Section A: Instructions Guide To The Completion Of The Application: Fill & Download for Free

The next twenty years are going to showcase some of the most monstrously terrifying while holistically awe-inspiring feats of engineering in the history of warfare.To set the scene, imagine a time in the not so distant future. A despotic regime in the Horn of Africa is growing wealthy as their people toil though life in comparatively medieval conditions. A once nameless local warlord has grown to become a regional threat, disturbing the balance of power and trade from Central Africa to the waters on the far end of the Indian Ocean. He is backed by powerful Eastern allies caring enough for his nation's mineral wealth to ignore his history of human rights violations to the neighboring peoples who have fallen under his shadow. Emboldened by the regime's newly acquired military hardware, the dictator invades his neighbor to the South.AirSatellite imaging has shown diplomatic initiatives to prevent the invasion have failed. The dictator has already started his attack. Ground forces have crossed the border simultaneously with a series of air strikes. Armed with next generation aircraft, they are an imposing threat to dated military of their targets. As the air raid sirens blow, they scramble to arm and launch their small force of outdated warplanes built more than 40 years ago. In previous wars these planes were considered to be invincible, but today many of the pilots wonder if they now are little more than their own glorified coffins.Elsewhere, on a base in the the Arabian Sea the order has been given to launch a squadron of hypersonic fighter drones.Son of the BlackbirdEnvisioned as an unmanned aircraft, the SR-72 would fly at speeds up to Mach 6, or six times the speed of sound. At this speed, the aircraft would be so fast, an adversary would have no time to react or hide.“Hypersonic aircraft, coupled with hypersonic missiles, could penetrate denied airspace and strike at nearly any location across a continent in less than an hour,” said Brad Leland, Lockheed Martin program manager, Hypersonics. “Speed is the next aviation advancement to counter emerging threats in the next several decades. The technology would be a game-changer in theater, similar to how stealth is changing the battlespace today.”A hypersonic plane does not have to be an expensive, distant possibility. In fact, an SR-72 could be operational by 2030. For the past several years, Lockheed Martin Skunk Works® has been working with Aerojet Rocketdyne to develop a method to integrate an off-the-shelf turbine with a supersonic combustion ramjet air breathing jet engine to power the aircraft from standstill to Mach 6. The result is the SR-72 that Aviation Week has dubbed “son of Blackbird,” and integrated engine and airframe that is optimized at the system level for high performance and affordability."Meet the SR-72" - Lockheed Martin Press ReleaseAs the drones take off a nervous international film crew in a hotel more than 3200 km away prepare for the impending attack. As the minutes tick by a lucky cameraman on the balcony spots the enemy's planes in the distance. The tiny specs of silver grows ever more dangerous in the sky as four squadrons of enemy fighters become visible. Twenty six minutes after the invasion began the warplanes are now visible to the capitol city. As their profile becomes clearer the camera captures something its operator can't even see. He sees the jets in the distance and then a flash of light and smoke - first the lead plane followed soon after by all of the other fifteen in his formation. He thinks that they have fired their missiles, but then sees in the distance through his camera's zoom the puffs of smoke were actually explosions in the sky. Sixteen white clouds were showering debris on the city outskirts. A few moments later the city is rocked by a violent tremor and the deafening roar of a thousand screaming lions as windows throughout the city shatter and fall to the ground. No enemy planes are anywhere to be seen as the clouds of fallen invaders dissipates into nothingness. A few minutes later a second boom can be heard, this time much more faint. As its echoes fade the sirens are quieted and silence is all that is heard throughout the city.CyberspaceThe dictator sat at the head of a granite top table in the situation room of the jewel of his domain, the Republican Guard Headquarters Building with his most accomplished and senior staff to either side. They looked above the massive table to monitors on the far wall. As their forward strike fighters continued on their doomed mission, little did these leaders know that an enemy agent had already infiltrated the deepest recesses of their most guarded strongholds, and in fact, that very room. As they gleefully watched their monitors in the situation room, expecting to see the results of a stunning victory, the room abruptly went dark. Sudden night fell on the leadership with the deafening silence of the sudden halting of every light, screen, computer, and air vent in the building. The after image of the screens in the pitch blackness of the room was the only thing the dictator and his Generals could see. As the dim green square in their vision faded, fear and confusion took over when they realize that they are cut off from their information of the battlefield and their command over it."United States Cyber Command (USCYBERCOM) plans, coordinates, integrates, synchronizes and conducts activities to: direct the operations and defense of specified Department of Defense information networks and; prepare to, and when directed, conduct full spectrum military cyberspace operations in order to enable actions in all domains, ensure US/Allied freedom of action in cyberspace and deny the same to our adversaries."Stuxnet is a computer worm that was discovered in June 2010. It was designed to attack industrial Programmable Logic Controllers or PLCs. PLCs allow the automation of electromechanical processes such as those used to control machinery on factory assembly lines, amusement rides, or (most infamously) centrifuges for separating nuclear material. Exploiting four zero-day flaws, Stuxnet functions by targeting machines using the Microsoft Windows operating system and networks, then seeking out Siemens Step7 software. Stuxnet reportedly compromised Iranian PLCs, collecting information on industrial systems and causing the fast-spinning centrifuges to tear themselves apart. Stuxnet reportedly ruined almost one-fifth of Iran's nuclear centrifuges. Stuxnet has three modules: a worm that executes all routines related to the main payload of the attack; a link file that automatically executes the propagated copies of the worm; and a rootkit component responsible for hiding all malicious files and processes, preventing detection of the presence of Stuxnet. Israel, through Unit 8200, has been speculated to be the country behind Stuxnet in many media reports and by experts such as Richard A. Falkenrath, former Senior Director for Policy and Plans within the U.S. Office of Homeland Security.The helpless dictator and his highest ranking officials clumsily scurry and stumble amid the confusion and chaos of the situation room. Groping in the darkness one finally reaches the door, opening to reveal a likewise dimmed out hallway, stirring with frightened secretaries and officials. So deep in the building was the central administration section of the Republican Guard Headquarters that natural light from the outside had no chance of reaching them. The first few minutes ticked away as they fingered their ways down the hall, led by the soft glow of lighters in their pockets and the few flashlights that had been found in the office. The dictator's security team stormed the room as they grabbed their leader to take him to his secure command center. The Generals, now left behind, guided themselves to a point of light at the end of the hall. An exit sign was visible at the end of a hall above a door, natural light peeking out from around its perimeter. They opened the door to the blinding light of the setting sun.As they regained themselves, they looked out over the balcony of the building. They could see their dictator being rushed into a car and it screaming into the street. Within the car the dictator desperately tried to regain control of his country. He and his closest secretaries pulled their phones from their pockets to realize all the devices were now dead. All communication lines had been lost. One of them screamed out to destroy their phones since they may be being tracked. Frustrated, he threw his phone to floorboard and stomped it with his foot, followed by all the rest. As his car made its way down the momentous parade route of the Ministry of Defenses's new complex of buildings he saw that none was lit as it should be at this hour. Each had gone dark. In the distance he could see only the dark silhouettes of the National Palace and the Headquarters of the National Police, contrasted greatly by the bright lights in full illumination of the city behind them. Behind him he saw his grand Republican Guard building, now just a shadow, backlit by the rising of the full moon.He could never have known that days before a secret agent had slipped deep into nation's defense system. It had arrived when he had made one of his grand propaganda broadcast in the days and weeks leading up to today's attack. After a digitally broadcast display of his army on parade he gave a speech, invigorating his populace. After the grandiose display a commercial was broadcast telling his citizens of a news application where they could learn more about their great leader's plan to empower the people of their nation. A link was displayed on the screen where his citizens were asked to download the free news and information source. Tens of thousands of his people did as they were instructed. Had he only known that the program they downloaded was not the one he had provided. Unbeknownst to anyone, they were redirected through a series of proxies to a new program, one similar in every way, from look to functionality to the one the dictator had mentioned... that is, except for major difference. Embedded in the program was a new process. This additional program tracked the information of everyone who downloaded it. From a base far away, an information network was being created with the ID's, contacts, messaging identifiers, locations, bank account activity, medical history and locations of thousands of different users. Subtle messages were being generated and sporadically sent out across all user's social media and email accounts. Faithful believe in the words of their friends, family and coworkers endorsement of the very real, well-known and verified national news source encouraged millions of people to download the application. This truly viral media campaign had, in fact, been among the nation's most successful advertising campaigns. His national secretaries believed the great success was due to the people's great faith in the dictator and his dream for their nation. In days building up to right now, a virtual map of all the most influential systems and people had been developed automatically by the intrusive worm. Information on millions of his people was now accessible, most importantly many of his top aides, officials and officers. Entrances had been created into the most important networks in his country, from his military networks, the national banking system, his secret police force and intelligence networks and even into the power and sewer grids. As darkness fell over his city, a shadow that had loomed in his presence began to rise.His car made its way to his secure bunker deep within the Ministry of Defense's Complex in the capital. Helplessly he looked out his window when his car came to a stop. He screamed at the driver for an explanation of the delay when he looked ahead to see the streets ahead in hopeless gridlock. As the lights when dark in the Ministry, so did the traffic lights throughout the entire city. Now there was nothing directing the millions of people heading home from work on what seemed like a normal day. It was the only civilian system affected, yet it left the entire city and all its people in a complete standstill. As he looked out he saw the line of cars clustered before him and the growing congestion building behind him. He was trapped and completely vulnerable. Most were just normal commuters but now many were desperate government officials fleeing the Ministry. Realizing the danger he was in, his security team opened his car door and rushed him out of the vehicle. They would have to make the rest of the three mile trip on foot.He wouldn't reach his destination though. Among his entourage was the driver of his vehicle and his personal confidant. Not realizing the danger it posed, he had never thought to destroy his phone. Though the device appeared to be broken and disabled, as he discovered when attempting to reach Central Command, a message was still being sent.........."9°00'49.2"N, 38°45'44.9"E"..."Heading North by Northwest"..."3.2 meters per second"...SpaceAn overland invasion force has yet to receive word of their forward air strike's failure and the collapse of the Ministry of Defense in the capital. They view the radio blackout as a temporary interruption and continue on their mission as ordered until command can come back online. Formations of tank and troop carriers storm in through the African savanna. They can be seen nearing a local village by villagers high in the mountains. The dust their convoy column has risen is visible for miles. As the village comes in sight from the top of the hill, their column reforms and goes offroad. Spread out across the valley they loom upon the frightened villagers.High in orbit above the continent a satellite shifts into position.Project Thor is an idea for a weapons system that launches kinetic projectiles from Earth orbit to damage targets on the ground. Jerry Pournelle originated the concept while working in operations research at Boeing in the 1950s before becoming a science-fiction writer.