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Comment by TamDenholm | Hacker News Reader

Rather than get rid of the body scanners, i think they'll simply just require you to stand sideways as well, or add a scanner on the side of the machine.

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Creator of the video here. The other posters are correct that it's not simply a color change, it's that the backscatter effect reflects similarly from the object as it does from the wall of the device. There are no quick fixes: standing sideways might work, but now screening time doubles (which is actually a big deal to the TSA), the radiation dose doubles, and the machine's software isn't designed for that. There are different scanner manufacturers that have made machines that address this problem, but do so with 5 scans -- 5 times the radiation. Plus, there are other faults to the nude body scanners, and this is just the one I chose to publish. The scanners need to go.

Oh i totally agree, the scanners are an absolute disgrace, i'm just very cynical and anything short of an absolute disaster caused specifically by the scanners or the TSA isnt going to get them removed. Governments are reactive to real world catastrophies and not a lot else, and thats why the TSA is there in the first place, its going to take something of equal measure in the opposite vein to remove them.

Also, if you're NOT opting out of every scan, you're not helping the cause. You NEED to opt out of every single scan every chance you get, otherwise they'll eliminate the option and say "well, people seem to be OK with this since no one is opting out!"

Opted out at SFO and DTW and each time it was no big deal.

When you opt out you're required to get a pat down though, correct?

src: http://blog.tsa.gov/2010/11/opting-out-of-advanced-imaging.h...

Correct.

Yeah, except for the sexual assault. No big deal at all.

I go through security an average of about four times a month. I opt out any time I'm not in danger of missing a flight. Some airports are friendly and expedient about it, others (most recently, Austin) had me wait for about fifteen minutes before finding someone to do the pat down (while I tried to watch my bag/laptop/phone on the other side of the scanner).

I opted-out at SEA a few weeks ago and four old British ladies on their way home stared at me the entire time. They looked rather horrified.

Not sure if they thought I was a terrorist or if they were as disgusted by the whole situation as I was.

Has the TSA actually admitted that scanners give off harmful radiation at all?

That would be a reasonable and most probable bureaucratic response to this issue (apart from the option to simply ignore it), but it would double the radiation received and increase inconvenience. Ironically, the opposite of what the guy is fighting for.

Why have people stand sideways when you could sell twice the number of machines to scan people from two aspects!

Then you could hide something in the arches of your feet or under a wig.

Then they'll just extend all US scanned to 2.2m meters width and enforce scanning people lying down in both directions.

A pat down just on the sides as soon as you come out of the scan would also work.

Or have the background colour of the display changed, by contracting with the original suppliers for a few million more taxpayer dollars.

Don't be ridiculous.

Billion is the new million.

Clearly, this will require a well paid committee and 5,000 page investigation.

It's not a color like in a webpage. It's a measure of how many x-rays were received by the scanner, and presumably the background and the object both look the same.

Making the person stand sideways would sort of work, but it wouldn't be hard to shift the flaps of an open jacket while turning.

> have the background colour of the display changed

Have you thought this one through?

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