Software, Not Just Bullets, Puts Military At Odds

Military commanders, government officials and members of Congress have long wrangled over which weapon systems are needed. Now, there’s an argument over what computer software should be provided to soldiers in Afghanistan. It’s a defense dispute for the digital age.

In recent years, the ability to analyze data has become almost as important to U.S. war-fighters as the guns they use.

“We’re no longer just hurling mass and energy at our opponents,” says John Arquilla, a professor of defense analysis at the Naval Postgraduate School. “We’re using information as well, and the more you know, the less of the older kinds of weapons you need.”