[1][2] The most described system is "an orbiting tungsten telephone pole with small fins and a computer in the back for guidance". The weapon can be down-scaled, an orbiting "crowbar" rather than a pole. The system described in the 2003 United States Air Force (USAF) report was that of 20-foot-long (6.1 m), 1-foot-diameter (0.30 m) tungsten rods, that are satellite controlled, and have global strike capability, with impact speeds of Mach 10.[3][4][5]The time between deorbiting and impact would only be a few minutes, and depending on the orbits and positions in the orbits, the system would have a world-wide range. There is no requirement to deploy missiles, aircraft or other vehicles. Although the SALT II (1979) prohibited the deployment of orbital weapons of mass destruction, it did not prohibit the deployment of conventional weapons. The system is prohibited by neither the Outer Space Treaty nor the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.[4][6]The idea is that the weapon would inflict damage because it moves at orbital velocities, at least 9 kilometers per second. Smaller weapons can deliver measured amounts of energy as small as a 225 kg conventional bomb. Some systems are quoted as having the yield of a small tactical nuclear bomb.[5]In the case of the system mentioned in the 2003 USAF report above, a 6.1 m × 0.3 m tungsten cylinder impacting at Mach 10 has a kinetic energy equivalent to approximately 11.5 tons of TNT (or 7.2 tons of dynamite). The mass of such a cylinder is itself greater than 9 tons, so it is clear that the practical applications of such a system are limited to those situations where its other characteristics provide a decisive advantage. Some other sources suggest a speed of 36,000 ft/s (11,000 m/s),[8] which for the aforementioned rod would amount to a kinetic energy equivalent to 120 tons of TNT or 0.12 kt. With 6-8 satellites on a given orbit, a target could be hit within < 12–15 minutes from any given time, less than half the time taken by an ICBM and without the warning.As the raid nears the city, frightened villagers look back to their assailants. As they do they see a series of streaks dart across the sky. The momentary points of light rain havoc upon the enemy vehicles. Tanks are flattened and thrown across the landscape as troop vehicles disintegrate in plumes of dust. As they watch with awe three more flashes of light steak across the sky. They collide the Earth with a massive eruption of violence and astonished bewilderment. With fear and amazement, massive dust clouds rise from the impact sights as each eject a wave of force emanating from their points of impact. The waves spreads across the plain, felling trees and kicking up the grasses. The waves continue on towards the village, first one, then another and then another. They are knocked from their feet and look back on the blast. The area is nothing more than a massive cloud of dust which is now settling everywhere around them. Their attackers are all gone. [1]SeaCombating a rise in piracy within their maritime jurisdictions, various world governments have adapted to be responsive with faster, lighter navies armed with fleets of advanced new ships combining stealth capabilities with high fire power armaments and speeds outmatching their agile rivals.As the regime begins to breakdown in Africa weapons and soldiers flow out and join up with local pirate factions looting shipping lanes across the Indian ocean. Little did one ship know, that it was already being closely followed by the US Navy's next generation of naval weapons.The littoral combat ship (LCS) is a class of relatively small surface vessels intended for operations in the littoral zone (close to shore) by the United States Navy.[1] It was "envisioned to be a networked, agile, stealthy surface combatant capable of defeating anti-access and asymmetric threats in the littorals."[2]The Freedom class and the Independence class are the first two variants of LCS by the U.S. Navy. LCS designs are slightly smaller than the U.S. Navy's guided missile frigates, and have been likened to corvettes of other navies. However, the LCS designs add the capabilities of a small assault transport with a flight deck and hangar large enough to base two SH-60B/F or MH-60R/S Seahawk helicopters, the capability to recover and launch small boats from a stern ramp, and enough cargo volume and payload to deliver a small assault force with fighting vehicles to a roll-on/roll-off port facility. The standard armament for the LCS are Mk 110 57 mm guns and Rolling Airframe Missiles. It will also be able to launch autonomous air, surface, and underwater vehicles.[3] Although the LCS designs offer less air defense and surface-to-surface capabilities than comparable destroyers, the LCS concept emphasizes speed, flexible mission module space and a shallow draft.The concept behind the littoral combat ship, as described by former Secretary of the Navy Gordon R. England, is to "create a small, fast, maneuverable and relatively inexpensive member of the DD(X) family of ships." The ship is easy to reconfigure for different roles, including anti-submarine warfare, mine countermeasures, anti-surface warfare, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, homeland defense, maritime intercept, special operations, and logistics. Due to its modular design, the LCS will be able to replace slower, more specialized ships such as minesweepers and larger assault ships.[11]The pirates are occupied hunting down civilian traffic in the area... to busy to notice the ship rapidly gaining on them. Traveling at more than 50 knots these next generation littoral ship is one of the fastest vessels in existence. In little time at all it has closed with the pirate's ship. Desperate to evade, the pirates attempt to flee. Wishing to avoid a confrontation the Captain issues an edict for the ship to shut off it's engines using its latest version of the Long Range Acoustic Device in twelve of the major languages of the region. Fearing capture and acting in desperation the pirates turned their boat towards the US Navy ships. It was clear that they were attempting to ram the vessel. Warning shots were fired from the 110 cannons across the enemy bow. The ship continued to close. The cannons were zeroed on the ship and with the Captain's command the ship was torn to shreds by successive bursts of the overwhelming cruiser.A life raft was spotted behind the wreckage. The XO informed the Captain that it appeared they had jumped ship hoping that the ramming would sink the LCS. If the pirates were able to get back home having captures a video sinking the US Navy ship they could become wealthy men for the bounties that circulated among the area's various black market cartels. Today, however, they wouldn't be so fortunate and tonight they would be spending the night in the ship's brig. This was the second such arrest this week by the fleet with another seven expected before the end of the month. [2]MedicineCorporal "Cy" Fannon is augmented with an artificial eye and hand after losing his in Venezuela. The "Cy" stands either for cyborg or cyclops. No one really knows which and no one is brave enough to ask. He's quiet, but when he looks at you with that creepy as hell robot eye, you'll do whatever he asks just to get him to stop eyeballin' you.After Venezuela, Fannon was given the opportunity to be med-sepped with full medical benefits from the VA. He was also presented with the opportunity to prototype some new of the DARPA tech ready for the field. He took the road of fool hardy and stayed in to be a human guinea pig for some robomed company's hopes of creating the future of robot warriors to put the rest of us out of a job.Futurists and researchers in prosthetic technology say that nearly everything depicted in [science fiction] films is possible; indeed, current advances in robotics, neuroscience, and microelectronics are bringing the visions of science fiction closer to reality every year. Over the next two decades, scientists expect to introduce bionic appendages that respond to thoughts, and chips implanted in the brain with the potential to download data directly into human memory banks.Devices including "neuroprosthetic" limbs for paralyzed people and "neurorobots" controlled by brain signals from human operators could be the ultimate applications of brain-machine interface technologies developed under a $26 million contract to Duke University sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The contract is part of DARPA's Brain-Machine Interfaces Program (http://www.darpa.mil/dso/thrust/sp/bmi.htm), which seeks to develop new technologies for augmenting human performance by accessing the brain in real time and integrating the information into external devices.His first major augmentation was his neural unit installed into his skull. You can see the scar under his high reg, but it's not like the brick they've been installing in amputees for the past decade. Even if they don't have to move their arms and legs like robots anymore, half of them would fall over from the stupid giant controller unit. I don't even know how they sleep. Cy's got it all on the inside. I really don't know that all works. What powers the damn thing? Half of us wonder if the thing is fryin' his brain or something, either with microwave transmissions or just because he has a stinking computer console in his grape, but as long as he doesn't short circuit, I guess he's fine.Next, he got his arm. They've really perfected the art form with arms like his. Honestly, I didn't even know he had the thing until we went out to the bar one day back in San Diego. He crushed a beer can into a marble. I thought I was going to piss myself. It wasn't until he pulled off a flesh panel to show the gears, wires, and techogizzitry that I realized he had the prosthetic limb. It was all Star Wars or something. It's honestly a bit of an advantage. I know you're not supposed to say that a dude who got his hand blown off has an advantage, but as long as he keeps his arm still he always quals expert at the range and has the grip of a bear. Ok, he has to oil himself like some sort of freaky Marine Corps version of the Tin Man, but still I kind of wonder if he is better off with the robot arm.Lastly, and most obviously, is his freaky robot eye. He didn't take the natural ones. No, he went full Terminator. It's an on board camera with multiple sensors that far outperform us "norms". He can see with that thing far beyond normal people. He can focus the thing to full zoom at better than 20/1 vision, more than 20 times farther than any of the rest of us. What'll really freak you out is that he can see in infrared and night vision. It isn't as good as the installed unit of helmets, but he can see heat, which is so freaky. I don't really know what one would do with all that, but I suppose it's nice that he always knows which beer is coldest. I guess that is a good trade off. What's probably the most important though is that he can record everything. At night he'll go through and plug this cable into the port of his eye, review and upload all the important stuff he saw that day. I kind of wonder what he does with it. Makes me really worried to change in front of the guy, but oh well. His depth perception is still off though. When he is letting the system idle with the range finder off, Sergeant has fun throwin' stuff at him, knowin' that he has no hope of reacting correctly. In a way it helps us remember that he has vulnerabilities and isn't some sort of ubermensch gearing up to lead the robots in their take over of Earth. [3]Diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa as a teenager, Pontz has been almost completely blind for years. Now, thanks to a high-tech procedure that involved the surgical implantation of a “bionic eye,” he’s regained enough of his eyesight to catch small glimpses of his wife, grandson and cat.The artificial implant in Pontz’s left eye is part of a system developed by Second Sight that includes a small video camera and transmitter housed in a pair of glasses. Images from the camera are converted into a series of electrical pulses that are transmitted wirelessly to an array of electrodes on the surface of the retina. The pulses stimulate the retina’s remaining healthy cells, causing them to relay the signal to the optic nerve. The visual information then moves to the brain, where it is translated into patterns of light that can be recognized and interpreted, allowing the patient to regain some visual function.In any case, Corporal Cy is one messed up freak, but he is a crazy good Marine. He's specialized in ways the rest of us couldn't compete with. He is special and a great asset to the squad. He's unique in the Corps and all his augments make him perfect for his role with the team... as the squad's field operator.LandIn a valley to the South of the recently created Camp Mēga a pack of autonomous robots maneuvers through the valley. They are delivering supplies to the recently activated forward operations base. The four robots run in line through the dry river beds and plains, navigating the rocky feet of mountain cliffs. These are the GammaDogs, the latest's version of transportation vehicles built by the robotics firm Boston Dynamics, a subsidiary of SoftBank. They make thousands of these runs delivering the gear and equipment across the thousands of miles of terrain in the scope of military operations. They deliver everything from gear and equipment to medical supplies and food for the local villages and even care packages from home. They also have specialized combat variants which support the front line patrols by carrying packs and heavy ordinance of the troops in the field. When on their own, each time they make the journey it is a new one, so that their patterns are never discovered by enemy insurgent forces.BigDog is funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in the hopes that it will be able to serve as a robotic pack mule to accompany soldiers in terrain too rough for conventional vehicles. Instead of wheels or treads, BigDog uses four legs for movement, allowing it to move across surfaces that would defeat wheels. The legs contain a variety of sensors, including joint position and ground contact. BigDog also features a laser gyroscope and a stereo vision system.Built onto the actuators are sensors for joint position and force, and movement is ultimately controlled through an onboard computer which manages the sensors. Approximately 50 sensors are located on BigDog. These measure the attitude and acceleration of the body, motion and force of joint actuators as well as engine speed, temperature and hydraulic pressure inside the robot's internal engine. Low-level control, such as position and force of the joints, and high-level control such as velocity and altitude during locomotion, are both controlled through the onboard computer.On March 18, 2008, Boston Dynamics released video footage of a new generation of BigDog known as AlphaDog.