Reoptimization for Great Power Competition

GPC Key Decisions

USAF Case for Change

Air Force FAQ for Reoptimizing Great Power Competition

“We need these changes now; we are out of time to reoptimize our forces to meet the strategic challenges in a time of great power competition.”

~ Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall

The United States faces a time of consequence marked by significant shifts in the strategic environment. To remain ready, the U.S. Air Force must change.

In early 2024, the Department of the Air Force unveiled sweeping plans for reshaping, refocusing, and reoptimizing the Air Force and Space Force to ensure continued supremacy in their respective domains while better posturing the services to deter and, if necessary, prevail in an era of Great Power Competition. Through a series of 24 DAF-wide key decisions, four core areas which demand the Department’s attention will be addressed: Develop People, Generate Readiness, Project Power and Develop Capabilities.

Today, the Air Force once again finds itself at a critical juncture—an era of Great Power Competition marked by a new security environment, a rapidly evolving character of war, and a formidable competitor. This new era requires understanding its challenges and the attributes needed to succeed.

Embracing change is not a choice; it is a necessity. The Air Force must “reoptimize” into an enterprise prepared for high-end conflicts and long-term strategic competition.

QuEST (2024-05-24 Joseph Houpt - Mathematical Psychology

Air Force Research Laboratory

Video by Kevin D Schmidt

May 24, 2024 | 01:00:41

Abstract:

I will give an overview of systems factorial technology (SFT) in the context of the broader motivations of mathematical psychology. A core principle of mathematical psychology is that the measurement of psychological phenomena is theory laden and hence our methodology should be explicitly driven by the theory. SFT is a theory driven methodology focused on measuring how cognitive systems combine distinct sources of information for use. The approach includes formal statements of four logically distinct properties that can distinguish cognitive systems, statistical models to analyze those properties, and guidelines for designing experiments to allow those statistical models to be applied. I will give examples of SFT application to testing interfaces for AI recommender systems and an example of SFT as a meta-theoretical tool applied to testing the ACT-R modeling framework.

Key Moments in the video include:
Define mathematical psychology
Precision in communication
Measurement
Mapping theoretical constructs into numbers
Circular logic
Cognitive modeling
Theory Driven Methodology
Understand how a system combines multiple sources of information
System Factorial Technology (SFT)
Architecture
Stooping Rule
Stochastic Dependence
Workload Capacity
Recap
Workload Capacity Coefficient
UCIP model
First Terminating (OR)
Exhaustive (AND)
Why use C(t)?
Line Length Judgement - Integral vs. Separable Displays
Multisensor Image Fusion
The Survivor Interaction Contrast
The Mean Interaction Contrast
Line Length
Metatheoretical Application of SFT (SFT-GMA)
Global Model Analysis (GMA)
ACT-R
ACT-R Assumptions/Properties
Conclusions
Questions More