Warfare Technology Research Articles

‘To Arms!’: Invasion Narratives and Late‐Victorian Literature

AbstractThis article introduces readers to the fiction of invasion, a paranoid literary phenomenon that responded to widespread social concerns about the possible invasion of Britain by an array of hostile foreign forces in the period between 1870 and 1914. It begins with an overview of the development of this relatively unknown body of work in the late‐Victorian and Edwardian periods, charting assumptions of imminent large‐scale war, fascination with the technology of warfare and the marked participation of military men who used the fiction to agitate for increased defence spending. While this alarmist brand of popular fiction provoked considerable contemporary commentary, modern critical engagement with it has been somewhat limited. Beginning in the 1960s and dominated by the work of the master bibliographer I. F. Clarke, the initial scholarly response necessarily took the form of classification and survey and evinced particular interest in adjudging the accuracy of fictional predictions about future war. More recent scholarship is concerned with reading the fiction in the context of its own times, probing its relationship with external imperial factors and internal domestic concerns and its effectiveness as a propaganda tool. In addition to offering an overview of this line of enquiry, this article seeks to broaden the understanding of the invasion narrative in fin‐de‐siècle popular fiction, drawing lines out to the recurrence of the invasion theme across a broad range of genres and modes exceeding that of future war fiction and including so‐called ‘yellow peril’ narratives, crime and detective fiction and the gothic. In conclusion, a number of avenues complementing the textual and the historical are suggested for future exploration.

A Ciberguerra É Moderna! Uma Investigação sobre a Relação entre Tecnologia e Modernização na Guerra

Resumo O presente artigo investiga o papel da tecnologia na modernidade a partir do fenômeno da ciberguerra. Argumenta-se que o processo de modernização tem por característica a conjunção entre guerra, ciência e tecnologia e que a incorporação da cibernética à guerra é representativa disso. Para tanto, procede-se a uma genealogia da ciberguerra, o que permite investigar as significações constitutivas do atual discurso, bem como analisar suas condições de possibilidade. Esse primeiro movimento permite situar a cibernética enquanto alicerce no desenvolvimento das práticas de guerra e como tropo capaz de influenciar o imaginário militar a seu respeito. Finalmente, o fenômeno é situado no contexto mais amplo das transformações da guerra na modernidade, apontadas por Bousquet (2009) e as quais destacam o papel central da tecnologia no guerrear moderno. Isso permite problematizar a forma como a ciberguerra se articula ao imaginário de não violência presente nas teorias da modernização.

‘SHOOT HIM NOW!!!’ Anonymity, accountability and online spectatorship in Wafaa Bilal's Domestic Tension

This essay seeks to examine new modes of spectatorship in intermedial performance art. Using Wafaa Bilal's durational performance Domestic Tension as a case study, it explores how Internet participation reconfigures notions of presence, community and the individual. Bilal spent 31 days under video surveillance in a gallery room with a remotely controlled paintball gun. Participants of the performance could take part by either visiting the gallery or a website, from where they could steer and fire the paintball gun. The website also contained a chat room, which gave willing participants the chance to enter into a conversation with the artist and other online participants. Bilal staged his performance to draw attention to a growing disconnect between those perpetrating violence and those being subjected to it. By doing so he simultaneously created a platform for human connection and discussion to occur. This performance serves as an example to show what agency and identity look like in a digitally present society, and how they are challenged by various modes of perception resulting from different forms of presence. I analyze these online spectators’ potentiality for action within the set-up of the performance in terms of four vectors: namely, telepresence, communal spectatorship, virtual subjectivity and the posthuman. All of these respectively speak to the online participant's relationship with the performer, other participants, their own subjectivity, and the gun itself. Ultimately, I argue that action-based participation and anonymous interaction can offer the spectators a place to reflect on modern surveillance and warfare technologies.

The Sound Lab at Fort Trumbull, New London, Connecticut, 1945–1996

The Navy Underwater Sound Laboratory was formed in 1945 when the U.S. Navy merged on-going efforts of Columbia and Harvard Universities to combat the German U-boat threat in the North Atlantic. Prior to that time, the Division of War Research of Columbia, housed in a single building at Fort Trumbull, was sponsored by the National Defense Research Committee (NDRC) while the Harvard Underwater Sound Laboratory was doing similar work in Cambridge, Massachusetts. For the next 50 years, until it was formally closed in 1996, the “Sound Lab” continued to support virtually all aspects of Naval Warfare technology. This talk will attempt to describe the rich scientific culture and technological contributions of the New London Sound Lab.

