Man Versus Mosquitoes

The last 30 years have seen tremendous progress in all spheres of life. New gadgets, new devices, new fashions. Nothing however has served humanity more than the progress achieved in devising new technologies to protect it from that age-old blood sucking enemy, and a 'friend' of all, the mosquito.

We began with mosquito nets and sprays. Going to sleep was then no longer a time to jump into bed, but was preceded by a daily chore of tying the knots, and making sure no opening was left for even a single mosquito to find its way in. The net however blocked open ventilation and often left us feeling hot.

The spray added another weapon to our armoury, and brought with it the extra fun of destroying an entire army with one swift pumping action, though its offensive odour often left us gasping for breath.

Next came the burning coil, like a god-sent gift, giving us a whole night of carefree sleep. It did a marvellous job of keeping mosqitoes at bay, but pulling apart two intertwined coils was a task that only few learnt with success.

A real advance took place with chemically doused mats that were to be kept on a special gadget to burn it slowly through the night. For once there was neither foul smell nor any hassles. A good night of sleep was for once possible as naturally as it could possibly be. The only downside was the need to replace the mats every night and the long wired device that required some upkeep.

Finally, the mat was replace by a small liquid container to be plugged into the socket and burnt overnight. The small container lasted a full month, and could be left in the socket. All that was needed was to put on the switch.

What could be the next advance here? In the age of information technology, I believe a software should be devised that takes care of warding off these nuisance creatures. Can you do it, Google or Microsoft?