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" When disaster strikes, every minute matters. And the time spent surveying the scene is time that can&amp;#039;t be spent saving survivors. Researchers at Texas A&amp;amp;amp;M University and Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands have collaborated on a way to speed up the process. Small robots take photos of the disaster site. The photos are then uploaded to a computer program called Rubble-Viewer that transforms them into a three-dimensional map of the site. (The program is based on Microsoft&amp;#039;s Photosynth software, which won a 2008 PM Breakthrough Award.) This could speed up rescues. &amp;quot;It can take 10 hours to extract somebody because you don&amp;#039;t know the structure,&amp;quot; says Robin Murphy, a professor of computer science and engineering at Texas A&amp;amp;amp;M. &amp;quot;This will give structural engineers more accurate information to speed up extraction.&amp;quot; RubbleViewer&amp;#039;s creators hope to get the software to first responders by August, when hurricane season normally hits its peak. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/environment/a4327/4322095/>