An unsere deutschen Soldaten und Soldatinnen im Einsatz

The Soldiers`Angels are in the German Television - ZDF it is called "Der innere Krieg" "The internal war"

Astrid Schult made an interview with Ulrike Wheeler at the German Dinner 2008 at the Fisher House Landstuhl. Ulrike is talking about the Fisher House und wounded heroes at the hospital and the Soldiers`Angels.

All photos made by Willie 

The documentation is called "Der innere Krieg" - the internal war -

Here you can see the video - documentation  

on the ZDF until 23. December 2009.

It is in English and German language and made by Astrid Schult (Regie).

Regina and Willie is talking with a Fisher House guest.

Waltraud and Willie hand out "Welcome to Germany" presents

http://www.derinnerekrieg.de/

Dokumentarfilm (2008), DVCProHD, 72 Min.
Regie. Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg

in Koproduktion mit dem ZDF/Das Kleine Fernsehspiel.

The documentation show you the American life in Landstuhl and at the Fisher House Landstuhl. Injured U.S. soldiers arrive at Ramstein Air Base and go by bus to the U.S. military hospital in Landstuhl for more medical treatment.

Rudi is cooking the dinner

The families of wounded soldiers can stay during the medical treatment from their love ones  in the "Fisher House" - this is: A home away from home! Here they can try to find a way back to the normality. German and American women are speaking about their husbands, the war and wounded heroes.

A very interested documentation you must see.

More pictures and stories about the German Dinner you find here:

German Dinner at Fisher House Landstuhl

Soldiers, Families Fund Iraqi Baby's Surgery

Soldiers, Families Fund Iraqi Baby's Surgery
Mon, 14 Dec 2009 09:25:00 -0600

By Army Spc. Ruth McClary Special to American Forces Press Service BAGHDAD, Dec. 14, 2009 - U.S. soldiers, family members and friends have brought the gift of sight to an Iraqi baby born blind with congenital cataracts. Army 1st Lt. Jason Hickman holds Noor Hassam Oudah during a celebration in her honor, Dec. 9, 2009. The 1-year-old known as "Baby Nourah" was born blind with congenital cataracts. With help from their families and friends, North Carolina National Guard soldiers raised money for the operation she needed to gain her sight. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Ruth McClary (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. North Carolina National Guard soldiers of Troop C, 150th Armored Reconnaissance Squadron, 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team, were invited to a small celebration Dec. 9, hosted by the family of Noor Hassam Oudah – known as "Baby Nourah" -- in appreciation for setting up and covering expenses for the baby's Nov. 15 eye surgery, three days after her first birthday. Though Nourah's condition is reversible with surgery, the operation is out of reach for a family living in Baghdad. The city's hospitals lack the facilities and physicians to perform the procedure. "I was very pleased to be able to do something for this family," said Army 1st Lt. Jason Hickman, a platoon leader. "They have been very hospitable. It has truly been a pleasure to be able to help Nourah. I was relieved and very pleased that everything fell into place, considering all the obstacles that we faced." Hickman said that if ever there were a more perfect example of divine intervention, it happened on a dark road about five months ago when a convoy made a wrong turn and ended up in Zwaynat, a small village southwest of Baghdad. Nourah was there visiting with her uncle, Muhameed Gharbi Sultan, who informed him of the baby's plight. "So there we were at a place we hadn't intended on being," said Hickman. "Wrong turn, perhaps, but that's not how I see it. My interest and contacts with the Order of Saint John, the wrong turn, her being there with her uncle instead of with her parents in Baghdad -- no, not a coincidence." The Order of St. John, accredited by the United Nations, provides first aid, health care and support services in more than 40 countries. "I don't believe in the traditional sense of the word 'destiny,' but I do believe that God puts people in certain places at certain times," Hickman said. "Things don't happen solely by coincidence. All you have to do is look for the road signs. The signs were clear, so I sent some e-mails, and that's how we arrived here." Once Nourah was diagnosed, Hickman e-mailed St. John's Jerusalem Eye Hospital, the main provider of eye care in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, and a cause he has contributed to in the past. Through contact with Ruth Ann Skaff, the U.S. executive director of the Priory of St John's, Hickman was referred to Dr. Mehyar of the Khalidi Medical Center in Amman, Jordan, where the procedure was performed. Hickman asked for donations from his fellow brigade soldiers, and e-mailed his family about the baby. Family members and friends from the West Virginia communities of Greenville, Belmont and St. Marys were the main contributors of the $5,000 needed to help Nourah. From that point on, Hickman said, he was determined to help Nourah, and even in his darkest hour, he thought of her. "Lieutenant Hickman's father passed away as we were working out all the details for Nourah," said Army Staff Sgt. Travers Brake of Elkins, W. Va., who took over the campaign while Hickman was on emergency leave. "He asked for the guys in the platoon to give donations to Nourah in lieu of sending flowers. Now that's special." Many e-mails and meetings followed, and led to the celebration where Hickman, who didn't get a good look at Nourah that first night, finally was able to hold her. Dressed in a plush, pink, puppy snowsuit with a yellow-and-pink hat and yellow-rimmed glasses, Nourah made her rounds at the celebration; oblivious to her stardom. She looked around, waved and stared at some of the people instrumental in giving her such a special gift. Nourah's paternal grandfather, Oudah Ghardi Sultan al-Jubori, said she has to go back for a check-up in a month and will have to wear glasses for five years -- a small sacrifice for a lifetime of vision. "We are very grateful to you," Jubori said to Hickman and the other soldiers. He recalled a time when Iraqis and U.S. soldiers couldn't sit and talk without wearing armored vest and helmets. "Now we are very close," he said. "You should visit more. Please come back and visit before you go back to the states." Hickman, Brake and the elders of Nourah's family shared a traditional Iraqi meal together, drank chai tea and talked late into the evening; laughing and joking like old-time acquaintances. Since the operation, family members said, Nourah crawls, grabs for things and follows hands, fingers and objects placed in front of her. With her big, pouty cheeks and little cherry lips, she quietly absorbs her surroundings and responds at will. "The Lord may not push you around the board like a pawn, but every now and again he puts you where he wants you," Hickman said. "We were supposed to end up in Zwaynat that night. It was just up to us what we were going to do when we got there." (Army Spc. Ruth McClary serves in the North Carolina National Guard's 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team public affairs office.)

