In theory, surveillance technology in public spaces is supposed to make us safer, but I'm still not a huge fan of CCTV on every corner. The Bush administration has proven how this kind of stuff can be abused. But this idea for tracking nuclear material passively through cell phones is really cool!
Researchers at Purdue University are working with the state of Indiana to develop a system that would use a network of cell phones to detect and track radiation to help prevent terrorist attacks with radiological "dirty bombs" and nuclear weapons.
Such a system could blanket the nation with millions of cell phones equipped with radiation sensors able to detect even light residues of radioactive material. Because cell phones already contain global positioning locators, the network of phones would serve as a tracking system, said physics professor Ephraim Fischbach.
