Army Looks to Turn Toy Into Next-Gen Rifle

It's not uncommon for weapons to be turned into toys, but it's unusual for a toy to be developed into a weapon – I report one such case in New Scientist this week: "Lund and Company Invention, L.L.C., a toy design studio based near Chicago, makes toy rockets that are powered by burning hydrogen obtained by electrolyzing water. Now the company is being funded by the US army to adapt the technology to fire bullets instead.The US Army are interested in arming soldiers with weapons that can be switched between lethal and non-lethal modes. They asked the company to make a rifle that can fire projectiles at various speeds." The Lund Variable Velocity Weapon System will be able to fire lethal ammunition at high velocity, or non-lethal rounds at low velocity. Rather than standard cartridges, the weapon will use liquid or gaseous... [read full story]