Military1

=**Military: cyber warfare, smart weapons development, espionage**=

Not much is published on the military use of ICT as it would not be that strategic to expose all of your plans to other countries.

Topics in the news include:

America’s Army is a top selling computer game, originally created by the American army.
 * 1. The use of War Games in Military training**

Read the article US Army cuts teeth on video game, BBC News, 2005 - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4460082.stm

And War vets feature in US army game, May 06 - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4991306.stm

And Realistic Wargames, Digital Life, 10 Oct 06

a) Discuss the use of war games in army training.

a) Read the article Spies like dust and describe how smart dust is being used by the military.
 * 2. Use of Sensors**

Read Pentagon plans cyber-insect army, March O6 - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4808342.stm
 * 3. Cyber-Insect Army**

a) Write a brief summary of this article describing the technology and how it will be used by the military.

Watch the following videos online Frontline; cyberwar - to have a good understanding of cyberwar http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/cyberwar/view/
 * 4. Cyber warfare**

Watch the 6 chapters – Warning Messages - How can viruses cause havoc to a country? Warriors in an invisible war Wake up calls The Power grid How real is the threat? A public private relationship


 * 5. Smart Weapons**

Laser guided bombs, GPS guided bombs, air to surface missiles –


 * Precision-guided munitions** (**smart munitions**, **smart bombs**, **guided bomb units** or **GBUs**) are self-guiding weapons intended to maximize damage to the target while minimizing "collateral damage" The reliability of precision-guided munitions appears to have fallen somewhat short of the promises made by the United States Department of Defense

a) Read about how smart bomb work and write a brief description of what they are and how they work - http://science.howstuffworks.com/smart-bomb.htm A smart bomb is essentially an ordinary dumb bomb with a few major modifications. In addition to the usual fuze and explosive material, it has: When a plane drops a smart bomb, the bomb becomes a particularly heavy **glider**. It doesn't have any propulsion system of its own, like a missile does, but it does have forward velocity (by virtue of being dropped from a speeding plane). It also has flight fins that generate lift and stabilize its flight path. Photo courtesy U.S. Department of Defense The control system and adjustable fins give the bomb a way to steer itself as it glides through the air. While the bomb is "in flight," the sensor system and control system track the designated target on the ground. The sensor system feeds the control system the relative position of the target, and the control system processes this information and figures out how the bomb should turn to steer toward the target. To actually turn the bomb, the control system sends a message to actuators that adjust the flight fins. These fins work the same basic way as the various flaps on an airplane. By tilting the fins in a particular direction, the control system increases the drag acting on that side of the bomb. As a result, the bomb turns in that direction. This adjustment process continues until the smart bomb reaches its target, and the fuze mechanism sets off the explosive. Smart bombs generally have proximity fuzes, which set off the explosive just before the bomb reaches the target, or impact fuzes, which set off the explosive when the bomb actually hits something.
 * an **electronic sensor system**
 * a built-in **control system** (an onboard computer)
 * a set of adjustable **flight fins**
 * a battery
 * [[image:http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/smart-bomb-5.jpg align="center" caption="Enhanced Guided Bomb Unit-27"]]
 * This smart bomb, the Enhanced Guided Bomb Unit-27, has an optical sensor system, an onboard computer, adjustable flight fins and a battery that powers everything.** ||

b) Search for ‘Smart weapons’ on the BBC News website and identify some issues of using smart weapons, including examples and references to support your findings.

The Americans place great faith in their precision-guided weapons, claiming that several improvements have been made to them since the Gulf War. But however smart the weaponry, several problems remain. For a start the cruise missiles carry a relatively small warhead and therefore can have a limited impact upon a potential target. Certain Iraqi weapons sites may be buried deep underground and the Americans have only a limited capability to hit such targets. Indeed developing weapons that can penetrate deeply into the earth or concrete is one of the top priorities of US weapons designers.

Some potential targets may contain chemical or biological weapons. Unless these are totally destroyed at very high temperatures, some dangerous material could be released into the atmosphere. However accurate the weaponry, an attacking force must know exactly what it is hoping to strike. Some targets are mobile and Iraq has proved itself adept at moving high-value equipment and data around the country to thwart UN weapons inspection teams. Nonetheless accuracy is essential for the Americans if they are both to hit vital targets and to minimise the very real risk of civilian casualties.

The missiles cannot differentiate between a tank carrying soldiers and a tractor carrying civilians. The military personnel have to make that distinction. All weapons have parameters - "release conditions" - outside which they are unlikely to hit the intended target. A laser-guided bomb [1] has to be released at a height, speed and angle that give it a reasonable chance of latching onto the guidance cone of light. If smart weapons "break lock" [2] losing their fix on the target, they become uncontrollable. It takes some time from a weapon being released to arrive at the target. If the target is a railway bridge and a train carrying civilians arrives while the missile is in flight, there is nothing the crew can do.


 * 6. Discuss the general social and ethical issues of using these technologies by the military.**