Mad Scientry

[MechaBlue]

Ah, what a glorious age we live in. I has almost been a century since 'The War to End All Wars' and over half a century since an enterprising german was stopped from realizing his dream of killing millions of people. We are, perhaps, a few years from turning Europe into Siberia, a decade from causing the sea levels to raise 15 feet, and a few decades from seeing armies of killer robots covering each continent.

With all this morally ambiguous, destructive fun goind on, what's to stop Joe Q. Average from getting into the fun? 100 years ago, Joe Smith wouldn't have had a clue on how to crush Switerland under glaciers or how to destroy the food supply of entire continents. Nowadays, we have the technology to do such and it's just sitting around in some government or corporate warehouse gathering dust.

What wonders of technology would you unleash upon an unsuspecting populace, to what end, and why? Scenarios should involve real technologies and realistic applications and, ideally, cause billions of dollars in damage and harm to millions. Bonus points for retro-chic mad scientry. Double points to anyone who can provide evidence that someone's scheme is already in use or there are plans (contingency or otherwise) to use it.

I'll start:
I will genetically modify a grass plant and patent it. I will then release it into the environment 'by accident', allowing its DNA to spread. After a few years, I will track its progression and sue land owners who have the genes of this modified plant on their land (patent infringement, theft of patented materials, etc.). I will own most of North America withing 20 years.

[Big Al]

Due to the fact that you released your grass "by accident", you wouldn't be able to sue anyone who had this grass growing on their property. As far as patent infringement, you would have to prove that the people with your grass on their land were trying to profit from the unique properties of your grass or that they were claiming to have created that strain of grass themselves.

Since this is a PE forum, how about creating a virus that would rearranged your genetic code to give you and your male offspring larger penises? ;) Funny enough, scientist are working on the possibilities of using virii for creating genetic enhancements.

[MechaBlue]

No double points on that one ;)

How about this one?
I isolate or engineer a strain of bacteria that lives in the soil and attacks the roots of any plants that try to grow. Using legal pressure and falsified data, I cover up the full extent of its destructiveness and sell it as a 'natural herbicide' Once it's established in the soil, it spreads and disrupts the food supply of half of the world.

[Big Al]

Why would you want to think about doing that? Nothing about your post is even remotely funny.