The article argues that recent executive overreach and politicization have severely undermined established norms of U.S. civil-military relations. To restore professional standards, the incoming Congress must actively exercise its oversight powers, moving beyond mere criticism to demanding transparency in defense policy and personnel decisions. Key reforms include enforcing meritocratic promotion processes, requiring documented justification for senior officer removals, and preventing the partisan use of the military. These actions are crucial for bolstering public trust and ensuring the military remains a nonpartisan instrument of civilian control.
Assessing the Practical Feasibility of the Clader-Jacobs-Sprouse Quantum Algorithm for Calculating Radar Cross Sections
English Summary
This RAND report evaluates the Clader-Jacobs-Sprouse (CJS) quantum algorithm for calculating radar cross sections (RCS), finding that while it offers a theoretical exponential speedup over classical methods, it faces massive practical implementation hurdles. Quantitative estimates indicate that the computational resources required for even simple 2D models would currently result in runtimes exceeding the age of the universe on projected hardware, largely due to bottlenecks in Hamiltonian simulation and the overhead of quantum oracles. Consequently, quantum-driven breakthroughs in stealth aircraft design are unlikely in the near term, though policymakers should monitor advancements in unrelated fields like drug discovery that could eventually improve the underlying quantum subroutines.
中文摘要
這份蘭德報告評估了用於計算雷達散射截面 (RCS) 的 Clader-Jacobs-Sprouse (CJS) 量子演算法。研究發現，雖然該演算法與傳統方法相比在理論上具備指數級加速的潛力，但在實際執行上面臨巨大的障礙。定量估計顯示，即使是針對簡單的二維模型，在預期的硬體上所需的運算資源也會導致運行時間超過宇宙年齡，這主要是由於哈密頓模擬 (Hamiltonian simulation) 的瓶頸以及量子預言機 (quantum oracles) 的過高開銷。因此，短期內不太可能出現由量子技術驅動的隱形戰機設計突破，但政策制定者應持續關注藥物研發等其他領域的進展，因為這些進展最終可能改善相關的底層量子副程式。
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