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Internet of Seals: Vodafone Connects Marine Mammals To IoT (techweekeurope.co.uk)
Mickeycaskill writes: Researchers in Scotland claim to be the first to connect marine mammals to the Internet of Things (IoT) as part of a study into declining populations of harbor seals in the north and east of the country. Several seals in Orkney, an archipelago off the north cost, will be tagged and their behavior monitored by scientists at the Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU) at the University of St Andrews. The data is transmitted using Vodafone's M2M network and the tags are designed to simply fall off when seals molt. Researchers say the use of cellular networks will greatly improve their data gathering capabilities. The data collected will be used to help form Scottish marine policy in areas such as offshore wind farms and unexplained seal deaths.
My first thought when I saw this headline was the 1995 B-grade sci-fi movie "Johnny Mnemonic": http://www.imdb.com/title/tt01...
It features a cyber-augmented dolphin, allegedly able to "cut through hard encryption like butter". At this point, it all falls into place. This is the start of a long-term plan for the government to finally crack the iPhones. And encryption. All of it. Everywhere. The TRANSLTR computer from Dan Brown's "Digital Fortress" just wasn't the right solution. But Internet of Things, cybernetics and magic animals (unicorns, dolphins etc.)? It can not fail!