Iraq Swears by Dowsing Rod Bomb Detector

[AF6LJ]

Thank You Slashdot.org

When I was Ten years old I met an employee of my grandparents. He was a Corporal in the Army and did his tour in Viet Nam. He use to go scouting for mines and used a similar technique for finding landmines. He could even find the all plastic ones.

He taught me that technique, it's dowsing and allows you to find items you know about. What I mean by this is items you know their composition, things you have seen or held. So it's no wonder I find this article quite ordinary, I use to think everyone could do this and more....
In my mid teens I found out that was not the case.


Iraq Swears by Dowsing Rod Bomb Detector

http://tech.slashdot.org/story/09/11...-Bomb-Detector
jggimi writes "According to the New York Times, more than fifteen hundred remote sensing devices have been sold to Iraq's Ministry of the Interior, at prices ranging from $16,500 to $60,000 each. The devices are used for bomb and weapon detection at checkpoints, and have no battery or other power source. Sounds great, but according to a retired United States Air Force officer, Lt. Col. Hal Bidlack they work on the same principle as a Ouija board — the power of suggestion. He described the wand as nothing more than an explosives divining rod. Even though the device has been debunked by the US Military, the US Department of Justice, and even Sandia National Laboratories, the Iraqis are thrilled with the devices. 'Whether it's magic or scientific, what I care about is it detects bombs,' said Maj. Gen. Jehad al-Jabiri, head of the Ministry of the Interior's General Directorate for Combating Explosives."

[w2amr]

[i]Thank You Slashdot.org


jggimi writes "According to the New York Times, more than fifteen hundred remote sensing devices have been sold to Iraq's Ministry of the Interior, at prices ranging from $16,500 to $60,000 each. "

It always pays to price shop.

[OldFatSailor]

I have these magic beans.....

[AF6LJ]

I have these magic beans.....

:)
If they work for you that is good.....
I would rather have magic mushrooms though.

[KC2UGV]

This is one of the reasons I support the CFI...

A fool and their money... Well, you know the saying. Too bad it's our money.

[ki4itv]

I have these magic beans.....

:)
If they work for you that is good.....
I would rather have magic mushrooms though.

Then I have a tea recipe you should try.

[w8nsi]

Thank You Slashdot.org

When I was Ten years old I met an employee of my grandparents. He was a Corporal in the Army and did his tour in Viet Nam. He use to go scouting for mines and used a similar technique for finding landmines. He could even find the all plastic ones.

He taught me that technique, it's dowsing and allows you to find items you know about. What I mean by this is items you know their composition, things you have seen or held. So it's no wonder I find this article quite ordinary, I use to think everyone could do this and more....
In my mid teens I found out that was not the case.

We used to use dowsing rods to locate buried cables at the phone company too [Michigan Bell]. There were even telescoping dowsing rods (collapsable radio antennas) on wood handles in the phone company parts catalog, and a BSP [Bell System Practice] section for it too. I learned that I could locate cables from an old timer (45 year career splicer) and found it handy to locate a buried manhole. How? We followed cables from several directions to get in the vicinity of the vault and then just concentrated on picking up the buried (by landscapers) cast iron manhole lid. IT WORKS! I have a pair of solid #6 copper/plastic covered rods that I used for several years for this. If you talk to any of the old time phone company cable splicers you will find other practitioners of dowsing.

[w8nsi]

I have these magic beans.....

Do they aid in the generation of copious amounts of methane? :stirpot:

[KB4QAA]

I remember seeing the US Army publicity films from early in the Vietnam war showing solders using dowsing rods to find VC dugouts.

So I made a pair for myself and used them to detect all sorts of things like water lines, culverts, etc. Then my friends and I started doing experiments like closing our eyes, and tying bandanas over our eyes. Suddenly the doswing rods didn't work any more. We learned a lesson on the power of suggestion!

Bill