Slashdot Mirror


New CIA Tech Museum: Spy Scat and Robo-Fish

PSaltyDS writes "According to this AP story, the CIA's Directorate of Science and Technology is celebrating its 40th anniversary by revealing a few dozen of its secrets for a new museum inside its headquarters near Washington. When the CIA's secret gadget-makers invented a listening device for the Asian jungles, they disguised it so the enemy wouldn't be tempted to pick it up and examine it: The device looked like tiger droppings. Besides the jungle transmitter, the exhibits include a robotic catfish, a remote-controlled dragonfly and a camera strapped to the chests of pigeons and released over enemy targets in the 1970s. There is also an International Spy Museum in D.C. with more pics, including an early version of the Pigeon-Cam."

91 comments

  1. Pigeon cam? by frankthechicken · · Score: 1

    Reminds me more of a photo I saw in a copy of Bird Fetish Weekly.

    1. Re:Pigeon cam? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Was it here?

    2. Re:Pigeon cam? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny
      They're taking spy pictures, they control what we think we know.

      I, for one, welcome our new pigeon overlords...

    3. Re:Pigeon cam? by Walt+Dismal · · Score: 1

      It pales beside the digital hot dog cam, the XG-9000 Surveillance Christmas Tree, and the stealth video USB Mousecam.

  2. Tiger droppings? by Brahmastra · · Score: 5, Funny
    device looked like tiger droppings.

    Wouldn't it find its way into traditional Chinese medicine or something?
    1. Re:Tiger droppings? by Brahmastra · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Think I'm joking?
      Check this out

  3. If these cool gadgets are in a museum NOW... by pdaoust007 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Imagine what kind of gadgets the CIA have available to them today...

    What's also interesting is that the gadgets are not the type you would expect. I.e., not what we are used to see in movies and all.

    1. Re:If these cool gadgets are in a museum NOW... by AndroidCat · · Score: 5, Funny

      Now that the restrictions on domestic spying have been reduced, the CIA probably has devices planted around Washington disguised as politician droppings.

      --
      One line blog. I hear that they're called Twitters now.
    2. Re:If these cool gadgets are in a museum NOW... by scrod · · Score: 2, Interesting

      The article mentions that the museum "is accessible only to CIA employees, and guests admitted to those closed quarters".

    3. Re:If these cool gadgets are in a museum NOW... by Sporkinum · · Score: 1

      At Nellis AFB in Nevada, they had a threat museum that had all kinds of captured Soviet gear/weapons.

      You had to have at least a secret clearance to go through it. That was back in the 80's though.

      --
      "He's lost in a 'floyd hole"
  4. You're NOT supposed to pick up tiger scat? by burgburgburg · · Score: 2, Funny
    That goes so far in explaining the guests reactions at my last three dinner parties. Thank you /. for helping me through this whole socialization process.

    By the way, is that limited to tiger scat? Are there acceptable scats to pick up, paw through, wear at a business casual dinner party?

    1. Re:You're NOT supposed to pick up tiger scat? by Lars+T. · · Score: 1

      Well, if someone begins to scat, you may pick it up - only if you're good at it, of course. Like when you're Ella.

      --

      Lars T.

      To the guy who modded me down from perfect to terrible Karma - Apple haters still suck

  5. Hrmm by acehole · · Score: 4, Funny

    And we mustnt forget that famous cat that they stuffed full of wires and gadgets for spying on and spent millions of dollars developing only to have the cat run over before it got to where it was supposed to go.

    --
    Be you Admins? nay, we are but lusers!
    1. Re:Hrmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ...but the cat came back, the very next day.. ...the cat came back, we thought he was a goner..

    2. Re:Hrmm by Afrosheen · · Score: 1

      That's a shame, they spend millions of dollars to make ONE cat USEFUL, and it's still a total failure.

      That really says something about cats. :)

  6. In a related story: by SeXy_Red · · Score: 4, Funny

    ...and in a related story, video proof of the existence of yeti's was found today by a camera carrying pigeon. Sources say that the owner of the pigeon was tipped off that there may be a yeti in the area due to the eaves dropping tiger dung that he had accidently dropped in the area.

