Robotics and the Future of International Asymmetric Warfare

In the post-Cold War world, the world's most powerful states have cooperated or avoided conflict with each other, easily defeated smaller state governments, engaged in protracted conflicts against insurgencies and resistance networks, and lost civilians to terrorist attacks. This dissertation explores various explanations for this pattern, proposing that some non-state networks adapt to major international transitions more quickly than bureaucratic states. Networks have taken advantage of the information technology revolution to enhance their capabilities, but states have begun to adjust, producing robotic systems with the potential to grant them an advantage in asymmetric warfare

Advantages and challenges of unmanned aerial vehicle autonomy in the Postheroic age

Over the past decade, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have revolutionized how the U.S. engages elusive militants in low-intensity conflicts by allowing the U.S. to project continuous military power without risking combat casualties. While UAV usage promises additional tactical advantages in future conflicts, little agreement exists regarding a strategic vision for UAV research and development, necessary for the U.S. to allocate limited resources among UAV development programs that address national security objectives. The present research makes the case for a future UAV technology evolutionary path leading to fully autonomous intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR)/strike UAV systems for the United States Air Force that are capable of sensing their environments through multiple modalities, recognizing patterns, and executing appropriate actions in response to their real-time analyses. The thesis addresses enabling technology inroads stemming from major improvements in our understanding of human neural circuitry that promise to enable innovations in the artificial intelligence needed to achieve autonomous system function. Arguments are based on projected military and economic benefits of autonomous systems and extend the historical model established by the CIA\u27s successful UAV program to unconventional warfare (UW) conflicts that the U.S. Air Force finds itself ill-equipped to handle. Counter-arguments are addressed relating to uncontrolled lethal technology, conflict initiation thresholds, and the vulnerability of overreliance on high-technology systems. In making the case for fully automated UAV technology, research provides a strategic future vision for autonomous UAV usage by highlighting the important interaction of artificial intelligence, “smart” wide-area sensors, and cooperative micro UAVs

How Can the Use of Human Enhancement (HE) Technologies in the Military Be Ethically Assessed?

War is a terrible price to pay for the prospect of peace. Yet every nation has a moral obligation to protect its citizenry from unjust aggression and threats to security. To be sure, war is always a failure. It is a failure of mankind to come together in mutual respect for the inherent dignity of the human person. The issue of the use of HE in the military is relevant today because the Global War on Terror (GWOT) and the rapid rise of emerging technologies have led to a never-before-seen type of asymmetrical warfare. The rise of these technologies can threaten the inherent dignity of the human person. In turn, the value that a nation places on human dignity in many ways is a gauge of what sorts of rights it will guarantee to its citizens, which impacts their ability to pursue basic human goods and contribute to the common good. Military culture seeks to instill virtues, such as courage and justice, in soldiers and also uphold particular military values, such as honor and selfless service. These virtues and values can be threatened if the use of HE in the military are used for immoral purposes. Paternalism, coercion, undue influence, and limited autonomy are all factors that can undermine the dignity of soldiers. Yet these threats can be overcome through a moral framework for how to ethically assess the use of HE in the military. The moral criteria of reversibility, upholding moral agency and military values, voluntary informed consent, and the use of non-HE technologies first (last resort) presented in this dissertation allows one to approach different HE technologies for use in the military and determine if they are compatible with human flourishing. It will be imperative that HE technologies in the military, if morally permissible, are used on a small-scale and only for necessity, not convenience. This approach is valuable because it can overcome demands put forth from the civilian realm that these HE technologies should be available to them as well; based upon philosophical claims of autonomy and individual rights. This dissertation is distinct insofar that it provides a comprehensive approach to current and future ethical issues related to HE in the military. To strengthen and compliment this moral framework, some recommendations are put forth in this dissertation. These include greater transparency in HE research and use, the designation of soldiers as a vulnerable population, greater ethics education for military health care professionals, the codification of international principles and guidelines for the use of HE technologies in the military, and finally a recommendation to balance the overarching principles of autonomy and individualism with a communitarian ethic and common good approach as a beneficial way to assess the use of HE in the military

Kıvrak bacaklı robotlarda gürbüz görsel algının işitsel algı desteğinde geliştirilmesi ve otonom navigasyon amaçlı uygulanması

TÜBİTAK EEEAG Proje01.10.201

Reports to the President

A compilation of annual reports for the 1988-1989 academic year, including a report from the President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, as well as reports from the academic and administrative units of the Institute. The reports outline the year's goals, accomplishments, honors and awards, and future plans

Applied and Computational Linguistics

Розглядається сучасний стан прикладної та комп’ютерної лінгвістики, проаналізовано лінгвістичні теорії 20-го – початку 21-го століть під кутом розмежування різних аспектів мови з метою формалізованого опису у електронних лінгвістичних ресурсах. Запропоновано критичний огляд таких актуальних проблем прикладної (комп’ютерної) лінгвістики як укладання комп’ютерних лексиконів та електронних текстових корпусів, автоматична обробка природної мови, автоматичний синтез та розпізнавання мовлення, машинний переклад, створення інтелектуальних роботів, здатних сприймати інформацію природною мовою. Для студентів та аспірантів гуманітарного профілю, науково-педагогічних працівників вищих навчальних закладів України

Index

Janus.Net vol.14, nº