Mosquitos transmit various diseases including malaria, dengue, yellow fever and Zika. Although both bed nets and insecticides are helpful in fighting off these mosquitos, a new invention is working to completely eliminate these disease-infested bugs: the Mosquito Death Ray.

Developed by Intellectual Ventures, the Mosquito Death Ray zaps mosquitoes to death before they can make human contact. The photonic fence technology creates a force field that can be set up around the perimeter of different areas. These include villages, schools, buildings and fields.

The new technology is still in its beginning stages and is not available commercially. However, once completed and ready for implementation, the Mosquito Death Ray could potentially save the lives of millions.

The technology looks to detect female mosquitoes as the reproduction of more mosquitoes would be impossible without them. The gender of the mosquito is determined by their wing beat frequency — female mosquitoes have a lower wing beat frequency compared to male mosquitoes.

Eliminating mosquitoes is an important step in saving the lives of millions. Malaria, dengue and yellow fever account for millions of deaths and hundreds of millions of illnesses every year.

Yellow fever affects more than 120 million people in regions including Africa, India and the Americas.

Over 2 billion people worldwide are affected by dengue fever, which affects one’s ability to function in day to day activities.

Malaria is extremely prevalent in 91 countries and impairs the working capacity of millions of people, linking it to poverty and developmental issues. There are over 500 million cases each year with the majority of the cases infecting Africans. Each year, malaria kills 2.7 million people.

Without mosquitos transmitting these diseases from person to person, people and children could focus more on their educations and careers allowing countries to develop at a quicker pace.

– Casey Marx

Photo: Flickr