In this chapter we discuss neural approaches to speech recognition. We begin with hybrid DNN-HMM approaches and then turn to RNN-based systems. Most of the chapter is focused on attention-based systems. We review a number of recent systems including RNN transducers, Listen, attend, and spell, Wav2letter, Wav2vec, HuBERT, Conformer, and QuartzNet.

Chapter 9 introduces transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), a neurostimulation technique that uses rapidly changing magnetic fields to induce electric currents in targeted brain regions. Beginning with its historical roots in 19th-century electromagnetic experiments and evolving through Anthony Barker’s groundbreaking 1985 demonstration, TMS has become a critical tool for establishing causal relationships between brain activity and behavior. Unlike neuroimaging methods that only observe brain activity, TMS can temporarily interrupt or enhance neural processing, enabling researchers to create “virtual lesions” and directly test hypotheses about regional brain function. The chapter examines TMS delivery methods, single-pulse, paired-pulse, and repetitive stimulation, and their differential effects on cortical excitability. It details four primary research applications: virtual lesions for establishing causality, chronometry for determining processing timelines, mapping functional connectivity between brain regions, and tracking neuroplasticity. Clinical applications are discussed, particularly for treating depression and presurgical mapping. The chapter also addresses practical aspects of TMS implementation, localization techniques, and safety considerations, concluding with a brief overview of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) as a milder alternative stimulation approach.

This chapter examines the employment of air and space power in the twenty-first century, considering possible future developments in air and space power out until the year 2040. It notes the growing role of commercialisation in the delivery of air and space power and how businesses such as SpaceX have become a part of military operations through contractorisation. The chapter notes how Western air power advantages have been eroded by developments in Chinese aerospace and the proliferation of increasingly sophisticated missile systems. The rise of drone warfare is covered, along with the procurement of a range of drone and missile systems by non-state actors such as Hamas and Hezbollah; the chapter concludes with considerations of the ways in which this presents challenges going forward and a repudiation of the suggestion, presented by commentators such as Van Creveld, that the ’age of air power’ had drawn to a close.

Cyber warfare has attained a growing prominence in debates on contemporary and future warfare. Cyber tools are an important element in the conduct of information operations and cyber is commonly viewed now as a separate domain of warfare. The cyber domain has a range of attributes that appear to give it some unique advantages over the traditional warfare domains. This has led some commentators to argue that it is an increasingly decisive element in warfare, perhaps even able to substitute for traditional land, air and maritime forces. But there are counter-arguments that hold that cyber warfare has significant weaknesses as a tool and that it is an important, but still complementary element, in modern warfare.

This chapter builds on the analysis contained in the environmentally specific chapters in this book and explores the challenges and opportunities associated with joint warfare and joint operations. It examines the history of such operations and explains why they have tended to be so difficult to conduct successfully, before then addressing alternative approaches to the conduct of joint operations and to the command and control of such operations. The chapter then addresses current ideas relating to joint warfare and to concepts of multi-domain integration and multi-domain operations. These are explored with reference to the strategy and doctrine of a number of different armed forces, including the latest US developments in this field.

Chapter 2 traces the development of electroencephalography (EEG) from its inception with Richard Caton’s pioneering work in 1875 to its current status as a cornerstone of human neuroimaging. The chapter discusses how EEG captures the electrical signals generated by synchronous activity of pyramidal neurons arranged in open fields perpendicular to the cortical surface. It examines the technical evolution of recording systems, from basic silver-chloride electrodes to modern active electrode arrays with built-in amplification, and explains the standardized 10-20 electrode placement system that enables spatial mapping of brain activity. The chapter addresses the inverse problem that constrains EEG’s spatial resolution while highlighting its exceptional temporal precision for tracking neuronal events in millisecond timescales. Special attention is given to the characteristic oscillatory patterns in different frequency bands (alpha, beta, theta, delta, gamma) and their association with cognitive states ranging from deep sleep to focused attention. The chapter details practical considerations for obtaining clean recordings, including artifact reduction techniques and experimental design. By evaluating EEG’s strengths (temporal precision, direct measurement of neural activity, accessibility) alongside its limitations, the chapter positions EEG as an enduring, versatile tool for both clinical applications and cognitive neuroscience research despite technological advances in other imaging modalities.

