The sea element of the Canadian Armed Forces was allowed to enter the unification era with a distinctive flag, the Canadian Armed Forces Naval Jack of 1968. It was the only one of the three elements granted this privilege. Two decades on, increasing signs of separate environmental or “service” identities were emerging in the unified force. In 1984, the Commander of Maritime Command asked to have the Jack renamed and flown ashore as a command flag and in HMC Ships as the ensign. Through a close examination of four key documents associated with the episode, this commentary explores the request in detail, as well as the reaction to it on the part of the Chief of the Defence Staff, a staunch unificationist. In so doing, it serves as an excellent case study of the latent tensions that existed between single-service traditionalists and those committed to what was seen at the time as the “new way” in military organization.

ABSTRACT This study examines the role of leader cognitive flexibility in fostering followers’ innovative work behavior (IWB). Drawing on social learning theory, we propose that cognitively flexible leaders create an environment that inspires followers to generate, promote, and implement innovative ideas. Additionally, we investigate the mediating role of psychological empowerment and the moderating role of leader identification in shaping this relationship. We conducted a three-wave, multilevel study involving 437 personnel nested within 74 teams in the Italian Air Force. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was used to test cross-level effects, while mediation and moderated mediation analyses were conducted using bootstrapped confidence intervals. Results indicate that leader cognitive flexibility positively influences followers’ IWB, with empowerment fully mediating this relationship. Additionally, leader identification moderates the mediation effect, such that the positive influence of leader cognitive flexibility on empowerment, and subsequently on IWB, is stronger for followers who strongly identify with their leader. This study extends existing leadership research by shifting the focus from leader behaviors and styles to leader cognitive abilities, highlighting the critical role of cognitive flexibility in promoting innovation at the individual level. It also underscores the importance of psychological empowerment as a mechanism through which leader cognition influences innovation and identifies leader identification as a key boundary condition that strengthens this effect. These insights provide a novel contribution to leadership and innovation literature while offering practical implications for leadership development in military organizations.

Optimization of a support vector regression model predicts maximal weight lifted during a manual material handling assessment within a military setting.

ABSTRACT Throughout the COVID‐19 pandemic, militaries mobilized at an unprecedented scale to support domestic response efforts. This was consistent with the growing trend of asset mobilization for military operations other than war during public health emergencies. However, the global scale and vast breadth of civil‐military cooperation invites new considerations regarding the authority and scope of domestic operations of militaries during public health emergencies. We aimed to identify how each UN member state codifies their military's roles and responsibilities in domestic emergencies. We systematically analyzed each nations' domestic military deployment, focusing on the authority, execution and scope of military involvement pertaining to domestic public health emergencies. We then analyzed legally enforceable policies and categorized them respectively. We found that of countries with active military forces, nearly all (170/171) have codified rules on domestic military deployment and 90.59% (154/170) allow domestic military mobilization for any domestic emergency through executive orders. Furthermore, 58.48% (100/171) of countries with an active military have codified the separation of powers to ensure that civilian decision makers are exclusively empowered to mobilize military forces. Finally, we found that 74.85% (128/171) of countries included language that explicitly authorized military involvement in domestic operations, including support for public health emergency response and humanitarian operations. Our findings provide critical data for analyzing the relationship between military operations and public health outcomes. This will enable future research, including how specific domestic military deployment policies impact the effectiveness of military involvement in public health emergencies for population health and civil order.

Abstract This article examines the relationship between military organization and regional governance in the Western Zhou 西周 state (ca. 1045–771 BCE), focusing on the role that regional military bases directly administered by the Zhou royal court played in reinforcing the geopolitical cohesion of the Zhou realm. By analyzing inscriptional and archaeological evidence, it argues that Qi shi 齊師 was one such regional Zhou garrison in northern Shandong. In the decentralized political structure of the Western Zhou state, political and military power were shared between the Zhou king and the regional nobility, rendering the participation of regional auxiliaries essential for Zhou military operations. Within this framework, regional Zhou military bases served as enclaves of royal power that extended the range of central reach in regional governance and facilitated the coordination of the dispersed military resources in the Zhou realm for common defense, thereby fostering the geopolitical integration of the Western Zhou state.

A study on the correlation between robotic arm force feedback and drilling approach angle/depth in dental implantation: an in vitro investigation.