Related Sites: Multinational Corps Iraq

Hussam Oudah Gharbi al-Jubori holds his daughter, Noor Hassam Oudah, during a celebration in her honor, Dec. 9, 2009. The 1-year-old known as "Baby Nourah" was born blind with congenital cataracts. With help from their families and friends, North Carolina National Guard soldiers raised money for the operation she needed to gain her sight. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Ruth McClary Download screen-resolution Download high-resolution Oudah Gharbi Sultan al-Jubori holds his granddaughter, Noor Hassam Oudah, during a celebration in her honor, Dec. 9, 2009. The 1-year-old known as "Baby Nourah" was born blind with congenital cataracts. With help from their families and friends, North Carolina National Guard soldiers raised money for the operation she needed to gain her sight. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Ruth McClary Download screen-resolution Download high-resolution

12.12.2009 news and stories around LRMC, Germany

Children make ornaments for vets
Alton Telegraph
...The class earlier made cards and wrote letters to severely injured US troops and their physicians and nurses at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center hospital ...

Spouse Describes Impact of Post-traumatic Stress

Spouse Describes Impact of Post-traumatic Stress
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 14:11:00 -0600

By Elaine Wilson American Forces Press Service BETHESDA, Dec. 11, 2009 - Sheri Hall knew her husband, Army Maj. Jeff Hall, was having emotional issues after two tours in Iraq, but she didn't grasp just how bad it was until one day when he went for a run. Sheri Hall talks about the impact her husband's post-traumatic stress disorder had on her family at the Trauma Spectrum Disorders Conference at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., Dec. 10, 2009. DoD photo by Elaine Wilson (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. He was about 10 miles away when he called and asked for a ride home, Sheri recalled. He said he had started running and his chest had begun to hurt. "I thought if I just keep running it will explode, and I will die right here," he told his wife. That moment was a turning point, she said, that would set her husband and family on a long-awaited road to recovery. The mother of two described her husband's battle with post-traumatic stress disorder and the impact on their family at the Trauma Spectrum Disorders Conference at the National Institutes of Health here yesterday. The major's first tour in Iraq followed 9/11. "He was ready to go; he was committed to victory," she said. At the tail end of his deployment, the major's prior commander was shot by a sniper on a rooftop. He was about a foot and a half away. "When he came back, he was already in command, and I had about 50 wives to keep in touch with," Sheri said, referring to her role as a commander's wife. They hoped for a 12-month "dwell time" at home between deployments, but her husband was on a plane back to Iraq within 10 months, Sheri said. "Out of that 10 months, we were probably only together for about three" due to training, she added. The major left in February 2005, and the soldiers did their mission, Sheri said. "Although Jeff says to this day, 'I don't know what that mission was, other than riding around and getting blown up and shot at.' This really wore on him a lot" while deployed, she said. Sheri said her husband would write letters and send e-mails describing his unhappiness. "I'd say, 'This is just Jeff, he's just complaining, he's just not happy,'" she said. In October 2005, her husband left command due to a foot injury, Sheri said. A month later, the platoon that had been attached to her husband's battery while he was in command was hit by a roadside bomb, killing two soldiers and seriously wounding another. "Jeff was very heartbroken by this," she said, near tears herself. "At the same time, we had a family tragedy. So Jeff had that to deal with, on top of feeling like he had lost two of his soldiers." Jeff returned home in December 2005, two