Design for responsibility: safeguarding moral perception via a partnership architecture

Advanced warfare technologies (AWT) create unprecedented capabilities to control the delivery of military force up to the point, some argue, that we are loosing humanity. But dependence on them generates difficult moral challenges impacting the decision-making process, which are only beginning to be addressed. In order to arrive at an informed opinion about the impact of AWT on decision-making, we need to know more about what AWTs are and how they operate. We provide a short overview of the different types of AWTs and discuss the key principles that underlie Humanitarian Law. We also discuss the impact of physical distance and increased levels of autonomy on AWT and discuss the challenges posed to moral perception. Before such systems can be deployed, we need to rest assured that their usage enhances, rather than undermines, human decision-making capacities. There are important choices to be made, and sound design is ‘design for responsibility’. As a solution, we therefore propose the partnership architecture that embeds concurrent views of the world and working agreements, ensuring that operators use appropriate information in the decision-making process.

Hybrid warfare of the USA in South America

Washington’s hybrid warfare in Latin American region differs by its inventive and sophisticated methods and in fact represents a complex and multidimensional phenomenon including symbiosis of the “soft” and “hard” power as well as their combination in the form of the “smart power”. The increasing importance of hybrid warfare technologies in the US foreign policy in Latin America predetermines the necessity of thorough studies and analysis of this phenomenon for providing Russian interests.

Pandora’s Presumption: Drones and the Problematic Ethics of Techno-War

Present American policy proclaims the compatibility of drone usage with the traditional Rules of Engagement and the Laws of War. Largely absent in this is an examination of how enemy combatants are being defined on both sides of drone activity: not just the targets and operators but also the relevance of drone technology proliferation. This work engages the void to reveal inconsistent and contradictory ethical standards in American drone policy, based largely on an assumed continued technical preeminence that is by no means guaranteed. The argument is not a humanitarian lament against hegemony: it is a realist argument addressing how ethical inconsistencies in defining American technological warfare compromise the ‘leadership high ground’ for the United States in a manner that carries fairly significant national security blowback potential. This article is available in Journal of Strategic Security: http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/jss/vol7/iss4/3

Features of Manipulative Behavior in Operational Officers’ Professional Activity

The problem of manipulating people through various means, methods, technologies of information and psychological warfare, which has become a mass phenomenon in everyday life, economic competitiveness and political struggle, and represents a major threat information and psychological security of the individual in modern conditions of society is considered complexly in modern society. The essence of human manipulation stands out as the hidden psychological coercion of the individual. Compulsion of a person as a specific mode of control is used at all levels of social interaction - from interpersonal communication to mass communication and is inherent in different cultures and historical conditions.

The Legal and Ethical Limits of Technological Warfare: Introduction

Deciding a year in advance the theme of a law review symposium is, at best, a tricky proposition. The considerations are varied: what topic will be relevant to academics and policymakers, who shoul dbe invited as panelists, how will invited individuals mix and collaborate with each other, what issue will be of interest to the larger community, and what kind of contribution will the symposium and subsequent publications make to the issue chosen? In conjunction with the Utah Law Review Board and faculty collegues, we decided that addressing the legal and ethical aspects of technological warfare met the criteria we outlined for ourselves: it is an issue of enormous public interest, significant scholars would facilitate extrodinary discussion, and we would be able to impact the public debate. The remaining question was whether the issue would be hot at conference time.

