TABLE OF CONTENTS

then be evaluated by front line operators in the Distributed Military Operations Center
(DMOC) at Kirtland AFB, NM, in an attempt to find disruptive technologies as well as
point out potential areas for integrating new technology into legacy systems.
For the USAF to be successful in 2025 we will need to be able to detect and react
to nanotechnology threats in a timely manner. As a Blue capability, the process would
allow the USAF to identify potentially disruptive technologies and develop concepts of
operations before the capability is even partially developed. As a Red threat, an
adversary could generate operational surprise by potentially creating a first use
advantage.
This detection-reaction capability might be generated by developing a suitable
virtual reality environment and recruiting large numbers (i.e., millions) of people who
would be willing to spend free hours helping to develop and refine potentially disruptive
technology ideas. We have a long history of operators partnering with researchers much
later in the development cycle of a capability. Given the exponential change curves
facing us, the process being proposed is an attempt to help shift the USAF toward looking
for new employment ideas much earlier in the development process.
Recommendations: 1) The USAF needs to exploit options for generating
disruptive technologies by developing a mechanism to feed 6.1 and 6.2 research projects
into virtual applications for validation of advanced design concepts. 2) Monitoring of
foreign patent office research submissions along with the normal exploitation information
derived from intelligence channels could provide a range of potential adversary ideas that
could be validated and run against U.S. systems in the virtual network created for U.S.
nanotechnology research ideas. 3) Use the DMOC to test concepts in a controlled