History of Pesticides:

About 4,500 years ago ancient Sumerians invented pesticides out of sulfur compounds to control insects and mites. Around 3,200 years ago ancient Greece and Rome used chemicals to keep weeds, diseases, and bugs off their plants. One of the earliest pesticides used was tar. Pyrethrum, made from daisies, was one of the more common insecticides used for over 2,000 years. 

     

Inorganic compounds began to be used in agriculture in the 1940s. Nitrophenols, chlorophenols, creosote, naphthalene, and petroleum oils were all used to ward off fungi and insects. A study in the 1940s proved DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane) an effective and inexpensive solution to plant pests, while also having a low toxicity rate to mammals. This finding was premature, as within ten years DDT was identified as dangerous to humans and animals. In the 1970s a new pesticide, glyphosate, was produced with a lower toxicity level to replace DDT. By the 1990s, safety for the environment became a goal in chemical research, leading to pesticides and fungicides that are targeted and have a less residual impact. Triazolopyrimidine, triketone, isoxazole, strobilurin, azoline, chloronicotinyl, spinosyn, fipronil, and diacylhydrazine were all produced at this time with the goal of limited environmental impact.

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 History of Drones:   

Drones, as a delivery system, appear in the late 1800s as balloons fit with explosives for battle. The first remote-controlled aircraft were experimented with in 1916 during World War I. During World War II, unmanned drones were produced for the American and British Royal Navies. By the 1960s the next advance in drone technology included remote control planes in smaller forms. Twenty years ago, the first drones were produced for civilian use for entertainment and recreation.

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 History of Agricultural Drones: 

Ten years ago, pesticide technology and drone technology were combined in agricultural drones, enabling farmers and agricultural businesses to target crops with specific chemicals, using less manpower. While this technology has transformed commercial agriculture, it has yet to be used for environmental preservation against invasive species.