[4] The footage shows BigDog's ability to walk on icy terrain and recover its balance when kicked from the side.[5] The refined equivalent has been designed by Boston Dynamics to exceed the BigDog in terms of capabilities and use to dismounted soldiers. In February 2012, with further DARPA support, the militarized Legged Squad Support System (LS3) variant of BigDog demonstrated its capabilities during a hike over tough terrain.Starting in the summer of 2012, DARPA planned to complete the overall development of the system and refine its key capabilities in 18 months, ensuring its worth to dismounted warfighters before it is rolled out to squads operating in theatre. BigDog must be able to demonstrate its ability to complete a 20 mi (32 km) trek within 24 hours without refuelling while carrying a load of 400 lb (180 kg), whereas a refinement of its vision sensors will also be conducted.From one of these cliffs a shepherd watches with amazement. These must have been the "mule cars" he had heard spoken of at the market the last time he visited the village. Now he could see them in his valley. He marveled how at times they reminded him of the bison stampeding as they maneuvered through the valley below. Only these bisons moved too perfectly. Every action was with intent and with purpose. In a perfect line they leaped, bound, climbed and ran faster than he could believe possible of a machine. The small train of robots continued without pause where there was no road nor trail, leaving only puffs of smoke where their feet impacted the dry earth. Wanting to show his friends and family the wonder he saw today, he pulled out the phone from his pocket to capture the moment. [4]IntelligenceAbove surveillance drones escort the train of GammaDog transport vehicles. They're armed with a battery of cameras and other detection equipment, able to see in 3D and infrared detection. Sonar systems allow them to make three dimensional maps of the area for battlefield planners. This latest model can fly in two modes, as a glider for endurance surveying or flapping its wings as a bird or, more precisely, as a bat. These bats measure just two feet in length. They are capable of surveillance silently from several hundred feet above the target to perching indiscriminately on the ledge of any building. It's powered through a solar membrane on its wings providing hours of additional flight time after the battery would have run dry. The COM-BATs are equipped with networking capabilities to share view points across multiple angles and a wide area. They communicate everything in real time to operators or higher level intelligence programs. Traveling in flights groups of four or more, they provide numerous layers of immediate information to troops in the field, war planners, and battlefield observers.Scientists at the University of Michigan College of Engineering are developing a six-inch robotic spy plane, modeled after a bat. Colloquially known as the COM-BAT program its purpose is gathering data such as sights, sounds, and smells in urban combat zones and transmitting the information back to combatants in real time. A $10 million grant was given for this project, which is being developed in the Center for Objective Microelectronics and Biomimetic Advanced Technology. The robotic bat is planned to perform short-term surveillance missions supporting advancing troops in the battlefield. It could perch at a street corner and send data regarding its immediate surroundings, or could land on a building for longer surveillance assignments. Real-time reports of its activity will constantly be sent to the commanding unit.The University of Michigan researchers are focusing on the microelectronics. They will develop sensors, communication tools, and batteries for the new “Bat” micro-aerial vehicle. Engineers envision tiny cameras for stereo vision, an array of mini microphones that could home in on sounds from different directions, and small detectors for nuclear radiation and poisonous gases. The robotic bat will also have the ability to navigate at night, using low-power miniaturized radar and a very sensitive navigation system. Its lithium battery will recharge using solar energy, wind, and vibrations, and the bat will communicate with the troops using radio signals.The robot’s body is designed to be about six inches long and to weigh about a quarter of a pound. Its expected energy consumption will be 1W. They will work to develop quantum dot solar cells that double the efficiency of current solar cells. Furthermore, they expect their autonomous navigation system, which would allow the robot to direct its own movements, to be 1,000 times smaller and more energy efficient than systems in use today. If the planned improvements will indeed be successful, the researchers believe they will provide the bat with a communication system ten times smaller, lighter and more energy efficient than currently available systems.Today, one of the tiny planes has spotted something through its on board infrared camera. There is a man on the ledge above the pass. One of the BATS leaves the group of escorts to investigate. With his cameras the plane circles above the unsuspecting man. The plane relays images to a remote operations intelligence server. The server's image recognition software sees that the target is a military aged male. He has with him an AK-47, though this is common in such a dangerous country. However now the man has pulled from his pocket a device the program recognizes from its database to be one of the old phones of a few decades ago. The system analyzes the angular projection and determines that this man could have attempting to capture images from the mule team down below. The event is flagged "Orange".The Orange rating triggers the server to initiate a series of queries to determine more information on the target. The GPS location was cross-referenced with the country's land listings and it was found that the land was leased to a family by their patriarch Solomon Selassie. Another query to the nation's record office of public health pulled a birth certificate and health care history information. That information indicated Solomon to be too old to be the man seen in the recording, however, Solomon had a son, Yared. Yared's age and medical information matched the apparent height and age of the target. Further investigation of his record showed school records with photos. Facial recognition with aging calculated a high probability that the target in question was indeed Yared Selassie. A search for information on Yared connected the search program to his account with the local phone company service provider. A data package had indeed just been sent from Yared's device to another device in Yared's network.Fortunately for Yared, he had no known background with the now displaced regime. He also had no criminal record and was not connected with any known agents of the regime in the last 10 years. His ID had not been one of those gathered during the initial cyber infiltration a few weeks ago so no logs of him existed yet in the military's watch list, which indicated that he had little contact with the rest of the world and with the regime at all. By all known accounts, the program results seemed to indicate that he was indeed a peaceful shepherd farmer living deep in the African savanna. The event would be logged as Yellow for cautionary and suspicious activity. He would have an identity file created under the database where his information would be easily accessible and the event would be called any time in the future if Yared may come into investigation. Any future suspicious actions by him would likely result in his apprehension.His GPS location was also flagged Yellow. In the event of future activity there, Yared would likely be a source of information if not also suspect. The Selassie home was also flagged White - for informational - along with the rest of the family and known contacts of Yared. If Yared were to ever become considered dangerous, they would be considered sources of potential information or potential accomplices and the house would be watched. Today, however, Yared was not in danger of arrest. Logs were created in all the relevant databases and a report was generated on Yared, the location and infraction in question. The report would be delivered to the Provisional Constable's email. The entire process up to this point had been automated and no human would have any knowledge of the event until the Constable read his email. It would be one of a few dozen he would receive that week. He would probably forward this one on to one of his deputies and in a few weeks the deputy would dispatch an officer with security detachment to investigate the Selassie house. They would discover the reason for taking the photo and if everything was determined to be all clear the family would be advised not to take any more photos of military equipment again. The family would be scanned with the Biometric Automated Toolset. Their photos, fingerprints, DNA and numerous other identifiers would be logged to their identifying files. After that the Selassie family's life would go back to normal, though a new mountain of information on them would be readily available for intelligence agencies and perhaps more dangerously, the new regime to come once the Americans left.As the report was generated and sent to the Constable, the BAT was directed to call off its surveillance of Yared and return to escorting the transports. Yared watched the train move out of the valley completely unaware of what had transpired. He returned his phone to his pocket, gathered his things and moved his small flock down the mountain back towards his home.Light InfantryCommand is nervous following an up-tic in civilian protests throughout the region. Numerous activist groups are coming out as they attempt of built something resembling a government to replace the shattered regime. Most are harmless and benevolent. Many want to bring about real change for the region and are anxiously seeking to take advantage of their first real chance at leadership roles in more than a decade. Others, however, push for more dangerous agendas. Remnant forces still vie for power, sometimes through democratic means and other times in the form of a new brewing insurgency. Many of the old leadership in the defunct regime escaped overseas and are now channeling money, and propaganda into the country. Enough of the old regime's officers saw the coming storm and saw to it that stockpiles of weapons and ammunition mysteriously disappeared prior to our arrival. Now, many of those weapons, along with thousands more are being smuggled in through the unregulated black market, and are finding their way to the quickly organizing insurgency forces.That's where we come in. We are Marines expeditionary rifle squad of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, 2nd Battalion 5th Marines. We were stationed in the area to ensure that stability is maintained while a constitution is drafted. The squad's marching orders were to conduct an unmounted patrol through the city. Tensions are high since there is currently a massive rally taking place all along the parade route of the old Ministry of Defense's complex. The streets of the complex are crowded with tens of thousands of people. Marine platoons are on patrol in the event that this peaceful rally turns into something far worse. You'd probably have guessed that by now all military activity would have been replaced by all the drones flyin' around, but history has shown us that some jobs, just like these, you just can't trust a rumba to replace boots on the ground. Not that they haven't tried, but after the mess in 2022, they realized the only real future was one that married the drones with infantry into a holistic combat unit. So that explains why there are still morons like me trudging around in places like this.Marine Expeditionary Rifle SquadPurpose: Significantly increase future Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF) ability to conduct squad level combat operations in an uncertain environment across the ROMO for the Joint Force. Improved ability to operate in both traditional and irregular warfare environments while retaining the ability to conduct forcible entry operations from the sea.Attributesgreater lethalityaccurate identification and classification of targetsunencumbered mobilitysecure, reliable, MAGTF- integrated command and controlballistic and fragmentation protectionclimate and terrain protectionability to administer low level medical aidimproved training and leadershipProvide greater improvement to the current rifle squad’s ability as a total package to engage the enemy across a wider range of operations with an increase in survivability and better access to support forces.