Study says bees can find explosives:
The researchers found that ordinary honeybees can readily be trained by being exposed to the odor of an explosive, then given sugar water as a reward. After a few times, the bee, anticipating the sugar water, will stick out its tongue at the smell of the explosive.The Los Alamos study was designed to test technology pioneered by a small British biotechnology company, Inscentinel. The company has developed a small portable sensing unit — a box, basically — into which three strapped-down bees are placed. The bees’ so-called proboscis extension reflexes are automatically detected by a camera and associated software, with the results available on a laptop computer.
Haarmann said the study showed that trained bees can detect explosives in a parts-per-trillion concentration, even when masked by other odors.
While that is similar to what dogs can do, Haarmann said, there are situations in which using bees might be preferable. The bee box, he suggested, could be held by a robotic device right next to a suspected bomb while the operator watched the laptop from a safe distance.