A military expert reveals how science fiction is fast becoming reality on the battlefield, changing not just how wars are fought, but also the politics, economics, laws, and ethics that surround war itself

P. W. Singer’s previous two books foretold the rise of private military contractors and the advent of child soldiers— predictions that proved all too accurate. Now, he explores the greatest revolution in military affairs since the atom bomb—the advent of robotic warfare.

We are just beginning to see a massive shift in military technology that threatens to make the stuff of I,Robot and the Terminator all too real. More than seven- thousand robotic systems are now in Iraq. Pilots in Nevada are remotely killing terrorists in Afghanistan. Scientists are debating just how smart—and how lethal—to make their current robotic prototypes. And many of the most renowned science fiction authors are secretly consulting for the Pentagon on the next generation.

Blending historic evidence with interviews from the field, Singer vividly shows that as these technologies multiply, they will have profound effects on the front lines as well as on the politics back home. Moving humans off the battlefield makes wars easier to start, but more complex to fight. Replacing men with machines may save some lives, but will lower the morale and psychological barriers to killing. The “warrior ethos,” which has long defined soldiers’ identity, will erode, as will the laws of war that have governed military conflict for generations.

Paradoxically, these new technologies will also bring war to our doorstep. As other nations and even terrorist organizations start to build or buy their own robotic weapons, the robot revolution could undermine America’s military preeminence. While his analysis is unnerving, there’s an irresistible gee-whiz quality to the innovations Singer uncovers. Wired for War travels from Iraq to see these robots in combat to the latter-day “skunk works” in America’s suburbia, where tomorrow’s technologies of war are quietly being designed. In Singer’s hands, the future of war is as fascinating as it is frightening.

辛格曾在2008年奥巴马竞选总统时担任他的国防政策顾问,还是美国布鲁金斯学会（美国著名智库之一）21世纪安全和情报中心的创始人,也是该学会近100年来最年轻的高级研究员。

辛格是“新美国基金会”（New America）的战略家,《大众科学》杂志的编辑。曾被美国《史密森尼》杂志提名为美国领先革新者百强人物,被美国《国防新闻》周刊评为最有影响力的100位国防专家之一,还被《外交政策》列入全球百位思想家名单,著名市场调查机构Onalytica的统计显示：辛格已成为全球网络安全领域十大最具影响力的人物之一。

获奖作品包括：《企业化战士》《童子军》《机器人战争》《网络安全与网络战争》。最新作品《幽灵舰队》,一部科幻惊悚与纪实研究相互交织的作品,也成功获得了众多读者的认可,从美军参谋长联席会议主席到互联网的发明者,再到《权利的游戏》的作者,都是这本书的忠实读者。

想要了解更多的信息,请访问作者官方网站：www.pwsinger.com.