- LtCol Chris Woodburn, USMCThe squad was composed of the ten of us, nine Marines and a doc in two fire teams and the Staff Sergeant.Our fire team leaders are Sergeant Nguyen and Corporal Piers. They each carry an M-35 Infantry Automatic Rifle attached with M-207 grenade launchers. For the 207, they carry an assortment of goodies they can launch depending on the mission requirements. For today, they are armed with tear gas, flares, and one grenade that can be fired above, through a window or into a dark alley, bursts open and out pops a tiny little drone cam to check out what overhead drones might miss. They also have regular explosive varieties and incendiaries, but today is just supposed to be a routine patrol. More important than their armaments, they're also equipped with networked Tee-Cud helmets. Tee-Cuds are the common name for the Tactical Command Heads Up Display integrated combat helmet systems. They are complete helmet systems with a ballistic visor that covers their entire face. Inside is a broad spectrum networking node that communicates information to and from the higher ups. This feeds into a heads up display that projects an augmented reality layer over everything they see. Team members, allies, non-combatants and enemies are highlighted with a colored filter to seek to avoid identity confusion in the heat of battle. They also have combat relevant data on each of the members of their team from ammunition count to a 3D geographic mapping projection complete with possible fields of fire. The Tee-Cuds run off of the Layar based MZ Scout Systems. Scout is an augmented reality browser and AI that coordinates all the networked visual data. The entire system is voice activated, sensitive enough to a whisper, so different commands will initiate different actions from Scout. Each Marine goes through a certification week where they have to speak a ton of random lines and sentences to create a unique voice ID and only the ID's on the team can operate the system. The team leaders can say "Squad" which will temporarily open a channel with their squad. "View..." can open any viewpoint from different squad members to overhead observation or strike drones, as well as other personnel within the area of operations. Saying, "Command" or the command's designation can open a direct channel with command headquarters for requests of information, backup or to send out a nine line request. The Tee-Cuds give the team leaders an unmatched view of the battlespace and their own team's condition warfighters of only a few decades prior would have died to get their hands on.Next, there are the SAW gunners. SAW stands for Squad Automatic Weapon, which used to be the name of an old weapon system the position used to use, but being that they even today they can somewhat reliably cut whatever they want to in half, the name stuck. That said, they are armed with M3, the largest non-crew served weapon in the Corps' history. The M3 is the automatic machine gun currently used for squad suppression fire. Depending on the situation, the M3 can fire a belt of high velocity rounds, or high mass yield rounds for heavy impact. In the semi-automatic setting it can fire a kinetic impact round that can punch through walls from six hundred yards. The gunners themselves would never be able to lift the damn thing, though, if it weren't for the exoskeleton assist. With the rigging the SAW gunners can carry a load of over 400 lbs for six hours and never break a sweat. SAW gunners, as well as the other members not equipped with Tee-Cuds, wear Scouters. Scouters are units that attach into the helmets over one ear and have a small ballistic visor that completely covers one eye. The Scouters operate on the same Layar based Scout system. It can project limited amounts of information in the same way as the Tee-Cuds on the ballistic lens, but with less detail and scope. It is also voice activated and the commands are all the same. The only difference between the leadership level Tee-Cuds and the scouters is that the scouters don't come with the full heads up display and can be worn separately without the helmet. [5]After the SAW gunners are the assistant light machine gunners. The A-gunners assist the the SAWs. They provide direct fire back-up and can provide emergency assistance to the SAW gunners' equipment in the field. They are armed with the M1300 CSASS, a compact semi-automatic sniper system rifle engineered for squad level sniper support. The weapon can deliver a variety of rounds to the enemy from sixteen hundred yards or deliver deadly fast accuracy with mid-range engagements.The newest members of the squads are designated riflemen. They are equipped with standard M-35 Infantry Automatic Rifles and extra ammo. They also carry the M-483 Light Infantry Missile System. It's a small pod you drop on the ground and arm. Once armed, the squad leader, or the operator, will designate a target and issue the command to fire. From there, the system will fire a self-guided missile about the size of two soda cans directly into the air before it directs itself to the target from above. Besides that, they are boots and if you're lucky they will only almost get you killed once a day. They're really good for getting ammo from the Heavy Dog and digging holes when you don't want to tire out the robots.Last are the field operators. In the mid to late 2020's infantry integration with drone warfare became paramount. As I mentioned before, militaries around the world realized that there are just too many things you can't do with a drone that require on the ground support to accomplish. Swarms of robot jets overhead and mini tank guns look cool in movies, but 90% of the time wars are fought by you actually walking up and asking a bystander if something jacked-up is going on that the good guys should know about. When the bean counters in Washington finally realized that a drone can't exactly prevent looting or arrest someone without having their onboard camera's kicked in by a six year old, they realized that next generation infantry integration was the way to go. With that came the field operators.Field-ops have constant command of drone escorts during patrols and missions. They are equipped with the same Tee-Cuds as the team leaders, but their systems are set up to direct the feeds of information from surveillance and attack drones overhead, paint targets as either hostile or non, coordinate battlefield intelligence with the squad and to also directly command drones in combat. They are equipped with sidearms for immediate emergency protection, but their main offensive weapons are their gloves. Hundreds of sensors in the gloves catch every subtle movement as a command to manipulate drone movement and observational capabilities. At any given moment, the Field-ops are overseeing dozens of nodes all around the battlefield. They are aware of hundreds of moving objects from people, vehicles and drones. They have as close to a complete holistic view of the battlefield as has ever been available to a frontline infantry unit. Working Field-ops is supposedly like nothing else. Even though they are right there with us, many describe their job as an out of body experience. The role used to go squad and fire team leaders, but the tsunami of data bombarding them left them unable to manage both the drones and their teams, so the tasks were delegated to the newly created unit. Their omnipotence is flushed down the toilet, though, when their focus is so deep on planes buzzing overhead that they completely lose track of where they are, trip, and fall flat on their face. Obstacle avoidance is their most requested new feature since they'll find themselves on the ground all the damn time. It's honestly a little embarrassing that they are the future of warfare. A field-ops' idea of a good day is hunkered on a rooftop or in the back of a vehicle controlling the battlefield without fear of tripping over a rock or something. They come off as clumsy and distracted, but when they get in their zone, they are the deadliest thing in the battlezone. They command the swarm and the respect of any enemy they might seek.Along with our doc, the last member of the squad is its leader, Staff Sergeant Ramirez. He's been to every major conflict in the last eleven years; Odessa, Yangong, Valencia. They say that back in the day a squad like ours would have been led by just a Sergeant or even a Corporal, but I guess with the modernization of the new Corps, this is what it takes. The Squad leader is armed identically to the Fire Team leaders. He carries the same M-35 with the 207 attachment and is equipped with the same Tee-Cuds as the others. Besides his experience, he doesn't differ greatly from the two team leaders. This was by design in case he should be incapacitated than one of them could be able to step into his role.This is the modern Marine Corps infantry unit. Two fire teams complete with leaders, SAW gunners, A-gunners and dedicated riflemen supplemented with corpsmen, Squad Leader and with the advent of the Field Operators, the eleven man Marine Expeditionary Rifle Squad was complete.We made our way down the street. Far off in the distance you could hear the sounds of the rally. Here though, all you could hear was Cpl. Fannon picking himself up off the ground again and the sound of the SAW gunner's hydraulic joints. Chatter over the inter squad channels reported the same quiet.We turned another corner into an alley. It was completely devoid of movement and deathly silent. As half the squad made their way into the alley, SSgt Ramirez turns the corner and calls for an all stop. The squad darts for cover along the alley. Fannon started a detailed scan of the area. From one view he noticed a small group of men on the next street. He could see inside a few windows and could see people shutting their windows. From one of his aerial units he noticed a window at the end of the alley with a suspicious pipe moving out of it. He flew the unit around the building to get a clearer view of the window. As his view became clearer he saw a man aiming his rifle on the squad."CONTACT FRONT! SECOND FLOOR!"Support"Contact". The term has been part of infantry training and battlefield tactics for a century. Now the word has evolved to much more. This single word initiates a mobilization of a vast movement of men and machines in a worldwide effort towards the acts of locating, closing with and eliminating the enemy through fire and maneuver.When Corporal "Cy" Fannon gave the call for Contact Front he initiated a command within MZ Scout System that forwarded the alert to seventeen other commands. These commands included Forward Operations North East Africa, the Coordinated Unmanned Asset Command, Marine Air Ground Task Force Central Command, and a myriad of other units. Alarm bells rang out and operators manning stations across the globe came online, now with all of their attention directed to a small alleyway in a small city and one particular squad of Marines. Monitors across the globe lit up with the view scopes of the Marine's Tee-Cuds. A voice came in through the NCO channel. It was a woman's voice.Corporal Piers was surprised. He was a newly promoted Corporal and unfamiliar with assaults from the NCO's point of view. He'd handled engagements before, but now the flood of information on his visor and responsibility to the Marines within his charge left him momentarily frozen. Her voice brought him back."This is the Operator. Standing by for SITREP."With her sudden call to awakening, his training kicked in. He knew of the operators and had experienced them in dozens of exercises when he was given his fire time, but he was still surprised by what he heard over his headset. Usually, everything in training is nothing like the real thing. Adrenaline and confusion are elements that are difficult to replicate in the training environments without Marines actually getting killed. Everything amps up, but this voice didn't. He knew it was their job to watch over the combat patrols and coordinate relief, reinforcements, or additional assets when need. She was calm and relaxed, like listening to the weather girl or the melodic tones of the host for some late night easy listen radio stream. She made it sound as if dropping in on Marines embraced in the heat of combat was something she did everyday. Perhaps she did. As Cpl Piers gathered himself in the midst of the chaos that was enveloping the Marines, she was calm, the collected voice of serenity reminding the Marines that they were not alone.Cpl Piers composed himself not a moment soon enough. What started as a single shooter foolish enough to get caught before the ambush, had in fact been a well orchestrated attack by more than a dozen insurgents. They had prepared the alleyway for what must have been some time in hopes of catching the Marines off guard. Such a defeat would be a massive symbolic victory for the insurgency, ushering in new recruits by the droves. As Piers and the others took up defendable locations in the alley, the scope of the danger became apparent to the Marines. Windows all along the narrow street were suddenly filled with men and metal. Bullets rained down like tears from heaven.Staff Sergeant Ramirez was already on the bounce. He knew something didn't feel right about this alley in the first place. The call for contact only confirmed what his instincts had prepared him for."Operator, this is Echo Six Romeo. Incoming SITREP..."