DSS 703 Resources
These are the core texts and supplemental readings for my course on Science, Technology, and Defense Policy
Core Texts
- Krepinevich, Andrew F. The Origins of Victory: How Disruptive Military Innovation Determines the Fates of Great Powers. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2024.
- Mahnken, Thomas G. Technology and The American Way of War Since 1945. New York: Columbia University Press, 2008
- Rosen, Stephen Peter. Winning the Next War. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1994.
Science, Technology, and National Power
- Beckley, Michael. Unrivaled: Why America Will Remain the World’s Sole Superpower. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2018.
- Bickell, Eleni G. The U.S. Land-Grant University System: Overview and Role in Agricultural Research. R45897. Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 2022.
- Hacker, Barton C. “Engineering a New Order: Military Institutions, Technical Education, and the Rise of the Industrial State.” Technology and Culture 34, no. 1 (1993): 1–27.
- Hounshell, David A. From the American System to Mass Production, 1800-1932: The Development of Manufacturing Technology in the United States. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1984.
- Kevles, Daniel J. The Physicists. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1995.
- Lieberman, Marvin B., and David B. Montgomery. “First-Mover Advantages.” Strategic Management Journal 9 (1988): 41–58.
- Manzi, Jim. The New American System. National Affairs, Spring 2014.
- McNeill, William H. The Pursuit of Power: Technology, Armed Force, and Society since AD 1000. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2013.
- Nelson, Richard R., and Gavin Wright. “The Rise and Fall of American Technological Leadership: The Postwar Era in Historical Perspective.” Journal of Economic Literature 30, no. 4 (1992): 1931–64.
- Nichols, Rodney W. “Mission-Oriented R&D.” Science, 172,29-37, 1971.
- Parker, Geoffrey, The Military Revolution: Military Innovation and the Rise of the West, 1500-1800. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996.
- Perez, Carlota. Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, 2002.
- Raudzens, George. “War-Winning Weapons: The Measurement of Technological Determinism in Military History.” The Journal of Military History 54, no. 4 (1990): 403–34.
- Research Management Advisory Panel. Mission Agency Support of Basic Research. US Government Printing Office, 1970.
- Romer, Paul M. “Endogenous Technological Change.” Journal of Political Economy 98, no. 5 (1990): S71–102.
- Solow, Robert M. “A Contribution to the Theory of Economic Growth.” The Quarterly Journal of Economics 70, no. 1 (1956): 65–94.
- Wang, Dan. Breakneck: China’s Quest to Engineer the Future. New York: W.W. Norton, 2025.
- White, Lynn. Medieval Technology and Social Change. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1966.
Science, Technology, and Military Innovation
- Arquilla, John. Worst Enemy: The Reluctant Transformation of the American Military. Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, 2008.
- Baxter, James Phinney. Scientists Against Time. United States: Little, Brown, 1946.
- Boot, Max. War Made New. New York: Gotham, 2006.
- Brodie, Bernard and Fawn Brodie. From Crossbow to H-Bomb. Bloomington: Indiana Univ. Press, 1973.
- Esper, Mark T. and Deborah Lee James. Final Report of the Commission on Defense Innovation Adoption. Washington, DC: Atlantic Council, 2024.
- Fuller, J.F.C. Armament and History: A Study of the Influence of Armament on History from the Dawn of Classical Warfare to the Second World War. New York: De Capo, 1998.
- Goldman, Emily O. and Leslie C. Eliason, eds. The Diffusion of Military Technology and Ideas. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2003.
- Horowitz, Michael C. The Diffusion of Military Power. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2010.
- Hughes, Wayne P. and Robert P. Girrier. Fleet Tactics and Naval Operations, Third Edition. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 2018.
- Kevles, Dan. “Cold War and Hot Physics: Science, Security, and the American State, 1945-56.” Historical Studies in the Physical and Biological Sciences 20, no. 2 (1990): 239–64.
- Lassman, Thomas C. Sources of Weapon Systems Innovation in the Department of Defense: The Role of In-House R&D, 1945-2000. Washington, DC: Center of Military History, 2008.
- Muller, Richard A. Physics and Technology for Future Presidents. Princeton: Princeton Univ. Press, 2010.
