Common - Hero Minesweeper

Heroes are all kinds . Magava （Magawa）, An African giant rat trained to detect mines (African giant pouched rat), For many years, I have been engaged in “ Minesweeping ”, Famous for its skills . This mouse is minesweeping in Cambodia 5 year , Battle achievement is remarkable , In his career , It was lifted 71 Mines and 38 The crisis caused by this explosive , A total of 22.5 A minefield of 10000 square meters . It just needs 20 Minutes is enough 200 Square meters to complete demining . Its smell is not inferior to that of a police dog , Advantage is , Because of its light weight , When it steps over the minefield , Will not detonate mines .

Magawa was born in Tanzania ,2016 He began his explosive sniffing career in Cambodia , And in 2021 Years of retirement . He is a group called Hero Rats One of the rodents of . Magawa is the most successful working mouse in this project , stay 2020 Won the famous PDSA gold prize . He was the first mouse to win the honor , This honor is to commend the bravery and dedication of animals .

2014 year , This mouse was born in Tanzania, Africa , Its scientific name is African giant cheek pouches , Non profit organization Apopo Name it magava （Magawa）, The organization bred and trained mice like magava . From the moment of birth , It carries “ Mine clearance mission ”.

Magava grew up with dozens of other brothers and sisters , Receive strict professional training , And magava is talented , Quick sense of smell , Agility of action , Soon stand out from the team , And has passed all tests with the best results . later ,Apopo Rated magawa as , The organization's most successful rodent trainee to date .

Practice is the only criterion for testing truth , No matter how excellent the theory is , Practice doesn't work , That's talking on paper . therefore , stay 2015 year , Magava accompanied his brothers and sisters , Came to Cambodia together , Prepare to specialize in “ Mine clearance ” Mission .

Mention Cambodia , I have to say that the mines here , In decades of civil war , Cambodia buried about 600 Ten thousand mines , These mines cover thousands of square kilometers of land . After stabilization , Cambodia once became one of the countries with the most mines in the world , In just a few years , That's why 4 More than 10000 people were amputated due to stepping on thunder , Suddenly, people's livelihood is sad , It seems , Demining is urgent .

And demining is very challenging , Even professionals , When clearing large mined areas , Under the work with high nervous tension , We also need to master the accuracy 、 Time and discretion , The demining process is very difficult and dangerous , And it's inefficient , The high cost , All parties cannot afford to consume .

And in this month 10 Number , A three person free demining team , In the process of demining , One was killed , Two people were injured by the explosion , It seems , Even if it comes to 2022 year , Manual demining also has extreme risks . Cambodian officials also know , see , stay 2015 in ,Apopo The organization came with a group of mice .

The arrival of magawa , First adapted to the environment for a period of time , After stabilization , from 2016 Year begins , Officially put into demining . Magawa at that time , It belongs to adult rats , Both body length and weight are longer than ordinary mice , Respectively 70 Centimeters and 1.2 kg , Even so , Magava has a strong body , Even if you step on a mine , It hardly triggers a fuse to explode .

Magava is for “ Mine clearance ” Born of genius , Its highly sensitive olfactory system , Even across vegetation and soil , It can also smell explosive chemicals in mines . Magava can be in 30 Within minutes , You can check an area the size of a tennis court （ Standard doubles tennis court specifications ：23.77 rice ×10.97 rice ）, If manual demining is used , About need 4 Days time . This unique skill , Let magava's practical achievements are also very excellent , It has cleared mines for five years , It's gone by 22.5 A minefield of 10000 square meters , Successfully sniff 71 Mines and 38 Pieces of unexploded ordnance , And not a single miss , Be famous .

Light is on 2019 year , Under the leadership of magava , The rats helped Cambodia clean up 430 Ten thousand square meters of land ,Apopo He praised ：“ If there is no hero mouse （ Magava ） Lead the team , I can't even think about it ！”

here we are 2020 year 6 month , Magava 7 How old , This age has entered old age , It also retired with honor , In its working days , Help Cambodians bring safety and happiness , People are very grateful for it .

Just when it retires , Also received a medal from the British Veterinary charity PDSA Gold medal awarded , This is the first time to award the highest honor to a mouse , Commend it “ Be devoted to one's duty , Guard life ”.

Magawa is still healthy after retirement , It enjoys retirement to its fullest , Sometimes jump , Sometimes I turn my stomach , How are you .