    --

    This sig was generated by a barrel of trained kittens for SeXy_Red (550409).

  7. Alumni by Patrik_AKA_RedX · · Score: 1
    Would you like to highlight publications or Internet sites that we should know about?
    Shouldn't we point them to the goatse.cx page? They're asking for dangerous sites, aren't they?

    from Alumni
  8. Tiger crap? by Drakin · · Score: 5, Funny

    I bet the reception was shitty....

    1. Re:Tiger crap? by disntrstd · · Score: 1

      *Ba dum cha*

  9. The HQ museum isn't new. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They've had it for a couple years now. Just come in through OHB and turn left, can't miss it.

    1. Re:The HQ museum isn't new. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What if I decided to come in through another door and make a right, you insensitive clod?

    2. Re:The HQ museum isn't new. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Then Cowboy Neal would escort you from the premises.

  10. Interesting, but ... by richg74 · · Score: 5, Informative
    This new museum sounds really interesting, but just to avoid disappointment for anyone who is planning a visit to the DC area:

    It is accessible only to CIA employees and guests admitted to those closed quarters.

    The International Spy Museum mentioned is open to the public, but admission is quite pricey: about $10 per head, if I recall correctly.

    1. Re:Interesting, but ... by gordona · · Score: 1

      I visited the International Spy Museaum during Thanksgiving week. I was less than whelmed.

      --
      "Gentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the War Room!" -- Dr. Strangelove
    2. Re:Interesting, but ... by kruczkowski · · Score: 2, Interesting

      The Internation Spy Museum is a private thing. The CIA museum is on at CIA headquaters in Langly.

      BTW, the ISM is pretty cool.

      --
      hmm... for fun I enjoy launching DDoS attacks against 127.87.42.5
    3. Re:Interesting, but ... by Tremanhil · · Score: 1

      The International Spy Museum is very cool...

      The lines to get into this place literally go around the block. When I was in Washington in October we had taken the Metro to Chinatown for lunch, and literally ran into this place while walking around.

      It looked alot like people lined up waiting to get into a nightclub. Buy your tickets in advance, online... and expect it to be packed like the Smithsonian's on Saturday or Sunday.

    4. Re:Interesting, but ... by rediguana · · Score: 1

      The International Spy Museum mentioned is open to the public, but admission is quite pricey: about $10 per head

      A mere pittance when I recall the hilarity at seeing the rectal tool kit on display (I kid you not). I've had less laughs at some movies I've been to!

  11. Accomplished super secret research project by AtomicBomb · · Score: 3, Funny

    In another news, the DARPA sponsored a secret project in TCPIP development to support the pigeon-cam early in the 90's. Due to its confidential nature, the details remain sketchy. To the best of my knowledge, it is the most comprehensive document leaked from the project so far. If you are onto spying technology, I recommend you to learn it by heart. It can be taken offline anytime....

  12. I loved the NSA museum by way2trivial · · Score: 4, Informative
    http://www.nsa.gov/museum/

    this place has a enigma you can touch, and free coloring books for the kids (free as in tax dollars)

    --
    every day http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
    1. Re:I loved the NSA museum by SlamMan · · Score: 1

      Can you still get in? I know it was public accessible when i had an internship there years ago, but I thought it was inaccessible after the security lock-downs after 9-11.

      --
      Mod point free since 2001
    2. Re:I loved the NSA museum by replicant108 · · Score: 4, Interesting

      "free coloring books for the kids"

      You mean something like this?

    3. Re:I loved the NSA museum by drinkypoo · · Score: 2, Interesting
      I'm thinking it's more like this (or this.) Here's a nice picture of an imaginary plushie getting busted by security for trying to enter CIA HQ without a badge.

