A soldier fires a laser-based version of a light anti-armour weapon during an exercise in Canada (Image: Ben Curtis/PA Archive/PA)

It’s the stuff of science fiction: robots that can hunt down and kill humans, powerful lasers that can destroy targets without leaving a trace, and a weapon that can supposedly knock you down without even touching you – all of these, and more, came one step closer to reality in 2008.

The developers of these technologies say that they will help to ensure that modern warfare is as efficient and humane as possible. Their critics say the weapons are just the latest in a long line of lethal inventions that have increased man’s brutality to man – successors to the Maxim automatic machine gun, the flame thrower, and mustard gas. Whichever view you take, they introduce new ethical and practical questions.

In this review, we have gathered the 10 most important stories that New Scientist published on this subject this year, so you can make up your own mind.


Airborne Laser lets rip on first target

Laser dogfights in the sky may not be such a long way off, after a megawatt laser weapon was fired from an aircraft for the first time. The plan is to target “rogue” missiles – but it could also be used against other planes or targets on the ground.

US boasts of laser weapon’s ‘plausible deniability’

The US military is developing a “long-range blowtorch” that could allow it to incinerate targets silently, invisibly, and without leaving any trace – allowing its users to deny involvement.

Pentagon wants laser attack warnings for satellites

Are spy satellites being “blinded” by ground-based lasers? No-one knows for sure, but the Pentagon wants to develop sensors that could detect such attacks.

US considers nuclear-powered assault ships

The Bush administration is pressing ahead with a plan – first revealed here – to make assault ships nuclear so they will not have to pull into hostile ports for fuel. But putting nuclear reactors into craft that will be in the line of fire is crazy, say critics.

Anti-landmine campaigners turn sights on war robots

Should robots be allowed to make their own decisions about killing people? No, says a major pressure group, which thinks that autonomous offensive weapons should be banned under treaties like those against landmines and cluster weapons.

Packs of robots will hunt down uncooperative humans

Another item on the Pentagon’s wish list is a “multi-robot pursuit system” that will let packs of robots search for and detect a non-cooperative human – a vision that prompted one of the most spirited comment threads of the year.

‘Pre-crime’ detector shows promise

Technology developed to monitor soldiers’ vital signs on the battlefield is being reworked to detect people who might be harbouring hostile thoughts. But will it really help to prevent terrorist attacks, or is it just “security theatre” that invades travellers’ privacy?

Planned cluster bomb hunts targets down

A smart weapon being developed by the US would feature bomblets that could pursue targets for kilometres – but how good will they be at telling friend from foe?

Flickering light could replace rubber bullets

US security forces are backing the development of a new breed of non-lethal weapon that will knock you flat with flickering light. But will it work? And how should it be used if it does?

Fifty years of DARPA: Hits, misses and ones to watch

And finally… it pioneered the internet and driverless cars, but DARPA’s spectacular successes have been matched by some equally spectacular failures during the course of its 50-year history.