RMA, European Militaries and the Limits of Modernization
The Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA) is synonymous with the US Military and its transformation following the end of the Cold War, which would see operational platforms networked, flexible and for use in joint operations. The role of technology in general and information and communication technology (ICT) in particular meant that the deployable platforms and possibly even networks would transform the way that the US went to war. This chapter looks at those who stand beside the US military most often in combat: the European allies. The focus here is on how RMA, as it was understood and conveyed in the US, shaped the thinking and doctrine of European militaries. In Europe, the term RMA and even the concept are seen as belonging to the US, grand power and an overwhelming reliance on technological superiority to achieve military victory. European militaries have focused more on the notion of transformation, innovation and modernization to mean how any such benefits of RMA could be adapted or utilized in European military operations and in connection to European military operations with the US where compatibility is an important command factor. If RMA points the way towards military victory on the battlefield, why then have Europeans not taken the opportunity to follow their North American ally?
NATO's Transformation Gaps: Transatlantic Differences and the War in Afghanistan
Abstract The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has since the turn of the new century experienced a double transformation gap: between global and regionally oriented allies and between allies emulating new military practices defined by the United States and allies resisting radical change. This article takes stock of these gaps in light of a decade's worth of collective and national adjustments and in light of counter-insurgency lessons provided by Afghanistan. It argues first of all that the latter transatlantic gap is receding in importance because the United States has adjusted its transformation approach and because some European allies have significantly invested in technological, doctrinal, and organizational reform. The other transformation gap is deepening, however, pitching battle-hardened and expeditionary allies against allies focused on regional tasks of stabilization and deterrence. There is a definite potential for broad transformation, our survey of officers' opinion shows, but NATO's official approach to transformation, being broad and vague, provides neither political nor military guidance. If NATO is to move forward and bridge the gap, it must clarify the lessons of Afghanistan and embed them in its new Strategic Concept.
The Intuitive Physics of the Equilibrium of the Lever and of the Hydraulic Pressures: Implications for the Teaching of Elementary Physics.
The research field of intuitive physics focuses on discrepancies between 
theoretical and intuitive physical knowledge. Consideration of these 
discrepancies can help in the teaching of elementary physics. However, 
evidence shows that theoretical and intuitive physical knowledge may also 
be congruent. Physics teaching could further benefit from understanding the 
reasons for this congruence. The present study explored these reasons by 
investigating the intuitive physics of the equilibrium of the lever and of the 
hydraulic pressures. It was found that the intuitive-physics law of the lever 
was multiplicative for all participants while the intuitive-physics law of the 
hydraulic pressures differed among participants. Since these laws are 
equally simple and the layman probably has had extensive experience with 
the lever and scarce or no experience with the hydraulic lift, these findings 
support the general hypothesis that physical laws and corresponding 
intuitive-physics laws are congruent when people have had experience with 
the respective phenomena. The results and theoretical considerations suggest 
two strategic principles for teaching elementary physics.