The Washington Post
A government scientist has developed a device to enable police to stun and subdue kidnappers or terrorists without endangering hostages.
Mark Grubelich of the Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque created a stun grenade about the size of a soda can that creates a blinding, deafening but harmless explosion.
Existing stunning devices can cause serious injury if they explode too close to a person.
The new device is made of plastic and contains a metal powder that is forced out of 16 quarter-inch holes in the bottom. The particles hang in the air momentarily before igniting by combining with oxygen. Because the powder explodes outside the container, the blast is far less likely to harm anyone nearby.