10 Scarecrows for the 21st-Century Farmer

• farming
• food
• Halloween
• technology
• birds

Most violent scarecrow

In 2006 a team of undergrads at the University of South Florida developed a robotic scarecrow intended to protect Florida’s fish farms from wading birds. The “Intelligent Scarecrow” used a micro-PC and surveillance camera to detect incoming poachers, and was programmed to discriminate between intruders and farmers. Assuming that farmers were wearing an orange vest, the team developed the system to recognize the color. If something not colored orange enters into a 40-foot range, water cannons are triggered, as is a series of prerecorded hawk screams and gun blasts. The PC then sends an SMS text message and email to the farmers, alerting them of possible security breaches. To complete this truly DIY project, the students outfitted their creation in a USF football jersey and helmet before taking second place in Microsoft’s 2006 Windows Embedded Student Challenge.

10 Scarecrows for the 21st-Century Farmer
Most violent	Most over-the-top	Most likely to be mistaken for a Cylon	Best scarecrow that is also a makeshift shelter	Most likely to need a Windows 7 upgrade
Most likely to be mistaken for the Tin Man	Most instinct-based scare tactic	Geekiest scarecrow	Least human	The last resort

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