... individual troops can look forward to the JTRS Handheld, Manpack and Small Form Fit AN/PRC-154 Rifleman radio. Developed by General Dynamics C4 Systems. Rifleman is designed to deliver networking connectivity to frontline troops in a lightweight, ruggedized, body worn device. The radio transmits voice and data simultaneously via SRW. Perhaps most importantly, Rifleman radios are capable of interfacing with smart phones.Cutting-edge wireless networking technologies, potentially capable of supporting both JTRS and smart phone devices, are now arriving in the form of mesh networks, including mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) that can provide virtually instant high-bandwidth networking capabilities for handheld radios, ground and airborne vehicle communications and security and tactical wireless sensors. The military is increasingly turning to wireless mesh networks technology for sensor-driven environmental control, yard management, and security and tactical applications. A mesh network provides continuous asset visibility from any location in the system’s range, noted Mark Lieberman, automatic identification technology program manager for the Defense Logistics Agency, headquartered at Fort Belvoir, Va..John Edwards - Telecommunications Industry Analyst - Defense Systems[dot]comSSgt Ramirez listed relevant information in the hasty situation report. The operator, not flinching and with no obvious distress in her voice, replied back to the NCO channel,"Very well Echo Six Romeo. I've secured a roaming aerial interceptor squadron for your field operator. Echo Four Foxtrot, you should see the new units displayed on the Active Unit Window of your Tee-Cud. Do you see them?""Yes, Operator. I see them," Cpl. Fannon replied."Very well. They should be arriving in the next three minutes. Echo Six, I've opened a channel to higher command, designated "Snakepit". I've also opened a channel with the other patrol unit leaders in the city. CASEVAC has been alerted and are standing by. I'll be standing by for further assistance as needed.""Understood. Echo Six out."The squad was entrenched in the alleyway. Windows all along street slammed open to become places of cover for concealed insurgency forces, ducking away as quickly as they had appeared. They popped in and out to spray momentary bursts of fire on the Marines below, only to replaced by another in another window, and then another and another. The alley was unsecurable. The minimal cover and overhead deployment of enemy forces meant that the Marines would be chow in minutes if something wasn't done.Fannon was a bit occupied at the moment. He was the only one with a clear bird's eye view of the scene with aerial strike capabilities. His view, however, was obscured by the buildings. As he was trying to gain a clear sight on the window, a burst of rifle fire ricocheted next to his head. He ducked away in search of new cover. By the time he felt secure enough to focus on the drones, it had already moved on beyond view of the window. He would have to wait on the next one to make a pass. More rifle fire cracked as it struck the building next to him. The squad may lose its field operator if he didn't secure his most valuable asset: his life."Operator, I'm in heavy fire! I need to find cover and am requesting QRF assist!""Understood field op." She knew who had said it even though he hadn't said much by the indicator denoting which helmet made transition. "Patching in UAV Pilot Quick Reaction Force with special instructions to secure your immediate location."With a few adept keystrokes of the operator's hand, a red light lit in an installation in Colorado. A team of four pilots were already in their seats. They had been watching the feed and listening to the instructions. The operator opened a channel between them and the field op. As he scurried and dodged his way through the alley, he was relieved to see the individual units in his active asset window switch over from autonomous operation to full remote. One by one their icons switched from green to orange and faded to a translucent fuzz on the side of his display. He could now focus himself on finding a securable location for the time being. Fortunately for him, SSgt Ramirez was also aware of his desperation and had sent one of the squad's riflemen, LCpl Dodd, to secure him.As the two sought some mild semblance of safety, the drones above and all around came alive in a way not like before. Under normal operations, they circle around in simple methodically programmed patterns or hovering at points spherically encompassing the squad, waiting for the field op to call for them. Now, all of them were under the direct control of a team of remote pilots thousands of miles away.Interoperability Functional DescriptionThe ability of systems, units, or forces to provide services to and accept services from other systems, units, or forces and to make use of the services, units, or forces; and to use the services so exchanged to enable them to operate effectively together. An example for the use of this policy would be the condition achieved among communications-electronics systems or items of communications electronics equipment when information or services can be exchanged directly and satisfactorily between them and/or their users.Interoperability is integral to the continued success of missions using unmanned systems and represents a long-term objective of the Services and their stakeholders. The urgent needs in theater and corresponding rapid acquisition approach during recent years have resulted in thecurrent fleet of unmanned systems that generally do not interoperate with each other or with external systems. The combat development community is calling for interoperability as a critical element to the future unmanned systems fleet. The ability for manned and unmanned systems to share information will increase combat capability, enhance situational awareness, and improve flexibility of resources. Interoperability will improve the ability for unmanned systems to operate in synergy in the execution of assigned tasks. Properly stabilized, implemented, andmaintained, interoperability can serve as a force multiplier, improve warfighter capabilities, decrease integration timelines, simplify logistics, and reduce total ownership costs.Department of Defense - Unmanned Systems Integrated Roadmap FY2013-2038The individual birds started their maneuvers. They were each taking actions for the different specialties of each vehicle. Four target acquisition units were actively darting in and out of the building's windows seeking runaway insurgents, following them through hallways and as far as the trail would take them. When their scanners found something, other specialist operators were busy tagging each person as either friend or foe and adding an identifier so that the tracking system could keep watch as need be. Hunter strike craft pursued the insurgents relentlessly, able to dart in and out and descend from anywhere upon their targets. In the few seconds since the squad had taken fire, the alleyway had descended into a hornet's nest of firefighting from both man and machine.With the time bought by the swarm, Fannon and the other Marine were able to secure a location in the kitchen of one of the buildings along the alley. Fannon hunkered down in a back corner of the room. Dodd provided security for the two. He now posted himself along the window, regularly checking to make sure the two were safe while Cpl Fannon focused on the battle overhead.As he gained his bearing, Fannon began receiving instructions and information from the rest of the squad, along with communications from the other pilots. Now keyed back into the engagement at hand, he took control of the ships around him and began to coordinate his assets with the rest of the squad's counter offensive. He took back manual control of the remotely piloted unmanned assets as objective necessity dictated.One might wonder why Fannon would take back control at all. While the team back in CONUS was fully capable of carrying out the mission of taking down all enemies they saw with guns, explosive ordinance, and maneuver warfare, there was too much they could not know. They lacked the unit briefings on specific engagements for this particular region, since their area of operations was the entire planet as need be. They lacked a thorough understanding of the area, population centers, business centers and key hotspots and places to avoid fire. Mostly, they lacked clear communication with the entire squad. Fannon, more correctly, the Field Operator, did. What might be perceived as a design flaw was actually a well engineered aspect of the overall future of infantry warfare.They used to just have an open channel to everyone involved in the battles. The idea of a flat system of communication seemed a Utopian ideal. Any boots on the ground could speak directly with the people they needed to to get whatever assistance they would need. Anyone who might be able to help could just chime in if they thought they could be of service. On paper it is miraculous. So long as you were a part of the picture in the slightest your voice was overhead on the channel. Every command, every request, every observation, every opinion, every scream; everyone was talking and not enough were listening. It got to be a real nightmare scenario. Everyone from the General on down would be barking out conflicting orders to the troops on the ground. Debates out rules of engagement would clutter up the messages needing to be sent as terrified Marines lay frozen in forced inaction. Pilots for bombing runs and pilots for casualty evacuation were all speaking and yelling at the same time. Even engineering unit commanders would be giving his two cents on what to be be careful of so as not to blow up their precious fiber optic line more than two miles away. There might be as many as a hundred people squawking at once. And do you know who wasn't listened to at all? Why, it was that Lance Corporal Schmuckatelli on the ground, getting cut to pieces by machine gun fire in the jungle, the very Marine who started the conversation. It was a cluster.So they turned to the NCO's. The Non Commissioned Officers of the infantry squad were elevated to new levels of responsibility. Besides leading the fight, these warriors were now also the information hubs, directed to guide battlefield data and unit instructions from higher to the field troops assigned to them. At any given movement these troops may be relaying information from several different scopes and fields of view. They are now the levies holding back a paralyzing flood of information. The training necessary for their vocation puts them on par with any master level technician or specialty artisan in the world, not the least of which being the field operators. They are all career military and with their training, each holding the civilian equivalent to degrees in various fields from electrical engineering, telecommunications or logistics, they might be living easily overseeing some automated package delivery service, driverless taxi or even building the next gen automated warfare. At home they would have the life, but they chose something different. By being the channel through which all sources of information are funneled, their focused implementation of command and information allow them to direct the application of force on battlefield as if it were the strings of a marionette.Want more future of war? This answer has grown a full length novel mixing the same focus on technology and tactics while providing a character driven narrative I'm sure you will all enjoy. If you would like to check out my book inspired by this answer, The Next Warrior follow the blog The Next Warrior and follow this link to the start of the book.The Next Warrior by Jon DavisAirMeet the SR-72This Stealthy, Hypersonic Drone Could Become The Most Exotic Plane EverCyberspaceUnited States Cyber CommandStuxnetSpaceKinetic bombardmentRods From God - New York TimesU.S. Air Force Transformation Flight Plan, United States Air Force, November 2003 - http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/af/af_trans_flightplan_nov03.pdfSeaLittoral combat shipIndependence-class littoral combat shipMedicineNew Prosthetics Keep Amputee Soldiers on Active Duty - US NewsProsthetics in the VA: Past, Present, and FutureThe future of artificial limbsMichigan Man Among 1st In US To Get ‘Bionic Eye’ - CBS DetroitLandBigDogBigDog - The Most Advanced Rough-Terrain Robot on EarthIntelligenceBat-Inspired Spy Plane - The Future Of Things | Science and Technology of TomorrowLight InfantryHeadquarters Marine Corps - Combat Development and Integration: Marine Expeditionary Rifle SquadSupportA look at the future of mobile military communications on the battlefield -- Defense SystemsUnmanned Systems Integrated Roadmap FY2013-2038 - Page on defense.gov[1] - Kinetic Bombardment is currently still relegated to science fiction rather than actually being planned out for the future of warfare, though it was referrenced as a possible avenue in the U.S. Air Force Transformation Flight Plan , November 2003 linked above. The idea comes with massive logistical and engineering problems that are beyond our current reach. Most importantly is that the delivery of massive tungsten rods into space would be an impossibly costly endeavor and likely be more costly than any possible advantages gained from the practice. Given the recent advancements in the private space industry, however, the idea of space born military instruments like this becomes more a possibility every day.Also, I am still unclear if such a reaction would throw out nuclear fallout. Since there is no nuclear reaction taking place I don't see it happening. Of course I have also read that fallout comes from the churning of already radioactive material below the earth's surface which I really don't get. Either way, I'm not a physicist so if you physicists who have just been yearning to teach me a lesson, please clear that up in the comments. The fate of a fictitious village rests on your shoulders.[2] - The littoral combat ships are not actually the future of warfare. They are happening right now. The US Navy already has a fleet of these ships in deployment. My story involved an slightly exaggerated ship that is an update of the current version. The reason I didn't change the story to focus on some future super sub or next generation aircraft carrier is because of how speculative their future roles will be. What is certain is the role LCS's will play in the next several decades as an important element in ensuring peace along the world's coastal regions. That's why I wanted to focus on them, because no matter what happens, these are going to be a part of the Navy's future.[3] - OK. The eyeball thing is pretty weird. Truth be told, I borrowed the idea from Orson Scott Card's sequel to Ender's Game, Speaker for the Dead. All this to say the character who had one was freaky too. As far as Corporal Fannon's eye, I really don't even know if it will be close to possible to fit all those technologies into such a small platform whether in the next twenty years or ever. Every day tech is improving and bionic eyes are a reality even today, but heat vision, night vision and twenty times zoom, let alone the ability to record. Well I probably stretched my creative license on that one. Maybe making a Marine into a modern day Predator was asking too much, but don't even pretend that you don't want Cpl. Cy's cyborg eye.[4] - A lot of people may be curious why I chose to write a story surrounding a glorified pack mule, but in reality, I think this machine has a much more important role than any future weapon that we might be talking about today. More important than a new self guided rounds or a gun that shoots around corners is the logistical mastery of the field. Armies march on their stomach as it is said and the ability to deliver gear and supplies cheaply and safely will be a massive advantage from modern delivery systems. Add to this that the VA paid out about $57 billion on disability benefits last year and the most common injuries from veterans today are related to stress injuries of heavy, burdensome equipment. Given this information, it makes a lot of sense for the military to utilize a robot as a form of loss prevention on the bodies of future vets its going to provide medical care for otherwise. Finally, the ability of an autonomous system to maneuver through random routes, never taking the same one twice, illuminates the most deadly foe of the War on Terror, roadside bombs known as IED's. By avoiding the major arteries that roads are, logistical support can be delivered without the expense of air drop or helicopters. It provides an unimaginable scaling opportunity for the US military on many different fronts, providing the technology works as we all hope it does.[5] - Yeah, the Scouters are from Dragon Ball Z. That's over 9000! Thank you Google Glass for fulfilling my childhood fantasies that didn't include Bulma.[6] - Those of you who are sharp will have noticed another Easter Egg in this story. More than half the technologies mentioned are built of products and companies currently owned by Google.Liked this? You might also like my YouTube Channel. You can also connect with The War Elephant on Facebook. If you want to help me make more content like this, please visit my Patreon Page to find out more.

