The Cognitive Crucible

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Dr. Jill Goldenziel of the National Defense University discusses information lawfare and uses ongoing dynamics between the Philippines and China as a case study. Our conversation also traverses the INDOPACOM Counter Lawfare program, the Belt and Road Initiative, institutional lawfare, global legal domination, and the 21st Century space race.

Research Question: Jill Goldenziel suggests interested students examine the legal basis for the defense of Taiwan, which includes understanding scenario modeling.

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #74 Elham Tabassi on NIST, Technology Standards, and Trust
• Recent articles:
  • The Truth About The Philippines' New Strategy Against China by Jill Goldenziel
  • Law as a Battlefield: The U.S., China, and Global Escalation of Lawfare by Jill Goldenziel
  • Information Lawfare: Messaging and the Moral High Ground by Jill Goldenziel
• Jill Goldenziel's Website
• INDOPACOM Tactical Aids (TACAIDS)
• China's Law of the Sea: The New Rules of Maritime by Isaac B. Kardon

Link to full show notes and resources

https://information-professionals.org/episode/cognitive-crucible-episode-150

Guest Bio:

Dr. Jill Goldenziel is a professor at the National Defense University-College of Information and Cyberspace and a speaker, consultant, and arbitrator. At NDU-CIC, she teaches courses in International and Constitutional Law, Leadership, Strategy, Lawfare, and Information Warfare to senior civilian and military leaders from the United States and allied and partner nations. She is also an Affiliated Scholar at the University of Pennsylvania's Fox Leadership International program and Penn's Partnership for Innovation, Cross-Sector Collaboration, Leadership, and Organization. She is a Forbes.com contributor on National Security. She has spoken at the United Nations and dozens of events throughout the world.

Dr. Goldenziel's award-winning scholarship focuses on international law, U.S. and comparative constitutional law, human rights, refugees and migration, lawfare, and information warfare. She is working on a book on how politicization of refugee crises threatens national security, an article on lawfare and Illegal, Unregulated, and Unreported Fishing (IUU F), an essay on leadership and gender that builds on her popular TEDx talk, and several projects on the use of law as a weapon of war. In 2022, NATO ACO/SHAPE Legal Office awarded her the Serge Lazareff Prize for her work as a scholar-practitioner of legal operations (lawfare).

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Jon Askonas discusses how technology may be leading us towards a homogenization and a cultural dead end where creativity is stifled by market forces. This homogenization process may also, inadvertently, make societies more susceptible to cybernetic influence techniques such as reflexive control.

Research Question: What is the relationship between homogeneity & heterogeneity in memetic systems? (For ex: The research of Rene Girard).

Resources:

• Jon Askonas' Catholic University Webpage
• Recent podcast appearance: WHAT'S HAPPENED TO CONSENSUS REALITY?
• Marshall Mcluhan quote: "There is no difference that does not difference make."
• YouTube: Axis of Awesome - 4 Four Chord Song (with song titles)
• Ted Gioia Music Substack
• The Culture of Military Innovation: The Impact of Cultural Factors on the Revolution in Military Affairs in Russia, the US, and Israel by Dmitry (Dima) Adamsky
• Wikipedia: Rene Girard
• Tablet: Jacob Siegel

Link to full show notes and resources

https://information-professionals.org/episode/cognitive-crucible-episode-149

Guest Bio: Jon Askonas is an assistant professor of Politics at the Catholic University of America, where he works on the connections between the republican tradition, technology, and national security. He is currently working on two books: A Muse of Fire: Why the U.S. Military Forgets What It Learns in War, on what happens to wartime innovations when the war is over and The Shot in the Dark: A History of the U.S. Army Asymmetric Warfare Group, the first comprehensive overview of a unit that helped the Army adapt to the post 9/11 era of counterinsurgency and global power competition. His writing has appeared in Russian Analytical Digest, Triple Helix, The New Atlantis, Fare Forward, War on the Rocks, and the Texas National Security Review.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Kalev Leetaru discusses the Global Database of Events, Language, and Tone (or GDELT) project, global risk management, and open source intelligence.

