No nation in recent history has placed greater emphasis on the role oftechnology in planning and waging war than the United States. In World War IIthe wholesale... » 

No nation in recent history has placed greater emphasis on the role oftechnology in planning and waging war than the United States. In World War IIthe wholesale mobilization of American science and technology culminated in thedetonation of the atomic bomb. Competition with the Soviet Union during theCold War combined with the U.S. Navys culture of distributed command and therapid growth of information technology spawned the concept of networkcentricwarfare. And Americas postCold War conflicts in Iraq the former Yugoslaviaand Afghanistan have highlighted Americas edge.From the atom bomb to the spy satellites of the Cold War the strategiclimitations of the Vietnam War and the technological triumphs of the Gulf warThomas G. Mahnken follows the development and integration of new technologiesinto the military and emphasizes their influence on the organization missionand culture of the armed services. In some cases advancements in technologyhave forced different branches of the military to develop competing or superiorweaponry but more often than not the armed services have molded technology tosuit their own purposes remaining resilient in the face of technologicalchallenges.Mahnken concludes with an examination of the reemergence of the traditionalAmerican way of war which uses massive force to engage the enemy. Tyingtogether six decades of debate concerning U.S. military affairs he discusseshow the armed forces might exploit the unique opportunities of the informationrevolution in the future. «