      Also included: sniper's eye view of the cafeteria, and the evidence destroying facility in action.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  13. Re:AP? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Is there some reason that asking about "AP" is considered to be trolling? The previous story talked about "The AP" reporting something. This one talked about "This AP story"... it's obviously some sort of news source like the New York Times, but it isn't obviously from the site itself what it is. Is this "AP" some sort of embarrasing secret we're not supposed to ask about?

  14. In the 70's, the USSR had a spycam... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    ...secreted in an over-sized novelty hat. Could only be worn for 10 minutes at a time or the agent would suffer permanent neck damage. Don't know if it was ever used after the fall.

    1. Re:In the 70's, the USSR had a spycam... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      In Soviet Russia, oh, wait, nevermind...

  15. Been there, done that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...but didn't get the t-shirt. However, even without the t-shirt, I'm still cooler than you. You're honored to be in my presence I can tell.

  16. Re:AP? by Lars+T. · · Score: 2, Informative

    The Associated Press press agency.

    --

    Lars T.

    To the guy who modded me down from perfect to terrible Karma - Apple haters still suck

  17. Spy scat? by evilad · · Score: 5, Funny

    Lends a whole new meaning to the term "eavesdropping".

  18. Do they show by Lars+T. · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    any drug smuggling gadgets?

    --

    Lars T.

    To the guy who modded me down from perfect to terrible Karma - Apple haters still suck

    1. Re:Do they show by bj8rn · · Score: 1

      I don't think their museum is large enough to fit a C-130 Hercules or even a Cessna...

      --
      Hell is not other people; it is yourself. - Ludwig Wittgenstein
  19. They don't have any return visitors. by weeboo0104 · · Score: 0

    After they show you all the spy stuff, they have to kill you after the tour.

    --
    It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men. -Frederick Douglass
  20. If tiger shit works in Asia what works in the US? by AmericaHater · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Exercise bike

    "How to be tolerant for American Dummies" book

    How to lose 100 kilo's of fat in 6 months video

  21. Wait! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You dropped your phony dog poo.

    What phony dog poo?

  22. The Dark Side by handy_vandal · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Cool spook toys -- all very sexy.

    But what about the assassination devices -- shellfish toxins, flechette umbrellas, that sort of thing?

    What about MK-ULTRA -- the covert testing of hallucinogens on unsuspecting civilians?

    What about CIA/Mafia alliances?

    What about Operation Phoenix?

    -kgj

    --
    -kgj
    1. Re:The Dark Side by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      1. The CIA has never killed anyone - only in the movies.

      2. The CIA never tested drugs on anyone - it was an Army doctor that did the testing (only once) on his own.

      3. The CIA only asked the Mafia for help once - it didn't work out.

      4. Operation Phoenix was operated *by South Vietnam agents* the CIA only offered intelligence.

      I suggest you pick up a couple of good history books and turn off the TV.

    2. Re:The Dark Side by Naomi_the_butterfly · · Score: 1

      What about 'em?

  23. Pigeon-cam by failedlogic · · Score: 1

    Private: Was that a pigeon with a camera?

    Officer: No, the enemy would never make it THAT obvious!

    -----
    Who are they trying to fool? The camera is hardly covert!

  24. Tiger poop by Lord+Kano · · Score: 2, Informative

    When the CIA's secret gadget-makers invented a listening device for the Asian jungles, they disguised it so the enemy wouldn't be tempted to pick it up and examine it: The device looked like tiger droppings.

    Vietnam vets have talked about these for years, I also heard stories that they disguised radio beacons as tiger droppings as well. Special forces could call in air strikes and guide the fighter/bombers to the target with a beacon that looked like tiger poop.

    LK

    --
    "Hi. This is my friend, Jack Shit, and you don't know him." - Lord Kano
  25. Spy Museum not that great...yet. by SpaceRook · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I went to the Spy Museum in DC a couple months after it opened. I wasn't that impressed. It seems like they still have some kinks to work out.

    A lot of stuff was recreations. Few of the exhibits seemed to be the actual items. There is a "James Bond" car exhibit which is literally just a car that has spotlights shined at certain parts while a radio says what secret weapon could be hidden inside.