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #130 Teasel Muir-Harmony on Spaceflight, Foreign Policy, and Soft Power
  • #129 Eliot Jardines on Open Source Intelligence
• The GDELT Project
  • https://www.gdeltproject.org/
• Kalev Leetaru's webpage
  • https://www.kalevleetaru.com/
• Open Source Intelligence in a Networked World by Anthony Olcott

Link to full show notes and resources

https://information-professionals.org/episode/cognitive-crucible-episode-148

Guest Bio: Dr. Kalev Leetaru is a global advisor to governments, NGOs and the world's largest corporations to help them solve tomorrow's greatest challenges in an ever more uncertain world. His GDELT Project fundamentally transformed modern global risk forecasting, becoming one of the most iconic and largest realtime open graphs over Planet Earth. For more than a quarter-century his landmark studies have been at the forefront of reimagining how we understand our world through some of the largest datasets and computing platforms on the planet.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Nita Farahany discusses her cognitive liberty concept, as well as her book: The Battle for Your Brain: Defending the Right to Think Freely in the Age of Neurotechnology.

Research Question: Prof. Farahany asks what can we do individually to tell fact from fiction, safeguard against manipulation, engage critical thinking skills, and develop greater mindfulness so that we may flourish in the Digital Age. What are the limits of the human mind to protect against distortion of cognitive freedoms?

Resources:

• The Battle for Your Brain: Defending the Right to Think Freely in the Age of Neurotechnology by Nita Farahany
• Prof Nita Farahany's Webpage
• https://law.duke.edu/fac/farahany/
• Recent news article: "We need a new human right to cognitive liberty"

Link to full show notes and resources

https://information-professionals.org/episode/cognitive-crucible-episode-147

Guest Bio:

Nita A. Farahany is a leading scholar on the ethical, legal, and social implications of emerging technologies. She is the Robinson O. Everett Distinguished Professor of Law & Philosophy at Duke Law School, the Founding Director of Duke Science & Society, the Faculty Chair of the Duke MA in Bioethics & Science Policy, and principal investigator of SLAP Lab.

Farahany is a frequent commentator for national media and radio shows and a regular keynote speaker. She presents her work to diverse academic, legal, corporate, and public audiences including at TED, the World Economic Forum, Aspen Ideas Festival, Judicial Conferences for US Court of Appeals, scientific venue including the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Society for Neuroscience, the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine, the American Society for Political and Legal Philosophy, and by testifying before Congress.

Her current scholarship focuses on the implications of emerging neuroscience, genomics, and artificial intelligence for law and society; legal and bioethical issues arising from the COVID-19 pandemic; FDA law and policy; and the use of science and technology in criminal law. In addition to publishing in legal and scientific journals, as well as edited book volumes, Farahany is the author of the forthcoming book The Battle for Your Brain: Defending Your Right to Think Freely in the Age of Neurotechnology (St. Martin's Press 2023).

In 2010, Professor Farahany was appointed by President Obama to the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues and served until 2017. She is an appointed member of the National Advisory Council for the National Institute for Neurological Disease and Stroke, an elected member of the American Law Institute and Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, past President of the International Neuroethics Society, an ELSI (ethical, legal, and social implications) advisor to the NIH Brain Initiative and to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, an appointed member of both the Forum on Neuroscience and Nervous System Disorders and the Standing Committee on Biotechnology Capabilities and National Security Needs for the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and a member of the Global Future Council on Frontier Risks and Expert Network for the World Economic Forum. She served as Reporter for the Study Committee and later Drafting Committee on updating the Uniform Determination of Death Committee for the Uniform Law Commission. In 2022, she was appointed by Governor Roy Cooper to the NC Delegation for the Uniform Law Commission, and currently serves in that capacity. Farahany is a co-editor-in-chief and co-founder of the Journal of Law and the Biosciences and on the Board of Advisors for Scientific American. She also serves on scientific and ethics advisory boards for corporations.

Farahany received her AB in Genetics, Cell, and Developmental Biology from Dartmouth College, an ALM in biology from Harvard University, and a JD and MA from Duke University, as well as a Ph.D. in philosophy. In 2004-2005, Farahany clerked for Judge Judith W. Rogers of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, after which she joined the law faculty at Vanderbilt University. In 2011, Farahany was the Leah Kaplan Visiting Professor of Human Rights at Stanford Law School.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Sebastian Bae discusses games in a national security context. Games help leaders understand decisions and consequences in a synthetic environment. Sebastian also describes his newest game, Malign, which is designed in collaboration with NATO's Hybrid Center of Excellence for college students, foreign service officers, and policy makers to better understand the power of misinformation and malign influence.

Research Questions:

• Sebastian suggests to an interested student investigate how we measure or assess educational progress relative to gaming? How does the synthetic experience of games change depending upon the medium being used, for example: table top versus digital versus AR versus VR, etc.

