Future Warfare

[AnimeFan188]

The Pentagon Wants To Put This In Your Brain:

"The U.S. military is beginning work on a new “implantable neural
interface” that it hopes will allow wearers to transmit data back and
forth from their brains to external digital devices.

That’s right—a brain modem. One that can connect to a staggering one
million neurons at a time, up from the mere thousands that are
possible today.

The implications are profound for the armed forces and civilians.
Imagine controlling your tank, car or microwave oven with your mind.
Or steering a drone with your thoughts and “seeing” what the drone’s
sensors see—in real time. Imagine making a hands-free phone call by
simply willing it… then talking out loud."

See:

http://www.thedailybeast.com/article...our-brain.html

[AnimeFan188]

China’s Shenlong space plane is part of growing
space warfare program: Gertz:

"China’s military space program is getting a boost from a recent
reorganization within the People’s Liberation Army.

A Chinese military expert disclosed earlier this month that a Chinese
space plane known as the Shenlong will likely be deployed with the newly
formed Strategic Support Force, the PLA’s new high-technology warfare
unit."

See:

http://atimes.com/2016/01/chinas-she...program-gertz/

[AnimeFan188]

This Is The Most Important Technology On the F-35:

"The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the most expensive weapons program
ever, won’t justify its price tag by outmaneuvering other jets (it
can’t), flying particularly fast, or even by carrying munitions in
a stealthy bomb bay. Instead, the U.S. military is banking on an
emerging technology called cognitive electronic warfare to give
the jet an almost-living ability to sniff out new hard-to-detect
air defenses and invent ways to foil them on the fly.

While the specifics of the jet’s electronic warfare, or EW, package
remain opaque, scientists, program watchers and military leaders
close to the program say it will be key to the jet’s evolution and
its survival against the future’s most advanced airplane-killing
technology. In short, cognitive EW is the most important feature on
the world’s most sophisticated warplane."

See:

http://www.defenseone.com/technology...y-f-35/125228/

[AnimeFan188]

This New Ad Reveals More Of Northrop Grumman's Vision
For A Sixth-Generation Fighter:

"Most ads aren’t designed to break big news, but Northrop Grumman has
been in the habit of using dramatic commercials to bring us surprise
details on its vision for America’s air combat future. The company’s latest
one gives us one of the best looks yet at their evolving sixth-generation
fighter concept."

See:

http://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/nor...ner-1757404876

[AnimeFan188]

Spy Chief Calls Gene Editing a Weapon of Mass
Destruction:

"Gene editing, like CRISPR, is a scientific breakthrough that may help
cure diseases, prevent aging, and change humanity. According to the
US intelligence community, it’s also a potential weapon of mass
destruction.

Director of National Intelligence James Clapper added gene editing to a
list of threats that includes North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile
programs and chemical weapons in Iraq and Syria. “Research in
genome editing conducted by countries with different regulatory or
ethical standards than those of Western countries probably increases
the risk of the creation of potentially harmful biological agents or
products,” Clapper wrote."

See:

http://gizmodo.com/spy-chief-calls-g...cti-1758257135

[MrTerrorist]

There's A Convoy Of Autonomous Army Trucks Driving Through Michigan This Summer

[AnimeFan188]

Precision guided mini-grenade guns and smart rifles
that turn any soldier into a sharpshooter:

"The precision grenade launching XM25 destroys the value of cover.
Built-in targeting lasers, infrared sights and a ballistic computer calculate
the exact location of the target so the weapon can fire a projectile
precisely past it. The 25mm round — essentially a precision-guided
mini-grenade — waits to detonate until it has passed whatever cover the
target had and can strafe its unprotected side. It will blow up above a
trench or foxhole, on the far side of a wall or barricade."


"“There’s an outfit in Austin, Texas called TrackingPoint,” he said, which
makes a lightweight gunsight that calculates the trajectory to the
target and fires when the gun is in the precisely right position to hit,
compensating for any unsteadiness in the hand of the shooter. “You
pull the trigger, and you just hold it on the target until the dot turns
green and the gun fires by itself.”

With TrackingPoint, “an untrained shooter can hit within a half-inch of
his or her aimpoint at 1,000 yards, nearly an order of magnitude more
accurate than world-class shooters,” Scharre wrote in a December
study for the Center for a New American Security."

See:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2016/02/pre...-guns-and.html

[Ithekro]

Whgat. About the only thing betteer than that would be a micro-transporter that beamed the bullet to the target.

[Renegade334]

No offense meant to you, AF188, (you didn't write the article, so I'm not criticizing you for its contents), but that's a bunch of old news right there.