days after Christmas. Sheri recalled her first sight of him at the homecoming ceremony. "In walks my husband first," she said, "and as they come in and they stand in front of us, I can see in his eyes a very lost person, and I knew at that moment that something had changed. My husband wasn't my husband any more." Sheri encouraged her husband to seek help. "He went and talked to a counselor," she said. The counselor said, "You'll get over it, you'll be fine." But, "I knew it was more than that," she said. Jeff's next job was at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, La., training soldiers to go back to Iraq or Afghanistan. "Basically it was from the battlefield right back to the battlefield," Sheri said. "Jeff wasn't happy with his job, but knew he had to suck it up and drive on." But by April 2008, that wasn't working. "Jeff hit a brick wall going about a thousand miles an hour," Sheri said. "He couldn't put his uniform on any more, couldn't put his boots on any more. He didn't want to go to work. He didn't want to live, and told me that. "He didn't want his family around him any more," she continued. "He told me to just leave, take the girls and go away. I couldn't do this; I had known him for over 20 years, and I knew that wasn't the Jeff I had grown to love." Sheri lived in fear of losing her husband, afraid to sleep or leave him for even a few minutes. "I'd pick the kids up from school and come home and rush into the house before they did, because I was afraid in the 30 minutes that I was gone, he would take his life," she said. "I never, ever thought in my wildest dreams that my husband would put a gun to his head and shoot himself, but that's what he wanted to do." Sheri persuaded her husband it was time to seek help. His former commander, Army Col. Daniel Pinnell, helped him find a doctor at Fort Polk. That doctor recommended a three-week mental-health program at the Deployment Health Clinical Center at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington. The major first went through a week of intense preliminary psychological and medical care. He told his wife that if he got accepted into the program, he wanted her to join him. "For the first time in two and a half years, I felt a glimmer of hope," she said. He was accepted, and the couple went through the program together, which helped Sheri gain insight into what her husband had experienced in Iraq, she said. But she also knew there was no quick fix for his problems. "It took two and a half years to get help," she said. "I knew it would take a whole heck of a lot longer to get over this." The family moved to Fort Riley, Kan. Jeff was slated to deploy again, but a degenerative back problem prevented that. "He has mixed feelings; I don't," Sheri said. "I've seen my friends send their husbands off for the third or fourth time, and I really feel for them, because a lot of those husbands have not dealt with their issues, either." Sheri said recovery will be a long process, but they're on the right path. "We have a hope for much better days," she said. "But we're much better able to cope with the stress, cope with the anger issues." A while back, Sheri said, she sifted through the letters that her husband had sent while downrange. "I told Jeff there are warning signs in these letters," she said. "Knowing what I know now, you were in trouble then, and had I been smart enough to understand that, we could have dealt with this so much better." Her quest now is to help equip others with that knowledge. "We've made it our mission in the last year to advocate for better care for soldiers and families," she said. "I know now the resources that I didn't know then. There are a ton of resources."

Related Sites: Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury Deployment Health Clinical Center Real Warriors Campaign Family Matters Blog Related Articles: Conference Explores Trauma's Impact on Families

"Certificates of Appreciation" to the Soldiers Angels

Vivian awarding this Certificate of Appreciation to Rudolf Aufmkolk and  thanks Rudi for the great
food and hard work.

