On Wed, May 2, 2018 at 4:33 AM, Robert O'Connor <xxxxxx@ozemail.com.au> wrote:
OK, so now you have lots of robots on the outside of the victim.

Not necessarily. A water cannon delivers a high-pressure spray, usually against (at least in the real world) lightly-clad civilians in a shirtsleeve environment. A lot of that water is going to end up in faces, which means eyes, ears, mouth, etc.
 
Now they just have to penetrate the skin, evade the immune system and work their way to their targets in a timely way.

How fast can microbes move (since they are about the same size)?
Some useful numbers here:
http://book.bionumbers.org/how-fast-do-cells-move/

High of 1mm/sec, low of micrometres per hour...

Will the speed vary in different tissues?

So . . . a few seconds to make their way through the sinus passages and into the brain stem?
 

What proportion are destroyed before they reach the target?

I'd say not very many, assuming an appropriate outer coating.
 

How many get lost (navigation errors)?

I have no clue. :)
 

The dose required and the onset speed are going to be determined by factors like these.

Could we add something to turn the mucus - perhaps even the skin - of people dosed with the compound a vibrant orange (or some other strange color)? That way, those who don't get enough of a dose to be paralyzed are still tagged for later investigation.


--
Richard Aiken

"Never insult anyone by accident."  Robert A. Heinlein
"I studied the Koran a great deal. I came away from that study with the conviction there have been few religions in the world as deadly to men as Muhammed." Alexis de Tocqueville
"We know a little about a lot of things; just enough to make us dangerous." Dean Winchester (fictional monster hunter portrayed by Jensen Ackles)
"It has been my experience that a gun doesn't care who pulls its trigger." Newton Knight (as portrayed by Matthew McConaughey), to a scoffing Confederate tax collector facing the weapons held by Knight's young children and wife.