Steps to Schedule the GMAT Exam:Gathering information – The applicants must have information regarding application deadlines in the chosen business school, location-specific regulations, special scheduling instructions (in case of disabled students) and the idea of how long it would take to prepare for the exam.Build a timeline – Build a timeline based on the first step and add extra time if you are registering by mail or paying by personal check or money order or add extra time if you are applying for testing accommodations.Scheduling for the exam (more details in the “Registration process” mentioned below) – The applicants can schedule for the exam in four ways: Phone, Mail, Fax and Online. Pay exam fee and review information before applying.Start your GMAT exam process at least six months before your test results are due. ...Review and study one section of the test at a time.Review basic math skills.Practice pacing, because time management is critical to completing the GMAT exam.Understanding the GMAT exam format and patternAttacking GMAT Quant firstUsing the Official Guide to set the foundationTaking the first practice testWhen setting up these evening study sessions, build in break time. Even if you only have 30 minutes, take a quiz, then take a one- to two-minute break before reviewing your answers and the explanations. Taking an eight-question quiz will take about 16 minutes, your break will take about three minutes, and reviewing will take about ten. If you have a full hour of study time, take a one-minute stretch break and repeat the cycle.You can also check Udemy Free coupon code for GMAT. Here is listed below screenshot of websites.Note: all the screenshots and video only for information purpose.

It was 2007. The most annoying survey had just been conducted: “How many Asian countries can you name?”It didn’t matter who I asked, most could only name one, and the answer was always the same one country: “China”To them, China was apparently the only country in Asia. There seemed to be no other Asian countries according to the people I interviewed.I was only 10 back then, but it still got me thinking:“Why do people think that the only country in Asia is China?”Soon however, it became painfully obvious: China was a country so large that it would nearly be impossible to miss it on the world map.But if you went back to 1820 (197 years ago), you’d get a different map (red indicates the borders of Modern China):At 14.7 million km^2, the Qing Empire (1644–1912 AD) was the 4th largest empire ever in world history (by area) making it 1.5 times larger than Modern China today.So the question is: who made it that large?The ruler I admire the most of course.Well actually no…… there wasn’t just one person who made it that huge but in fact two, and to be precise two of the longest reigning rulers (top 60 longest rulers) ever in Human history made China larger than she had ever been before. All by the hands of two men, China entered a long mini-Golden Age of prosperity.The First Chinese Emperor I admire the most is Kangxi (reigned 1661–1722 AD):The Second Chinese Emperor I most admire is Qianlong (reigned 1735–96 AD):Let’s look at what they managed to accomplish shall we?Warning: As always, my answer will be long, this particular answer is very extra extremely long (even for me) at 6,600 words long.If this is something you hate, please literally stop reading right now, there is nothing for you here to see.But if you stay, I promise you a very interesting read of Chinese History. If you do read it, I’d suggest reading several times to absorb all the information you would have missed from reading it the first time.Here are the contents (for ease of navigation):Chapter I: “Not by my blood-redefining what it meant to be Chinese”Chapter II: “Glory before the Sun sets, China’s last era of prosperity”Chapter III: “From the Mountain, to the Oceans white with foam”Final SummaryChapter I: “Not by my blood- redefining what it meant to be Chinese”In the vast plains of Manchuria (Northeast China), a group of Manchurian nomads who had been hunting, were now huddled around their campfire. Their leader, a man who appreciated history told them of the heroism of their ancestors, the “Jurchen” people. According to him, their people had once been so brave and so vigorous in combat that they even managed to invade and steal “Heaven on Earth” from the “Heavenly People”.It was true, he was talking about the establishment of the nomadic Jin Empire (1115–1234 AD) who had just conquered the northern half of China in 1127, forcing the weak Chinese Song Dynasty (960–1279 AD) to share China with it until the Mongol Invasion in 1279 ended both empires forever.Below is a map to illustrate the territories of the Jin and Song Empires, note how equal they were geographically:The men around the campfire couldn’t stop laughing. In their minds it was a good story but it was just that: a story, it happened such a long time ago -500 years to be exact- and it could never happen again they insisted. They were not their ancestors, they could never conquer China as their ancestors did, and with the end of that thought, they got up and left to return to hunting.But they were wrong. So very wrong. Something soon happened that none of them could ever have foreseen.A Manchurian by the name of Nurhaci rallied together all the various Manchu tribes and united them under one banner against all odds, united for one sole purpose: to invade the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644 AD). Although he died soon after, his descendents eventually conquered all of China in her entirety, and not just the northern half this time. After 500 years, the Manchu/Jurchen people had control of the “Middle Kingdom” once more.Manchurian Invaders at the Great Wall of China:But the cost of the Manchu Conquest of Ming had been devastating. Around 25 million Chinese (Han) people had been slaughtered (15% of China’s population at the time). Ming’s Economy which had accounted for 30% of the world’s wealth before the Manchu Invasion, was now non-existent. The Manchurians had destroyed, looted, raped and killed their way through all of China, destroying everything they could see, and now they held all China at their mercy.In fact, the Manchu Conquest of China had devastated China so badly that her Economy’s wealth as a percentage of world wealth had actually decreased from a peak of 29% in 1600 (under Ming) to 22% in 1700 (under Qing), a difference of 7%:Source of photo: homeFor reference, China in GDP PPP terms makes up for only 18.31% of world GDP (PPP) as of 2017, up from 17.81% in 2016 and 16.86% in 2015.But what of the Han Chinese people themselves? The Manchus continued to humiliate them:In July 1645, Dorgon (the Manchu leader) forced all Chinese men to adopt the Manchu way of life. The most significant of these lifestyle changes was that of forcing all Han males to shave their forehead and to braid the rest of their hair into a “queue” just like the Manchurians. It was done to show submission, a symbolic gesture of China’s surrender to Manchu superiority. The penalty for refusal to shave was immediate death.But it was a fate worse than death for Chinese men. According to the Chinese Philosophy of Confucianism, cutting off one’s hair was the ultimate “sin” because it showed an infinite amount of disrespect to one’s parents. The Ancient Chinese believed that your hair was a unique gift from your parents to you, thus cutting it would be an unspeakable and treacherous act of betrayal and indeed the spiritual equivalent of a felony.This was no small matter, for all Chinese people even to this day, one’s parents are the dearest (or at least should be) things in one’s life. Thus, it should not be a surprise to you then that the Han absolutely hated the Manchurians at this point, and this showed as well. Long after the Ming Dynasty collapsed back in 1644, Han resistance composed of individuals claiming loyalty to the Ming Court held out on the Island of Taiwan for 39 years until 1683.Chinese men’s hairstyles under the Han Chinese and Manchu Dynasties (and modern as well), and what it meant to cut off your hair/be different to accepted norms:Source: http://indescentdream.com by Nancy DuongThe Manchus and Han were two totally different people at this point in time. Language, culture, genetics and history divided the two great peoples. Though they lived in the same country under the new Qing Dynasty, it seemed as though they could never be rid of these major segregational differences. Though the Manchus lived in China, the Han vowed never to view them as Chinese people- in other words, as one of them.But that was also wrong. Call it what you want but “destiny” had other plans for Manchu and Han alike.In 1661 at the young age of 7, a boy called “Xuanye” became the new Emperor of the Qing assuming the Imperial title of “Kangxi” (in 1662 a year later). Though he was very young, he possessed an intelligence which put even the wisest scholars of his day to shame.The young (not so much here though) Kangxi Emperor:The young Emperor understood the perilous situation that China was in. He knew for a fact that the Han people he ruled over still absolutely hated their lives under the Manchus even after 17 years under their rule. They had and still were refusing to give the Kangxi Emperor their full undivided attention and loyalty.“More than fifty years have passed since the founding of the Qing dynasty, and the empire grows poorer each day. Farmers are destitute, artisans are destitute, merchants are destitute, and officials too are destitute. Grain is cheap, yet it is hard to eat one’s fill. Cloth is cheap, yet it is hard to cover one’s skin.Boatloads of goods travel from one marketplace to another, but the cargoes must be sold at a loss. Officials upon leaving their posts discover they have no wherewithal to support their households. Indeed the four occupations* are all impoverished!”- Tang Chen, retired Chinese Scholar, 1690s*Note: The Four Occupations refer to the Social Hierarchy that existed in Ancient China, listed in descending order from greatest to least important:Shi (士) or Gentry ScholarNong (农/農) or Peasant FarmerGong (工) or Artisans and CraftsmenShang (商) or Merchants and TradersThus, for the first half of his 61 year reign he focused only on stabilizing the Qing Empire. And he did. For 30 years, the “workaholic” Emperor (said to have woken up early, and slept late every single day) tried to present the Manchus as not just a foreign conqueror, but as the legitimate successor of the previous Chinese led Ming Dynasty.Yet he never once had to “fake it”. Kangxi actually made real, genuine attempts to integrate the Han into the Qing Empire, likewise he also made an honest attempt to assimilate the Manchu people into Han culture. He wanted to show the Han people that in fact, you didn’t need to be a Han person to be “Chinese”. No, Kangxi wanted to assert the importance instead of culture. Culture he argued was what made a Chinese person Chinese, not their blood and not their ancestors.An artist’s impression of Kangxi’s tour of Southern China, Kangxi was a very hard working man who personally oversaw the efficient and just administration of his empire instead of merely staying inside the Forbidden City all the time:As long as you adopted Chinese culture (and spoke “Chinese”) he thought, a Manchu was just as legitimately Chinese as a Han person. Thus he encouraged all Manchurian people to actively adopt Han culture in order to not be seen as invaders anymore, but as Chinese people ruling China for the benefit of Chinese people.This acted well to convince some people (mainly the common people) of Manchurian benevolence and thus emphasised their legitimacy (legitimacy was based off a concept called the “Mandate of Heaven”: only a good ruler could be considered legitimate).But the main issue (and Kangxi knew this) was winning over the elite educated class who were still sceptical of his rule.The solution in his mind was simple:“In 1679 Kangxi announced a special civil service examination, in which eminent scholars who had formerly refused to serve the Manchus and who had remained loyal to the defunct Ming dynasty would be permitted to compete.Showing exceptional sensitivity to