1. Weapons: The Future of War BY NICHOLAS NG HON 301 PROFESSORS EDUARDO MENDIETA AND FREDERICK WALTER

2. Old Methods of War  Hand to hand combat  Bladed weapons such as swords, spears, pikes  Projectile weapons mostly used in siege warfare  Very messy!

3. The Current State of Arms  Discovery of gunpowder- explosives fueled projectiles  Small arms changed from blades to guns  Today, almost universally fueled by gunpowder or explosive chemicals

4. Tactical Evolution  Siege warfare – essentially nonexistent; too costly in manpower terms  Guerilla-style tactics – much more prevalent on the ground  Heavier emphasis placed on taking actual humans out of harm’s way while fighting

5. General Characteristics of New Weapons  Designed for efficiency  Some used to incapacitate or otherwise disable enemy combatants instead of killing them  Either hindering the actual personnel or their vehicles  Emphasis on lethality to enemies with minimal risk to allies

6. Acoustic weapons – The “Sound Cannon”  Used to incapacitate humans without killing them using sound waves  Can be used to broadcast vocal commands or used to direct a sound beam at a distance  Problems: Can cause permanent damage to humans despite being non-lethal

7. Electromagnetic weapons – railguns  US Navy recently mounted and test- fired a railgun on one of their warships; the project was begun in 2005  Launches solid projectiles using electromagnetism instead of gunpowder or chemicals with a much faster speed(4500 MPH) and range  Problems: Electricity generation and storage, heat management, material lifespan

8. Light-based weapons – weaponizing lasers  US Navy tested a laser weapon on board a warship; mostly used in defense against aerial threats  Variant developed by Lockheed Martin able to disable a truck’s engine  Problems: Heat efficiency, line of sight, environmental issues, requires a lot of energy

9. Development of a new area of war – Cyber Warfare  The growing importance of the Internet and online servers for storing information has led to the development of tools to wage a bloodless war online  DDoS Attacks – Can be used on anyone, is relatively easy to run an attack with; some of the most common attacks  Hacking into infrastructure such as power grids or information storage

10. More on Cyber Warfare  Obviously not directly harmful to humans  Governments are building their own “digital armies” to both protect themselves and strike back against cyber attackers  Does not have to be targeted towards the government or its infrastructure- Cyberterrorism  Hacking of Sony Pictures Entertainment  Attack on governmental social media accounts

11. Where can we go from here?  Enhancement of already-existing weapons  Further development of unmanned weapons  Lethality of weapons in development  Railguns can already be lethal; lasers tested for disabling vehicles but can be used in antipersonnel role  Tactical evolution: Likely to continue on its current path  Move more towards fighting online than in person  What happens when we send only robots to do our fighting?

12. New Weapons?  Recent rise in guerilla warfare- weapons designed more for this type of battle such as traps  Focus on removing human soldiers from potential harm  Autonomous ground battle robots  Further development of drones  Potential problems: Differentiating between friend, foe, and noncombatant; possibility of nations more willing to fight if soldiers are not in danger

13. References  http://thebulletin.org/stopping-killer-robots-and-other-future-threats8012 http://thebulletin.org/stopping-killer-robots-and-other-future-threats8012  http://www.techrepublic.com/article/inside-the-secret-digital-arms-race/ http://www.techrepublic.com/article/inside-the-secret-digital-arms-race/  http://ctnsp.dodlive.mil/files/2014/03/Cyberpower-I-Chap-19.pdf http://ctnsp.dodlive.mil/files/2014/03/Cyberpower-I-Chap-19.pdf  http://www.nato.int/docu/review/2013/cyber/timeline/EN/index.htm http://www.nato.int/docu/review/2013/cyber/timeline/EN/index.htm  http://gizmodo.com/what-is-the-lrad-sound-cannon-5860592 http://gizmodo.com/what-is-the-lrad-sound-cannon-5860592  http://science.dodlive.mil/2014/04/09/here-comes-the-boom-the-real-railgun-of-the-u- s-navy/ http://science.dodlive.mil/2014/04/09/here-comes-the-boom-the-real-railgun-of-the-u- s-navy/  http://faculty.kfupm.edu.sa/EE/husainm/EE%20340/Research%20Projects/Students%20R eports/6-%20Railguns-%20Al-Khaldi.pdf http://faculty.kfupm.edu.sa/EE/husainm/EE%20340/Research%20Projects/Students%20R eports/6-%20Railguns-%20Al-Khaldi.pdf  http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/news/press-releases/2015/march/ssc-space- athena-laser.html http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/news/press-releases/2015/march/ssc-space- athena-laser.html  http://www.northropgrumman.com/AboutUs/AnalysisCenter/Documents/pdfs/Operati onal_Implications_of_La.pdf http://www.northropgrumman.com/AboutUs/AnalysisCenter/Documents/pdfs/Operati onal_Implications_of_La.pdf  https://www.us-cert.gov/ncas/tips/ST04-015 https://www.us-cert.gov/ncas/tips/ST04-015  http://www.onr.navy.mil/~/media/Files/Fact- Sheets/35/Electromagnetic%20Railgun_Dec%2029%202014.ashx http://www.onr.navy.mil/~/media/Files/Fact- Sheets/35/Electromagnetic%20Railgun_Dec%2029%202014.ashx