Impact of Technology on War
Introduction
The development and adoption of technology by the human race has resulted in the creation of innovative products and ideas that have brought human kind closer to achieving even the unrealistic of goals. In as far as technology has been employed to improve the quality of life of individuals; it has been adopted to advance the militaristic capability of nations. The inclusion of technology in military strategy and weaponry has facilitated armies in developing concepts and equipment that improves chances of victory, against the enemy. For this reason, militaries of different nations invest heavily in research and development of the technological field, and the application of the resulting concepts to make their armies faster, stronger, efficient, and their weaponry deadlier than compared to past inventions. This result is evidenced in the United States which has been cited as having the strongest armed and sophisticated military in the world.
As opposed to past military tactics that focused on the size of the army and the type of armor and artillery, technology has been applied to these premises to facilitate for efficient and effective combat. In this case, the use of technology in the military has been to enhance rapid and accurate precision in the shortest time possible. This paper will provide an in-depth analysis of the impact of technology on warfare and the role played by war in the advancement of the technological field, while taking into consideration practical examples from past wars around the world.
Impact of Technology on Warfare
Man has always endeavored to make his weapons deadlier to achieve instant and rapid results. This has seen the transition of warfare from the agrarian era, industrial age, and finally the current new age. The Gulf War was seen as the warfare that marked the transition from the past as it incorporated aspects of mass destruction as used emphasized in the past to the use of precision weapons that resulted in minimal collateral. Also, this technology improved the provision of real-time information as well as surveillance and target acquisition.
Securing victory in battle rests on achieving three main aspects, namely, use of long-range weapons, deadly artillery, and speed. In this case, armies that had the advantage of all three concepts won their respective battles. For this reason, human beings over the course of time have focused their creative ability on increasing the speed of both weapons and armies, improved precision and range extension of weapons, and increased fire power. This has brought to focus the incorporation of technology on the improvement of tools of modern warfare. In order to evaluate the impact of technology on war over the course of time, the categories of extension of range and precision increase of fire power, and communication effectiveness in the battlefield as expounded further below provides accuracy in the evolution of technology.
The increase in lethality and range extension of weapons led to the dispersion of soldiers on the battlefield. This was enabled by rifling introduced in the 19th century and which provided range extension and increase in accuracy of weapons. As a result, the previous range of soldiers on the battlefield increased from 5km to the current approximate of 40km by 40km. this concept was applied in the Gulf War as it saw the use of long-range lethal fires and the use of precision weapons. In August 1998, the Tomahawk cruise missiles were used in the precision strikes against terrorist locations in Afghanistan and Sudan. These missiles were launched from either submarines or submarines or ships that were cruising on the Arabian Sea. The use of this technology resulted in fewer civilian casualties as the missiles only targeted terrorists’ camps which were destroyed without affecting the civilian population in the respective countries.
Also, the First World War saw the use of the Flamethrowers. This concept was built on the Chinese’ tactic during medieval time, with the difference being that the flames could burn alive enemy soldiers who were hurled in the dugout trenches and holes in the bunkers without causing structural damage. This tactic was used by the Germans in trench warfare in 1915.
The current technology has built on the concepts applied in the precision strike systems to further increase lethality, range, and dispersion. This has been seen in the creation of the inter-continental ballistic missiles. This technology is currently the longest in range as the ballistic missiles can be launched from one country, and with precision systems, destroy the target in another continent. This concept was applied during the Iraq war that saw the United States destroy enemy camps in Iraq. Also, the improvement in lethality and dispersion trend is seen in the creation of the Multiple Rocket Launcher Systems, Dual Purpose Improved Conventional Munitions (DPICM). The use of these advanced technologies through dispersion tactics has also introduced the concept of improved communication. From this technology the impact of communication has been greatly influenced as people can communicate without geographical limitations through the use of satellite technology. This has broken the communication barriers that existed prior to advances in this militaristic technology.
The application of lethality and dispersion concepts has enabled the improvement in strategy and decision-making ability on both the commander and the soldier on the ground. The former can easily change formations and provide soldiers with the ability to disperse easily hence increasing the outcome of the task. The latter can maneuver more easily thereby increasing effectiveness of the strategy and improving the quality of results.
Volume of Fire
The machine gun was first used during the First World War in 1914. This weapon had a primate design that was heavy and restricting. It could be operated by 4 operators and its weight restricted movement of rapidly-advancing infantry. The first automatic gun was poised to release 600 bullets per minute resulting in heavy fire at the time. However, during World War II, the use of artillery fire dominated the battle field. In this case, mass artillery fires were brought down on the enemy to facilitate massive destruction of the enemy’s assets. This led to the development of technology that could locate the enemy’s artillery for protection against the enemy’s heavy fire.
Following the creation of a deadly zone from the exchange of fire between the two sides led to trench warfare as none could proceed against the other. This trend was common in the First World War. As a result, this led to creation of field fortifications and the general use of entrenchments. In this case, the tank was created could allow mobility of soldiers hence increasing survivability while at the same time adding fire power. This concept was used mainly by the Germans.
The lack of precision in past weapons was compensated by heavy artillery fire. This concept was changed upon the creation of guided weapons that was adapted in laser technology in the form of target designators led to economizing the size of the army while at the same time could manage targets with high speeds and those that could maneuver easily. This concept has been adopted in modern times following the development of laser technology for medical use. This has allowed medical practitioners the ability to identify the area meant to be operated upon through improved precision and accuracy. As a result, this approach has contributed to increased survival rates and faster recovery times.
Effectiveness of Communication
One of the most important concepts in warfare is the ability to communicate effectively. This allows the troops in the battlefield to implement strategy and also allow them to change tactics in needs be. For this reason, various technological inventions were developed over the World Wars. In this case, the creation of the hydrophone during the First World War saw the ability of the military to locate enemy submarines underwater while also specifying their distance. As a result, this enabled armies to launch offensive against the enemy lest they were caught by surprise. This concept has further been adapted in sonar technology that has enabled vessels at sea to communicate with each other while at the same time identify objects such as icebergs that could pose danger.
At the beginning of the 19th century, the telephone was invented and used for military operations. In this case, battlefield information could be communicated by telephone thereby greatly reducing lag time and precipitated instant action through communication of orders and also changes in military tactics and strategies which improved results. The use of electronics took prominence during the Second World War. The predominant means of communication by the Germans was mostly through Code. In this case, English code breakers created electronic computers whose main focus was decrypting Nazi code. Also, the Americans used small electronic computers that were used to perform mathematical calculations with regards to mechanical trajectory which soldiers carried on the battlefield. However, this trend was replaced by control centers established on ships and airplanes that laid basis for networking computing. This concept played a significant role in the development of the internet.
Conclusion
Also, the use of rocketry during the Second World War has inspired space inventions and exploration of space in which case has yielded tremendous results that have impacted human lives greatly. The different war periods also saw the creation of communication devices and most importantly contributed significantly to the creation of the computer. The DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) designed the first computer meant for militaristic purposes. This equipment has been largely adopted in these current times leading to improved communication ability and the improvement of efficiency and effectiveness of operations.
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