Roundtable Discussion Transcript: The Legal and Ethical Limits of Technological Warfare Symposium, February 1, 2013, University of Utah, S.J. Quinney College of Law

Roundtable Moderator: Amos Guiora, Professor of Law, Co-Director of the Center for Global Justice, University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law. Roundtable Participants: Harry Soyster, United States Army Lieutenant General (Ret.); former Director, Defense Intelligence Agency; David Irvine, United States Army Brigadier General (Ret.); former Deputy Commander for the 96th Regional Rediness Command; Geoffrey S. Corn, Professor of Law; Presidnetial Research Professor, South Texas College of Law; James Carafano, Vice President, Foreign and Defense Policy Studies; E.W. Richardson Fellow; and Director of the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies, The Heritage Foundation; Claire Finkelstein, Algernon Biddle Professor of Law and Professor of Philosophy, Director of the Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law, University of Pennsylvania; Laurie Blank, Director of the Internation Humanitarian Law Clinic, Emory University School of Law; Monica Hakimi, Professor of Law, Associate Dean for Academic Programming, University of Michigan Law School; George R. Lucas, Professor of Ethics and Public Policy, Naval Postgraduate School; Trevor Morrison, Libiu Librescu Professor Law, Columbia Law School; and Frederic Megret, Associate Professor of Law, Associate Dean of Research (Law); Canada Research Chair in the Law of Human Rights and Legal Pluralism, McGill University. Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:Table Normal; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:Calibri,sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:Table Normal; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:Calibri,sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:Table Normal; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:Calibri,sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}

Cooperation and Key Technologies in Command and Control of Maritime Formation Combat

In order to better adapt to the change from platform-centric warfare to network-centric warfare, the cooperation and key technologies in command and control are researched. Firstly the concept and connotation on cooperation and cooperative engagement are described. Then, the hierarchy, content and pattern of cooperation in command and control of maritime formation combat under informationization are expounded. Finally the crucial technologies supporting for cooperation in command and control are pointed out. This research provides new ideas and methods for command and control technologies of maritime integrated cooperative engagement.

Buhara Hanlığı’nda Şibanî Hanedanı Devrindeki Savaş Sanatı: Silah ve Teçhizat

Bukhara Uzbek Khanate, founded in 1500 under the leadership of Shaybani Khan in Turkestan, started to transform their light cavalry structure, which was the heritage of its predecessors Genghizid sand Golden Horde and was adapted to nomadic life, into a structure that addressed the sedentary order as they started to come forward as a permanent element of sedentary life in this geography. At this point, Timurids, the old masters of this region, set an example for Uzbeks, who preserved their feudal aristocracy regarding military as well as in all other institutions. In this way, over time stepe warrior type based on light cavalry was equipped with heavy weapons, siege equipments and finally from the second half of XVIth century with fire arms it started to transform into land army model with the partial involvement of footsoldiers. In this work, the use of traditional arms and equipment in herited from predecessorsby Shaybanid Dynasty, which became the sole combat and force in Turkestan by XVIth century and application areas in khanates military organization of firearms and heavy warfare technologies developed in paralel to the requirements of the period are evaluated in the light of historical sources.

The enhanced warfighter

Modern technological warfare requires a level of cognitive ability and discipline unique in the history of armed conflict. Recent advances in physiology, nutrition, neuroscience, and engineering offer a significant potential to prevent or reduce the degradation of a warfighter’s mental or physical capabilities in this demanding environment. The authors explore four categories for potential enhancement of military personnel: genetic or computational-mechanical alteration of the human body; physiological monitoring and tighter coupling between man and machine; pharmaceuticals; and nutrition and supplementation. None of these types of enhancements is without controversy; in particular, genetic intervention would require morally intolerable experimentation. In the foreseeable future, the military enhancement technologies most likely to see use will be akin to those seen in elite athletics. Physiological monitoring and feedback, changes in nutrition, and careful pharmaceutical interventions all could improve warfighter performance, and, the authors assert, such enhancements are not morally problematic if their effects are candidly assessed and revealed. In choosing whether and how to enhance military personnel, the government must balance long-term health hazards with a reduced risk of near-term injury or death. If physiological monitoring and feedback (and regulation, through drugs or other means) can decrease large, immediate, or long-term risks to the life or well-being of service personnel, the authors write, there appears to be a moral obligation to provide those enhancements to warfighters.

Independent Task Assignment of Space Warfare Based on MAS and ACO

Independent task assignment, which is a multi-parameter, multi-constraint and NP-hard problem, is one of the key technologies of space warfare. The space weapon is treated as an agent, and multi-space weapons compose MAS (Multi-agent System). The model of system target function is built based on the analysis of MAS, the related constraints of task assignment are researched and the task assignment model based on ACO (Ant Colony Optimization Algorithms) is established. Simulation results indicate that the model based on MAS and ACO can solve the task assignment problem efiectively.

