Computer Science 39K: IT (Information Technology) Goes to War!

Professors David A. Forsyth and Randy H. Katz
Computer Science Division
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department
University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, California 94720-1776

Course Description

Necessity drives invention. In this seminar, we will examine the interwined historical development of information technology, broadly defined as computing, communications, and signal processing, in the 20th Century within the context of modern warfare and national defense. Topics include: cryptography/cryptanalysis and the development of the computer; command and control systems and the development of the Internet; the war of attrition and the development of the mathematics of operations research; military communications and the development of the cellular telephone system; precision munitions and the development of the Global Positioning System. While we will endeavor to explain these developments in technical terms at a tutorial level, our main focus is to engage the students in the historical sweep of technical development and innovation as driven by national needs, and whether this represents a continuing framework for the 21st Century.

Course Location and Grading

Room 320 Soda Hall, Wednesdays, 10-12 noon
2 Units, Pass/Fail based on attendance, seminar participation, three short papers.

Course Agenda

21 January 04

Seminar Introduction, Course Mechanics, and Getting Acquainted 

• Discussion of Students' Background and Experience
• Why Study Warfare?
• Screening of "Saving Private Ryan"/Omaha Beach sequence
• Discussion of Universal Conscription vs. Volunteer Army
• Brief Introduction to the Naval Game: Early 20th Century Strategic Decision Making

28 January 04

• Theme: Naval Warfare, Military Planning, Naval Arms Race, and Technological Surprise
  
• Historical Examples
  • German and British Naval Policy
  • Naval Strategy for WWI
  • The Threat of the Submarine
  • Jutland
• Discussion Questions
  • How Should Germany Build its Fleet, and What Should Britain Do?
  • What can be Learned from 1914-1918, particularly Jutland?
• IT Issues
  • Communications, Coordination, Intelligence, Tracking
• Insurgency Project Description, Due 10 March
  
• Brief introduction to the radio game
• Readings--Background information on the Naval Game and the WWI Naval Battle of Jutland
  

4 February 04

• Theme: Tactical Communications
• Background on radio communications, discipline, limitations, jamming, etc.
• Group exercise: the radio game
• Brief introduction to air combat
  
• Discussion Questions:
• Is hearing as good as seeing?
  
• Is radio communications as good as face-to-face communications?
  
• What is the effect of adversarial intermediaries in the middle of communications?
• Brief introduction to the concept of radar and air interception
• Readings--Dear Foot: Articles on Radio Communications, Electronic Warfare; Lorber: pages 1-36;
  

11 February 04

• Theme: Strategic Bombing
  
• Minilectures
• Radar
• Bombing (circa 1940)
• Engaging aircraft circa 1940
• Selected screening from the film "Battle of Britain"
  
• Discussion Questions
• What does bombing do?
• Is it effective?
• Is it cost-effective?
• What are the IT issues involved in bombing?
• What strategies might be appropriate for addressing these issues?
• Readings--Dear Foot: Articles on Radar, Electronic Navigation Systems, Strategic Air Offensive, Thousand Bomber Raids, Blitz, Bombers, Fighters; Lorber: Radars and the Battle of Britain, Strategic Bombing and the Self Defense of the Heavy Bomber, Drop Tanks: The German Failure, The Problem of the Allied Long Range Escort Fighter, "Window" and What to do About It, Lord Tizard and the Battle of the Beams, pp. 57-76, 95-100, 104-107, 144-147, 157-161;
  

18 February 04

• Theme: Strategic Air Defense 
• Group Exercise: Defense: plan an air defense system Offense: overwhelm air defenses
• Initial planning
  
• Initial engagement/defense
  
• Determine outcomes and repeat
• Read ahead for next week--Dear Foot: Articles on Air Gap, Mid-Atlantic (pp. 9-11); Atlantic, Battle of (pp. 49-54); Convoys (pp. 207-209); Huff-Duff (pp. 429-430); Magic (pp. 552-555); Midway, Battle of (pp. 585-586); Sea Power (pp. 770-774); Signals Intelligence (pp. 781-785); Submarines (pp. 843-846); Torpedoes (pp. 874-876); Ultra (pp. 910-917); Lorber: Missed Opportunity of the Snorkel (pp. 100-104); Scandel of the American Torpedoes (pp. 134-144); Enigma, Purple, and Overreliance on Preconceived Notions (pp. 164-175);
  

25 February 04

• Theme: Battle of the Atlantic and Cryptography
• Short screening from the film "Enigma"
• Discussion
• War of attrition
• Tactical, strategic significance of decrypts
• How encryption works
• How decryption works
• Codebreaking
• Read ahead on missle technology

3 March 04

• Theme: ICBMs and Ballistic Missle Office and Defense
  
• The Cold War Game
  

10 March 04

• Theme: Insurgency and Counter-Insurgency
• Student reports
• Group 1:  IRA insurgency
• Group 2:  Insurgency in Israel
• Group 3:  Insurgency in SA
• Group 4:  Insurgency in Afghanistan (Jihadi's vs USSR)
• Minilecture: counter-insurgency strategies
• Historical discussion: Peninsular war, Boer war, etc.
• Shuffle groups: each must prepare a set of counter insurgency strategies for coming insurgency in given area WITHOUT seeing attackers strategies.
• Group 1: counter strategy for USSR
  
• Group 2: for UK
• Group 3: for Israel
• Group 4: for SA
  

17 March 04

• Theme: Counter-Insurgency Tactics/Peacemaking and Peacekeeping
  
• Brief screening of scenes from the film "Black Hawk Down"
  
• The Islandia Game
  

31 March 04

• Theme: International Terrorism
• Minilecture:  Distinction between terrorism and insurgency
• Examples:
  
  • IRA bombing campaign, campaign against Israeli state,
  • ANC non-military campaign, RAF, Japanese RAF?,
  • Money
  • Arms
  • Skills
• Counter-terrorism
• Discuss why convoys are so powerful (active defense)
• Is an active defense against terrorism possible?
• What offensive strategies are available?
• How significant is intelligence?

7 April 04

• Theme: Insurgency and Counter-Insurgency
• Discuss strategies, counter strategies
• How would you modify your strategies/counter strategies in the face of what you know about the other side?
• What works for insurgents?
• What works for counter insurgents?
• Set final essay (done individually)
• Assess US vulnerabilities to terrorism
  
• EITHER  from the view of an attacker who wishes to do damage to IT infrastructure
• OR  from the view of a defender who wants to identify the major contributions that IT can make to defense
  

14 April 04

• Theme: Terrorism
• Group Exercise:
• Group 1:  Plan a major terrorist campaign on US soil, intention: forcing the US to disengage from the UN (secret from 2)
• Group 2:  Capture and disarm group 1 (identify group, funders, etc.)
• Round 1:  g1 plans, g2 plans
• Round 2:  g1 plans or acts, g2 ditto
• Round 3:  g1 plans or acts, g2 ditto
• Round 4: ditto
• Discuss what happened; why are there so few serious terrorist attacks on US soil
  

21 April 04

• Theme: Proxy Wars
  

28 April 04

• Theme: Special Forces
  

5 May 04

• Course Wrap-up, Summary, and Evaluation
  

Reading List

Required Textbook

I. C. B. Dear, M. R. D. Foot (Eds.), The Oxford Companion to World War II, Oxford University Press, Paperback Edition, 2001.
Azriel Lorber, Misguided Weapons: Technological Failure and Surprise on the Battlefield, Brassey's, Washington, 2002.