Unmanned Aerial Systems (UASs) are playing an increasingly significant role across a wide range of application domains, spanning from military defense programs and strategic operations to civil and commercial uses [...]

On December 4, 2025, the Trump administration published a new National Security Strategy, fully integrating trade policy into the country's national security system. The Strategy views economic prosperity as the foundation of military strength and the nation's civilizational confidence through rebuilding the industrial base, eliminating trade deficits, and leveraging access to the American market as a tool of geopolitical influence. The transition from globalism and free trade to hard sovereignty and flexible realism is formally enshrined. Cultivating American industrial strength is declared the highest priority of national economic policy. The goal is to achieve global leadership in the global economy through the dominance of American technologies and standards, particularly in artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and quantum computing. In fact, the entire US national security system is fundamentally integrated with AI technologies. Absolute priority is given to global technological dominance as a national security imperative, based not on traditional political ideology, but motivated above all by what works for the United States based on the principle of 'America First. Victory in the AI race is declared as the beginning of a new golden age of human prosperity, economic competitiveness, and national security for the American people. The goal is to integrate AI into all sectors of the national economy and public administration. AI is regarded as the most important strategic resource of the emerging new industrial and information revolution, capable of decisively transforming the global economy and changing the balance of power in the world. AI has been transformed into a priority instrument of foreign trade policy in the context of the US national security system.

Most research on combat exposure and mental health focuses on outcomes most soldiers do not experience, such as posttraumatic stress disorder and suicide. We focus instead on psychological distress using data from World War II. We find that more than 60 percent of Pacific Theater combat soldiers had very high psychological distress, which likely would have disqualified them for military service for psychiatric reasons in 1944. Their symptoms were normally distributed, like those of psychiatric patients. In our stress process model, structural location in military organizations led to psychological distress through exposure to combat and stressors linked to the combat mission. These stressors undermined some psychosocial resources and mobilized others. We conclude that psychological distress in wartime may be a primary cause of postwar problems in the lives of veterans. We recommend that research on soldiers’ mental health make psychological distress a sustained focus of inquiry.

This study aimed to analyze the relationship between the level of professional burnout, professional functioning styles, and occupational activity in a group of soldiers and civilian employees working in the military. The theoretical basis was the model of professional burnout of Christine Maslach and the concept of professional functioning styles developed by Barbara Mróz. The study employed the following tools: Christine Maslach's Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) to measure burnout, Barbara Mróz's new, original Professional Functioning Scale (Skala funkcjonowania zawodowego - SFZ) in occupational psychology, and a questionnaire assessing the level of occupational activity. The results of statistical analyses showed statistically significant differences between soldiers and civilian employees in selected dimensions of burnout (depersonalization t = 3.723, p < 0.001) and professional functioning styles (authoritarian t = 5.031, p < 0.001; avoidant t = -3.153, p < 0.002; cooperative t = -4.531, p < 0.001). All differences were higher among soldiers. Occupational activity proved to be a statistically significant factor differentiating operational effectiveness and stress resistance (t = -4.934, p < 0.001). Here, the difference was higher among military personnel. Correlations were found between professional functioning styles and burnout levels (authoritarian and avoidant styles were associated with higher burnout levels, the cooperative style had a protective effect). Soldiers: correlation positive (r = 0.270, p < 0.05), prefer an authoritarian style - based on control, decision-making, and hierarchy. Civilian employees: correlation positive (r = 0.377, p < 0.01), that the more often used an authoritarian style in their professional functioning, the higher their overall level of burnout was. The results obtained are relevant for human resource management in military organizations and for the development of psychological support programs and training in coping with stress and developing effective professional functioning styles. Med Pr Work Health Saf. 2026;77(2).

