1 special delivery It’s Sunday night and you’re wrapping up your project for school tomorrow Then you run out of red paint No craft stores are open in your town on Sunday nights Is your project doomed Not to worry With your dad’s help you go online and order the paint In about 30 minutes you hear a buzzing outside You open the front door and watch a delivery drone place a package containing the paint on your doorstep Your project is saved Drone deliveries may sound like science fiction but some companies are already testing this service Drones can deliver packages more quickly than human delivery drivers They can also deliver again and again without needing a break Drones are also known as unmanned aerial vehicles UAVs UAVs are aircraft with no human pilot onboard They can be operated by a controller on the ground using a remote control Some UAVs can operate without a human controlling them UAVs aren’t only used for delivering packages People use them for many jobs all over the world Drones may seem like a 4
Some schools have started using drones to teach students about engineering robotics programming and math concepts super modern technology but early versions of drones have been around for hundreds of years 5
2 balloons bombs The first UAVs appeared nearly 250 years ago That was when French brothers Joseph and Étienne Montgolfier launched the first hot-air balloon In June 1783 the brothers burned wool and straw under the balloon Hot air from the fire filled the balloon causing it to rise and stay airborne for ten minutes As designs for hot-air balloons improved UAVs became strong enough to carry people and instruments In 1849 Austria controlled Venice a former republic and current Italian city The Venetians revolted against Austria In return Austria attacked The Austrian military launched nearly 200 balloons Each balloon carried a timed bomb The Austrians hoped the wind would carry the balloons over Venice When the timers went off the balloons would drop the bombs However the wind was too strong Most balloons drifted past their target before dropping the bombs Two days later Venice surrendered to Austrian rule Some historians believe the UAV attack attempts were partially 6
The Montgolfier brothers flew a second balloon in France in September 1783 This time the balloon had a sheep rooster and duck as passengers responsible Although the balloons didn't strike their target they created fear in the Venetians 7
