If The Dog Sits Then Maybe No More Boom!

[MA-Caver]

Interesting video clip about vapor sniffing dogs (mainly Labradors) trained to follow the minute particles left behind in the air as a person carrying a bomb (or components of) around. These dogs are trained to follow the scent to the source directly then sit when they find the suspect.
http://news.yahoo.com/video/newyorkcbs2-15751042/vapor-dogs-helping-nyc-find-bombs-22921301

Great idea and probably could've been used sooner, a LOT sooner. Yet as I watched this story and was amazed at the dog's abilities ... it made me think about a few things.

For one, the knowledge that these animals are about. Making it easy for potential terrorist/suicide bomber to spot them and (two) prematurely setting off their device to avoid capture. Terrorist don't care how many they kill or maim... the idea is to set FEAR into the general populace.
If I were a potential terrorist/suicide bomber and was aware of these animals and was planning to blow up Wall Street on a busy lunch hour and saw one of these dogs with a cop trailing behind it's leash... or even plain clothes one and the dog sat down in front of me... well... I guess it's just push the button a lot sooner than I had originally planned... or high tail it outta there, ditching the bomb on the run and disappearing into the crowd.

Or maybe I don't get the whole picture of how they would go about doing their searches with the dogs and the story is a more simplified view of their tactics.

Still the potential is a good one and more-n-likely a LOT cheaper than present non-biological means of finding explosives.
They said (in the video) a dog has 4000 times more sensitivity than a human in identifying odors. From my understanding that is the minimum. If you take a dog like the famous Bloodhound... http://education.vetmed.vt.edu/Curriculum/VM8054/Labs/Lab25/Notes/bloodhound.htm also here: (bold is mine)

Researchers have estimated that a bloodhound’s nose consists of approximately 230 million olfactory cells, or “scent receptors” — 40 times the number in humans. Whereas our olfactory center is about the size of a postage stamp, a dog’s can be as large as a handkerchief — according to Allen, it is among the largest in canines. “The physical size of their olfactory area far exceeds most other working scent dogs,” he says. “The larger capacity combined with the desire to work makes them a very good tool.”
When a bloodhound sniffs a scent article (a piece of clothing or item touched only by the subject), air rushes through its nasal cavity and chemical vapors — or odors — lodge in the mucus and bombard the dog’s scent receptors. Chemical signals are then sent to the olfactory bulb, the part of the brain that analyzes smells, and an “odor image” is created. For the dog, this image is far more detailed than a photograph is for a human. Using the odor image as a reference, the bloodhound is able to locate a subject’s trail, which is made up of a chemical cocktail of scents including breath, sweat vapor, and skin rafts. Once the bloodhound identifies the trail, it will not divert its attention despite being assailed by a multitude of other odors. Only when the dog finds the source of the scent or reaches the end of the trail will it relent. So potent is the drive to track, bloodhounds have been known to stick to a trail for more than 130 miles.
A bloodhound’s outward appearance also adds to its tracking ability. Loose, wrinkled skin around the face helps trap scent particles and long, drooping ears that drag on the ground collect odors and sweep them into the nostril area. The dog’s long neck and muscular shoulders, which slope into its strong back, allow it to track close to the ground for miles on end.
For the past two centuries, these natural-born detectives have proven legendary in their role in law enforcement. One of the greatest sleuths in canine history was a Kentucky bloodhound called Nick Carter. His dogged persistence led to the capture and conviction of more than 600 criminals throughout his illustrious career.
Despite the technological advances of our current age, many experts agree that these canines are a greater asset to a police force than some of the best high-tech surveillance equipment. Their extraordinary ability to discern a cold trail has sent them on fruitful missions, following tracks over 300 hours old.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/underdogs/the-bloodhounds-amazing-sense-of-smell/350/

Makes me wonder if they could use these dogs to track down terrorists hiding?

Anyway with the bomb sniffers they could save a lot of lives... yet... they could also inadvertently cause more harm than good.

What do you think?

 

[Bruno@MT]

You forgot to mention the denial of service attacks: surreptiously spray passengers or their luggage with a tiny amount of solution that contains the chemicals triggering the dogs. You could be an inconspicuous cab driver, bagage handler, etc, ... and noone would be the wiser. And when your passenger (or simply someone whose hand you shook or clothes you touched) arrives at the airport, he'll get strip searched and given a good once over.
This would annoy a good deal of people, and swamp the dogs with false positives.