Speaker 0:  reports are circulating about project p g sorry. project pjn dash one, a russian initiative allegedly turning pigeons into brain controlled surveillance drones. while the specific project is unverified, the underlying science of neuromodulation steering animals via brain implants is very real and has been lab tested. if this is viable, this creates the ultimate stealth prone, a surveillance device that creates no electronic signature and looks exactly like nature, making it virtually impossible to detect or jam. what do you think about this, john?

Speaker 1:  so i don't know if you watch the show fallout, based on the video game, but, this reminds you of that. there's this little, input that goes on the back of people's necks, and they can be controlled and all that sort of stuff. so, that kinda reminded me of this. so this is crazy. it's kinda cruel to me. but, the so what they're doing is they're implanting these microscopic microscopic, neurosurgery. sorry. stereotactic. so it's a precision technique that coordinates in the brain to guide instruments during implantation. so once the electrodes are in place, they're connected to a tiny electronic stimulator fixed on the bird's head. and when activated, the device itself sends mild electrical impulses to targeted neurons, which are associated with motor functions, which the company says can prompt directional behavior, like turn left or turn right, by subtly influencing the bird's natural flight instincts. so thing is the neural implant doesn't fully override the bird's autonomy. instead, it nudges its motivational systems so that the controlled responses are integrated with its existing behavior patterns. so in effect, the stimulation biases the bird's choices, which is a strategy closer to behavioral steering than direct mechanical control as in electronic drones. right? so this kind of scares me. the electrodes in order to power all this, though, the electronics, they're carried in a solar powered backpack, which is strapped to the pigeon's body. and so the miniature pack itself, it contains a navigation controller, and gps hardware to pinpoint real time location and a camera on the goose's chest for mission data capture. this this just it it's me. so the gps itself, it's crucial because not only for tracking, but to feed the positional data to the controller so that the operator can monitor the bird's progress relative to predefined waypoints. so i don't like this. is, to me, this is cruel. it's cool, but cruel. what do you think about this, greg?

Speaker 0:  well, yeah, i mean, any sort of experimentation on animals that isn't furthering the longevity of humanity or the animals themselves is gotta be questionable. so i this is obviously not doing those things, so we're not trying to solve a brain problem or neurology issue in humans that we can fix. we're just hijacking someone's brain, which might lead to hijacking humans. so, you know, obviously, i'm against it. unlike rat bots, i'm not sure if you mentioned this, that use training and conditioning, this system suggests control without prior dieting routines. let's say, you know you know, here's a treat for doing your reward. here's a treat for you doing the reward. the thing is strap this thing onto a bird and off you go. they don't get that treat reward system. an expert opinion knows that fine control via brain simulation in flying animals is still very hard. i like to think of the technology like using a laser pointer with a cat. you aren't driving the animal like a remote controlled car with a steering wheel. instead, you're stimulating their brain to create a intense desire or a phantom signal that tricks them into wanting to turn left or turn right. you don't pilot pilot the bird. yeah. hijack its motivation.

Speaker 1:  yeah.

Speaker 0:  neary, micro go ahead.

Speaker 1:  go ahead.

Speaker 0:  no. go ahead.

Speaker 1:  so i need just to put this in, but there's multiple reports that, note that the independent scientific verification of near east flight and control capabilities has not been confirmed. so most of the details come from company statements rather than peer reviewed publications or independent demonstrations. so we cover a lot of stuff on here. so times, a lot of stuff is a proven or a lot of times, a lot of stuff is theoretical. so, just as a note, like, these capabilities should not be treated as claimed. it should be treated as claimed, but not proven if that helps. just to put that note in there.

Speaker 0:  yeah. that's a good note. like, again, if this is truly a, pigeon spy drone situation, they probably wouldn't be publishing papers. so take that for what it's worth. like, our military wouldn't be, would they? they'd be pretty secretive about it. so just saying. i'm not quite sure how it all leaked out and what they're saying, but it really leads you to think, you know, if they can start doing this, it's like every sci fi where they're controlling. i can't help myself, and they're controlling a person at some point. and, you know, the custom backpack containing a gps camera and solar interface, that is funny but hilarious. you know? now we've got suicide bombers in the form of, pigeons. yeah. you know, when you're close enough to the thing, they blow up. you know? it's scary. we live in this world. but i gotta wonder, except for spy maneuvers, the blow up thing, i'd probably easier to and cheaper to do cardboard drones and stuff versus trying to probably. yeah. do brain surgery, brain implant on pigeons and then train them for a short period and then do it. it's just probably easier to go, the other way.

Speaker 1:  it makes sense that they use pigeons because pigeons naturally have these homing whatever. like, you can send a message, and people used to, use pigeons to send messages. so, it makes sense that they would experiment with pigeons, but this is cruel and, scary a, from a future tech perspective as far as next steps in humans. right?

Speaker 0:  yeah. and i just wanna point out a few facts before people say you guys are crazy, conspiracy theorist, or what have you. so let's talk about some things that have happened in the past. during w w two, bf skinner developed project pigeon, which attempted to use pigeons inside missiles to guide them by pecking at targets on a screen. the military canceled it, but the birds were shockingly accurate. inside the missile, i have a pigeon that tap poked, objects on the screen that were colored a certain way that, so if things move and the target moved on the screen, the pigeon would poke at it and the missile would hit it. just saying, these things have happened in the past. fact two, the cia actually tried this in the nineteen sixties with acoustic kitty. they implanted a microphone and transmitter into a cat to spy on the soviets. the project cost millions and ended abruptly when the cat was reportedly hit by a taxi on its first field test. and, you can actually do it yourself cyborg kit legally right now. a company called backyard brain sells robo roach kit that lets students control our cockroaches movements via smartphone app via microstimulation. so, you know, doubters say what you want, but the technology is out there and has existed for a while.

Speaker 1:  that's scary. i don't like that at all. but i'm not surprised, that this is where that this is, like, that this is happening. right? so, yeah, it's just, this is one of those that just makes me uncomfortable.

Speaker 0:  bio drones or bionic pigeons are terrifying concept right now. the laws of physics and animal ethics are keeping them grounded in a lab for now, but would you ever trust a delivery service run by cyborg pigeons, or does it sound like a horror movie waiting to happen? let us know in the comments. we'd love to hear what you think.