ABSTRACT Military companies and organizations worldwide face the persistent challenge of conceptualizing, procuring, manufacturing, and sustaining weapon systems that align with their respective national strategic imperatives. A pivotal component of this endeavor involves the economic assessment of new systems or the modernization of existing platforms. Nonetheless, accurately estimating the lifecycle costs associated with these systems remains a profoundly intricate task, frequently leading to significant deviations from projected budgets or, in severe instances, the termination of projects. Traditional cost estimation methodologies primarily rely on analogical reasoning and parametric modeling, both of which depend heavily on expert judgment. These approaches are intrinsically sensitive to the degree of detail available in the system's specifications and its corresponding work breakdown structure (WBS). Although commercial proprietary tools have been developed to enhance precision, their adoption is often hindered by substantial costs, the necessity for specialized training, and the opacity of their “black box” algorithms, which undermine confidence in their applicability and reliability. This study investigates the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning methods, in combination with open‐source intelligence (OSINT) data, to forecast acquisition costs for several families of weapon systems (surface ships, transport aircraft, missiles, and helicopters). The proposed workflow integrates extensive data preprocessing, regularized and nonlinear regression techniques, and an analogy‐based clustering stage to derive early‐stage cost estimates from incomplete and heterogeneous public data. These acquisition‐cost forecasts are then linked to standard NATO/Department of Defense (DoD) life‐cycle cost breakdowns to construct illustrative life‐cycle cost scenarios, rather than to develop a fully‐fledged stochastic model of all life‐cycle stages. To our knowledge, this is one of the first studies to demonstrate an end‐to‐end acquisition‐cost forecasting workflow that relies exclusively on OSINT data while explicitly addressing multicollinearity, heteroscedasticity, and outliers and integrating an analog‐based clustering refinement stage.

The influence of military identity on soldiers’ innovative work behavior: the case of the Royal Thai Armed Forces

To investigate how female military nurses experience high-reliability, high-stress environments and how these conditions shape their well-being. Military nursing involves complex demands that extend beyond clinical care, including dual professional roles, operational unpredictability, and gendered expectations. These pressures can undermine physical, psychological, and social well-being, yet the lived experiences of military nurses, particularly women, remain underexplored. A qualitative descriptive design was used. Ten female military nurses were recruited through purposive sampling and interviewed individually in semi-structured online interviews. Data were analysed using qualitative content analysis. Trustworthiness was ensured through reflexive coding, an audit trail, and adherence to COREQ guidelines. Five overarching categories captured the factors shaping well-being: organisational and structural demands; high-stress operational environments; emotional and psychological burden; coping and resilience; and gendered identity and work-family balance. Participants described constrained autonomy, communication gaps, and role ambiguity within hierarchical structures. Psychological pressures were heightened by moral tensions, responsibility for colleagues, and expectations of emotional control. Coping relied mainly on informal peer support, as formal services were rarely used due to stigma. Gendered norms and family responsibilities further influenced well-being and career decisions. Military nurse well-being is shaped less by individual resilience and more by organisational culture, operational demands, and gendered expectations. Addressing these systemic factors is essential for sustaining the military nursing workforce. Strengthening leadership support, communication, psychological safety, and professional autonomy may improve working conditions and support nurses' well-being in demanding operational contexts. Policies should promote supportive organisational cultures, reduce stigma around help-seeking, and facilitate work-family reconciliation to sustain and retain the military nursing workforce.

On November 21, 2025, David Redpath, Senior Wargames Designer and member of the Canadian Joint Warfare Centre and the Department of National Defense, presented Wargaming for Future Force Planning at the 2025 West Coast Security Conference. The presentation was followed by a question-and-answer period with audience members and CASIS Vancouver executives. The session addressed the purpose and design of wargames, their role in military decision-making and force development, their limitations, and their value when integrated with exercises and analysis from contemporary conflicts.

This study aims to analyze the legal responsibility of military doctors in malpractice cases from the perspectives of health law and military criminal law in Indonesia. Military doctors hold a dual status as members of the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) and as professional medical practitioners, thereby subjecting them to two legal regimes simultaneously. This research employs an empirical method with a statutory approach, supported by primary and secondary legal materials. The results show that from the perspective of health law, legal responsibility is based on the existence of professional fault, proven through violations of professional standards, standard operating procedures, and medical service standards, with forms of liability including ethical, administrative, civil, and criminal aspects. From the perspective of military criminal law, responsibility emphasizes discipline, command hierarchy, and organizational interests, with possible sanctions in the form of criminal penalties and military administrative sanctions. The determination of judicial forum is principally under the jurisdiction of Military Courts based on the principle of personality. However, if the case involves both military and civilian actors, the mechanism of connectivity courts applies to ensure unity of examination and legal certainty. Civil disputes remain under the jurisdiction of general courts and are preceded by professional disciplinary mechanisms through the Indonesian Medical Discipline Honor Council (MKDKI). Thus, the legal responsibility of military doctors in malpractice cases reflects an integration between health law and military criminal law in ensuring legal certainty and justice.

