Science & Tech

The Pentagon Wants to ‘Fingerprint’ the World’s Hackers

By tracking their tools and behaviors, DARPA aims to solve one of the thorniest problems of cybersecurity: attribution.

Science & Tech

The Futuristic Aircraft That May Replace the Black Hawk Will Fly Next Year

But don’t expect the V-280 or SB-1 to hit battlefields until after 2030 — unless their builders find other customers first.

Science & Tech

US Spies Want a Laser Gun That Can Detect Bombs from 100 Feet Away

If the device can be produced and later miniaturized, it may end up resembling a gun or grocery-store scanner.

Science & Tech

The Military Is Pouring Money into Smart Fabrics, But There's a Holdup

A lead researcher explains why high-tech cloth could help the Pentagon with everything from solar-powered tents to sniper-detecting uniforms.

Science & Tech

The Problem with the Pentagon's Hypersonic Missile

Military officials say their superfast weapons of the future won’t carry nuclear warheads. But will other nuclear nations believe it when the missiles start flying?

Science & Tech

'Hey Siri, Fire For Effect': US Army Seeks Voice-Controlled Gear

In the desert, a dusty touchscreen might not recognize a soldier’s sand-covered gloves. There might be a way around that.

Business

Seeking to Boost Its Public Image, F-35 Joins the Airshow Circuit

Program officials are trying to improve popular perceptions of the late, over-budget Joint Strike Fighter.

Science & Tech

US Intelligence Wants Computers That Spot Fake Fingerprints

Researchers at the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Agency aim not only to spot prosthetic thumbs, it will also learn to predict attacks never seen before.

Science & Tech

F-35 Chief: Think Very, Very Hard Before Making Another Joint Fighter

Lt. Gen. Chris Bogdan has a bit of advice for Air Force and Navy leaders envisioning their next tactical aircraft.

Science & Tech

Behind the Air Force's Fast-Growing Cyber Research Budget

The service wants to quadruple its money for defending networked aircraft, launch systems, satellites and a whole lot more.

Science & Tech

The Military’s Super-Fast Bird Drone

The Defense Department’s mad scientists show how to make super-fast, light-weight drones.

Science & Tech

The Army Has Made a Robot Cockroach

Biologically inspired robot bugs could be the next big thing in intelligence collection.

Science & Tech

America's Spies Want to Speed Up IBM's Quest for a Quantum Computer

IBM has been working on quantum computers for decades, and now it has the support of IARPA, the U.S. intelligence community’s research agency.

Science & Tech

The US Military Just Ditched Plans to Launch Satellites with F-15s

DARPA was looking for a way to get small sats into orbit more quickly, but the fuel proved too dangerous.

Science & Tech

Can the Military Design a Disaster-Resilient City?

Cities are incredibly complex, and break in complicated ways. Understanding that complexity will be key to mitigating tomorrow’s disasters.

Science & Tech

The US Military Is Developing Brain Implants to Boost Memory and Heal PTSD

One of DARPA's many brain-improvement projects centers on implantable, wireless devices intended to aid troops' cognitive abilities both during and after wars.

Science & Tech

When Military Robots Can Predict Your Next Move

New research may enable robotic armed guards — or just help self-driving cars get through a four-way stop.

Ideas

DOD's Current InfoSec Strategy Is 'Patch and Pray’

But DARPA Director Arati Prabhakar says that her agency is working to make computing ‘mathematically, provably secure.’

Science & Tech

Engineering Humans for War

Inside the Pentagon’s efforts to create a super-soldier — and change the future of the battlefield.

Science & Tech

Is This the Warship of the Future?

Laser-armed battleships that print their own drones will have to survive anti-ship missiles plummeting from space.