Neurowarfare in the 21st Century with Dr. Armin Krishnan
Jun 7, 2024
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Dr. Armin Krishnan, an expert in security studies, discusses military neuroscience, neurowarfare, and government projects on mind control. Topics include CIA's history with LSD, nanotechnology, non-lethal energy weapons, Havana syndrome, and government use of advanced weapon systems for population control.
Neuro warfare involves altering brain functions to control weapon systems and poses ethical dilemmas.
Directed energy weapons like high-powered microwaves and LRADs offer non-lethal crowd control methods.
Discussions on brain plasticity and consciousness challenge conventional views on human existence.
Deep dives
Neuro Weapons and Military Neuroscience
Military neuroscience delves into brain-computer interfaces and neuro warfare applications where the human brain controls weapon systems. Influenced by prior research on autonomous weapons, the focus shifted to using brain manipulation methods like MKUltra during the Cold War for psychological warfare tactics that continue to present day.
Defining Neuro Warfare
Neuro warfare encompasses methods to monitor and modify mental states, mental capacities, behavior, and perception using biological or chemical agents, directed energy weapons, and information approach like cyber warfare. It includes altering functions of the nervous system to impact cognitive, emotional, and motor activities.
Challenges and Risks of Neuro Warfare
Neuro warfare poses ethical dilemmas and medical risks as nations develop super-soldier abilities through manipulating brain functions, utilizing brain-computer interfaces, and genetic selection. The potential use of advanced technologies like optogenetics, nanotechnology, and psychoactive substances raises concerns over mental privacy and societal control.
Directed Energy Weapons and Threats
Directed energy weapons, such as high-powered microwaves and acoustic devices like LRAD, offer non-lethal means to disperse crowds or incapacitate individuals through intense sound or spaced-based microwaves. The use of millimeter waves like the Active Denial System raises questions about control, unintended consequences, and potential health and ethical issues.
Havana Syndrome and Psycho-Neuro Warfare
Havana syndrome, characterized by brain injury symptoms and experienced by diplomats worldwide, has been linked to directed energy weapons employing microwave technology. The possibility of using such weapons for psychological manipulation and population control calls attention to ethical implications and the evolving landscape of psycho-neuro warfare.
Transhumanism and Brain Plasticity
Opposing the transhumanist view that the brain solely defines human existence, discussions center on the brain's plasticity versus the mind's external essence. Concepts such as uploading minds into computers and debates on the brain's depth beyond physicality challenge conventional views on consciousness and the autonomy of existence.
Armin Krishanan, PhD, is an Associate Professor for Security Studies, East Carolina University. Dr. Krishnan is the author of the following books: (2024) Fifth Generation Warfare: Dominating the Human Domain, London: Routledge (2018) Why Paramilitary Operations Fail, New York: Palgrave Macmillan (2016) Military Neuroscience and the Coming Age of Neurowarfare, London: Routledge (2012) Gezielte Tötung: Die Zukunft des Krieges [Targeted Killing: The Future of War], Berlin: Matthes & Seitz Berlin Verlag (2009) Killer Robots: The Legality and Ethicality of Autonomous Weapons, Farnham, Surrey: Ashgate (2008) War as Business: Technological Change and Military Services Contracting, Farnham, Surrey: Ashgate