 

here we are 2021 year 11 month , Magava is over 8 year , Its action force gradually slows down , As the vitality is exhausted , It is also about to finish its life . It's just 2022 year 1 month 9 When the day , Magava closed his eyes completely . Non profit organization Apopo His death was announced in a statement of .Apopo say ：" This kind of animal has a long life span 8 year . Magawa is in good health , He spent most of last week playing with his usual enthusiasm , But at the weekend , He began to slow down , In the last days , He dozes more , Interest in food has also decreased , Magava left in peace , No pain ".

“ Hero mouse ” It's over , I have been carrying the mission of mine sweeping since childhood , It's up to expectations , A lifetime in the army , No failure ,Apopo Say ：“ We all feel sad and sad about magawa's death , Thank you for saving countless lives , All the way walk good ！”

Magava's legacy follows Apopo The mouse project continues to exist ." Clearing minefields is tense 、 difficult 、 Dangerous work , Need accuracy and time . That's exactly what it is. Apopo Animal detection system can improve efficiency and reduce costs ," The group said . These clever animals , Although it's big for mice , But light enough , Will not accidentally trigger mines .

Training process

Scratch , smell

 

 

Search for explosives

 

African giant rats are very clever , You can learn repetitive tasks , Its sensitive sense of smell can smell the TNT The smell of explosives .

Minesweeper School

 

Training center in Morogoro, Tanzania , There are as many as 37 African giant rats are trained to clear mines here .

Sling training

The African giant rat in a sling walked back and forth along a rope between the two trainers . When they find explosives , Will scratch the ground with claws .

Food rewards

 

If they find mines accurately , The trainer will click with a device , Let African giant rats know that they have been rewarded .

test

 

After months of training , African giant rats can quickly “ eliminate ”5 An invalid minefield of square meters .

Very light

 

African giant rats weigh very light , Will not detonate mines , The minefields they clear in a day require human minesweepers to spend nearly 2 It will take a week to finish .

The cost is low

 

Unlike dogs and other animals that can detect explosives , The maintenance cost of African giant rats is very low , And it only needs a simple cage to put it on the truck .

Medical examination

 

The sensitive smell of African giant rats has other uses . There are 30 Several African giant rats helped medical staff test for pulmonary tuberculosis through human saliva .

Field testing

 

Tuberculosis samples are from Tanzania 17 Collected by a clinic . So far, , The number of tuberculosis cases tested by African giant rats is twice that of these clinics .

About African giant cheek pouches （African giant pouched rat）

African giant cheek pouches, also known as Gambia giant , It is a genus of equine family , For Africa “ Indigenous people ”, They can be as long as 91 centimeter , The heaviest can reach 1.5 kg .

This kind of mouse is quiet , Very greedy , Just give them a little food reward , Can let them do repetitive tasks .

Giant cheek pouches have poor eyesight , But it has the same smell as a dog , Everybody knows , Dogs have a good sense of smell , On various occasions , Both play a heavy role . In fact, in the early demining tasks , Dogs are the only alternative to humans , However, dogs are heavier , Mood swings , Often step on thunder, explode or strike , Let the demining work may cause accidents .

Final , African buccal pouches with a smell comparable to that of dogs , Into people's vision , And this kind of mouse is small , Also have more than IQ , Even if you step on thunder , The probability of detonation is also relatively small .

meanwhile , The study found that , African giant cheek pouches are standard food , Specific performance: ： When they finish a task , Just give them a little biscuit or banana as a reward , They will work harder .

It seems , People only need to train them professionally , Giant cheek pouches can become “ Demining expert ”. Sure enough , Just go through 9 About months of training , Giant cheek pouches can be alone , Rely on its keen sense of smell , We can accurately find the location of Mines .

When the giant cheek pouches found the mine , It will constantly scratch the ground with its claws , And will cast eyes on mankind , It's like saying ：“ master , Am I good ！ Quickly give me a banana , I'll continue after eating ！”

and , African giant cheek pouches are very sensitive to certain chemicals , In addition to demining , It can also diagnose patients , For example, in Africa and other places , Due to the long time and high cost of pulmonary tuberculosis testing , African giant cheek pouches can be used to improve efficiency and reduce costs .

According to statistics , In Tanzania and Mozambique in Africa , The certified rat sniffed 34 Ten thousand tuberculosis samples , Improved efficiency 40%, Saved tens of thousands of lives .

And after continuous exploration , It was found that , African giant cheek pouches can also be used to combat poaching 、 Smuggling contraband and other criminal acts , It can also detect pollutants in soil , You can wear a camera to search for survivors buried under the rubble ……

For ordinary mice , Life span is only 1~3 year , African giant cheek pouches are significantly longer , Under normal circumstances , You can achieve 8 year , In addition to training and pension , It works 5~6 year , Just like magava above .

