From the Summer 2000 Issue
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
According to the United Nations, approximately how many
children were killed, seriously injured or suffered loss
of limbs because of land mines in the past decade? ---8,000,000
LANDMINE
BREAKTHROUGH
A Canadian Teen's Invention
by Maya C (age, 15)
Grade
11 inventor Kyle Doerksen from Calgary, Alberta has come up with
computer software that may have international ramifications. Kyle
has successfully incorporated three-dimensional imaging into ground
penetrating radar. This invention could have a notable affect
on countries that wage an on-going battle with the scourge of
hidden landmines.
Ground
penetrating radar (GPR) uses electromagnetic waves to probe beneath
the surface to detect metallic and non-metallic irregularities.
However, current GPR does not include the capacity for three-dimensional
imaging. To test his invention, Kyle decided to use data collected
from Cambodia's killing fields, where land mines take a horrendous
toll on human life and limb. His test results were nothing short
of astounding. While the current form of GPR was able to detect
fewer than 60 percent of the land mines in the test sample, Kyle's
innovative 3D-GPR was able to detect more than 90 percent of the
mines!
This
17 year old sees his invention also being used in forensics, mineral
prospecting, geology, civil engineering and paleontology. "You
could literally map out an ancient buried city without ever digging
a hole," he says.
Kyle's
invention has garnered him many awards including the Manning Award
for Innovation, a Canadian Science Fair Gold Medal and the Canadian
Society of Geologists and Geophysicists Award. He was also a finalist
in the MacLean's Magazine Top 100 Up and Coming Young Canadians.
______________________________
Land mines claim one victim every twenty minutes and an estimated
110 million land mines exist in 65 countries.
Detonating land mines in Africa
Random
Killers
A Look at Landmines
By Maya C (age 15)
What
is scattered all across our earth, yet hard to find?
What kills over 10,000 people every year when they find it by
accident?
Landmines come in various deadly packages. Also known as
antipersonnel mines (AP), they are generally made to explode if
stepped on. Larger anti-tank mines are designed to explode when
driven over with vehicles. Further variations include booby traps,
which can explode when a door is opened or an object (such as
a toy) is picked up. Mines are often used to protect military
sites from enemies. However, mines are also used to demoralize
populations by placing them near necessities like drinking water
or agricultural land.
Landmines
kill 70% of their victims, about 10,000 deaths every year. Of
the survivors, half are severely injured with many needing limbs
amputated. Beyond the physical damage there are many other consequences
of landmines. With a region or village perimeter heavily laden
with landmines, access to the area by much-needed medical teams
or aid workers is affected. In addition, by mining farms or water
sources, the risks of malnutrition and disease often increase
greatly. Landmines not only kill or maim victims; they also affect
the nearby communities.
One of thousands of young victims
Mines are found throughout the world. The continent most laden
with landmines is Africa with 26 countries facing mines and little
progress in dealing with the problem. In the Americas, landmines
are mostly found around remote border areas in countries such
as Chile, Ecuador and Peru. Some Eastern European, Central Asian
and Asian-Pacific countries also have landmine situations. Many
afflicted countries such as Turkey, Albania, India, North and
South Korea have not made in-depth assessments of the problem.
Many of the poorer mine-infested countries cannot afford de-mining
programs.
Canada
has joined 136 other countries by signing the Mine Ban Treaty,
and is part of the 86 countries that have ratified it. Canada
had destroyed all our 90,000 antipersonnel mines by 1997, part
of the 9.6 million that were destroyed by countries around the
world. Some countries indicate financial and technical problems
in destroying antipersonnel mines. Others, like the United
States, refuse to limit their ability to maim and kill, choosing
not to join the ban on landmines. There is still work
to be done to destroy the remaining 250 million mines left in
at least 104 countries around the world.
A deadly disc.
(Organizations
such as the UN Mine Action Service, Halo UK and Mines Action Canada
play major roles in gathering accurate data about landmines and
helping to detect and remove them around the world - while promoting
global awareness about the issue. Support for these groups is
important to help put a stop to the senseless maiming and death
of innocent people caused by landmines.)
Mary
Wareham, coordinator of the U.S Campaign to ban mines writes,
"Land mines are killing people. The issue cannot afford to wait
. . ." Unfortunately, this is a challenging issue. While the price
for antipersonnel mines is $3 - $10, it can cost $1000 to remove
one. Besides, it would take 100 years to clean Cambodia alone,
not to mention $33 billion and 1,100 years to rid the world of
mines. Although over 25,000 are killed or maimed each year, we
have begun to remove mines worldwide. We may yet eliminate the
fear of mines for generations to come.
For
more information on landmines visit the Canadian Red Cross site
at www.redcross.ca/international/landmines/
