The new program is called STAP-BOY (space-time adaptive processing) and the goal is to turn "any Soldier, any Marine [into] an advanced sensor platform." To do this, the military is looking to take "commercial Graphics Processor Unit (GPU) hardware and software of the type currently used for fast geometry computations in hand-held electronic games like Nintendo's GAME BOY," gifting soldiers in the field with a "technique that enhances the ability of radars to detect targets that might otherwise be obscured." Right now, this can only be done by the most advanced of supercomputers.As of now, Darpa figures it'll be ready to hand the project over to the Army by the end of 2008. Personally, we wouldn't want to be the guy in charge of using the gizmo, since we're sure we'd just play Tetris on the thing.
[Via Danger Room]
