Managing Complexity During Military Urban Operations
Visualizing the Elephant
The complexity that characterizes modern urban operations combines with a perceived intolerance of military casualties to make actions in cities among the most difficult missions that U.S. armed forces will undertake. This study proposes a new planning approach that employs identification of critical points — the essential elements of the urban area’s physical and demographic terrain — along with the notion of density — the quantity of elements and activities within the urban space — to aid military personnel in their efforts to overcome the complexity. Integrating this approach with the traditional command estimate process should assist the planner in determining how best to allocate a command's ever-scarce resources.
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- Copyright: RAND Corporation
- Availability: Available
- Format: Paperback
- Pages: 52
- List Price: $23.00
- Price: $18.40
- ISBN/EAN: 0-8330-3491-X
- Document Number: DB-430-A
- Year: 2004
- Series: Documented Briefings
The research described in this report was sponsored by the United States Army and conducted in RAND Arroyo Center.
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