The Long and Winding Road: The US Army Managerial Approach to Command and the Adoption of Mission Command (Auftragstaktik)

The purpose of the current paper is to examine the adoption and adaptation process of mission command (Auftragstaktik) in the US Army. This concept, developed by the Prussians, denotes a decentralized command approach wherein superiors dictate their intent and allow subordinates to formulate their operational plans independently and change it according to the emerging situation. The paper examines the US command approach prior to the adoption of mission command. It argues that it was heavily influenced by corporate management practices which inherently contradict mission command approach. It continues and investigates how the US Army endeavored to emulate the approach in its doctrine and in major operations.

While it has officially incorporated mission command into its doctrine, it has been less successful in utilizing it in operational situations. This state of affairs has to do with the cultural legacy of the managerial approach to command that still persist. Despite the partial success, the US Army has recently reaffirmed its commitment to this approach.     

Insights from a Database of Lashkar-e-Taiba and Hizb-ul-Mujahideen Militants

This article uses a novel database of 1,625 posthumously published biographies of members of two Islamist militant organizations (Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Hizb-ul-Mujahideen (HM)), all of whom were killed in the course of carrying out militant attacks. In general, each biography provides data on the militant’s birthplace, education, recruitment, and training. The number of observations in this database is a full order of magnitude larger than those of previous databases assembled from militant biographies. While the sample of militants in this database is the product of multiple selection effects, analysis of the database undermines many common myths about Pakistani militants and casts doubt on current policy approaches to mitigating Islamist militancy in Pakistan.     

Reconsidering American strategy in South Asia: destroying terrorist sanctuaries in Pakistan's tribal areas

Over seven years after the 11 September 2001 attacks on the United States, Afghanistan is again at the forefront of the headlines, faced with a brutal insurgency and a resurgent Taliban. Many scholars and policymakers attribute the instability in Afghanistan to a terrorist sanctuary in the neighboring Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). Pakistan has attempted to eliminate this sanctuary through negotiation and armed force. This paper argues that Pakistani strategy has failed to achieve its desired results because of local tribal norms, the weak nature of previous agreements, military units ill-equipped for a counterinsurgency and counterterrorism role, as well as ideological fissures in the Pakistani establishment. Afterward, the paper argues that the United States and Coalition forces should pursue their strategy remaining cognizant of local tribal norms, step up training efforts for Pakistani forces, promote development of the tribal areas, and cultivate options for eliminating the FATA sanctuary through covert means.     

基于DM2的体系结构可执行模型构建方法

基于元模型的体系结构设计思想和基于可执行模型的评估方法是体系结构领域研究的两个热点,但当前的研究没有将两者结合起来。文章基于DoDAF2.0提出的元模型数据(Meta-Model Data,DM2),将元模型的思想和基于可执行模型的评估方法相结合,分析了基于DM2的逻辑数据与可执行模型各构建要素的对应关系,构建了基于DM2的逻辑数据模型直接转可执行模型的过程框架,重点研究了如何直接从体系结构底层数据转可执行模型的方法,从而为进行基于元模型的体系结构可执行评估提供模型基础,也为进一步实现体系结构自动化验证评估提供技术支持。实例验证了文章提出的方法。     

火炮发射药装药自动识别方法

发射装药号是影响火炮身管寿命的重要因素,为自动识别火炮发射药的装药号,避免人工记录失误和完善火炮射弹履历,分析了装药号自动识别原理,运用火炮动力学分析理论和ADAMS虚拟样机技术,建立火炮发射动力学虚拟样机.通过仿真试验获取样本数据,应用BP神经网络进行学习和训练,从而建立装药号和测试数据之间的非线性映射关系,实现对火炮发射装药号的精确预测.     

基于网络演算理论计算车电系统总线的最大时延

以车电系统总线为研究对象,以网络演算理论为数学工具,提出一种基于网络演算理论的车电系统总线的最大时延计算模型.通过仿真实验得到了车电系统总线中各个信息帧的到达曲线、高优先级的信息帧集合的到达曲线、服务曲线和最大时延的数值结果.与相关研究相比,所建模型输入参数少,计算量小,可以快速求解车电系统总线的最大时延,具有良好的适应性和通用性,可以作为车电系统总线分析、设计与优化的理论支持工具.     

面向服务的海战场指挥信息系统体系结构框架

一体化联合作战和基于信息系统的体系作战对海战场指挥信息系统提出了更高的要求.从面向服务的海战场指挥信息系统构建需求出发,在军事信息服务定义的基础上,利用SOA和P2P设计了海战场指挥信息系统体系结构的物理框架和功能框架,给出了各框架的组成和结构,并与已有框架作了对比分析,结果表明所提的框架更加全面、可靠和灵活,为开展面向服务的指挥信息系统研究打下了坚实的基础.     

新一代指挥信息系统中的语义网应用能力分析

随着现代战争形式的演变,提升指挥信息系统能力的关键在于信息处理.语义网是一种先进的信息表示方法,能够有效地提升机器的信息理解和处理能力.简要介绍了语义网技术的组成和本质能力,并结合美军的研究实例,分析了其在新一代指挥信息系统中的应用能力,指出了发展机遇和挑战,并对未来研究提出了建议.     

基于费效分析的地空导弹火力配系优化

为科学评价地空导弹火力配系方案,针对不同的地空导弹火力组成体系,采用费效分析方法,结合地空导弹操作使用,首先给出了地空导弹火力配系费效分析步骤,然后分别对火力配系的费用和效能进行了讨论,并建立了火力配系费效准则和综合费效比模型,最后通过区域反导实例验证了该方法的可行性.     

网络多媒体技术结合案例教学法在《心理健康教育》教学中的应用

科学信息的快速发展给高校心理健康教育提出了新的挑战,网络多媒体相结合案例教学的教育模式已成为高校教育模式发展的趋势。文章阐述了在《心理健康教育》教学中运用网络多媒体技术结合案例教学的心得体会,分析了网络多媒体结合案例教学的优势。