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United States Department of Defense

Commentary

Pandemics and the U.S. Military: Lessons from 1918

Military leaders today face a more benign security environment than their predecessors did during the 1918 Spanish flu. The U.S. military is engaged in operations abroad, but it's not fighting a great-power war. The Pentagon has every reason to focus on stemming the COVID-19 pandemic even if it has to absorb some downgrade in readiness.

Apr 1, 2020
Commentary

Force Planning in the New Era of Strategic Competition

If the United States means to take a return to strategic competition seriously, then force planning must evolve beyond the post–Cold War approach. A new framework would let users test their intuition and identify areas of advantage while avoiding the risk of persisting in competitions that impose onerous costs.

Mar 28, 2020
News Release

News Release

New Space Force Will Need Resources, Clear Definition of Warfighting Mission

To meet the goals of the U.S. Space Force most space activities in the Department of Defense should be moved into the new service. Moreover, it will be critical that the Space Force clearly define and clarify its space warfighting mission.

Mar 13, 2020
Report

A Separate Space: Creating a Military Service for Space

As the United States creates the Space Force as a service within the Department of the Air Force, RAND assessed which units to bring into the Space Force, analyzed career field sustainability and drew lessons from other defense organizations.

Mar 13, 2020
Research Brief

How to Build an Effective, Efficient, and Independent Space Force

To increase its likelihood of developing into a successful organization, the new U.S. Space Force should define and clarify its space warfighting missions. And most space activities in the Department of Defense should be moved into the new service.

Mar 13, 2020
Blog

National Security Commission on AI Requests New Ideas; RAND Responds

The National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence put out an open call for submissions about emerging technology's role in the global order. RAND researchers stepped up to the challenge and submitted a wide range of ideas.

Feb 21, 2020
Report

Do Civilians Receive the Support They Need After Deployment?

As more U.S. government civilians have been deployed over the past two decades, increasing numbers have been exposed to high-threat environments. Combat exposure and related stressors correlate with significant levels of health conditions. How are these civilians reintegrated when they return?

Feb 11, 2020
Report

Issues with Access to Acquisition Information in the Department of Defense: A Series on Considerations for Managing Program Data in the Emerging Acquisition Environment

This research identifies and describes some of the issues related to managing acquisition program information in the emerging acquisition environment resulting from statutory changes within the Department of Defense acquisition community.

Feb 6, 2020
Report

Report

Considerations for Managing Program Data in the Emerging Acquisition Environment: Summary

This research identifies and describes some of the issues related to managing acquisition program information in the emerging acquisition environment resulting from statutory changes within the Department of Defense acquisition community.

Feb 6, 2020
Commentary

How to Actually Recruit Talent for the AI Challenge

In the global race to dominate AI technologies, talent is everything. The Pentagon should consider redesigning its personnel policies to accommodate a much greater degree of speed and permeability in its cyber and AI workforce, regardless of what pay and benefits it offers.

Feb 5, 2020
Blog

Artificial Intelligence, Refugees, Global Health Security: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the Pentagon's artificial intelligence strategy, technology's role in the refugee crisis, threats to global health security, and more.

Dec 20, 2019
News Release

News Release

Pentagon's Ambitious Vision and Strategy for AI Not Yet Backed by Sufficient Visibility or Resources

The U.S. Department of Defense has articulated an ambitious vision and strategy for artificial intelligence (AI) with the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center as the focal point, but the DoD has yet to provide the JAIC with the visibility, authorities and resource commitments needed to scale AI and its impact across the department.

Dec 17, 2019
Report

How Well Is DoD Positioned for AI?

The U.S. Department of Defense has articulated an ambitious vision and strategy for artificial intelligence. But if it wants to get the maximum benefit from AI-enhanced systems, then it will need to improve its posture along multiple dimensions.

Dec 17, 2019
Report

Availability of Family Violence Services for Military Service Members and Their Families

The authors examine resources available to military-affiliated victims and perpetrators of child abuse/neglect and domestic abuse, barriers to utilization, and challenges faced in addressing these issues, and recommend ways to improve services.

Nov 25, 2019
Report

An Examination of the Methodology for Awarding Imminent Danger Pay and Hostile Fire Pay

In this report, RAND researchers examine the Defense Department's methodology for awarding hostile fire pay and imminent danger pay and explore whether a different approach might be more effective.

Nov 18, 2019
Commentary

First, Manage Security Threats to Machine Learning

Deception is as old as warfare itself. Until now, the targets of deception operations have been humans. But the introduction of machine learning and artificial intelligence opens up a whole new world of opportunities to deceive by targeting machines.

Nov 4, 2019
Report

Big Data Could Improve Military Recruiting

DoD and the U.S. military services have had some success with data-enabled outreach and recruiting. But they could benefit from expanding their adoption of private-sector approaches. For example, recruiters could better target prospects through the use of personally identifiable information and third-party data.

Oct 22, 2019
Commentary

Embrace Open-Source Military Research to Win the AI Competition

Unless the Pentagon embraces a more open approach to artificial intelligence, it will be left behind. Private sector innovation in this space is too fast. But what are the risks of disseminating potentially sensitive AI technology? And what should not be disclosed?

Oct 16, 2019
Report

Report

Reflections on the Future of Warfare and Implications for Personnel Policies of the U.S. Department of Defense

This Perspective summarizes and synthesizes material from a workshop addressing how U.S. Department of Defense personnel policies may evolve to address future warfare environments, which are expected to be heavily influenced by advanced technologies.

Oct 16, 2019
Report

Report

Literature on Personnel Vetting Processes and Procedures: Annotated Selected Bibliography

To help inform the U.S. government in its efforts to improve the vetting processes for public trust and national security positions and protect its assets and information, the authors assembled a selected bibliography of relevant literature.

Oct 14, 2019

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RAND Topic:
United States Department of Defense

Topic Synonyms:
Department of Defense