<p>IBM has won a US government contract to create a model for transient devices that destruct on command.</p><p>Not surprisingly, given the nature of IBM's new task, the contract was awarded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which early last year announced its Vanishing Programmable Resources (VAPR).</p><p>The idea is that VAPR ware could introduce a new class of transient electronics for places like the battlefield, which would deal with the problem of commercial off-the-shelf electronics being too durable and a potential source of intelligence for adversaries.</p><p>"The Vanishing Programmable Resources (VAPR) program seeks electronic systems capable of physically disappearing in a controlled, triggerable manner. These transient electronics should have performance comparable to commercial-off-the-shelf electronics, but with limited device persistence that can be programmed, adjusted in real-time, triggered, and/or be sensitive to the deployment environment," DARPA notes on its VAPR page.</p><p><a href="http://www.zdnet.com/ibm-lands-deal-to-make-darpas-self-destructing-vapr-ware-7000026044/">Keep reading...</a></p><p>Read also:</p><p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2014/02/darpa-funds-ibm-development-of-chip-that-will-self-destruct/">DARPA funds IBM development of chip that will self-destruct</a> (Ars Technica)</p><p><a href="http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/05/darpa-vapr-ibm/">DARPA taps IBM to help create self-destructing gizmos for the battlefield</a> (Engadget)</p><p><a href="http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/02/05/now_you_see_it_now_you_dont/">DARPA hands IBM 3.4m to develop SELF DESTRUCTING CHIPS</a> (Register)</p><p>Explore: <a href="http://news.google.com/news/more?ncl=doX6MVqE9FNmYTMpWNi5f_YZWldtM&authuser=0&ned=us">11 additional articles.</a></p>