Belgian demining organization APOPO When he put the first batch of quadruped hero rats he trained into a minefield in Mozambique , Many government officials who visited the site were full of doubts . It's perfectly understandable .

“ In Mozambique , Mice are our food .” Alberto, director of Mozambique national demining organization · Augusto (Alberto Augusto) Joking ,“ therefore , It's strange to see them involved in mine clearance . We all think of them strung on the barbecue .”

The official name of this group of hero rats is “ Minesweeper ”(Mine Detection Rats), They are all in Belgian NGOs APOPO Received special training , The organization specializes in 、 Develop and deploy mouse detection technology , It is used to carry out humanitarian tasks such as mine clearance .

Landmines are still one of the most dangerous weapons in the world , Especially in countries where conflicts have erupted . Such weapons of war are scattered in 78 Countries or regions , Even if buried underground for decades , Its lethality will not weaken . According to the statistics of the International Red Cross , Every month in the world 800 People die because of mine explosion ,1,200 People are disabled because of this —— Most of them are children 、 Women and the elderly .

Mozambique is a poor coastal country in Africa , It is still one of the countries with the largest number of mines on the African continent .1964 to 1975 year , The war of independence broke out in Mozambique , Then I experienced approaching 20 The civil war of , As a result, tens of thousands of mines have been buried underground in the country . Because no map can mark minefields , So Augusto said , To clear the whole country of mines is a “ Great challenge ”.

However , since APOPO Minesweeper 2006 After joining in , They have cleared more than... In Mozambique 600 A minefield of 10000 square meters , Remove mines 2,406 individual 、 bomb 992 star 、 Small arms 13,025 Pieces of .

“ They did so well .” Augusto said . He believes that , With the help of these minesweepers , Mozambique can be in 20 Completely eliminate all mines within the year .

in fact , Mine removal is the easiest step in the whole process of mine clearance , And the most difficult thing is to find out where the mine is .

In the past 20 year , Countries around the world have invested hundreds of millions of dollars to improve mine clearance technology , Treat people injured by minesweeping .

According to the APOPO CEO Christopher · Cox (Christophe Cox) Introduce , When the organization is 20 century 90 When we began to study mouse detection technology in the early s , Dozens of universities are studying thermal imaging processing 、 Laser detectors and a device called “ Nuclear quadrupole resonance ”(Nuclear Quadropole Resonance) Chemical analysis technology .

“ Although people have tried hundreds of solutions , But we are the only technology that really applies to practice .” Cox said .

Guy, Geneva International Humanitarian Demining Center · Rhodes (Guy Rhodes) Act as a consultant for relevant organizations in many countries , He said , The reason why new technology is difficult to apply in practice , The root cause lies in the lack of a comprehensive plan . To be specific , It is difficult to develop a technology that can deal with all kinds of Mines , These mines are not only different in type and age , The terrain is also diverse —— Some are arid deserts , There are dense jungles .

“ People have great expectations for mine sweeping Technology .” He said ,“ But because there are too many variables , So maybe one factor has improved , Other factors will still face great limitations .”

At present, there are many ways to detect mines , Including manual technology —— for example , Minesweepers with metal detectors or rods , Or specially trained minesweeping dogs —— And some mechanical equipment , For example, developed by the US Department of defense Hedgehog, This is actually a modified John · Deere (John Deere) Tractor , It is equipped with an armored cab , The side is equipped with minesweeping tools .

Using these technologies to clear mines is slow , The cost is also high .“ You may spend a lot of time and money , But nothing .” Rhodes said ,“ Because of this , Animals become crucial . Mice are a very fast tool , We can confidently believe that there are no mines in a large area .”

Minesweeper has many advantages . First , Their acquisition 、 raise 、 Reproduction and maintenance costs are extremely low . There are many African giant rats in the African continent , Widely distributed . Because their eyesight is very weak , So highly dependent on a keen sense of smell , Therefore, explosives buried underground can be perfectly detected .

African giant rats raised in captivity can survive at most 8 year , Therefore, the training cost can be recovered to the greatest extent .APOPO It is estimated that , An African giant rat will spend about a lifetime 6,000 The cost of the euro , If you can work 4 Year time , Then the cost allocated to each month is only about 100 euro .

second , African giant rats are very “ smart ”, You can learn repetitive tasks in a relatively short time . however , They are also stupid —— There seems to be no better description —— So it won't be easy to get tired or distract . Dogs are also often used to detect mines and explosives , But unlike dogs , African giant rats don't have to be controlled by their trainers , So it's easy to transfer to different tasks . More Than This , African giant rats are also very light , Will not accidentally detonate mines .