All photos made by Evelyn Zierer

Vivian Wilson, Manager Fisher House Landstuhl hand over "Certificates of Appreciation" to all Soldiers Angels. For organizing and participating in the Oktoberfest at the Landstuhl Fisher House.

 

Vivian Wilson said: " Your dedication to selfless service has helped to improve the quality of life for " Our greatest national treasure... our military service men and women and their loved ones."

The Fisher House and Vivian Wilson is giving Willie and the Soldiers`Angels

a special Thank You for the big Oktoberfest Dinner!

So Vivian is awarding Willie a Certificate of Appreciation, too.

I was so surpised I cannot tell you!

The Oktoberfest was donated by Soldiers`Angels - Patti Bader-Patton -, Rudi and Willie Aufmkolk, Maria Daehn and Astrid Clauss.

Soccer Builds Camaraderie at Camp Savage

Soccer Builds Camaraderie at Camp Savage
Tue, 08 Dec 2009 09:25:00 -0600

By Army Pfc. J.P. Lawrence Special to American Forces Press Service CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE BASRA, Iraq, Dec. 8, 2009 - Every night except Sunday, soldiers from America, international guardsmen from East Africa and translators from outside the gates play soccer on Camp Savage, Iraq. U.S. soldiers, African international guardsmen and Iraqi translators play soccer at Camp Savage, Iraq, Nov. 14, 2009. U.S. Army Photo by Pfc. J.P. Lawrence (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. They speak in a menagerie of tongues -- English, Ugandan, Swahili, Arabic. But this game -- soccer, football, koura el-khadim -- connects them. Camaraderie rings out in the multilingual sounds of the matches. Wild slides and jukes send gravel skittering across the field and throw dust into the air. Stuttering feet in desperate chase drum syncopated rhythms. The net rustles as the ball courses through its contours before nestling at the bottom near the defeated goalie's feet. And then there is the jubilant cry of "GO-O-O-O-AL!" Games always have had the power to bring people together, and it's no different for the soldiers, international guardsmen and Iraqis. Their field is the base parking lot; their boundaries are the bunker walls, the trailer and the Humvee. Their common language is soccer. George Easirija, an international guardsman, dribbles left, but someone's there. He dribbles right, but no! He stops. He pops the ball into the air and then lofts it through a thicket of limbs to his teammate up ahead, who advances it forward. Goal! Semuyala Livingstone, another international guardsman, is covered. He spins and passes to a man in front of the goal. He shoots, and the ball ricochets to Frank Tumusiime, who has an open shot. With a long step and swing, Tumusiime boots the ball past the goalie and past the goal and over the barbed-wire fence that separates the base from the dangers outside. The game is halted until the gate guards retrieve the ball. Army Spc. Andrew Hoffman, a Tacoma, Wash., native and air-conditioning mechanic with the 308th Brigade Support Battalion, darts around the field, kicking and yelling. There is quite a bit of shouting, but all involved insist it's good-natured. "It's all fun and games," said Army Staff Sgt. Christopher Mason, a Rochester, N.Y., native and a mechanic with the 308th BSB. "After the game, we shake hands, just like in the beginning, we all pray before the game." No one takes themselves too seriously. "At times we play rough, but we don't mean it," Easirija said. "We just play." In the middle of everything is an Iraqi translator with the nickname "Duck." He said the games have brought him closer to his co-workers. "When I started playing the first days, I was not a good player. But then there was a great shift for me," Duck said. "They made me feel an important player. That's why they come to my room, they knock on my door, they ask me to play and they insist I play with them." Some soldiers spend their free time on deployment watching TV or playing video games, but there are worse ways to spend time than connecting with co-workers playing soccer, the global game. "We get to meet new friends," Mason said. "New people, new cultures," Hoffman added. "And it's something to do." (Army Pfc. J.P. Lawrence serves with the Minnesota National Guard's 34th Infantry Division public affairs office.)

