The Insects Are Watching: The Future of Government Surveillance TechnologySusanne Posel, Contributor In what is referred to as the microaviary on Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, drones are in development and design to replicate the flight patterns of moths, hawks and other air-borne creatures of the natural world. Greg Parker, aerospace engineer, explains: Were looking at how you hide in plain sight for the purpose of carrying out espionage or kill missions. Cessna-sized Predator drones, used to carry out unmanned attacks, are known around the world. The US Pentagon has an estimated 7,000 aerial drones in their arsenal. In 2011, the Pentagon requested $5 billion for drones from Congress by the year 2030. Parker is using helicopter technology to allow his computer-driven drone dragonflies to become precise intelligence gathering weapons. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has unveiled hummingbird drones that can fly at speeds of 11 miles per hour. DARPA is also inserting computer chips into moth pupae in the hopes of hatching cyborg moths. Other institutions are hard at work for the US government, developing more insect technology. The California Institute of Technology has created a mircobat ornithopter that flies and fits comfortably in the palm of your hand. A team at Harvard University has successfully built a housefly-like robot with synthetic wings that buzz at 120 beats per second. Back in 2007, at the International Symposium on Flying Insects and Robots, Japanese researchers unveiled a radio-controlled hawk-moth. While the US military would have the American public believe that these new fly drones are used for overseas missions, insect drones have been spotted surveilling streets right here in the US. It is believed that these insect-like drones are high-tech surveillance tools used by the Department of Homeland Security. The Central Intelligence Agency(CIA) has been working on this technology since the 1970s. Known as the inscetothopter, it was developed by the Office of Research and Development for the CIA. Israel Aerospace Industries(IAI) has created a butterfly-shaped drone that is the smallest built thus far. It can hover in mid-flight, just as a helicopter and take pictures with its 0.15 gram camera and memory card. The butterfly imitates nature so well, that birds and other insects are convinced it is real and not man-made. How Close Are We to a Nano-based Surveillance State? 