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #140 Tom Ferris on Cognitive Ergonomics
• Sebastian's Georgetown Page
• Sebastian's CNA Page
• NATO's Hybrid Center of Excellence
• Game: Littoral Commander: Indo-Pacific
• Emily Yoder's YouTube presentation on Malign
• Georgetown University Wargaming Society
• Leeroy Jenkins Youtube
• You Said This Would Be Fun: What makes a game good and how to make a good game by Jeff Warrender
• On Operations: Operational Art and Military Disciplines by B. A. Friedman

Link to full show notes and resources

https://information-professionals.org/episode/cognitive-crucible-episode-146

Guest Bio:

Sebastian J. Bae's work principally focuses on wargaming, emerging technologies, the future of warfare, and strategy and doctrine for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.

In addition to his work at CNA, Bae serves as an adjunct assistant professor at the Center for Security Studies at Georgetown University, where he teaches a graduate course on designing educational wargames. He has taught similar courses at the U.S. Naval Academy and U.S. Marine Corps Command and Staff College. He is also the faculty advisor to the Georgetown University Wargaming Society, the co-chair of the Military Operations Research Society Wargaming Community of Practice, and a nonresident fellow at the Brute Krulak Center for Innovation and Creativity.

Before joining CNA, he served six years in the Marine Corps infantry, leaving as a sergeant. He deployed to Iraq in 2009.

Bae received a Master of Arts in security studies from Georgetown University and a Bachelor of Arts in peace and conflict studies from the University of California, Berkeley.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Chris Whitlock and Frank Strickland discuss the importance of AI Education for Leaders. Drawing upon three decades of leading hundreds of advanced analytics and AI programs and projects in government and industry, Chris and Frank address the primary variable in the talent deficit – large numbers of qualified AI leaders. Whether you are a senior or mid-level leader who lacks hands-on experience with AI, or an AI practitioner who lacks leadership experience, Frank and Chris unpack the dynamics between AI programs, projects, people, and technology.

Research Questions:

• Chris Whitlock suggests a question related to Large Language Models (LLM); how will LLMs perform with contemporary data feeds, novel, emergent topics? For example: intelligence summarizations?
• Frank Strickland believes that simulation technologies are ascendant and should be studied more.

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #129 Eliot Jardines on Open Source Intelligence
• Ai Leaders
  • https://aileaders.mykajabi.com
• Winning the National Security AI Competition: A Practical Guide for Government and Industry Leaders by Chris Whitlock and Frank Strickland
• Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology by Chris Miller
• T-Minus AI: Humanity's Countdown to Artificial Intelligence and the New Pursuit of Global Power by Michael Kanaan and Braden Wright

Link to full show notes and resources

https://information-professionals.org/episode/cognitive-crucible-episode-145

Guest Bio:

Frank Strickland enlisted in the Marine Corps, graduating as the Honor Man of my platoon. During his 22 years of government service, he helped lead innovations including: evaluating and transitioning to production the nation's first long endurance unmanned aerial system; delivering intelligence to the tactical edge using narrow and wide-band technologies; and agile prototyping of big data analytics. The Director of Central Intelligence awarded him the National Intelligence Medal of Achievement in recognition of these accomplishments. He was the National Reconnaissance Office's (NRO) Legislative Director, and a member of CIA's Senior Intelligence Service, where he received the NRO's Medals of Distinguished and Superior Service. In the private sector he co-founded Edge Consulting and helped lead Edge's growth resulting in an acquisition by IBM. As a partner in IBM and subsequently Deloitte, he led large practices providing AI and analytics solutions and services to national security clients including innovations in massive scale property graphs and agent-based simulation.

Chris Whitlock completed undergrad in Oxford – Oxford MS – and began service as an Army infantry officer, then military analyst at CIA. He spent the majority of his 40-year career providing advanced analytics, AI, and management consulting services primarily to national security clients in the Department of Defense, Intelligence Community, and Department of State. He helped pioneer the rapid prototyping and integration of advanced algorithms with software applications starting in the early 1990s. In the past 10 years his work has emphasized machine learning and artificial intelligence applications. He led a large market offering in Deloitte Consulting focused on Mission Analytics and AI in addition to leading large programs for cabinet level departments. He co-founded an analytics company, Edge Consulting, personally leading the development of algorithmic approaches to quantify the value of intelligence. After an acquisition by IBM, he served as a Partner in IBM. If you notice parallels between Frank's and his careers, we are twins who were separated at birth. We found each other in 1991 and have done some cool stuff since including our most recent venture, aiLeaders.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Nicholas Eberstadt of the American Enterprise Institute discusses demographic forces which have national security implications. Specifically, Nicholas recaps population dynamics which are unfolding in China, Russia, the United States, and the greater Middle East and broadly construed Islamic community.

