Warfare as a complex adaptive system

Nations have traditionally made war the way they make wealth. Throughout history, technology has played a key role in warfare and significantly impacted the way nations think about, plan and execute war. Examining the issues of precision strike and modern warfare in the information age we begin to understand that precision alone is not enough. Taking war a piece at a time is no longer adequate. If the warfighter is to truly understand the battlespace in the fast moving and dynamic environment that future warfare promises to be, then we must change our thinking. We must begin to look at warfare as a complex adaptive system. The new science of chaos offers insight and possibility. This paper gives a brief historic overview of warfare and cites key technological and scientific developments. We examine the impact of precision on the modern battlefield with its accompanying moral and financial implications. It looks at these developments in the context of warfare as a complex adaptive system and discuss the potential impact of chaos theory on future war as we go beyond information warfare