Mark Hansen, in an article in the American Bar Association Journal entitled No Place to Hide (A.B.A. J., Aug. 1997.), asks the question:
Would we tolerate the prospect that police might someday be armed with a device that would enable them to conduct the functional equivalent of a strip search on some unsuspecting citizen from a distance of up to 60 feet away?
That question has been answered. Today a British company, ThruVision, announced the T5000 which can see through clothing without displaying physical body details in an outdoor setting.
The T5000 will soon be used in airport security checkpoints and is sure to re-open the privacy in public debate. The new unit operates by sensing the Terahertz, or T-rays (low-level electromagnetic radiation) which all people and objects (guns, drugs, explosives) naturally emit. Unlike standard X-Ray machines, which bombard an individual with radiation, the T5000 simply receives those T-rays naturally produced. Since all objects emit a different spectrum signature, the T5000 can then tell the difference between heroin, cocaine or just some oregano, without displaying a nude silhouette of the person carrying said powder (the problem with previous devices).
The T5000 has a range of 80 feet outdoors, so it won’t be long before metropolitan cities begin installation of these wonderful devices. We would love to hear from the first attorney with a case involving the T5000. Be on the lookout, because the T5000 will be.




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