List of Sources that I found useful for the Research project:
1) Cipera, Kelly. “Defining the Genre: Military Science Fiction | Fandomania.” Fandomania, 25 May 2013, fandomania.com/defining-the-genre-military-science-fiction/.
This source presents a definitive meaning of the sub-genre/term “Military Science Fiction,” while providing multiple examples of works relative to the subgenre. The sub-genre is essentially about the military, which coincidentally involves battles that include the military, and they usually revolve around a futuristic scenery. However, cipera provides a more flexible definition of the term in the sense that it provides a deeper meaning to it. For instance, how works of the subgenre present info on current events, or how individuals use works as a way to form an actual vision of the U.S. Military.
I plan on using this source for the sole purpose of background information, as it presents a very insightful and very thorough definition of the term, “Military Science Fiction.” It is important that others understand, to a good extent, the meaning of the term as it is a definitive core on the focus of my research.
2) Knight, Will. “US Military Sets Laser PHASRs to Stun.” New Scientist. N.p., 7 Nov. 2005. Web. 28 Nov. 2016. https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn8275-us-military-sets-laser-phasrs-to-stun/
This source presents a reason why laser rifles were set to stun. To put it simply, they were too powerful. The U.S. government developed a much weaker, non-lethal, version of the laser rifle which is said to dazzle targets. In addition, The Personnel Halting and Simulation Response (PHASR) rifle was developed at the Air Force Research and is said to be useful in terms of temporarily blinding suspects that tend to violate military roadblocks. This rifle was also developed in order to remove properties of permanent harm, which was a result from safety concerns.
This source will aid on supporting a claim relative to limiting the level of harm done by weapons that were shown in works of Science Fiction in real world applications. The laser rifles are obviously a very popular weapon in the Science Fiction world, so when the weapon was first developed, there were permanent side effects that violated moral values of the targets and the wielder. This source can be used to counteract the laser rifles shown in the film Star Wars, where laser rifles are very lethal.
3) Knefel, John. “How the Pentagon Is Building the Super Soldiers of Tomorrow.” Inverse, 7 Jan. 2016, www.inverse.com/article/9988-how-the-pentagon-is-building-the-enhanced-super-soldiers-of-tomorrow.
The U.S. military is planning on developing enhanced human operations. In other words, the development of super soldiers. The plan to implement soldiers of this caliber was due to the news that enemies of the U.S. are planning on developing super soldiers that were inspired by the film Captain America. The process on the production of super soldiers by DARPA, will allow soldiers to keep their initial state-of-mind, but they will be physically enhanced. There is also discussion on therapies post-traumatic stress, where DARPA aims to remove trauma that soldiers suffer from traumatic missions.
I plan on using this source for one of my claims on the development of the super soldier. This source will provide useful information on how the capabilities of human U.S. soldiers will be physically enhanced and how it will be beneficial. I can also use this source with the film, Universal Soldiers, which demonstrated the capabilities of super soldiers and how they were cured of their post-traumatic stress.
4) “Modern and Future U.S. Military and Civilian Aircraft.” Military Factory – Military Weapons – Aircraft, Tanks, Vehicles, Artillery, Navy Warships and Guns throughout History. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Dec. 2016.
This source discusses the production and future production of U.S. Air Force jets, planes, UAV’s, etc. How aircrafts play a huge role in the effectiveness of military operations and how the airborne process should essentially bring an individual from point A to point B. This website also demonstrates images on future operations. Some that can be seen from films of Science Fiction.
I will be using this source for one of my claims that distinguishes the difference between offensive and defensive prowess from military operations. How they are different, and how some of these aircrafts were developed. For what purpose exactly.
5) “The U.S. Military Has Pain Rays and Stun Guns. So Why Aren’t They Being Used?” The Week – All You Need to Know about Everything That Matters. N.p., 2014. Web. 05 Dec. 2016.
