Chances are, the mention of the word “drone” conjures in your mind any number of dystopian images. Which is no surprise, as they’re used for things like the NSA’s “SKYNET” program—really, it’s named SKYNET—as well as numerous other possibly nefarious purposes. A “drone” also just sounds like something wicked in a Ray Bradbury novel. But they’re obviously not all bad, and can even lead to as much joy as they do fear, as evidenced by the above video.
In the video, filmmaker, traveler, and humanitarian Mark Brandon Smith, is seen showing off his DJI Phantom 3 Professional to a gathering of schoolchildren in northwestern Uganda. And the excitement that pours out of the crowd as the little white quadcopter takes flight above them is downright palpable.
Smith, who was in Uganda filming with the non-profit IMOutreach.org, says that “The students loved it and kept asking for more once the drone landed. Though excited and curious, some of the children were also nervous as they had never seen or even heard of drones before.”
It’s moments like these that make for a good reminder of the positive side of drones. They can, after all, not only excite (and frighten) schoolchildren, but also provide visceral thrills via high-speed FPV racing, get down on the funk aerial-style, or light up the night sky in sync with Beethoven’s 5th. Plus, we always have those highly trained police eagles if the drones do eventually come online, and get out of hand…
What do you think about Smith’s video? Have you ever seen this kind of reaction to another kind of tech? Let us know in the comments section below!
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HT: Boing Boing
Images: Mark Brandon Smith
