Once again, science has achieved what was promised in science fiction.

Tasers are a device well-understood for use in immobilizing persons. However, they require close proximity so powerful that jolts of electricity can be delivered by wires.

A new company has prototyped a device that does this wirelessly at far greater distance, in much the same manner as “phasers” in Star Trek can stun their targets.

HSV Technologies Inc. is an early-stage San Diego company. It has prototyped an immobilization device (read: stun gun). It shoots two ultraviolet laser beams at a target. Passing through the air, these beams ionize the air, thereby creating a momentary electrical circuit between the electric source and the target.

Think of it as a temporary electrical wire suspended in the air.

The electrical current that’s carried has the same wave frequencies as the electrical nerve signals that control skeletal muscles. The recipient won’t feel anything. Instead, the effect is to cause all his muscles to fire at the same time, rendering the person helpless.

The phenomenon is called “tetanization,” which means all the muscles squeeze together in a single contraction.

There’s no risk of damage to eyes from this UV laser light, because the cornea absorbs this particular frequency. It’s also too weak to harm the heart or pacemakers. Unlike conventional tasers — where some deaths have occurred due to heart stoppage — no risk of permanent injury has been identified.

The effect it produces is also what makes a taser effective. The difference is that that a taser requires physical wires to connect it to the target.

A taser might work at several dozen feet, but its range is inherently limited. It must shoot darts hard enough to impact the target, yet not so hard as to penetrate like bullets.

The as-yet-unnamed device (they would be wise to negotiate a license with Paramount on use of the name “phaser”) will have a range of up to two kilometers, making it ideal not only for apprehending suspects, but also for use in military operations within cities where someone running away could be an innocent, scared civilian.

It does have a few disadvantages relative to tasers, most notably signal degradation in fog. But HSV is confident a slight design change will handle this.

The device will initially be suitcase-sized, and handheld versions are expected to follow. For reasons that are unstated, the company says it will only sell these to law enforcement agencies — thereby depriving the public of perhaps the best possible non-lethal defense against criminals, and itself of a huge market.

I suppose a clever criminal could use it on a victim, then profess to be a doctor helping an epileptic even as he robbed the victim. But every technology has potential misuses. It’s rarely a choice of “this or nothing.” More often, as in other areas of life, there are tradeoffs. Consider the homeowners who are afraid to have guns around small children and would embrace this for defense of their families.

A variant of the technology will deactivate the electronic ignitions of vehicles.

I will be watching this company for a possible IPO or deals with public companies that we could invest in.

To your profitable future,

Jonathan Kolber

P.S.: 3,000-5,000% gains are all but certain for savvy investors who act now and grab this tiny company I’ve found that will lead the way as barriers against stem cell-based medicine come crashing down.

Byron King

Byron King is the managing editor of Outstanding Investments and Energy & Scarcity Investor. These publications reach over 60,000 paid subscribers. He is also a contributor to the Daily Reckoning. King is a Harvard-trained geologist who has traveled to every U.S. state and territory and six of the seven continents. He has conducted site visits to mineral deposits in 26 countries and deep-water oil fields in five oceans. This provides him with a unique perspective on the myriad of investment opportunities in energy and mineral exploration. He has been interviewed by dozens of major print and broadcast media outlets including The Financial Times, The Guardian, The Washington Post, MSN Money, MarketWatch, Fox Business News, and PBS Newshour.

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