Anti-Sniper.

This is coolbert:

Here again, is an example of technology to the rescue? The "magic bullet" that solves a problem? Or at least makes the problem manageable?

"Soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan to get life saving anti-sniper device "

"British and American forces fighting the guerrilla insurgence in Iraq and Afghanistan could soon be protected by an anti-sniper device that can pinpoint the position of the shooter within a fraction of a second."

"The palm-sized device designed by Qinetiq, the British defence firm that was once the government research laboratories, is pinned to the uniform and uses acoustic technology to calculate the exact position of the rifle fire."

"Then a electronic voice passes on the 'bearing and range' to the soldier allowing him to jump to safety and return fire."

[this assumes the man wearing the device has not been hit by the sniper fire and is able to "jump to safety and return fire"]

"The device, which costs around £2,500 [$5,000?], works by isolating the crack of the sniper rifle thanks to four microphones, a GPS system and a powerful microprocessor. "

"It takes less than a tenth of a second and provides the results in audio and visual formats. It can even send a grid reference via radio to supporting artillery and aircraft."

"The system, which weighs less than 6oz, is so sensitive it can tell the difference between outgoing friendly fire and incoming enemy fire and can distinguish a sniper even in a gun battle"

I know that American police forces have had for some time devices of this nature at their disposal. Devices, perhaps larger than what has been developed for use in Iraq, mounted on telephone poles in strategic locations. A "report" from a firearm will trigger the pole-mounted devices and allow for triangulation, determining the source of the gunfire. This current system going to be used in Iraq is MUCH MORE sophisticated, as you might expect, given the ever increasing rate of technological advancement!

coolbert.