a packet of cigarettes, and powered by batteries. It is automatically activated when the tree it is attached to gets cut down. Then it waits until it’s in range of a mobile signal, which it can pick up from 20 miles away, and calls for help. The authorities are able to react fast to catch the illegal loggers.
The gadget should last for a year before the batteries need changing.
Of course there are too many trees to fit every single one with its own phone, but just the knowledge that the gadgets exist will make illegal logging more difficult because thieves are going to have to check each tree very carefully before they start chopping.
Source: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/01/16/amazon_phones/