The XM25 has been around since the OICW/SABR was trashcanned in the 2000s and it's already been battle-tested in Afghanistan, where it was used in several conflict zones until it got suspended for a year when one unit blew up in the hands of a soldier (thankfully, the guy survived without any serious injury to his person IIRC). Production might resume soon, unless I've been out of touch and it actually already has.

The EXACTO system, however, is more recent and made a huge leap last year when a 12.7mm BMG testbed round with guidance fins managed to hit targets on a firing range. Smaller-caliber rounds are still being worked on, so let's not expect M4A1s with EXACTO anytime soon...this thing feels more at home with 7.62/.308 and .338 weapons, i.e. sharpshooter rifles.

TrackingPoint, well, they're still offering their targeting system system to DARPA, but so far I don't think they've made a breakthrough with the Pentagon, aside from a noncommittal "send us a couple prototypes of your little toy and we'll test it". I haven't heard of any plans to mass-produce and field it and TP has had more success offering it on the civilian market, to plinkers with big bucks and bloggers.


All in all, nothing new to see here, just a rehash of old, stagnating info compiled by an author that probably got the memo months after his colleagues. Heck, I don't even hear news about the LSAT program anymore, and that was interesting, innovative $hit, too.

[AnimeFan188]

Originally Posted by Renegade334

The EXACTO system, however, is more recent and made a huge leap last year when a 12.7mm BMG testbed round with guidance fins managed to hit targets on a firing range. Smaller-caliber rounds are still being worked on, so let's not expect M4A1s with EXACTO anytime soon...this thing feels more at home with 7.62/.308 and .338 weapons, i.e. sharpshooter rifles.

If this technology is integrated with a flying Sniper Drone:

http://www.wired.com/2009/04/army-tests-new/

Then things could get *really* interesting.

[AnimeFan188]

Lockheed confident they can fly demonstrator hypersonic
missiles by 2018 and reusable hypersonic aircraft the size of
an F-22 could be demoed in the 2020s:

"Lockheed CEO Hewson says Lockheed is now producing a controllable,
low-drag, aerodynamic configuration capable of stable operations from
takeoff to subsonic, transonic, supersonic and hypersonic, to Mach 6.

Hypersonic flight is defined as anything about Mach 5, meaning five
times the speed of sound or 3,600 miles per hour. To put it into
perspective, a jet flying at hypersonic speeds could cross the
continental United States in about half an hour.

Lockheed is working on breakthroughs in new thermal protection
systems, innovative aerodynamic shapes, navigation guidance and
control improvements, and long-range communication capabilities.

Based on lessons learned from HTV-2, Lockheed is currently
supporting two new customer efforts in hypersonics:

1. the Hypersonic Air-breathing Weapon Concept, or HAWC, and
2. the Tactical Boost Glide vehicle"

See:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2016/03/loc...y-can-fly.html

[AnimeFan188]

Gene drive and the future of weaponized insects and
the elimination of public health threats like Zika Virus
Mosquitoes:

"A report that ISIS was trying to weaponize mosquitoes using genetic
engineering and gene drive has generally been dismissed as unlikely. The
unlikely aspect is that ISIS can successfully execute the bioweapon
program.

Gene drive can be used to create biosecurity threats just as it can and
should be used to eliminate public health risks like Zika Virus."

See:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2016/03/gen...eaponized.html

[Draco Spirit]

Yer, can't see a group like ISIS being able to creating a bio weapon that fiddly with there facilities. That's a lot of money, resources and talent to get going.

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by Draco Spirit

Yer, can't see a group like ISIS being able to creating a bio weapon that fiddly with there facilities. That's a lot of money, resources and talent to get going.

Not sure. The bubonic plague/black death was able to spread and kill dozens without much talent or resources.

Turn a mass of people away from medicine and science and indoctrinate them to believe in a magical being as a healer, and watch the disease spread like crazy.

[AnimeFan188]

Russia's Drone Tank Looks Cool In Videos But
Is It Tactically Relevant?:

"In recent years, the Kremlin has touted its development of unmanned
ground combat vehicles. Its small Platforma-M has been somewhat of a
press marvel, with pictures of it supposedly patrolling a submarine base
going viral. The Uran-9, on the other hand, is a much more powerful and
larger drone that is supposedly capable of doing a job similar to an
armored fighting vehicle, without anyone aboard. Now the big question is
this: does this thing have the ability to actually be useful on the
battlefield?"

See:

http://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/rus...cti-1767521454

[AnimeFan188]

Human Stentrode trials in 2017 could see commercial
direct mind interfaces to exoskeletons by 2022 with only
a few hours for minimally invasive surgery:

"Once perfected, the stentrode could also allow U.S. soldiers to move
and react faster on the battlefield and should eventually allow them to
"talk to" and control futuristic mind-controlled weapons via BMI chips in
their brains."

See:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2016/05/hum...017-could.html


==============================


Direct mind links will shave milliseconds off jet fighter control:

"“The military appear interested in the potential for jet fighters to
control their planes with direct thought control, rather than using their
arms. The reaction time you’d shave off would be milliseconds,” Dr
Oxley says.

“Pilots are in a very complex environment when flying planes. Having
this device could reduce their cognitive load while they’re flying,
therefore making it simpler for them and less stressful,” she says."

See:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2016/05/dir...ill-shave.html


==============================


The AH-64 Apache Will Get A Laser Cannon To Play With
This Summer:

"What is scarier than an Apache attack helicopter? One with a laser
weapon strapped to its stub wings. Special Operations Command and
the US Army is slated to test just that this summer in an effort to see
how such a weapon could be integrated onto the world’s deadliest
attack helicopter.

Raytheon is currently working with the Army’s Apache program office
to develop the podded laser for testing."

See:

http://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone...th-this-summer

&

http://www.nationaldefensemagazine.o...t.aspx?ID=2203

[AnimeFan188]

Originally Posted by AnimeFan188

Modified UAVs raise concerns for infantry:

"The next big threat to American forces might be a flying IED.

Officials are worried that proliferation of drone and improvised bomb technology
means something as amateurish and cheap as a remote control plane could be
turned into a low-tech but deadly weapon.

“If a hobbyist can do it, I might be facing it and I’ve got to pay attention to it,”
said Navy Capt. Andy Arnold, chief of the capabilities assessment division of the
Joint Integrated Air and Missile Defense Organization.

From July 27 through Aug. 8, he and others from JIAMDO immersed themselves in
Black Dart, an annual event that evaluates the military’s ability to counter
emerging UAS threats. The demonstration, held at Naval Base Ventura County
and Sea Range, Point Mugu, California, focused on how joint forces can fight
against a cheap, low-end UAS with deadly capabilities."

See:

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j...72197243,d.aWw

The future is now ..............


ISIS deploys IED drones in Iraq; Pentagon seeks
funding shift to counter threat:

"The Islamic State has a new tactic for causing carnage on the
battlefield in Iraq: commercial drones outfitted with improvised
explosives devices.

The Pentagon has asked Congress earlier this week if it can shift funds
already allocated for specific anti-ISIS purposes to a counter-drone
plan. Military officials want flexibility to use $2.5 billion approved for
2016; roughly $20 million in seed-money is requested for approaching
drone threats.

The Joint Improvised-Threat Defeat Agency told Bloomberg News on
Thursday that ISIS has deployed “quadcopters and fixed-wing type
drones you can buy commercially,” as “both an IED delivery system
and for reconnaissance.”"

See:

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...gon-seeks-fun/

[AnimeFan188]

Beware Robot Hit Men
Better facial recognition could lead to autonomous assassins:

"From catching thieves to finding lost pets, facial recognition technology has already
done a fair bit of good for humanity. But artificial intelligence experts warn new
developments in the field could soon trigger a more troubling use of facial
recognition software — weapons that function like robot hit men, complete with
“vision” as accurate as the human eye."


"Even scientists at the forefront of A.I. are alarmed by the possibilities. Thousands
of respected scientists — including Stephen Hawking and Noam Chomsky — came
together last July in an open letter that called for a global ban on autonomous
weapons. In their letter, the signatories urged lawmakers and tech honchos to
proceed with caution by supporting international agreements to ban building the
weapons.

“The stakes are high — autonomous weapons have been described as the third
revolution in warfare, after gunpowder and nuclear arms,” reads the letter, which
is signed by Bengio and 17,700 other people. “Starting a military AI arms race
is a bad idea, and should be prevented by a ban on offensive autonomous
weapons beyond meaningful human control.”"

See:

https://warisboring.com/beware-robot...48e#.fc2lvn6ib

[Draco Spirit]

Sounds like a great weapon for causing collateral damage to be honest. Computer systems that make mistakes and glitch are all to common.

[AnimeFan188]

"For Clinton (and assuredly Trump, too) war is a permanent fixture in the
American empire, as it was for Bush, Obama, and virtually all presidents
before them. But the enemies are scattered and amorphous now. Radical
jihadists are not like traditional standing armies; their prosecution
requires a global, never-ending ubiquitous brand of war that is encoded
into the very structure of American foreign policy. A widespread declared
war against hackers, hacktivists (Anonymous), whistleblower
organizations (WikiLeaks) and individual whistleblowers (Snowden,
Chelsea Manning, etc.) would be similar. The empire’s enemy would be
scattered, and tracking them would require that the tentacles of the
security state slither further into every home and digital device."

See:

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-0...julian-assange