    There is one section where children can climb through air ducts. The racket that is created as dumb parents let their children stomp and yell through the air ducts ruins the whole exhibit room.

    I think all museums are a little rough around the edges when they first open. Maybe I'll check out the Spy Museum again in several years. As it currently stands, you'll learn more about spies by surfing around on google.

  26. There was this Pigeon walking down the street... by hermango · · Score: 2, Funny
    Besides the jungle transmitter, the exhibits include a robotic catfish, a remote-controlled dragonfly and a camera strapped to the chests of pigeons and released over enemy targets in the 1970s. The secret gadgets currently used by CIA are left to the imagination of visitors."

    "The pigeons' missions remain classified, made possible only after the CIA secretly developed a camera weighing only as much as a few coins. An earlier test with a heavier camera in the skies over Washington failed after two days when the overburdened pigeon was forced to walk home."

    "...when the overburdened pigeon was forced to walk home!!!!!" I can just picture it: A pidgeon walking down the sidewalk in front of the White House with a camera strapped to it's neck. Hell, it would fit right in. Just another strange tourist, right?

  27. War surplus scat by Bob+Cat+-+NYMPHS · · Score: 1

    One of the electronics surplus houses used to sell the WTF-is-this-radio-stuff-in-rubber-shit in their ads in the back of Popular Electronics during the late 70's.

  28. Pigeon Cam but what network? by BlueMonkey · · Score: 1

    But can the pigeons send the pictures back over IP?
    rfc1149 info

  29. National Cryptological Museum by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    If you live around Washington, or are visiting the area, you might also be interesting in seeing the National Cryptological Museum near the NSA headquarters in Fort Meade, MD. More information is available here.

    1. Re:National Cryptological Museum by wfolta · · Score: 1

      Yes, I believe this is NSA's official museum, open to the public. (The original CIA story is a display probably in the lobby of a secure-access building.)

  30. You mean Acoustic Kitty? by Robber+Baron · · Score: 4, Informative

    Here's a link.

    --

    You're using her as bait, Master!

    1. Re:You mean Acoustic Kitty? by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      Victor Marchetti, a former CIA officer, told The Telegraph that Project Acoustic Kitty was a gruesome creation. He said: "They slit the cat open, put batteries in him, wired him up. The tail was used as an antenna. They made a monstrosity. They tested him and tested him. They found he would walk off the job when he got hungry, so they put another wire in to override that."

      I sure hope Corporate America does not get a hold of this technology. Then again, it may be the only way to make citizen coders be able to compete with $2/hr global wages.

      Meow!

  31. Re:If tiger shit works in Asia what works in the U by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "How to lose 100 kilo's of fat in 6 months video"

    Actually, diet gimics sell like wildfire over here. Pills, shakes, candy bars, drinks, other foodstuffs, odd ass expensive excersizing equipment, videos, audio, subliminal audio, health clubs, books, etc. Well, except basic excersize. Something about buying something makes it seem like one is actually doing something I guess. I find actually getting outside and moving around works the best.

    Hell, it is probably the sole reason bottled water sells so well over here...

    -posted AC for the morons that mark whole threads OT-

  32. And by sheer bad luck... by Black+Parrot · · Score: 1


    ...the other guys chose "Look, there's another tiger dropping!" as the code phrase for launching the invasion, so the CIA never saw it coming.

    --
    Sheesh, evil *and* a jerk. -- Jade
  33. Where are they in the 24th century? by PSaltyDS · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I have always wondered at the absence of such things in the various SciFi universes. The crew of the Enterprise, locked in a cell by this week's bad guy, is always free to build a "sub-space anti-tachyon field inversion beacon", or some such, out of Jordy's visor because there are NO bugging devices in any of the plots. "Nanites" and other nano-tech stuff run through several episodes, but somehow never get married up with so much as a security cam and a microphone in the Enterprise's brig. When you confine the Ferengi to a stateroom for trying to blow up your ship, shouldn't you at least keep an eye on them?