the feelings of the loyalist scholars, Kangxi also declared that the successful candidates in this examination would be permitted to work on an official history of their beloved Ming dynasty.”Source: Emperor of China Kangxi facts, information, pictures:Kangxi was also well aware of the need to start “practising what one preaches”.Previously, he had stated before that only the adoption of Chinese culture was required to be recognised as a Chinese person. Thus he commissioned (in 1710) the famous “Kangxi Dictionary”, a collection of 47,000 Chinese characters all in one place. In being the patron of such an important work, he was able to win over the Han Chinese scholars who now agreed that he indeed was “First Scholar of the Realm” as Confucianism believed the Emperor should be: a ruler and a scholar. Thus in their eyes, he was indeed fit to be ruler of China, and the Qing (and not Ming) was who they owed their allegiance to.The Kangxi Dictionary on display at a museum:In this way, the Kangxi Emperor not only managed to stabilize China after such a devastating event as the Qing Conquest of Ming (which included destroying her entire economy, and killing 25 million people), Kangxi also managed to create a society in which being Chinese was now not determined by your blood anymore (hence the chapter title “not by my blood”) but by whether you adopted Chinese culture and language or not.Under Kangxi, China was the Middle Kingdom (centre of the world) and was announced to have belonged to Han, Manchu and Mongol equally. “Chinese language” was just an overall term to refer to Han, Manchu and Mongol languages and “Chinese people” was just an umbrella term which included Han, Manchu and Mongol people.Accomplishing this was not an easy task as you may have guessed, it was an immensely huge and difficult undertaking which many other rulers (across the world) would likely have failed at accomplishing, but not the intelligent and young Kangxi hence my admiration for him.Chapter II: “Glory before the Sun sets, China’s last era of prosperity”As powerful as Kangxi was, he still suffered like all humans did from the burden of death. He got old just like any other man or woman did, and as the final year of his life in 1722 drew ever so closer, he begun to wonder who he should choose as his successor to be the next Emperor of the Celestial Empire.Despite having 35 sons, 20 daughters and hundreds of grandchildren, as time passed, Kangxi became particularly interested with one of the many hundreds of grandsons he had. The young boy was called “Hongli” and he reminded Kangxi exactly of himself at a very young age.The Kangxi Emperor thought his grandson was very intelligent, he possessed a wisdom that surpassed even the adults he grew up under. Eventually, Kangxi had become so convinced in the abilities of his wise grandson, that he made Hongli’s father the next Emperor of China on purpose, hoping in order to one day pass the throne of China onto him.And it was so.The young boy’s father only ruled 13 years in total from 1722–35, when he died Hongli ascended the throne under the ruling name of “Qianlong” and ended up ruling China for 61 years (same amount of time as his grandfather Kangxi).Qianlong’s Ceremonial Armour (presumably worn at his coronation):As with Kangxi, the Qing Empire thrived under the rule of the new ambitious and young Qianlong Emperor.From a population of 135 million after the Qing Conquest of Ming, in 1790 (146 years afterwards) it was estimated that the Qing Empire now had 300 million people all directly due to the long period of peace and stability under the Qianlong Emperor.Following on from the Kangxi Emperor’s example, Qianlong opened up China’s borders to International Trade (limited to four Southeastern coastal cities) once more. The high demand for Chinese goods all over the world gave China an enormous positive trade balance. The excess amount of silver that resulted from this allowed the Qing Empire to facilitate the growth of competitive and stable markets allowing China to start advancing her Economy exponentially.“…foreign trade was quickly re-established, and was expanding at 4% per annum throughout the latter part of the 18th century.”Source: Myers, H. Ramon; Wang, Yeh-Chien (2002), "Economic developments, 1644–1800"“Prosperous Suzhou” a painting by the artist Xu Yang (in 1759) depicting the great period of peace and stability under the Qianlong Emperor as he viewed it:Under the Qianlong Emperor, it wasn’t just in material ways that the Qing Empire benefitted. The Qing was a time of Chinese cultural richness, a time specifically when “Made in China” actually suggested quality worthy of adoption rather than mockery. This was the case here, under Qianlong (having started with Kangxi decades prior), the visiting Europeans saw fit to adopt Chinese cultural values and apply (at least try to apply) them to European understanding of Political Science because they thought by doing so they could emulate China’s prosperity back in Europe, and in doing so legitimize the rule of the King whilst creating a “Godly” and moral country.Despite being a closed border and isolationist empire, the generosity of the Qianlong Emperor (and also Kangxi before him) ensured a small number of foreigners (mainly religious organizations like the Jesuits) were let into Qing China. It was here that a great deal of cross-cultural transactions begun to occur.At this time, though the European Empires were scientifically “enlightened” due to their great renewal and interest in their Greco-Roman cultural heritage (which had many scientific manuscripts far ahead of its time), Monastic orders such as the Jesuits were disappointed when they compared their respective European countries with Qianlong’s “Celestial Empire”.The Jesuits in China socialising with Kangxi (Qianlong’s grandfather) decades earlier:In the eyes of the European visitors, the countries of Europe were not a force to be reckoned with and could destroy whosoever dared to meddle in their affairs. But they felt that something was missing despite this excess military superiority. As the Jesuits (to use one of many examples) studied Chinese culture and the philosophy of Confucianism further and further, they were amazed at what they had read.For in China the Jesuits saw the image of how a proper God fearing Christian country could be run like: where the Emperor ruled with benevolence to legitimize his power rather than resorting to the outdated idea of the “Divine Right of Kings” (meaning “God has put me here so I am King, end of story”).Thus, to the Jesuits, the solution was simple: copy and translate as many Chinese texts as possible and send them back to Europe for further study, synthesise them with Roman and Judeo-Christian philosophies and of course prepare them for further extensive applications whenever possible.Such a belief had a huge impact on the European Enlightenment Era (1715–89 AD) eventually leading to momentous events like the French Revolution which begun on the 14th July 1789 in Paris (see comment section to understand how):Confucius as seen by the Europeans:This image, showing Confucius standing in the Chinese National Academy of Learning, is taken from Confucius Sinarum Philosophus or “Confucius, the Philosopher of the Chinese” (Paris, 1687). Some of the earlier translations of the Confucian writings were published in this book. Notice the Roman-style arch in the background of the picture and the non-Chinese use of perspective.The two large characters at the top read: "National Academy of Learning." Those on either side of the arch read: "Confucius, the First Teacher under Heaven." The books in the cases along the sides of the room bear titles of the various Confucian classics. Underneath them are tablets inscribed with the names of Confucius' disciples.The Jesuit Monastic Order especially were obsessed with the Celestial Empire. They wrote home detailed accounts of all their observations. Their letters provided material for a long series of books on China, written usually in French or Latin and published in Paris, the European center of Jesuit activities. Among them were such works as “Confucius, the Philosopher of the Chinese” (1687), “The Description of China” (1735), the long series of “Edifying and Curious Letters”, in 34 volumes (1702-76 AD), “The General History of China”, in 13 volumes (1777-85 AD); and the “Memoirs on the History, Sciences, Arts, etc., of the Chinese”, in 16 volumes (1776-1814 AD).In this way Qianlong’s reign managed to secure a Chinese influence in Europe long before the reverse was overwhelmingly true. One European Philosopher above all became absolutely obsessed with the Qing Empire, he was the renowned individual we know today as “Voltaire” (1694-1778 AD)A portrait of the French Enlightenment era Philosopher Voltaire:What absolutely confused Voltaire was that China was a country based off morals, yet she was not a Christian country. “How was that possible?” he thought. “You cannot be moral without being religious” so the Catholic Church had been saying for hundreds of years throughout Europe.Yet, here was China- a moral but yet non-Christian country. China was the “impossible country” he thought. Upon further examination he understood China at last: the Celestial Empire was founded on morals yes, but it had developed them independently of Christianity and other “western” ideologies (anything west of China in this case like Islam with the Middle-East).Voltaire’s greatest envy of China was that she was a secular country unlike his beloved France. There was no meddling from a Catholic Church being led by the Pope a foreign figurehead, to interfere in the domestic affairs of China. The Qianlong Emperor he discovered, only appeared to be an absolute ruler in theory, in practice his power was limited by the teachings of Confucianism, which declared that "the people are the most important element in the state; the sovereign is the least."In reality, Qianlong had to “share” his powers with the “Mandarins”, Chinese officials who helped him run the country. So despite glorious portraits (like below), the Emperor was not actually that powerful:Instead, the country (as had been the case since the Han Dynasty 2,000 years ago) was run on Meritocracy, and the belief that the best person for the job was simply the best with no exceptions. Thus the Qing Government became one that was not in fact just run by the Emperor, but complemented by a vast army of Civil and Military officials guided by Confucianism.As influenced by Han, the Mandarins were chosen by “Meritocratic Examinations”. The exams were a test of commitment. They were purposefully made boring, long and difficult. You had to memorise a couple of thousand of extra Chinese written characters just in order to prepare.In addition, if you passed the test, there would be a sort of “job interview” whereby senior officials (who had already passed the application process) would test your character and sincerity, alongside your knowledge of the most important military, philosophical and political texts- which were pre-requisites for effective ruling. Not to mention also that they took years and years to study for.The Examinations being administered under the previous Ming Empire:Thus, only the best, brightest, most patient and most sound of mind were chosen to rule. In this way, the Emperor was not alone and received effective help which he could count on.In contrast, France under the Bourbon Dynasty (1589–1830 AD) was an Absolute Monarchy. The King was actually in control (especially under the Absolute Monarchist Louis XIV), his power was unlimited (virtually) because of the “Divine Right of Kings”. According to the Catholic Church, God had chosen the King to rule so no one could ever question his authority, the King was always right.The worst part was that the Church itself did not practice what it preached, on one hand it said “God says don’t challenge the King”, on the other hand it stated “God is above the King so we who represent God need not listen to the King before first adhering to the Lord and his holiness the Pope who represents our Father.” Such a belief led to the Catholic Church interfering in France’s domestic affairs even after the French Revolution (1789)."One need not be obsessed with the merits of the Chinese… to recognize . . . that their empire is in truth the best that the world has ever seen."-Voltaire, leading French Philosopher of the European Enlightenment Era (1715–89 AD)In fact Voltaire even attempted to disprove common French philosophical beliefs at the time using Confucianism. A French philosophical “rival” by the name of Jean Jacques-Rousseau (1712–78 AD) had argued that the arts, sciences, and human institutions were generally harmful because they corrupted the simple goodness of human nature.Voltaire who could not disagree more produced a play called “The Orphan of Zhao” (1735) in order to craft a specific critique directed at Rousseau. He deliberately specified that the plays were promoting "the morals of Confucius in five acts," which he used to claim that Rousseau was in fact wrong about Humanity being corrupted by civilization.A modern re-enactment of “The Orphan of Zhao”- Voltaire’s Play:To specifically disprove Rousseau’s “incorrect” ideas, he changed the setting of the play from 7th Century Tang Dynasty, and set it under 13th Century Song Dynasty in the years when the Mongols conquered China. In doing this he hoped to show the superiority of human art and culture by showing how Chinese civilization finally triumphed over the warlike barbarism of the Mongols.It wasn’t just Voltaire who thought like this however, in fact the German Philosopher Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646–1716 AD) also once stated:"I almost think it necessary that Chinese missionaries should be sent to us to teach the aims and practice of natural theology (Confucianism), as we send missionaries to them to instruct them in revealed religion."