The American military is known far and wide for its unparalleled technological superiority. Yet, as more and more industrialized nations improve their economy, so too do they bolster their respective military. In order for the United States of America to retain its position of strength, we must continuously innovate and continually integrate new technologies. Thankfully, that’s exactly what we have been doing, and, as a result, there are some absolutely amazing technologies to be released in the near future.
Often, these technologies stem from the department of the military known as DARPA (the military’s research and development arm). For instance, GPS and the internet itself both emerged from DARPA. In this light, it is particularly exciting to see what they have up their sleeves in development:
Said prosthetic limb would be of tremendous benefit to both military personnel and citizens alike. With the capability to control fingers and opposable thumbs, these seemingly robotic appendages are reminiscent of a creative science fiction novel. In practice, it is supposed to enable “near natural control, very much like your own arm,” according to Dr. Justin Sanchez, the director of DARPA’s biological technologies office.
Ideally, these brain implants will actually be able to restore the memories of troops affected by traumatic brain injuries. Amazing. To actually be able to restore the lost sights, sounds, and smells of memories erased by a traumatic incident. According to Dr. Sanchez, medical professionals can actually photograph and analyze neurotransmitter signals, which enables them to understand some of the characteristics of memory. While this particular idea is still more in its initial developmental stages, the prospect of restoring memory is absolutely astounding and literally holds innumerable possibilities for our future. Think memory loss. Think Parkinson’s. Think PTSD. Truly, the implications are limitless, and that’s saying the least.
The purpose of this technologically innovative initiative is to construct software that essentially makes it incredibly difficult for ill-intentioned hackers to exert any influence over things like drones, command, and control networks. While by no means is the military 100% secure and stable, it is clear that HACMS is responsible for making it exponentially safer. In fact, the Pentagon actually went so far as to invite a number of friendly hackers to do their worst and try to invade an HACMS-protected network; they couldn’t.
Although authors like George Orwell and Ray Bradbury may have predicted the future to the best of their abilities, even they were unable to foretell the rate of technological progression we have seen in just the last thirty to forty years. Truly, humans’ potential to innovate never ceases to amaze me.