military
Missing Japanese F-35 poses major security headache for US if it falls into Russian or Chinese hands
Japanese defense officials say a search is underway for the fighter jet after it disappeared from radar during a flight exercise in northern Japan. The plane’s pilot is also missing. Bristling with sophisticated technology and weaponry, the F-35 is the result of the most expensive weapons program in America’s military history, valued at $406.1 billion.
The STARBASE program is run at student academies set up on existing military bases. The goal of the program is to provide STEM-focused experiments and activities to motivate students to further explore STEM subjects throughout their continuing education. The STARBASE academies serve students who are historically underrepresented in STEM: students who live in inner cities or rural locations, are socioeconomically disadvantaged, low in academic performance, or have a disability.
Employers increasingly are finding that veterans are the right fit for jobs in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, according to a study by Syracuse University's Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF). Working off data from the American Community Survey of the Census Bureau for 2012-2016, the IVMF researchers concluded that military service was a main factor contributing to job growth for veterans in emerging technology fields.
The country that is first to develop and field battlefield lasers will have a distinct military advantage. Directed energy weapons promise to complement kinetic weapons and help fight off various emerging threats, such as swarms of drones, fast attack boats, and cruise missiles. And the recently released Missile Defense Review calls for studying the potential of space-based lasers to intercept ballistic missiles.
President Donald Trump and his top U.S. military adviser met with Google’s CEO about concerns that Silicon Valley’s AI collaborations in China may benefit the Chinese military. Such worries reflect awareness of how certain technologies developed for civilian purposes can also provide military advantages in the strategic competition playing out between the United States and China.
A new AI-enabled pilot project aims to sense “micro changes” in the behavior of people with top-secret clearances. If it works, it could be the future of corporate HR.
For years, drone warfare has been an essentially American pursuit. The new age of armed robots has been symbolized by Predators and Reapers spewing Hellfire missiles. But guess who’s the biggest exporter of combat drones? China. “In 2014-18 China became the largest exporter in the niche market of unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs), with states in the Middle East among the main recipients,” according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, which compiles estimates of global military strength and arms spending.
The Defense Department’s inspector general confirmed on Wednesday that it has launched an investigation of acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan on whether he has made decisions overly favorable to his former employer, airline industry giant Boeing.
Google has requested a meeting with a top U.S. general as political tension rises over the internet giant’s artificial intelligence work in China. General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the joint Chiefs of Staff, said on Thursday that Google "indirectly benefits the Chinese military" and is planning to meet with the company over the matter. The Pentagon official cited a Google AI lab that opened in Beijing in 2017 as a cause of concern.
The Air Force increased 2020 budget push takes another step in an aggressive plan to prototype, test and deploy hypersonic weapons on an expedited schedule -- to defend against enemy attacks by fast-tracking an ability to launch high-impact, high-speed attacks at Mach. 5 - five times the speed of sound.