This source discusses the U.S. military’s decision to use non-lethal weapons and why they were created but not actually used. This source also presents some of the most strange, as in out of the ordinary, non-lethal weapons that the military has to offer.
I plan on using this source for two claims. The first one is already mentioned about the limitations of weapons. The other claim I will be using this source on is the production of non-lethal weapons and how they were implemented from Science Fiction works. This raised the question: Is there a complicated moral issue that prevented military personnel from using them?
6) Hodge, Nathan, “Navy’s Drone Death Ray Takes out Targets.” CNN. Cable News Network, 2010. Web. 05 Dec. 2016.
This source discusses the U.S. Navy’s desires to implement a sort of “Death Ray” that can be used to provide more defenses for their ships. However, these lasers tend to lose strength after traveling a certain distance which can reduce the effectiveness of the death ray nonetheless. This weapon is essentially an upgrade from the Phalanx that the navy already has in their possession.
This source will be used for one claim involving the defectiveness of attempting to create a weapon that has been shown to be deadly from Military Science Fiction films.
7) Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, Dir. George lucas. Lucasfilm. 1999. Film.
This film demonstrates a wide variety of weapons and such that are demonstrated by a collective military group. This is the essential point of focus that will be analyzed. I plan on comparing some of the scenes within this film that will provide a good support for the secondary sources that are listed.
8) Universal Soldier (1992), Dir. Roland Emmerich. StudioCanal, 1992. Film.
This film is relative to the stereotypical idea of a super soldier. Meaning that their capabilities as genetically modified human beings are displayed, with some side effects. I plan on using this source to further expand on the idea of super soldiers based on some scenes that demonstrate their enhanced human capabilities.
Introduction
There are many parallels that are presented between weapons from works of Science Fiction and real-world military weapons. The discussion on these parallels and how they were implemented by the U.S. military, exemplifies how they were benefited in terms of advanced offensive weaponry or defenses. The Science Fiction sub-genre, Military Science Fiction, exposes many examples in terms as to how Science Fiction works influence the production and research of military weaponry. Military Science Fiction is essentially about the military, which coincidentally involves battles that include the military, and they usually revolve around a futuristic scenery. Most of the influence is drawn from films, where the exposure of an exotic (out of the ordinary) weapon can appear implementable by weapon engineers. The design process is then applied, which will determine the compatibility of the weapon researched and its capabilities. What normally disrupts the production of a weapon, is whether the weapon can cause permanent harm towards targets or if they are just catastrophic in terms of lethality.
Claims
– In real-world military applications, weapons implemented from Military Science Fiction works are limited in terms of level of harm. Here I will explain how and why.
– The development of super soldiers is the involvement of enhancing human capabilities; can this be morally correct? Here I will explain pros, cons and why this development is or is not morally correct.
– The offensive and defensive prowess from the military can be derived from their aircraft development, which were influenced by Military Science Fiction films. Here I will use the aircraft development and their development in the near future.
– In real-world military applications, the development of non-lethal weapons is proved to be ineffective in terms of use during a mission. Why are they not used, yet they are developed?
– Attempting to implement deadly weapons from Military Science Fiction films is proved to be defective in the real world. Discuss how physics can limit the production of these weapons.
– Conclusion
Reflection
The process on finding additional secondary sources was a bit tedious, in the sense that most of it was repetitive. However I was able to dig deeper within the content of Military Science Fiction and was able to uncover a good amount of sources that will prove to be effective when drafting the research project essay. Some points of focus that I worked on was defining my key terms, which Is something that was discussed during the individual conference with Professor Belli. I developed my claims based on the focus of my research, which I believe will be supported with an efficient amount of details from the sources I have gathered. The next steps for me is to work on the presentation in order to showcase the current research that I have done, and hopefully receive some last minute feedback. Then comes the write-up.
Questions
Are my initial claims sufficient for the write-up? Or Should I provide more claims?
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