Research Question: Dr. Eberstadt believes interested students should investigate the paradox that exists between greater human population and the inflation-adjusted price of natural resources. What's the answer to this paradox?

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #138 Matthew Canham on Cognitive Security
  • #76 Yuval Levin on the Constitution & Institutions
• Nicholas Eberstadt's AEI Profile
• The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu and Ken Liu

Link to full show notes and resources

https://information-professionals.org/episode/cognitive-crucible-episode-144

Guest Bio: Nicholas Eberstadt holds the Henry Wendt Chair in Political Economy at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), where he researches and writes extensively on demographics and economic development generally, and more specifically on international security in the Korean peninsula and Asia. Domestically, he focuses on poverty and social well-being. Dr. Eberstadt is also a senior adviser to the National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR).

His many books and monographs include "Poverty in China" (IDI, 1979); "The Tyranny of Numbers" (AEI Press, 1995); "The End of North Korea" (AEI Press, 1999); "The Poverty of the Poverty Rate" (AEI Press, 2008); and "Russia's Peacetime Demographic Crisis" (NBR, 2010). His latest book is "Men Without Work: America's Invisible Crisis" (Templeton Press, 2016).

He has offered invited testimony before Congress on numerous occasions and has served as consultant or adviser for a variety of units within the US government. His appearances on radio and television range from NPR to CNN's "The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer."

Mr. Eberstadt has a PhD in political economy and government, an MPA from the Kennedy School of Government, and an AB from Harvard University. In addition, he holds a master of science from the London School of Economics.

In 2012, Mr. Eberstadt was awarded the prestigious Bradley Prize.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Conrad Dungca of the Naval Information Warfare Command Pacific (NIWC Pacific) discusses Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR). Conrad discusses each component of ISR, and how ISR fits into information operations.

Research Question: Conrad suggests two research questions: 1) how has ISR evolved and what is ISR, and what is the right direction for ISR; 2) how has ISR impacted people and the world?

Resources:

• Fleet Tactics And Naval Operations by Wayne Hughes and Robert Girrier
• The Myth of Artificial Intelligence: Why Computers Can't Think the Way We Do by Erik J. Larson

Link to full show notes and resources

https://information-professionals.org/episode/cognitive-crucible-episode-143

Guest Bio: Conrad Dungca grew up in Los Angeles, CA. He graduated with merit from the US Naval Academy earning a Bachelor of Science in Systems Engineering, with an emphasis in Communications and Computer Engineering in May 1991. Upon graduation, he was commissioned an Ensign as a Student Naval Aviator.

He attended primary flight training in Corpus Christi, TX, and advanced rotary wing flight school in Florida, earning his Naval Aviation wings of gold in 1994. His service in the Navy was primarily flying the H-46 Sea Knight helicopter. His other Navy tours included:

• Tutoring inner city high school students as a Navy Upward Bound Mentor at UCSD,
• Engineer duty at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico,
• Assistant Operations Officer at the Joint US Military Advisory Group in the Philippines,
• Navy Recruiting Duty in San Diego,
• Officer In Charge of a Counter IED Unmanned Aerial Vehicle detachment in support of Operations New Dawn and Enduring Freedom, and
• Commanding Officer for two Navy Reserve Units supporting NAVAIR in the rapid research and development of naval aviation systems.

Conrad Dungca served over 30 years in the US Navy, retiring at the rank of Navy Captain. He is currently working at Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific (NIWC Pac) as the Lead Systems Engineer of the Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance Department supporting the engineering processes of over 180 department projects. Prior to Conrad's assignment to the ISR Department, he was involved with multiple communications related projects in NIWC Pac's Communications and Networks Department, focusing mostly with the Navy afloat and ashore communications architectures and systems.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Brian Murphy discusses issues surrounding ethics related to foreign disinformation–including difficult tradeoffs related to freedom and security.

Research Question: Brian believes that we need more clearer criteria for what is disinformation and misinformation. There are no adequate definitions and there is too much subjectivity in current definitions. For example, relevant to disinformation, what is the difference between legitimate statecraft and propaganda?