Last , The biggest advantage of African giant rats is speed . The metal detector can give an alarm when sweeping any metal , Therefore, whether the cans or mines are buried below , Minesweepers have to stop , Dig it out carefully . Because trained African giant rats can smell for explosives , Therefore, the probability of false positives is greatly reduced . and , They can even find plastic mines . A human Minesweeper needs nearly two weeks to check the area , An African giant rat can complete in only one day .

It takes about 9 months ,APOPO There is a spacious training ground in Morogoro, Tanzania . From a few weeks old , African giant rats are separated from their mothers , So that it can better adapt to the life with human trainers . The next few months , African giant rats will accept a species called “ Click reward ” Training for . Just like Pavlov's dog , They are trained to send out by hand-held mechanical devices “ click ” Sound and food rewards ( Usually broken bananas and broken balls ) Establish a conditioned reflex . Once the African giant mouse understands that clicking means food , The trainer will teach them the special smell ( For Minesweeper, it's TNT The smell of explosives ) Linked to this reward process .

Because African giant rats are nocturnal animals , So training activities can only be carried out in the morning , Usually in 7 Point to the 9 Between points . Gradually, , They will learn in 3 Square meters (32 Square feet )“ Contaminated ” Find TNT Dynamite , And then 5 Square meters (54 Square feet ) Areas with mines , Then expand to 10 Square meters (108 Square feet ).

In order to comply with the international mine action guidelines (International Mine Action Standards Accreditation) The requirements of , And obtain the certification of mine clearance activities , African giant rats were blinded , stay 2 Cleared within days 800 Square meters (8,600 Square feet ) Minefield . They must find all the mines , And there are only two opportunities for false positives . So far, , There has been a 300 Only African giant rats passed the test .

However , Although African giant rats may be faster than metal detectors , The cost and trouble are also lower than mine sweeping dogs , But it is also unable to adapt to all environments .

“ In some circumstances , This novel approach can play a major role .” Rhodes said ,“ But this way may not be able to adapt to all environments . If a detector is used , As long as the battery is installed, it can be used . But if you need animals to help , You need more confidence .”

Some people worry about the need to provide additional protection for African giant rats , Including continuous training 、 Veterinary services 、 Transportation, transfer and feeding . in addition , In a place like the desert , African giant rats can't work .

In addition to minesweeping , There are other challenges .

“ Many mine problems are not mine problems , It's the problem of unexploded weapons and ammunition on the ground .” Cox said . To solve these problems , What is needed is blasting personnel , Instead of searching and exploding animals .

even so ,APOPO The Minesweeper has been deployed in Thailand and Mozambique , In addition, technical research is also carried out in Cambodia and Angola . Combined with other existing technologies such as metal detectors , African giant rats can quickly and effectively complete the task of mine clearance .

APOPO It has also found new uses for the powerful smell of African giant rats , And find it easy to train them . In Tanzania , African giant rats can find TB bacteria in human saliva samples —— The number of deaths caused by this disease every year reaches that of Mines 40 times . African giant rats have detected twice as many cases of tuberculosis as existing methods , It acts as a second-line detection system . Like mine sweeping , The detection speed of African giant rats is much faster than the existing technology , they 10 The number of samples tested in minutes is even larger than that of laboratory technicians in a day .

“ I have great confidence in the future of African giant rats , I'm also confident in the impact we can have .” Cox said . But persuading everyone to agree with this method is still not easy .

“ Due to military considerations , Therefore, it is difficult for African giant rats to penetrate in the field of mine clearance , There are also challenges in the medical industry .” He said ,“ We must constantly carry out research , Keep publishing papers , To convince policymakers to accept this technology .”

Reference resources ：

https://www.bbc.com/ukchina/simp/vert_fut/2016/01/160105_vert_fut_scratch-and-sniff-mine-detectors

https://www.dw.com/zh/%E7%A5%9E%E5%A5%87%E5%8A%A8%E7%89%A9%E5%9C%A8%E8%BF%99%E9%87%8C%E8%B0%81%E6%98%AF%E5%8A%A8%E7%89%A9%E7%95%8C%E7%9A%84%E5%97%85%E8%A7%89%E5%86%A0%E5%86%9B/g-62332488

In Cambodia, “ Hero mouse ” death , Mine clearance 5 Released in 100 Many crises , It's awe inspiring | Magava | Africa _ Netease subscription

Magawa dies at 8: Heroic rat sniffed out land mines and helped save lives - CNET