This is the second paper of two on the role of autonomy in the unmanned systems revolution currently underway and affecting military forces around the globe. In the last paper, the authors considered the implications of autonomy on the legal obligations of military forces and their ability to meet these obligations, primarily through a survey of the domestic law of a number of drone wielding na...

Compilation of data on conflict within or between states has increased greatly since the Cold War ended. Yet almost all of this work has focused on episodes where military force has been threatened or used, and often on episodes that have produced numerous fatalities. This paper calls for a more systematic focus on contentious issues independent from knowledge of the threat or use of military f...

America has been in space for over 40 years, yet there seems to be little common understanding of how to integrate space into all aspects of military operations. A common vision for the military application of space forces is vital for America in a period of growing space reliance and decreasing space budgets. Our fielded forces rely on space for a variety of essential missions including commun...

BACKGROUND Most military mental health research focuses on the impact of deployment-related stress; less is known about how everyday work-related factors affect wellbeing. AIMS This systematic narrative literature review aimed to identify non-deployment-related factors contributing to the wellbeing of military personnel. METHOD Electronic literature databases were searched and the findings ...

The south Caucasus and Central Asia will be of growing geopolitical significance to the West and NATO over the next 10–15 years because of their potential contribution to global energy supplies and energy security and the risk that conflict and instability could spread beyond the region, invite foreign military intervention, provoke a resurgence of Russian neo-imperialism, redefine the territor...

The role of intravenous salt solutions in resuscitation is reviewed historically. A brief account of the pathophysiology of shock is given. The particular use of hypertonic solutions in the resuscitation of severely shocked patients is reviewed and its mechanism of action discussed. It is considered that hypertonic solutions may find a role in any future major military conflict. Two hypertonic ...

Healthcare infrastructure and medical schools in Syria have been greatly compromised by military conflict and humanitarian disaster. Medical students and healthcare professionals reached out for remote learning opportunities. Surprisingly, they desired a curriculum in evidence-based medicine. We report on a curriculum that was delivered to 126 learners using an online remote delivery platform. ...

The Applied Research Laboratory has been helping U.S. law enforcement and military agencies develop an information base on which to make decisions about minimal force options for conflict resolution since 1997. The premise of minimal force option studies, often referred to as non-lethal or less-than lethal “weapons,” is whether there are appropriate alternatives to lethal force in order to mini...

The severity of the (potential) consequences of the use of agents in the military domain imperatively necessitates research on the application of the law of armed conflict, which provides ‘constraints’ on ‘human’ warfare. In this paper, one of the main principles of that law, target discrimination, is used to highlight legal and ethical dilemmas involving the use of autonomous agents. The incid...

Operation Iraqi Freedom is the largest casualty-producing conflict this nation's military has faced since Vietnam. Medical departments from the three services have done an extraordinary job reacting to the ever-changing landscape of modern warfare and the devastating injuries produced. From the revamping of prehospital care to new applications of damage-control surgery, challenges have erupted,...