- Murray, Williamson and Allan R. Millett, eds. Military Innovation in the Interwar Period. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998.
- Parker, Geoffrey. The Cambridge History of Warfare. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005.
- Posen, Barry R. The Sources of Military Doctrine: France, Britain, and Germany between the World Wars. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1984.
- Raudzens, George. “Firepower Limitations in Modern Military History,” Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research 67, no. 271 (1989): 130–53.
- Raudzens, George. “War-Winning Weapons: The Measurement of Technological Determinism in Military History.” The Journal of Military History 54, no. 4 (1990): 403–34.
- Van Creveld, Martin L. Technology and War: From 2000 B. C. to the Present. A revised and Expanded edition. New York: Touchstone, 1991.
- Vickers, Michael G. and Robert C. Martinage. The Revolution in War. Washington, DC: Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, 2004.
Defense S&T Strategy, Policy, and Planning
- Abella, Alex. Soldiers Of Reason: The RAND Corporation and the Rise of the American Empire. New York: Mariner Books, 2009.
- Antolin-Diaz, Juan, and Paolo Surico. “The Long-Run Effects of Government Spending.” American Economic Review 115 (7): 2376–2413, 2025.
- Coleman, Frank, Nick Mellors, and Ryan Brukardt. Revving Up America’s Manufacturing to Unleash the Defense Industrial Base. McKinsey, 2026.
- Department of Defense. State of Competition Within the Defense Industrial Base. 2022.
- Falk, Charles. Technology in Retrospect and Critical Events in Science (TRACES), Volume One and Volume Two. Springfield: Department of Commerce, 1968.
- Finkbeiner, Ann. The Jasons: The Secret History of Science's Postwar Elite. New York: Viking, 2006.
- Fox, J. Ronald, et al. Defense Acquisition Reform, 1960–2009: An Elusive Goal. US Army Center of Military History, 2011.
- JASON, S&T and National Security. 2009
- Jones, Anita and Larry Lynn. Final Report of the Defense Science Board Summer Study on Defense Science and Technology. Washington, DC: Office of the Secretary of Defense, 2002.
- Kaplan, Fred. Wizards of Armageddon. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1991.
- Gilpin, Robert. American Scientists and Nuclear Weapons Policy. Princeton: Princeton Univ. Press, 1962.
- Gorn, Michael H. Harnessing the Genie: Science and Technology Forecasting for the Air Force, 1944-1986. Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History, 1988.
- Gorn, Michael H. Prophecy Fulfilled: “Toward New Horizons” and Its Legacy. Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History, 1994.
- Gray, Colin S. Transformation and Strategic Surprise. Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College, 2005.
- Greenway, Robert, et al. A Strategy to Revitalize the Defense Industrial Base for the 21st Century. Washington, DC: Heritage Foundation, 2025.
- Lassman, Thomas C. Sources of Weapon Systems Innovation in the Department of Defense: The Role of In-House Research and Development, 1945-2000. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 2008.
- Peck, Merton and Frederic M. Scherer. The Weapons Acquisition Process: An Economic Analysis. Boston: Harvard University, 1962.
- Schriever, Bernard. Director’s Summary Report, USAF Project Forecast. February 14, 1964,
- Shah, Raj and Christopher Kirchhoff. Unit X: How the Pentagon and Silicon Valley Are Transforming the Future of War. New York: Scribner, 2024.
- Sherwin, Chalmers W., and Raymond S. Isenson. Project HINDSIGHT Final Report. Washington, DC: US Department of Defense, 1969.
- Westwick, Peter. The National Labs: Science in an American System, 1947-1974. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2003.
Case Studies of S&T in Military Innovation
- Angevine, Robert. “Innovation and Experimentation in the US Navy: The UPTIDE Antisubmarine Warfare Experiments, 1969–72”. Journal of Strategic Studies, 28(1):77-105, 2005.
- Aronstein, David C. and Albert C. Piccirillo. Have Blue and the F-117A. Reston, VA: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 1997.
- Bacevich, Andrew J. The Pentomic Era: The US Army Between Korea and Vietnam. Washington, DC: National Defense University, 1986.
- Ballard, Jack S. Development and Employment of Fixed-Wing Gunships, 1962-1972. Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History, 1982.
