blog follow on twitter next october 14 2016loren b. thompson ph.d ceo tory bruno explains how united launch alliance will stay ahead of competitors from forbes during three decades in the strategic missile and space launch business united launch alliance president & ceo tory bruno has never lost a rocket . that may make him unique in the annals of the space business but government and commercial customers are more interested in what he s done for them lately . with spacex and other new entrants crowding into the space read more october 13 2016 doug mesecar will congress fund personalized learning this year the every student succeeds act signed into federal law late last year contains many policy and fiscal provisions supporting personalized learning and increased investment in education technology . will those provisions be funded and at what level there are a few likely scenarios all impacted in one way or another by the outcome of the elections in november . october 12 2016 loren b. thompson ph.d u.s. marines double down on first to fight amphibious capabilities from forbes aside from bravery and devotion to duty the most distinctive feature of u.s. marine corps culture is its focus on amphibious warfare . marines have fashioned a warfighting posture that relies on naval mobility to get them to every conflict first which matters a lot in a world where 80 % of people live within a hundred miles of the sea and read more october 12 2016daniel gour ph.d. normandy cemetery begs question why shed american blood for europe again from the national interest after losing tens of thousands of lives during wwii to liberate europe why should americans again come to the defense of europe threatened now by russian aggression and islamist fanaticism because the loss of a continent that has finally achieved democratic governance from the atlantic to the black and baltic seas would be a catastrophic loss to our own democratic enterprise . also because defending democracy and freedom abroad is protecting and preserving it at home . these are the lessons i read more october 7 2016don soifer international postal update october 2016 the universal postal union the governing organization for international mail concluded its istanbul congress with modest revisions to its pricing system for shipments between designated postal operators . member countries approved pricing changes to this system known as terminal dues which will increase heavily discounted rates for shipping small packages from china and other designated developing countries to the united states and other industrialized nations . the new above inflation price increases and other price changes will be in place from 2018 2022 . october 7 2016daniel gour ph.d. perhaps the u.s. army s most remarkable leader in more than half a century from the national interest dealing with the emerging russian chinese north korean iranian threat will necessitate a transformation of the army and the joint force . given enough money and time the army could probably find solutions to most of its pressing capability gaps . unfortunately it has no money . the army s modernization budget has been reduced to a pittance as the service struggles to maintain the readiness necessary to conduct combat operations in iraq and afghanistan and maintain the semblance of deterrence elsewhere . the army also has no read more october 5 2016daniel gour ph.d. f 35s to become eyes and ears of the fleet from the national interest in the not too distant future the f 35 may find its central role in the fight not in air superiority or ground attack but as a sensor platform expanding the ability of other forces . as a forward deployed stealthy passive sensor system all three variants of the f 35 can contribute to the creation of a distributed lethality capability against enemy offensive and defensive capabilities . i have written a commentary on this for national interest . october 3 2016loren b. thompson ph.d the u.s. army faces defeat in europe . one day of federal spending per year can save it . from forbes the romans had a saying that if you want peace prepare for war . the u.s. army is having trouble following that dictum because its budget for buying new weapons has been slashed by three quarters during the obama years . as a result russian forces in eastern europe now outclass the army in a number of areas such as electronic warfare antitank capabilities air defense and indirect fires . the only way to convince moscow that america is prepared to fight and win read more september 30 2016don soifer what does a reinvented high school model for 2016 look like the excitement around this month s xq the super school project announcement created a contagious buzz around ten highly innovative high school models across the country . the ten winning schools were each awarded 10 million to execute their forward facing visions for what a high school education should offer its students in 2016 . when philanthropist laurene powell jobs created the xq project a year ago she explained to jennifer medina of the new york times there is a huge gap between what read more september 30 2016loren b. thompson ph.d slow pace of new air force radar plane could prove fatal to u.s. soldiers from forbes the air force s fleet of 16 joint surveillance and target attack radar system jstars planes is on its last legs . at any given time half of the fleet is unavailable due to maintenance needs . it won t be long before all the planes must retire . but the air force s program to replace the planes is exhibiting little sense of urgency about fielding new airborne radars before the old ones are gone . if jstars recap as it is called doesn t get moving soldiers on the ground will read more september 29 2016constance douris m.a. the adaptive engine transition program will revolutionize combat aircraft performance from the national interest american air power is critical to mission success it provides precision strike rapid logistics detailed reconnaissance and air dominance while denying those advantages to adversaries . it is essential that the u.s. continue to advance its air power to outpace future threats . one way the air force research laboratory is supporting the improvement of air power is by investing in revolutionary propulsion technology with the adaptive engine transition program aetp . the adaptive engine transition program aims to transform the performance read more september 29 2016loren b. thompson ph.d white house approves boeing lockheed fighter sales to gulf states from forbes the white house has approved sales of u.s. fighter jets to three persian gulf states and begun the process of notifying congress . congress can block the sales but probably will not given the impact on u.s. jobs and the need to counter inroads by iran in the region . qatar wants to purchase up to 72 f 15e fighters made by boeing kuwait wants up to 40 f a 18 e f fighters made by the same company and bahrain is seeking f 16 fighters made by lockheed martin . read more september 27 2016loren b. thompson ph.d bae systems is building the electronic weapons that will win world war three from forbes future warfare with peer adversaries will be largely about exploiting the electromagnetic spectrum and the electronic systems unit of bae systems is the dominant player in that mission area . headquartered in nashua new hampshire electronic systems has spent six decades figuring out how to defeat enemy sensors and communications thereby enabling u.s. warfighters to operate successfully in the fog of war . because of the innovations bae has pioneered america s soldiers sailors and airmen have far greater situational awareness than any adversary and can read more next view archives defense education energy logistics studies 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 recent studies next connecting microgrids with public private partnerships to meet critical needs what boeing has meant for america a centennial assessment strategies for improving charter school facilities funding the jones act and homeland security in the 21st century practices of the u.s. postal service that imply anti competitive behavior historical parallels and remedies across other regulated sectors challenges and requirements for tomorrow s electrical power grid the southwest defense complex the new first line in the nation s defense souda bay nato s military gem in the eastern mediterranean the new landscape in american manufacturing what it takes to succeed today middletown ny personalizes learning to narrow achievement gaps incentivizing a new defense industrial base blue green intersections impacts of water shortages on western state energy policies securing dod networks for the 21st century small modular nuclear reactors can represent an innovative solution for america s shifting energy sector what can be learned from the northeast s use of microgrids next category specific rss defense 1181 education 506 energy 52 logistics 198 contact info 1600 wilson boulevard suite 203 arlington va 22209 phone 703.522.5828 fax 703.522.5837 sign up for lexnext emails 1600 wilson boulevard suite 203arlington va 22209 phone 703.522.5828 fax 703.522.5837 2016 lexington institute sign up for lexnext emails name first last email address i m interested in defense education energy logistics