Greek warfare: from the Battle of Marathon to the conquests of Alexander the Great

This book brings together reference material and primary source documents concerning the most important people, places, events, and technologies of Classical Greek warfare in one easy-to-use volume-an invaluable resource for students, educators, and general readers interested in this compelling subject. * Charts present at-a-glance statistical information * Maps depict important battles and the political delineation of Greece at different time periods * Numerous illustrations of important people, events, and technologies help bring history to life

Introduction to Modern EW Systems. Edited by Andrea De Martino, Artech House, 2012; 417 pages. Price: £119.00, ISBN 978-1-60807-207-1

Master the latest electronic warfare (EW) techniques and technologies related to on-board military platforms with this authoritative resource. You gain expert design guidance on technologies and equipment used to detect and identify emitter threats, giving you an advantage in the never-ending chess game between sensor guided weapons and EW systems. This unique book offers you deeper insight into EW systems principles of operation and their mathematical descriptions, arming you with better knowledge for your specific design applications.

Is this the time for a high-energy laser weapon program?

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) has made large investments weaponizing laser technology for air defense. Despite billions of dollars spent, there has not been a successful transition of a high-energy laser (HEL) weapon from the lab to the field. Is the dream of a low-cost-per-shot, deep-magazine, speed-of-light HEL weapon an impossible dream or a set of technologies that are ready to emerge on the modern battlefield? Because of the rapid revolution taking place in modern warfare that is making conventional defensive weapons very expensive relative to the offensive weapons systems, the pull for less expensive air defense may necessitate a HEL weapon system. Also, due to the recent technological developments in solid-state lasers (SSL), especially fiber lasers, used throughout manufacturing for cutting and welding, a HEL weapon finally may be able to meet all the requirements of ease of use, sustainability, and reliability. Due to changes in warfare and SSL technology advances, the era of HEL weapons isn't over; it may be just starting if DoD takes an evolutionary approach to fielding a HEL weapon. The U.S. Navy, with its large ships and their available electric power, should lead the way.

Predicting push-button warfare: US print media and conflict from a distance, 1945–2010

In the more than 50 years following World War II, the concept of ‘push-button warfare’ has continually metamorphosed in media discourses as a symbol of technological warfare from a distance. This rhetorical transformation has occurred within the context of complex social, cultural and historical shifts, and along the way news sources have played a key role in framing debates for readers. Acting as a translator of uncertainty and future scenarios, journalists and others have deliberated on values of and risks posed by automated forms of war and their potential impact on the United States and the world. This article examines nearly 500 print media stories in order to make sense of the shifting dialogue around push-button warfare both in times of tumult and relative calm. The longitudinal study investigates how reporters frame predictions, prophecies, forecasts and expectations when trying to assess future technologies for war and peace.

The roles of civil society in the development of standards around new weapons and other technologies of warfare

AbstractThis article considers the role of civil society in the development of new standards around weapons. The broad but informal roles that civil society has undertaken are contrasted with the relatively narrow review mechanisms adopted by states in fulfilment of their legal obligations. Such review mechanisms are also considered in the context of wider thinking about processes by which society considers new technologies that may be adopted into the public sphere. The article concludes that formalized review mechanisms, such as those undertaken in terms of Article 36 of Additional Protocol I (1977) of the Geneva Conventions of 1949, should be a focus of civil society attention in their own right as part of efforts to strengthen standard-setting in relation to emerging military technologies.

Research of Novel Functional Stealthy Nanomaterials

With the continuous development of Electronic Warfare Technology (ECM) and new requirements of military modernization, stealthy technology played an important role in military equipment. Mechanism of new stealthy continues to be broken through and numbers of successful developments of new types of stealthy materials are put into use. New stealthy materials are the basis and key of stealthy technology and their developments are promoted by the improvements of detection and guidance of military technology. The studies of new stealthy functional nano-materials are analyzed and the stealthy mechanism of functional materials is introduced. The research progress, classification, preparation methods and the radar absorption mechanism of stealthy for new stealthy functional nano-materials are discussed. The new stealthy functional nano-materials are compared with the traditional radar absorption materials. The development trend and application prospects of stealthy functional nano-materials are also estimated.