    --
    Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced. - Geek's corollary to Clarke's law
    1. Re:Where are they in the 24th century? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      maybe it is because they are poorly writen FICTION??

  34. Cool, I want by t_allardyce · · Score: 1

    has anyone seen the remote-controlled dragonfly? I cant find it anywhere, links?

    --
    This comment does not represent the views or opinions of the user.
  35. We win again by Doc+Ruby · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Thanks to its technological superiority, the CIA war in Vietnam was a stunning success. Combined with vehement Presidential and Congressional backing, the decade-long committment of massive troops, air superiority, and compelling kill-ratios turned the tide in Vietnam. We immediately brought the War on Communism to a healthy, decisive close, with millions of Vietnamese dancing in the streets to the tune of "Yankee Doodle Dandy".

    Now our 21st Century CIA is again rising to the occasion in the War on Terrorism. Just as their partnership with justice in the War on Drugs has eliminated that scourge from the American prospect, our tech supremacy in Afghanistan and Iraq is swiftly delivering peace and freedom from the forces of fear. We can learn so much from the CIA museum, with its smart turds and omniscient birdbrains. With our arsenal and steely-eyed leaders, not to mention god on our side, American supremacy will remain as unsullied as it has been since the 1960s.

    --

    --
    make install -not war

    1. Re:We win again by Detritus · · Score: 1
      The CIA was effective in South Vietnam. They inflicted a lot of damage on the VC leadership.

      South Vietnam was conquered by NVA regulars, not by the VC, who were effectively destroyed during the Tet Offensive.

      --
      Mea navis aericumbens anguillis abundat
    2. Re:We win again by Doc+Ruby · · Score: 1

      The CIA is effective in making gadgets. Winning a war, especially a guerilla war of counterinsurgency, requires policies, strategy, and for America, the whole truth about the reasons to go in, and when to get out. Tech superiority is not enough. If we learned from Vietnam, we wouldn't be in the mess in Iraq we've got. Rumsfeld is especially amnesiac, as he was the guy in charge when we finally admitted defeat 30 years ago.

      --

      --
      make install -not war

  36. Fun With ePoop by Tablizer · · Score: 1

    The best part about ePoop is not that you can hide it, but that the intelligence officers of the other side now have to check each and every one to make sure it is real. That makes it tough to hire and keep the "best and brightest".

  37. Japan did the Pigeon-Cam first by Kphrak · · Score: 1

    During the months leading up to Pearl Harbor, the ONI (Office of Navel Intelligence) spotted pigeons flying over critical installations on the West Coast. After bringing them down, they found cameras (ingenuously small considering this was the late '30s) with timers, rigged to take pictures of the installations.

    Apparently, the Japanese would send out pigeons until they got what they wanted (since, of course, the pigeons might be eaten by predators or just decide to avoid the installation). This was described by Alan Hynd in his 1943 (I think it was '43) book "Betrayal From The East".

    You might not be able to find it at your local library if the Political Correctness Police got there first (Hynd, among other things, was an advocate of the internment camps for Japanese-Americans as a security measure), but give it a try anyway.

    --

    There's no sig like this sig anywhere near this sig, so this must be the sig.
  38. Odd place to build a commercial museum... by Goonie · · Score: 1
    Given that you'd have to live in DC, or close to it, to run out of Smithsonians to visit (let alone the many other free governmental attractions), why the heck you'd set up an expensive commercial museum in the place is hard to understand.

    Decent, cheap food, however - now there's a business opportunity :)

    --

    Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from a rigged demo
    --Andy Finkel (J. Klass?)
    1. Re:Odd place to build a commercial museum... by kruczkowski · · Score: 1

      I agree with you on the food. I'll be in DC next month for a few days, know of anyplace cheap to stay at? Last time I stayed at a hostel (can't find link now) but they were $26 a night.

      --
      hmm... for fun I enjoy launching DDoS attacks against 127.87.42.5
  39. CIA is evil by Sivaram_Velauthapill · · Score: 1

    CIA is one of the most evil organizations in the last 50 years. Following in the footsteps of other similar spy organizations like the SS and the KGB, the CIA is responsible for hundreads of thousands of deaths and for torturing many more.