Related Sites: 34th Infantry Division Multinational Corps Iraq

An African international guardsman dribbles a soccer ball during a Nov. 14, 2009, game at Camp Savage, Iraq. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. J.P. Lawrence Download screen-resolution Download high-resolution U.S. soldiers, African international guardsmen and Iraqi translators play soccer at Camp Savage, Iraq, Nov. 14, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. J.P. Lawrence Download screen-resolution Download high-resolution

Walter Reed Patients Test Next-generation Prosthesis

Walter Reed Patients Test Next-generation Prosthesis
Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:34:00 -0600

By Christen N. McCluney Special to American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Dec. 10, 2009 - Wounded warriors at the Military Advanced Training Center at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here are testing a new microprocessor-controlled prosthetic knee. The X2 microprocessor knee by Otto Bock HealthCare is the result of a medical research project funded in support of the Military Amputee Research Program. This project, administered by the Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center, had the goal of developing "an electronically controlled prosthetic knee joint that meets the specific demands of military staff in real world activity," said Troy Turner, Advanced Technology Research Program manager at TATRC. He added that in 2005, officials recognized that even the cutting-edge prosthetic devices weren't good enough. "Otto Bock had the C-Leg," he said. "It was the best that was available, but not the best needed." Soldiers needed a prosthetic knee with a longer battery life that would enable them to walk and run backward and forward and go up stairs foot over foot. Otto Bock developed a proposal that later was funded and has developed a new knee that has more durability and functionality, extended battery life, remote-control functions and can handle higher weight loads. Adele Levine, a physical therapist at the center, said many patients were dealing with knee and joint pain with the C-leg, and saw relief almost immediately once they began wearing the new X2. "Once I got the confidence to trust the leg that it would do what it was supposed to do, I almost got immediate relief," said Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Marcus Wilson, one of the three patients at Walter Reed testing out the microprocessor knee. "No knee pain [or] hip pain. Everything evened out." The leg enables him to stand in any position and rest on the amputated side, relieving pressure on his intact leg, he said. He also can run again without having to switch to another leg. "With the old C-Leg, you can't run," he said. "Now, it's as simple as getting a remote and putting it in running mode and going. As fast as you can go, the leg will keep up with you." Army Staff Sgt. Alfredo De los Santos has been using the new X2 microprocessor for a little more than two weeks. "Ever since I got this leg, it's been heaven," he said. "I went to Busch Gardens. I walked all day long. I only take it off when I go to sleep at night." De los Santos, who works out two or three times a day and recently participated in the Army Ten-Miler and the Marine Corps Marathon using a hand-crank chair, said that before using the X2 he occasionally would use canes to alleviate some of the back pain he was having because he enjoys being active. "Now, I can jump and mostly do everything," he said. Levine said that with the X2 De los Santos has alleviated a lot of his previous concerns about the pressure he was putting on his intact side and his concerns with quality of living. "He is so much happier. He tells us this at least 20 times a day," she said. "He's always concerned about the future and his condition in 20 years; this gives him a lot of hope." The knees are currently being fitted on 30 wounded warriors at Walter Reed and at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, and are expected to be widely available in 2011. "It's what you make out of it," De los Santos said when asked about his hope with the X2. "If you can do this, you can do anything. You can accomplish anything, and you have to make the decision to make it work." (Christen N. McCluney works in the Defense Media Activity's emerging media directorate.)

Related Sites: Walter Reed Army Medical Center

11.12.2009 news and stories around LRMC, Germany

Fort Drum Soldier Dies of Wounds Newzjunky.com - Watertown,NY,USA ...7 at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit Dec. 3 with an improvised explosive device in ...

Panama City soldier dies of wounds suffered in Afghanistan The News Herald - Panama City,FL,USA ....Staff Sgt. Dennis J. Hansen, 31, died Monday at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl, Germany, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked ...

Local Soldier Killed WJHG-TV - Panama City,FL,USA ....The Department of Defense says 31-year-old Army Staff Sgt. Dennis J. Hansen, died Monday at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany. ...

Fort Drum solider killed in Afghanistan NewsChannel 9 WSYR - Syracuse,NY,USA ....Staff Sgt. Dennis J. Hansen, 31, of Panama City, Fla., died Monday at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl, Germany, of wounds sustained when ...

Soldier From Panama City Dies In Germany CBS 4 - Miami,FL,USA ....Military officials said Thursday that Staff Sgt. Dennis J. Hansen, 31, died at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl, Germany, on Monday. ...

