Cats as Spies? Probably Not, but Maybe a Beetle The CIA’s Most Purr-plexing Mission
The CIA once tried to turn a cat into a spy. No, really.
immediately hit by a taxi. The mission was over before it began. It turned out cats weren’t very good at following orders.
In the 1960s, the agency launched a project called Acoustic Kitty. The idea was to implant listening devices into live cats so they could
In a later memo, the CIA admitted that the program wasn’t practical or suited to its “highly specialized needs.” No surprise there. If you’ve ever tried to get a cat to do anything it doesn’t want to do, you understand. Still, the idea of using animals for covert missions didn’t die with Acoustic Kitty. In the 2000s, the Pentagon’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) picked up the baton and funded experiments with remote-controlled insects. Researchers at UC Berkeley managed to control a beetle’s flight
eavesdrop on foreign officials. One unlucky feline became their test subject. A surgeon embedded a microphone in the cat’s ear, ran an antenna through its fur, and tucked a transmitter into the base of its skull.
The CIA planned to train the cat to sit near targets and secretly transmit conversations. The outcome? Let’s just say things didn’t go as planned.
using neural implants. They could steer it left and right and make it start and stop in mid-air. It was like a bug-size drone.
For the first trial run, CIA agents released the wired-up cat near a park bench where two men were talking. Instead of heading toward the bench, the cat unfortunately wandered into traffic and was
Science has shown that bugs might make better spies than cats. And unless your housecat suddenly develops a
taste for espionage, your conversations are probably safe. So, if your feline friend stares blankly at you while you share secrets, don’t worry. That’s not surveillance. That’s just a cat being a cat.
THE HARD TRUTHS BEHIND PROTECTING OUR CHILDREN
When I first discovered that November was National Child Safety and Protection Month, my mind immediately jumped to dog bites, bike accidents, and stranger danger. However, as I did more research, I found countless resources to help prevent abuse and neglect. As I read further, it made much more sense. I was a young mom who had never held a baby before my firstborn entered the world. I had three kids back-to-back and moved across state lines while they were still young. I can vividly remember moving to Kentucky and feeling like I was drowning. At that time, I saw a story about a lady shaking a baby, which led to its death. People were upset, saying, “How could a parent do that?” But I understood it perfectly as a young mom. Parenthood is incredibly overwhelming, and there are moments when you need to step away or your emotions will get away from you.
When protecting your children, one of the best things you can do is establish a support system. There was one time when my four small children went wild. You couldn’t pick up one room without another getting completely disheveled. One of my daughters even cracked eggs all over the hardwood floor. I didn’t know what to do, so I called my neighbor. She advised me to put the children in their room and lock the door before going to my room to decompress. She assured me that everything would be fine and even offered to come over to clean up the mess. Of course, I would never intend to harm myself or my children, but you aren’t thinking clearly in these situations. Another area that can bring a lot of stress into a parent’s life is taking your kids out in public. You want them to behave and stay out of trouble, but it’s not easy to keep your eyes on them at all times. Whenever I brought my kids somewhere
like an amusement park, I would write my name and contact information on their arms with a Sharpie. If they got lost, they could show their arm to a worker and get reconnected. Parenthood is a long lesson in resilience. Nobody ever does parenting perfectly on the first try, but you learn as you go and make the best of it.
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