cientists are perplexed by ferocious attacks by millions of ants in warehouses and markets around the industrial district of Marseilles. The ants are tireless and seemingly impervious to conventional pesticides.

Witnesses say they saw a dog attacked and stripped to its skeleton in just minutes, though this has not been confirmed by local gendarmes. Attacks appear to be becoming more frequent, and more severe.

Alarmingly, the ants have also been observed carrying grains of (non-nutritional) chemical compounds, which according to local entomology experts, has never been previously observed in nature. The obvious question, as to why the ants are accumulating the compounds, arises.

So far, the only way to kill the ants is by crushing them, a frustrating task as they are extremely agile and quick. Not only are they fast, but they appear to be astonishingly fast at "disappearing" once human intervention to their well-being is detected. This "early warning" system is severely hampering efforts to stamp out the manace.

Officials could not confirm reports of the insects appearing to evacuate a building several minutes before the arrival of security forces.

The attacks are spreading from a radius broadly described as an epicenter around the NDF (Nanotechnology de France). This top secret facility is speculated to have been involved in the manufacture of ultra-micro array modulated AI bio-chips. This has been emphatically denied by Defense Minister Pierre Ristaine.

In an official announcement, M Ristaine has stated that none of the ants have been seen inside the NDF, which is a secure facility. This has been contradicted by an unconfirmed report from an unidentified staff member.

Independent bio-chip and AI expert Professor B K Philipson (Oxford University) has warned of unpredictable consequences if insects somehow obtained the chips, which are smaller than a grain of sand, but with multi-megabyte capacity. In an evolutionary sense, there could be a grave risk of constructing hybrid robotic/entomologic entities with almost unlimited intelligence and power.

So-called "super queen ants" could hypothetically grow to a size equal to that of a small rodent, but with 100 times the intelligence and strength. Theoretically, they would be intelligent enough to cooperate and communicate tactically in a way similar to the way humans climbed to the top of the evolutionary ladder.

A special team from the World Robotics Defence Association (WRDA) is assembling a team and equipment in Frankfurt, and should depart for Marsei... ei... ei...%%%\\\\\\

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