A recently declassified US Army report on the biological effects of non-lethal weapons reveals outlandish plans for "ray gun" devices, which would cause artificial fevers or beam voices into people's heads.
Real-life plasma shields to protect soldiers are only the beginning. The technology -- which use a laser to create a curtain of miniature plasma explosions like firecrackers to turn away an enemy -- could be adapted to turn it into a physical shield, capable of warding off projectiles.
Israel is developing a robot the size of a hornet to attack terrorists. And although the prototype will not fly for three years, killer Micro Air Vehicles, or MAVs, are much closer than that.
The bad guys can use drones too. While billions have been spent on ballistic missile defense, little attention has been given to the more imminent threat posed by unmanned air vehicles in the hands of terrorists or rogue states.
David Hambling has a two-part series up on current research into directed-energy weapons that target the nervous system. The first part looks at U.S. Air Force research into this, including the infamous Active Denial System or "pain ray". The second part looks at Russian research into developing a heart-stopping, death ray.
An in-depth look at that claim that Iraqi insurgents might be using a military-grade hallucinogen on themselves to artificially increase their agressiveness.
The US military is funding development of a weapon that delivers a bout of excruciating pain from up to 2 kilometres away. Intended for use against rioters, it is meant to leave victims unharmed. But pain researchers are furious that work aimed at controlling pain has been used to develop a weapon. And they fear that the technology will be used for torture.
Some experts fear that terrorists are trying to develop thermobaric and fuel-air bombs which can be even more devastating than conventional devices.
An exotic kind of nuclear explosive being developed by the US Department of Defense could blur the critical distinction between conventional and nuclear weapons. The work has also raised fears that weapons based on this technology could trigger the next arms race.
Researchers at the University of Texas have developed a prototype projectile that can be fired at suspected WMD sites and then instantly beam back confirmation that the weapons are there.