E-Bomb

Executive Summary

Throughout time, unfortunate differences of opinion between nations have led various cultures and peoples to war. The technological advance of weaponry led researchers and military strategists to the ultimate destructive device ever used: the atomic bomb. Even as the awesome power of the atomic bomb continued to be discovered, research continued on the more powerful hydrogen bomb. Luckily, the hydrogen bomb never proved its power. These devastating weapons changed the face of warfare, and urged scientists to focus their energies in other, less destructive areas.

With changing views on the use of more "humanitarian" weapons, the focus changed to devise effective ways of defeating enemies with particular attention paid to limiting loss of human life. Working concurrently with nuclear scientists, researchers began to explore a weapon that would completely disable or destroy any machine that utilizes electricity. This new ordnance would severely hamper enemy forces before they could even engage in battle. The major additional attractive feature of these devices is the extremely limited number of human casualties. As this new form of bomb creates an electromagnetic pulse, this destroys or disables electronic instruments, but has little to no effect on humans. Thus, the debilitation of enemy armies could be achieved with fewer casualties. This new method of warfare, utilizing less lethal weapons, has attracted some supporters.

In more recent times, as the United States has witnessed an expanding role as an international peacekeeper, military strategists have looked for ways to decrease the loss of innocent human life. The reemerging technology of electromagnetic bombs affords commanders an alternative to conventional ballistic weapons. Examples surfaced of the U.S. using E-bombs to disable Iraqi television broadcasts, limiting the rhetoric that could be spread throughout the nation.