    I would urge Americans to limit their agents to WITHIN their country. Overthrowing other governments, killing innocent people, and spreading torture techniques is not my idea of defense. You want to protect your country? Use the agents to track and monitor people WITHIN your country. Sending them off to cause troubles in other countries is neither moral nor effective.

    Countries where CIA has been complicit in kiling or torturing more than 10 people include El Salvador, Guatemla, Chile, Argentina, Indonesia, Iran, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, and many more...

    CIA blowbacks include Iraqgate (money laundering to Iraq via Banca de la Franca), Iran-Contra (no comment), Usama bin Laden (contrary to US govt propaganda, he learned all his techniques off the CIA), and so forth. Then again, nothing out of the CIA should surprise anyone. I mean, this is the same organization that saved (and was influenced by) some of the most cruel Nazi war criminals. (another story here)

    I guess I just got blacklisted for that...fuck the CIA and everything that it stands for :(:(:(

    Sivaram Velauthapillai

    --
    Sivaram Velauthapillai
    Seeking the meaning of life... @slashdot of all places ;)
    1. Re:CIA is evil by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Stop watching movies and pick up a few history books. You'll then know the real truth.

      BTW, UBL is worth $300 million US - and hates infidels. He didn't need the CIA's help. Plus he went to Afganistan *after* the Afgan-Russia war dumbass.

    2. Re:CIA is evil by Sivaram_Velauthapill · · Score: 1

      First of all, it's YOU who needs to pick up a few books. UBL's $300million estimate is way off. He is worth around $30million (not $300m as CIA likes to claim). As far as him going to Afghanistan after the war, what's your point?

      BTW, if you are going to attack me on such an important issue, why don't you post with your real name like I do? Scared of agents?

      Sivaram Velauthapillai

      --
      Sivaram Velauthapillai
      Seeking the meaning of life... @slashdot of all places ;)
    3. Re:CIA is evil by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It may be evil but it's ours... and where else can we get this much entertainment value for our money?

    4. Re:CIA is evil by Sivaram_Velauthapill · · Score: 1

      If you find it entertaining, you must have no heart...

      That's not funny :(

      Sivaram Velauthapillai

      --
      Sivaram Velauthapillai
      Seeking the meaning of life... @slashdot of all places ;)
  40. Mirror so my DNS doesn't look up "spymuseum.org" by MMHere · · Score: 1

    Has anyone mirrored this elsewhere, so my DNS client doesn't request spymuseum.org from my ISP?

    I guess I'm that paranoid...

  41. Re:Karma Museum by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    http://www.google.com/search?hl=sv&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF -8&q=CIA+Tech+Museum&btnG=Google-s%C3%B6kning&meta =

    Hej, kara svenska trollkollega!


    .
    .
    .

    Preview...

    Kukhelvetes bogslashduh! Ge fan i mina prickar och ringar! AAO aao

  42. DROPPINGS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    During the Second World War S.O.E (Special Operations Executive), the British clandestine military action organisation, distributed plastic explosives in the shapes of rats and elephant droppings. The theory was a lifelike "dead" rat in a European munitions factory would be thrown into a furnace (boom !) and no one would worry about driving over an elephant poo (boom !). Results not to hand.

  43. Re:If tiger shit works in Asia what works in the U by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    One ... hundred ... kilos? Do you know what you are saying?! Thats like, 20 lbs!

  44. Do they have the stuff by Darth23 · · Score: 1

    They tried to use to assasinate Fidel Castro?

    --

    -------- In Soviet Russia, "Soviet Russia" sigs hate Slashdot.

  45. Re:In a related story - yeti by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    please - yeti is not the perfered nomenclature, depending on region of course.


    yeghti - India

    yeaghti - China

    yetai - Japan

    pyeaghtie - Washington DC

    Saschwatch - Washington State

    yeti - Ancient Mesopetamia

    as you can see we have come a long way.