- Baucom, Donald R. The Origins of SDI, 1944-1983. Lawrence: University of Kansas Press, 1992.
- Burnett, Maurice G. Hexagon Mapping Camera Program and Evolution. Chantilly, Virginia: Center for the Study of National Reconnaissance, 2012.
- Brown, Shannon A., ed. Providing the Means of War: Historical Perspectives on Defense Acquisition, 1945-2000. Washington, DC: US Army Center of Military History, 2005.
- Gansler, Jacques S., William Lucyshyn, and Jiahuan Lu. Fixed-Price Development Contracts: A Historical Perspective. Maryland University College Park Center for Public Policy and Private Enterprise, 2012.
- Hayes, Bradd C. and Douglas V. Smith. The Politics of Naval Innovation. Research Report 4-94. Newport: U.S. Naval War College, 1994.
- Hughes, Thomas P. Rescuing Prometheus: Four Monumental Projects That Changed the Modern World. New York: Knopf, 2000.
- Jones, Wilbur D. Arming the Eagle: Case Studies of United States Weapons Acquisitions Since 1775. Washington, DC: Defense Systems Management College Press, 1999.
- Mackenzie, Donald. Inventing Accuracy: A Historical Sociology of Nuclear Missile Guidance. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1990.
- McGinn, John G. Case Studies of Technology Transition. Baroni Center for Government Contracting, George Mason University, 2024.
- Neufeld, Jacob. Technology and the Air Force: A Retrospective Assessments. Washington, DC: Air Force History and Museums Program, 1997
- Oder, Frederic C.E., James C. Fitzpatrick, and Paul E. Worthman. The CORONA Story. Chantilly, Virginia: Center for the Study of National Reconnaissance, 2013.
- Oder, Frederic C.E., James C. Fitzpatrick, and Paul E. Worthman. The GAMBIT Story. Chantilly, Virginia: Center for the Study of National Reconnaissance, 2012.
- Oder, Frederic C.E., James C. Fitzpatrick, and Paul E. Worthman. The HEXAGON Story. Chantilly, Virginia: Center for the Study of National Reconnaissance, 2012.
- Pedlow, Gregory W., and Donald E. Welzenbach. The Central Intelligence Agency and Overhead Reconnaissance: The U-2 and OXCART Programs, 1954–1974. Washington, DC: CIA, 1992.
- Peebles, Curtis. Road to Mach 10: Lessons Learned from the X-43A Flight Research Program. Reston, VA: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 2008.
- Pierce, Terry C. Warfighting and Disruptive Technologies: Disguising Innovation. London: Cass, 2004.
- Redmond, Kent C. and Thomas M. Smith. From Whirlwind to MITRE: The R&D Story of The SAGE Air Defense Computer. Cambridge: MIT Press, 2000.
- Rhodes, Richard. Dark Sun: The Making of the Hydrogen Bomb. New York: Simon and Schuester, 1996.
- Rhodes, Richard. The Making of the Atomic Bomb. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2012.
- Rich, Ben R. Skunk Works: A Personal Memoir of My Years of Lockheed. NY: Little Brown, 2015.
- Robarge, David. Archangel: CIA's Supersonic A-12 Reconnaissance Aircraft. Washington, DC: CIA Center for the Study of Intelligence, 2012.
- Watts, Barry D. Six Decades of Guided Munitions and Battle Networks: Progress and Prospects. Washington, DC: Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, 2007.
- Werrell, Kenneth P. Chasing the Silver Bullet: US Air Force Weapons Development from Vietnam to Desert Storm. Washington, DC: Smithsonian, 2003.
- Westwick, Peter. Stealth: The Secret Contest to Invent Invisible Aircraft. NY: Oxford Univ. Press, 2020.
- Yengst, William. Lightning Bolts: First Maneuvering Reentry Vehicles. Mustang: Tate, 2010.
Useful Resources
- DoD Defense Technical Information Center
- Rand Military Technology
- DoD Historical Office
- US Naval History and Heritage Command
- US Army History Center
- US Air Force Historical Research Agency
- Ike Skelton Combined Arms Digital Research Library
- CIA Center for the Study of Intelligence
- NRO Center for the Study of National Reconnaissance
Blogs and Podcasts
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