The Aquamen Cometh

Army Wants Synthetic Gills

from DefenseTech.org

I was worried there for a minute. Sure, the U.S. military was figuring out ways to give its troops sharks’ electric sensors. But would they remember to outfit the fighters with artificial gills?

I should have a little more faith. Of course they would. The Army recently handed Case Western Reserve University and Waltham, MA's Infoscitex Corp. a joint contract to start investigating a "Microfabricated Biomimetic Artificial Gill System...based on the subdividing regions of clef, filament, and lamellae found in natural fish gills." In the first phase of the program, "gas exchange units will be designed and demonstrated for rapid, efficient extract of oxygen from surrounding water."

"An advanced breathing apparatus that mimics the efficiency, simplicity, and durability of the gill-swim bladder found in fish could greatly improve human maneuverability and sustainability in both aquatic and high altitude settings," the contract announcement reminds us. Sure could.