[ti:American Agencies Test Radar for Locating Trapped People] [ar:June Simms] [al:Technology Report] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]From VOA Learning English, [00:02.29]this is the Technology Report. [00:06.04]When a building collapses, [00:08.75]every minute is important for victims [00:12.54]buried under the wreckage, [00:14.40]that is why two American government agencies [00:18.16]teamed up to develop a high-tech tool [00:22.16]to find those who are trapped. [00:25.20]The Department of Homeland Security and NASA, [00:29.51]the National Aeronautics and Space Administration [00:33.10]took part in the project. [00:35.70]Rescue crews have been testing the state-of-the-art [00:40.26]radar tool called FINDER. [00:42.72]The name may short for Finding individuals [00:46.22]for Disaster and Emergency Response. [00:50.17]This radar device can recognize [00:53.48]a person's smallest movements or even a heart beat, [00:58.51]even when the individual is unable to communicate. [01:03.37]Earlier this year, Homeland Security and rescuers [01:08.63]used FINDER to carry out more than 65 test searches [01:15.12]in the American state of Virginia. [01:18.33]They say, the tests prove successful [01:22.69]in recognizing a human heart beat under 9 metres [01:27.63]of mixed concrete and other material. [01:31.30]The device was also able to identify a heart beat [01:36.50]hidden behind 6 metres of solid concrete, [01:40.81]and from a distance of up to 30 metres in open spaces. [01:46.57]It is an example of how space agency creations [01:51.32]are helping people here on earth. [01:54.32]FINDER's technology is based on the tracking technology [01:59.47]that NASA uses for its spacecraft. [02:03.69]Jim Lux is with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. [02:09.19]"FINDER works by sending a low-power microwave signal, [02:11.74]and it illuminates the rubble pile, [02:13.94]and some of the microwaves go in [02:15.48]and reflect off the victim inside and come back out. [02:18.34]So FINDER sees both the reflection from the rubble, [02:21.14]which does not move, [02:22.04]and a very tiny reflection from the victim, [02:24.19]which does move, because when you breathe [02:25.79]and when your heart beats, [02:26.99]your skin moves a little bit and we can see that," Lux said. [02:28.80]Jim Lux says the device is small, [02:31.94]easy to carry and easy to use. [02:36.64]"It goes out and collects 30-seconds' worth of data, [02:39.20]because that is how long you need to get the heartbeat [02:41.94]and the breathing, and then it analyzes it [02:43.95]and displays it for the user," Lux said. [02:45.75]FINDER could be used with other tools rescuers use, [02:49.75]such as listening devices or search dogs. [02:53.66]Matthew Tamillow works with Virginia Task Force 1. [02:58.37]He says the new technology could help rescuers [03:03.16]in deciding which buildings to search. [03:07.38]"This type of technology, including FINDER, [03:09.73]could aid in the assistance of triaging a building to say, [03:13.79]'Okay, there is a strong probability [03:16.09]that a live victim could be in here, [03:18.25]and we need to devote our valuable human resources [03:21.21]into searching it,'" said Tamillow. [03:23.46]FINDER is still being developed and tested. [03:26.86]NASA says it could start being used in search [03:31.12]and rescue operation as early as next year. [03:35.42]And that is the Technology Report from VOA Special English. [03:41.63]For more about our reports, [03:44.19]visit our website at 51voa.com. [03:49.13]We are also on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter [03:54.39]at VOA Learning English. [03:57.14]I'm June Simms.