-“Novissima Sinica (Translation: Latest News from China)”, Leibniz, 1697Portrait of Leibniz, the German Philosopher:However, it is important to realise that both Leibniz and Voltaire were looking at China through very “coloured lenses”, in fact Qing China was actually considered to be one of the “worst” and most corrupt Chinese dynasties in comparison with the earlier Chinese Empires of Han (206 BC-220 AD), Tang (618–907 AD) and Song (960–1279 AD). Despite there being “limited” glory under the Qing, apparently it was still able to convince the visiting Europeans of their greatness in comparison with contemporary countries back in Europe.But Qianlong’s Celestial Empire had not just stopped there in influencing the European continent. Under Qianlong, steady progress in the realms of the Fine Arts and Architecture had made China stand out from the rest of the world (this could be argued for any country however).In Europe, a new style of Art called Chinoiserie had come to prominence.Chinoiserie was defined as:“the European imitation and interpretation of Chinese art traditions.”Below is a collection of Chinoiserie Art from various European countries to illustrate my point:Chinoiserie in the United Kingdom- The “Claydon House” in the UK:Chinoiserie in France- “The Chinese Garden”, painting by François Bouche:Chinoiserie in Russia- “Tsarskoye Selo” in Russia displaying the “Chinese Village” as commissioned by Catherine the Great:Chinoiserie in Germany- Potsdam, Germany’s “Chinese House” exterior and interior:Chinoiserie in Austria- An Austrian Porcelain jug from 1799:Chinoiserie in Sicily- Interior of “Palazzina Cinese”, Sicily:It is interesting to note that none of this great Chinese-European cultural exchange would ever have occurred if Qianlong (and Kangxi) had been more intolerant to foreigners (especially with the well educated Jesuits Monks), and prevented them from visiting China to copy, and translate Chinese books before sending this all back to Europe.If it had been another Emperor, we could not say for certain that China would have been so “glorious” as to serve as an inspiration for the Europeans who sought to reform Europe politically back home. No, it is because of the Qianlong Emperor that China entered a great period of peace, stability and growth, a period so great that it thus was able to influence the visiting Europeans.Therefore, Qianlong like Kangxi was also a man I admire and respect for this reason.Chapter III: “From the Mountain, to the Oceans white with foam”Even after bringing peace to China in the earliest days of the young Emperor’s reign, Xuanye (Kangxi’s real name) understood that as long as China’s enemies were still out there, he could not rest and China could never truly be safe.Earlier I had said that when compared to China’s “Golden Ages” of the Han, Tang and Song Dynasties, the Qing was a “bad” dynasty. This was not completely true however.As great as these powerful empires were, China had actually never fully subdued the powerful nomadic peoples of the north under them. China’s second most powerful empire for its time the Han Empire, even took 224 years from 133 BC until 91 AD to defeat the nomadic Xiongnu Empire. But even then, the nomads were not “truly” defeated, instead a settlement was reached and the Xiongnu voluntarily became a tribute nation (one which gives a certain amount of gifts each year to a foreign ruler).Instead, they had mainly relied on the Great Wall of China to deter any attackers:The Ming Dynasty, another “lesser” empire (compared to Han, Tang, Song) rebuilt the Great Wall to protect themselves from the Mongols. Under the Ming, the Great Wall of China had a full renovation and was rebuilt with both stone and brick. The Ming made the greatest addition to the Great Wall out of all the Chinese empires.After it had finished being renovated, the Great Wall stretched for 8,850 km, had 5,723 beacon towers, 1,176 defence fortresses, 3,357 watch towers and 7,062 defence towers. A total of 11 garrisons were stationed all across the Wall under the previous Ming Empire, a total of 100,000 soldiers at the Wall were kept on 24 hours alert, keeping Ming China safe for 100 years until the Manchu Qing arrived.As a Manchu person, Kangxi knew for a fact that the Great Wall was really just a very expensive military deterrent and was next to useless when it came to actually defending China from the northern invasions. Kangxi’s own people, the Manchus had literally demonstrated this merely a couple of years ago when they bribed the guards of the Great Wall into letting the Manchus into China.The truth to Kangxi was clear, the Great Wall was not a really effective way of protecting the Middle Kingdom from foreign invasions. It soon became painfully obvious to the Emperor that there was only one certain way to protect the Qing Empire from ever being invaded again: by taking the fight to the enemy themselves, on their own territories with the aim of incorporating them into the Qing Empire, so they would change their allegiance and serve him and China instead.Kangxi was able to do this (remember Chapter I) because China was now a multiethnic state, and being Chinese merely meant adopting Chinese culture, a task he felt compelled to fulfil in the aftermath of his upcoming campaigns.His solution? Conquer the enemy, and that is exactly what happened.Note to audience: It is important to realise that whilst Kangxi did expand his empire in an violently imperialistic manner, this was more of a compulsory solution to pacify the invaders of China. It was a “side-effect” of bringing about peace. China rarely, (if ever) believed in military expansion, as such this rare case of Chinese Imperialism came about only in “future self-defence”, to protect her from any possible foreign invasions.In fact, Confucianism had especially emphasised the use of non-violence.Source: Yuan-kang Wang, Harmony and war: Confucian culture and Chinese power politics. Columbia University Press, 2011:14. Quote from John K. Fairbank, “Varieties of the Chinese Military Experience,” in Chinese Ways in Warfare, ed. Frank A. Kierman Jr. and John K. Fairbank (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1974), 7–9.“Warfare was disesteemed in Confucianism... The resort to warfare (wu or 武 ) was an admission of bankruptcy in the pursuit of wen (文 ) [civility or culture]. Consequently, it should be a last resort... Herein lies the pacifist bias of the Chinese tradition... Expansion through wen... was natural and proper; whereas expansion by wu, brute force and conquest, was never to be condoned.”Qing Conquests under Kangxi (1661–1722 AD) and Qianlong (1735–96 AD):Though the map doesn’t show it, the island of Taiwan which housed Ming loyalists was the first target of Kangxi.The Flag of the Kingdom of Tungning (1661–83 AD) in Taiwan, home of the Ming loyalist regime:At the decisive Battle of Penghu (1683), with 60,000 soldiers and 600 battleships outnumbering the Ming loyalists 3 to 1 in numbers and ships, it should be of no surprise to anyone then that the loyalists were ultimately defeated on the High Seas.In the aftermath of this defeat, Qing Marines landed on the Island of Taiwan and after hearing that the Qing Military was closing in on their capital, the Ming loyalists surrendered to the Kangxi Emperor. Thus in this way, Taiwan was incorporated into the Qing Empire.The Qing Navy returning home after the end of a similar Taiwanese rebellion 100 years later:But it didn’t stop there, Kangxi was not satisfied yet. He felt that China was still under threat from attack. He was very right.500 years before, the Chinese Song Dynasty had been the pre-eminent power of the world. It recorded 118,000,000 people in its 1120 AD census, produced 64.2 billion kg of grain per year (650 kg/person before taxes, 544 kg/person after taxes)- a number greater than all Europe in the late 1800s, accounted for at least 40% of the world’s wealth and invented gunpowder, the compass, printing and even established retirement homes, public clinics and graveyards for the homeless.Then the Mongols came, and after 44 years of heroic resistance, Song China finally fell to the Mongols.Mongol Invasion of China (1235–79 AD):By the end of the war, so many Chinese people had been murdered that the Imperial Census conducted by the Mongols in 1300 AD recorded a number of 60 million individuals, far below the record 118 million in 1120, 180 years before.The resulting Mongol regime was not at all like Kangxi’s era of benevolence, under the Mongols the Chinese were treated so incredibly poorly that even when they were kicked out in 1368, there was always a constant paranoia that the Mongols would one day return to finish China off forever.In this way, the Mongols managed to shatter China’s confidence for 500 years.A clever man as always, Kangxi knew that for China to become a powerful empire once more, he had to first give her back her confidence. For that reason, he launched a preemptive surprise strike on the remnants of the Mongols first. At this time, the “Mongols” (not really, but related) had built up a large empire in what is Western China today.The “Dzungar Khanate”, the strongest of the Mongol “remnant” empires along with the Khoshut Khanate in Tibet, and the Northern Yuan Dynasty (direct remains of the Mongols who invaded China 500 years earlier, but were now actually on China’s side since they were vassals of the Manchus before they conquered China). The Qing is also there (on the right) but it is unnamed, notice how equal the Mongol empires and Qing were:What was supposed to be a quick and clean victory for the Qing, did not go as planned however. This “easy” war became one that eventually lasted for 70 years from 1687–1757 AD- far beyond Kangxi’s own life, and what was supposed to be only one small war eventually became four giant ones. After the death of Kangxi , the Qianlong Emperor continued his grandfather’s work and eventually defeated the Dzungar Khanate after years of fighting.The image below depicts the Khan’s surrender to the Qing in 1755:Despite the two empires being of equal size, it was the Qing who managed to defeat the Dzungar peoples, and not the other way around despite also the famous ferocity of the Turkic nomadic peoples- a reputation that had been well known in China for almost 2,000 years.So how did the Qing do it? The answer was a lot simpler than you might think.The great advantage of the Qing Administration under Kangxi (who was a Manchurian) was due to its dual existence on one hand as leaders of a powerful civilized empire, yet on the other hand as the descendants of nomadic peoples.Despite Kangxi’s efforts to sinicise the Manchus, many still retained the habits of their ancestors (the most notable of which was the Manchu tradition of Archery Hunting). This proved extremely useful on the battlefield as the Qing commanders understood how the Mongols fought like and as such could accurately predict their next moves whilst simultaneously making it easier to control the people they conquered. This combined with superior Qing firearm technology allowed China to prevail eventually.Although Kangxi had started the 70 year long war against the Mongol Dzungars, it was his grandson Hongli, the Qianlong Emperor who finished them off.The Battle of Oroi-Jalatu in 1756, one of the last battles between Qing and the Dzungars:By the end of the 70 year war, the Qing had managed to incorporate Tibet, Inner and Outer Mongolia, and Xinjiang (Northwest China) into the Great Qing Empire. The people of these areas being also assimilated with Chinese culture, meant that China was now a true multi-ethnic state.This was an especially momentous occasion for with the conquering of what is today Xinjiang Province, the Northwest returned to Chinese control for the first time in 850 years since the end of the Tang Dynasty in 907 AD.The final result of these campaigns is shown below, here is the Qing at her heights:And that, is the true story of how China got so huge, becoming the 4th largest empire ever by area in world history.How China lost 5.1 million km^2 of land however, is a separate story for later which I may tell one day in the future on Quora.Real life Flag of the Qing Dynasty representing China from 1889–1912:Final Summary:There wasn’t just one Chinese Emperor that I admired, but two: Kangxi (reigned 1661–1722 AD) and Qianlong (1735–96 AD). Together, this period of history is known today as the “Prosperous Era of Kangxi and Qianlong”.Under Kangxi and Qianlong, China reached its last age of prosperity. Never again until today would China achieve so much using so little.Because of the Kangxi Emperor, China was redefined as a multiethnic empire where classification as a “Chinese” person was based off culture and language rather than blood. Under Kangxi, Manchus and Mongols as long as they spoke Chinese and adopted Han culture, were just as Chinese as the Han people themselves. This has continued to remain true for China today even.Because of the Qianlong Emperor, China accelerated into an era of wealth, stability and growth. Due to the great tolerance of the Qianlong Emperor, the European visitors who were allowed into China soon became infatuated with the Celestial Empire, and they ended up translating Chinese philosophical books with the goal of bringing them back to Europe hoping to enact change, which did come in the form of the French Revolution.Because of both Kangxi and Qianlong, China reached unimaginable heights which she had never before been able to in her history before. At 14.7 million km^2, Qing China was even 1.5 times larger by area than Modern China today. The Qing Campaigns allowed Tibetans, Uyghurs and Mongols to be considered as Chinese people also, upon assimilation by the Qing Empire. In addition, it showed how far the Emperors were willing to go to protect China from otherwise imminent dangers.Thus how can Kangxi and Qianlong not be admired more is the real question.Additional comments:Special thanks to Josh Bergeman for requesting my answer without which I would never have been able to write this extremely long response. The only regret I have is not being able to answer his request sooner (he requested 2 months ago) because I literally forgot to do so until Sunday. Oh well, “better late than never” as they say aren’t I right Josh?Go check out his cool profile by clicking on his name.And thanks for reading, I know it was long.