On November 19, 2025, Mark Shepherd, Lieutenant-Commander in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), presented CAF Information Operations Evolution: From Afghanistan to Modern High-Readiness Capability at the 2025 West Coast Security Conference. The presentation was followed by a question-and-answer period with audience members and CASIS Vancouver executives. The presentation examined the evolution of CAF Information Operations (IO), doctrinal development from Afghanistan to counter-ISIS operations, and the integration of IO into contemporary multi-domain military planning.

ABSTRACT Conflict and defense strategies significantly shape the evolution of settlement space. This study examines the Tunpu settlements in central Guizhou, China, as a case example to investigate the spatial adaptation mechanisms of military defense heritage within conflict-affected environments. By integrating historical documents, GIS analysis, and field investigations, the research identifies three adaptive characteristics that emerged during the transition of Tunpu from a state-led military system to a community-based self-defense structure: first, the strategic use of karst terrain to create a “natural-artificial” composite defense system, reflecting the ecological wisdom of “low-tech, high-intelligence” design; second, the coexistence of multi-ethnic architectural techniques fostering the secularization of functional spaces; and third, the dynamic transmission of military heritage through cultural hybridity. A comparative analysis with international defensive settlements reveals that the resilience of Tunpu settlements resides in a community-led mechanism of functional continuity and spatial reproduction. Building on these findings, this paper proposes an adaptive cycle conservation strategy to support the dynamic inheritance and sustainable development of cultural heritage.

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are fundamental to security and surveillance applications such as military defense, disaster management, and intrusion monitoring. The performance of these networks depends largely on the efficiency of routing protocols. This paper examines the Ad hoc On-Demand Distance Vector (AODV) routing protocol in multi-hop WSN environments for target tracking, evaluating critical metrics including Packet Delivery Ratio (PDR), End-to-End Delay, Energy Consumption, and Network Lifetime. Simulation results illustrate the impact of node depletion due to transmission loss, affecting network stability and robustness in target detection. In-network detection in WSNs presents trade-offs between real-time data transmission, energy efficiency, and trajectory lifespan. Inefficient routing optimization may result in increased latency, packet loss, and premature node failure, ultimately reducing localization accuracy. While AODV’s reactive path-based approach offers manageable overhead, its performance degrades under increased energy consumption and route rediscovery delays. This study systematically evaluates AODV’s strengths and limitations in time-sensitive detection scenarios. Findings indicate that AODV ensures reliable data transmission in early network stages but suffers significant performance deterioration as node energy declines, impacting coverage and responsiveness. To enhance AODV’s target tracking capabilities, this paper proposes adaptive energy-saving techniques and hybrid routing schemes. These strategies contribute to ongoing research aimed at optimizing routing protocols to balance accuracy and node longevity for real-time WSN applications.

Twenty years since the start of UK Armed Forces participation in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts post-2001, the extent to which these deployments continue to impact mental health outcomes and alcohol misuse in UK military personnel is unknown. This is the reporting of the fourth phase, cross-sectional study of a longitudinal cohort study that has assessed the health and well-being of UK serving and ex-serving personnel since 2004. Participants were eligible for the most recent phase (2022-2023) if they took part previously (2014-2016) and consented to recontact. Primary outcome measures included symptoms of common mental disorders (CMD), such as depression and anxiety, probable posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), complex PTSD (C-PTSD) and alcohol misuse. In the overall sample (n=4104, response rate=54.6%), CMD were the most prevalent outcome (27.8%), followed by probable PTSD (9.4%) and alcohol misuse (8.4%). The majority of PTSD experienced met the criteria for C-PTSD (72.7%). Ex-serving Regulars compared with serving Regulars reported a higher prevalence of PTSD (10.5% vs 7.4%, adjusted OR (AOR)=1.68, 95% CI 1.12 to 2.51) and C-PTSD (6.5% vs 3.9%, AOR=1.80, 95% CI (1.07 to 3.05); a higher prevalence of both disorders was also reported in serving/ex-serving Regulars whose last deployment to Iraq/Afghanistan was in a combat role. Although the majority of those who deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan remain well, there is an enduring impact of combat deployment on PTSD. Attention should continue to be directed towards the prevention, early detection and treatment needs of this cohort.

Advancing oncology care excellence through timely, multidisciplinary-navigation models for non-palliative breast and colorectal cancer.