This chapter develops the argument that land, in the form of the ground that warfare is fought on, gives land warfare certain unique characteristics, including its political significance, variability and resistant nature as a medium. These characteristics in turn shape the nature of the forces that fight upon land, making them complex, human-centric and persistent, and giving them the potential for the power of decision. Land warfare is complex: its prosecution requires navigating a wide array of competing trade-offs including those between manoeuvre and attrition, centralisation and decentralisation, and attack and defence. Land power, however, is composed of much more than land warfare, and joint and multi-domain capabilities make a vital contribution.

This chapter examines intracranial electroencephalography (iEEG), a rare but powerful technique offering unparalleled insights into human brain function by recording electrical activity directly from the brain’s surface. It traces iEEG’s development from pioneering work by Penfield and Jasper in the 1950s to modern applications with up to 1,024 recording channels. The chapter outlines the two primary surgical approaches, stereo EEG with depth electrodes and electrocorticography with surface grids, and explains how these techniques achieve both high temporal (millisecond) and spatial (millimeter) resolution by bypassing the signal-dampening effects of skull and scalp. Particular attention is given to high-gamma-power signals (70–200 Hz), which reflect neuronal firing with exceptional signal-to-noise ratios. The chapter addresses methodological considerations including electrode localization, signal processing, and data interpretation challenges unique to recording from epilepsy patients. It balances discussion of iEEG’s remarkable advantages, such as direct access to neuronal activity across cortical layers and network nodes along with its limitations, including restricted accessibility, sparse sampling, and the clinical constraints that dictate electrode placement. The ethical framework governing this invasive research methodology is emphasized throughout.

This chapter treats non-neural approaches to automatic speech recognition. We cover classical techniques like dynamic time warping and the structure of HMM- and GMM-HMM-based recognition systems. We spend a fair amount of time on the Kaldi system, as this is still very widely used.

This chapter examines concepts and theories associated with naval warfare and maritime strategy. It begins with a discussion of the unique nature of the maritime operating environment before exploring the idea that navies have particular attributes or characteristics. It introduces the key principles of classic maritime strategy before exploring alternative approaches often employed by those facing an enemy stronger at sea. Concepts addressed include command of the sea, sea control and denial, fleet-in-being, blockade and guerre de course. These are explored with reference to relevant theories, to contemporary commentators and to current naval doctrine and maritime strategy.

Chapter 5 examines functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) as a transformative neuroimaging technique that maps brain activity by detecting changes in blood oxygenation. The chapter traces fMRI’s development from Angelo Mosso’s 19th-century observations of blood-flow changes during neural activity to Seiji Ogawa’s pioneering work with blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) contrast in the 1990s. It discusses the neurophysiological basis of the BOLD signal and how increased neural activity triggers disproportionate increases in cerebral blood flow relative to oxygen metabolism, creating measurable magnetic susceptibility differences. The text analyzes the temporal profile of the hemodynamic response, with its characteristic delay, peak, and undershoot, emphasizing its implications for experimental design. Considerable attention is given to the methodological complexities of fMRI research: preprocessing steps (slice-timing correction, motion correction, coregistration), statistical analysis approaches (including voxel-wise comparisons and region-of-interest analyses), and techniques for examining functional connectivity between brain regions. By evaluating fMRI’s comparative advantages, which is exceptional spatial precision and its noninvasive nature, alongside its limitations in temporal resolution and indirect measurement of neural activity, the chapter discusses fMRI as a powerful, albeit technically demanding, tool that provides unique insights into functional brain organization while requiring rigorous experimental design and statistical analysis.