From: john grigg (starman125@hotmail.com)
Date: Mon Mar 13 2000 - 17:48:48 MST
>Spike Jones wrote:
>
> > Right! You almost said it here Greg. *Why* do you think this attitude
> > has finally changed? It because we have good battle simulators
>running...
>
>Michael S. Lorrey wrote: ...generals will prepare to fight by the latest
>generation combat simulator. Now you will have an arms race in simulator
>tactics and technology...
Spike wrote:
That works for me. The good guys are way ahead. {8-] Also, that is
one rare example of military technology that really does have good
commercial spinoffs: faster computers, more programmers, etc. Take
a look at some of the better flight simulators. You might be impressed
with the realism: they sim such subtleties as the moment of inertia
coupling, high speed sub-mach buffet, performace loss at altitude, the
real performance characteristics of the planes. Perhaps this will
eventually be seen as a first step in creating sims good enough to
fool an uploaded human.
(end)
Training for war has been revolutionized (and will be MUCH more so in the
future) by computer simulators. My girlfriend's father just got his orders
to move to California where he will help lead a force of 'bad guys' to teach
visiting units how to fight by trouncing them. He is so happy about it(or
could it be that he won't have to see me anymore?)! Of course, simulators
will be used a great deal and are considered a cheaper and still effective
method of training armored units.
We have all read how the military has approached the Hollywood wizards of
special effects and computing to make much more realistic simulations and
have been warmly received. From what I understand it is the infantry now
who will be addressed to really get ultra-realistic sims, since armor, naval
vessels, and aircraft have long the beneficiaries.
I never thought of an arms race in simulators! It does make sense though.
This will make the gap between developed nations and those not so even
greater. We should offer a simwar to Saddam the next time he threatens to
get out of line but then that guy is extremely dense.
One thing that makes me angry about the U.S. and European
military-industrial establishments is that we are willing to sell the rope
that later may hang us in the name of profit! I have read that the pentagon
to an extent even 'encourages' this so that when a possibly hostile nation
gets a near-current weapons system, the pentagon can then say to congress,
"we must have more funding, they're catching up!!" In the end, our
needlessly dead troops in some foreign land could be the losers.
Mike Lorrey wrote:
Wouldn't it be great if we could pass an international law that said
that nations had to fight their wars in simulators?
(end)
It would be but do you remember the 'Star Trek' episode where two warring
peoples have computers keep track of casualties and if your area is hit you
MUST report to your local desintegrator chamber?? Count me out! Of course,
Kirk fell for a local gal and blew up the computers. He dared them to
continue the war for real!
best regards,
John Grigg
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