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Disruptive Technologies ... Re-imagining The Future Force
by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class James Norket
June 5, 2021
Chief of Naval Research Rear Adm. Lorin C. Selby spoke virtually
to Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) students, faculty and staff about
“Re-Imagining the Future Force,” and how the United States military
is changing and forging ahead in the modern era of Great Power
Competition during the latest Secretary of the Navy Guest Lecture
(SGL), May 25, 2021.
 Selby also serves as the commander of the
Naval Research Enterprise, which includes the Office of Naval
Research (ONR), Naval Research Laboratory, ONR-Global and PMR-51.
He spoke about many of the large transitions throughout
history resulting from innovations. From early humans learning how
to preserve food and domesticate farm animals, to the invention of
steam engines and eventually wireless commination. He believes that
we are on the verge of the next big revolution in technology.
“We are at a pivotal moment in history,” said Selby. “We are in
the middle of a new transition in technology, and I think we have to
adapt rapidly in order to be successful in the new world that we are
entering.”
Selby noted that one of the biggest obstacles the
Department of Defense faces is in the acquisition field, saying that
things are being invented faster than we can get them to the
warfighter.
“I’ve been on a journey for several years trying
to figure out how we can keep up with this technology that is racing
ahead at its current pace,” said Selby. “This is no longer about
changing the acquisition process, it is about restructuring and
streamlining the [whole] process.”
Selby spoke about past
innovations that were, in his own words, “disruptive technologies,”
such as smart phones and nuclear-powered ships, that have forever
changed the way people live and militaries operate.
“What’s
the next disruptive technology that we can give to the warfighter
that will increase their effectiveness?,” asked Selby. “That’s what
we are looking for at the Office of Naval Research. We want to put
these state-of-the-art things in the hands of the warfighter and
ensure that we never have to fight fair with anyone.”
After
his prepared remarks, Selby fielded questions from select NPS
students, posing questions on everything from the future of directed
energy to changes in training pipelines in order to stay current
with the latest technologies.
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Rachel Meyerhofer and Jeffrey Banghart, student
interns temporarily assigned to Naval Surface Warfare
Center, Carderock Division's Disruptive Technology
Laboratory (DTL) under the Naval Research Enterprise
Internship Program (NREIP), respectively, work with Lt.
Brian Hart under the supervision of DTL deputy director and
NREIP mentor Harry Whittaker to stream video from one
Microsoft Hololens augmented reality heads-up display to
another as part of a project they are working on for the
next version of the Optionally Manned Technology
Demonstrator (OMTD) in West Bethesda, MD on July 21, 2017.
(U.S. Navy photo by Dustin Q. Diaz)
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U.S. Marine Corps Capt. Mike
Gannon, a student in NPS’ manpower system analysis program, asked,
“What is the number one research priority that we cannot afford to
fall behind on in this era of Great Power Competition?”
Selby
responded by saying, “I think it’s very dangerous to bet on even one
new technology. We like to look at a vast array of information
because you just never know which may come to fruition in the
future. We find it’s better to have a wider, and maybe a little
shallower depth to our investments rather than going really deep
into one.”
U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Brian Curran, a Ph.D student
in applied physics, inquired about the role of directed energy and
how it may change the way the Navy fights.
“I think in 20
years you’ll find directed energy on every combatant in the fleet,
as well as on noncomabtants and shore locations around the planet,”
noted Selby. “While lasers are phenomenal, this is just one of the
solutions we’ll have, it’s one arrow in the quiver. The quiver of
defensive and offensive assets will be very diverse, and the key
will be prioritizing which arrow in your quiver will take on which
threat.”
U.S. Air Force Maj. Sean Batson, a student in the
Northeast Asia Foreign Area Officer program, asked, “How can the
Naval Research Enterprise be able to integrate open mission
standards to improve interoperability between the different branches
of the armed forces?”
Selby answered by saying, “I think
digital engineering needs to be foundational to everything we do.
That way we could maintain configuration control and can ensure that
the standards that are used at the interface is understood by those
that need to understand and not everybody.”
Selby closed with
some useful thoughts about leadership and the future.
“Don’t
be shy,” Selby advised the students. “We are in a technological
race, and it is a race that will be decided in the next 10 years.
All of you with bright minds out there who have ideas, I value your
input. If you’ve got an idea, throw it on the table, because that
idea may be the one that wins the day. If your idea is right, you
could be a future disruptor.”
For a deeper dive into future
technologies, check out the
U.S. Naval Institute’s interview with Selby,
where he discusses quantum technology, lasers, research and STEM
education.
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