Adapt or Die: The US Military's Responsibility to Protect America by Leading the Transformations in Science and Technology

摘要

In The past 200 years, America evolved from a third-rate power to become the unrivaled global superpower based on the rapid scientific and technological advances of the 19th and 20th centuries. These revolutions in science and technology (S&T) triggered more profound changes than had been experienced in the previous 6,000 years. These ongoing and accelerating revolutions in science and technology will continue to be dominant features of the next 30 years for our military, our national security system, and our society. It is essential for American national security and for the survival of Western civilization that the United States continues to be on the leading edge of innovative thinking and scientific breakthroughs. It is imperative that our nation's military officers appreciate, most especially, that the failure of American society to lead in S&T could result in America's defeat on the battlefield. History is littered with great powers that watched their preeminence pass to others as they failed to adapt to scientific and technological change. The American military officer, therefore, has a special responsibility to do all within his or her capability to lead America and keep it the leading power in S&T on the planet. The article is divided into the following sections: Technological and Geopolitical Realities of the Twenty- first Century's Rapid Scientific and Technological Advances; Societal Constraints in a Changing World, including America's Flawed Educational System, Immigration and Visas -- Current Limits on Importing Brainpower, and The Two Cultures -- Antitechnological Bias in America; Maintaining Dominance, including Adopting New Innovations Faster, Modernizing Strategy and Doctrine, Protecting America against New Technological Vulnerabilities, and Understanding that Leading in Science and Technology is a Societal Challenge; and Winning the Future -- Core Elements of Strategic Leadership in Science and Technology.