US military deaths in Afghanistan region at 857 Sacramento Bee - Sacramento,CA,USA ... Fla.; died Monday at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl, Germany, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit Dec. ...

Team Celebrates 60 Years of Advancing Technology

Team Celebrates 60 Years of Advancing Technology
Mon, 07 Dec 2009 09:41:00 -0600

By Ian Graham Special to American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Dec. 7, 2009 - The technology that lets you listen to CDs, the GPS that got you around a traffic jam this morning, and even the mouse you just used to click on this story all are direct results of research conducted or sponsored by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research. For nearly 60 years, AFOSR has pushed the limits of technological research. The resulting accomplishments have led to the creation of numerous revolutionary capabilities -- breakthroughs that have been the cornerstones in critical areas that directly support the Air Force mission -- from lasers and stealth to space weather and self-healing materials. Brendan B. Godfrey, director of AFOSR, spoke during a Dec. 2 interview on the Pentagon Channel podcast "Armed with Science: Research and Applications for the Modern Military" about the office's plans for continued success and the development of the next generation of outstanding scientists and engineers. "We strive to identify and support revolutionary and far-reaching research that has a diversity of applications, attacking things that, frankly, we have no idea how to do," said Godfrey, who holds a doctorate in physics. "If we know how to do them, we let somebody else worry about them." Fifty-seven of the scientists the office has sponsored in the past 60 years have gone on to win Nobel Prizes for their accomplishments. Godfrey said it's something AFOSR's people are proud of, but they aren't out looking to win awards. "We don't set out to fund Nobel laureates," he said. "It's easy to fund somebody after they're famous, but we're quite skilled, I think, at picking out people that are going to make an impact before they've made it." The group has a long history of contributing to major advances in technology. Its funding and networking played a role in the creation of the laser, the transistor, global positioning systems, the computer mouse, stealth technology and high-pressure flight suits. More recently, the office has worked to create three-dimensional holograms that can be changed in real time. "We're not far away from 3-D holographic movies – movies where you can actually step inside the action," Godfrey said. AFOSR looks in the long-term to keep the military ahead of its adversaries technologically. It stays on the cutting edge by networking with and funding the world's leading researchers and trying to move their research from the laboratory to the commercial and military sectors. Currently, for example, there's research being done in cooperation with Purdue University to create rocket fuel using aluminum nanoparticles and ice. Godfrey said it can be particularly difficult, because by the time the public hears of a scientific breakthrough, the innovation could be years old. "We want to know where science is going, not where it's been," he said. The group now is focused on three major research areas, Godfrey said. The first is working to improve aircraft and spacecraft, seeking better fuel and propulsion systems, and studying bats to learn about aerodynamics and maneuverability in close quarters. "We know more about how bats fly than anybody else in the world," Godfrey said. "They're very good at maneuvering at high speeds in tight quarters, and this is what you're going to have to do with micro-aerial vehicles as they fly around inside cities." AFOSR's scientists also want to create a more complete picture of the battlefield for warfighters – "ubiquitous battlefield knowledge," Godfrey called it. Improved microwave and laser technology can improve battlefield communications, and potentially could be used as a weapon. New sensors are being developed that can read and display multiple bands of the frequency spectrum, and studies are being done to better understand phenomena in the ionosphere and in space to improve satellite communication and longevity. The third main research area focuses on computers, cybersecurity and decision-making – everything from creating algorithms to control large numbers of small, remotely piloted aircraft to researching human cognition to better understand how humans and computers can interact. AFOSR has undertaken many successful ventures, but many others have not turned out as planned or have resulted in accidental discoveries with limited relevance for the Air Force. Technical risk is an accepted part of all AFOSR basic research, Godfrey said. "[The research we do] isn't easy – you don't know if it's going to work," he said. "But you've got to try." He referred to Thomas Edison's response when asked about the thousands of failed attempts at creating the light bulb: "Every one of them worked," Edison said. "Every one showed me how not to make an electric light." "If AFOSR succeeded in every piece of research that it funded, I should be fired," Godfrey joked, "because it would mean that we're not reaching forward far enough -- that we're not taking enough risks." (Ian Graham works in the Defense Media Activity's emerging media directorate.)

Biographies: Brendan B. Godfrey Related Sites: Air Force Office of Scientific Research "Armed with Science: Research and Applications for the Modern Military" on Pentagon Web Radio