Resources:

• Some of Brian's Publications:
  • Book release Spring 2023 Russian Disinformation in America and the U.S. Government's Ethical Obligations to Respond, Springer Nature Publishing.
  • The Impact of Social Media Conveyed Russian-Backed Disinformation in a Polarized America: An Examination of the Executive Branch's Ethical Responsibility to Respond (Georgetown University)
  • The US Needs a Center to Counter Foreign Malign Influence at Home - Defense One
  • Ukraine's History Shows Where Russian Disinformation Can Take Hold (logically.ai)
  • Making Sense of Russian Disinformation and Propaganda (logically.ai)
  • "Decaying National Security: Understanding the Implications of Imagined Tribalism and its Connection to the Decay of Nationalism in a Radically Changed Information Context" - RUSI Journal | Royal United Services Institute.
  • Chapter: Introduction to T&S and Law Enforcement - Trust & Safety Professional Association (tspa.org)
  • The Ever-Shrinking Worlds of National and Homeland Security by Brian Murphy
  • Brian Murphy PhD Dissertation: THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL MEDIA CONVEYED RUSSIAN-BACKED DISINFORMATION IN A POLARIZED AMERICA: AN EXAMINATION OF THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH'S ETHICAL RESPONSIBILITY TO RESPOND

Link to full show notes and resources

https://information-professionals.org/episode/cognitive-crucible-episode-142

Guest Bio: Since September 2021, Brian Murphy has been the Vice President of Strategic Operations for Logically. In his role, he assisted in developing and implementing advanced Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence solutions to find harmful threat content at scale and across languages and platforms on social media. Before joining Logically, Mr. Murphy served as both the Principal and Acting Under Security for Intelligence for the Department of Homeland Security (2018 to 2021). In these roles, he served as the Chief Intelligence Officer, Chief Information Sharing Officer, and Chief Counterintelligence Officer for the department. In this capacity, he provided intelligence leading to more than 250K personnel. Mr. Murphy led intelligence analysis, data integration, and program management for 22 component organizations within the department. Mr. Murphy was a special agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for over 20 years. While there, he performed duties from street agent up to roles as a national manager. While in the senior executive service at the FBI, he served as the primary point of contact for federal, counterintelligence, and counterterrorism programs. During his career, he served in New York, Afghanistan, Algeria, Tunisia, Niger, Pittsburgh, Chicago, and Washington, DC. Murphy began his federal service in 1994 as an officer in the United States Marine Corps. He would later return to this role in 2004 after he was recalled to active duty for service in Iraq. Mr. Murphy's academic credentials include a PhD from Georgetown University; Master of Arts in Islamic Studies from Columbia University; Bachelor of Arts in Government College of William and Mary. He is a certified U.S. Intel Community Intelligence Officer and Joint Duty Certified and maintains a Top Secret clearance.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, George Pullen discusses the space economy through a national security lens. Along the way, he answers some basic economic questions like: what is an economy, and what is GDP and why does it matter?

Research Question: George Pullen believes the following questions should be studies more:

• How does space-based solar power plays into our energy future?
• What are the impacts of economic activities happening in and around space ports?
• How does blockchain fit into the space economy?

Resources:

• George Pullen's MilkyWayEconomy Website
• https://www.milkywayeconomy.com/
• Scramble for the Skies: The Great Power Competition to Control the Resources of Outer Space by Namrata Goswami and Peter Garretson
• The United States Space Force: Space, Grand Strategy, and U.S. National Security by Lamont C. Colucci
• Tailoring Deterrence for China in Space by Krista Langeland, Derek Grossman
• Spacepower Ascendant: Space Development Theory and a New Space Strategy by Joshua Carlson
• Blockchain and the Space Economy by George Pullen

Link to full show notes and resources

https://information-professionals.org/episode/cognitive-crucible-episode-141

Guest Bio:

Prof. George Pullen is a free-market economist, who for the last decade has been refining his economic philosophies as a Senior Economist at the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission in Washington, DC. Previous to that he worked as a trader, portfolio manager, and banker. He is driven by a curiosity and passion for convergence, connecting people and ideas across diverse disciplines and finding new questions that need answers. He is the author and co-author of six books on economic topics related to deep tech and a Partner and Chief Economist for MilkyWayEconomy. - Forecasting and Strategy for the 5th Industrial Revolution of the Space Economy.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.