Intelligence: Its technological base

Military intelligence — timely information about an actual or potential enemy — is pulled together from widely disparate sources. At one time it was gathered by ears and eyes, communicated by word of mouth, and interpreted in the minds of experts. Although this is still practised today, electronic intelligence gathering and computer analysis are stealing the limelight. These days the ears and eyes are in the sky, in space, and under the ocean; electromagnetic waves are the primary information source, and computers transform the data for the experts into meaningful intelligence.