The Republic of Bulgaria is facing a challenge familiar to many former Warsaw Pact NATO members as it strives to build a modern interoperable force under domestic fiscal constraints. But not all new Central and Eastern European NATO members are active in overseas security deployments both for NATO and for other coalition operations. Bulgaria is facing short-term as well as long-term challenges as it rigs for interoperability concurrent with a transition to a professional military.

Creating an army is difficult in peacetime and even more so when a nation is at war. The Iraqi government has done that, standing up a national army that will pave the way for the eventual withdrawal of coalition forces from the country. But modern armies are complex and require many parts to operate efficiently, and signal units constitute a key feature that is missing from the new Iraqi army.

AFCEANs always have prided themselves on looking to the future, especially with regard to change and transformation. An association cannot flourish and remain successful for six decades without its members and leaders maintaining a visionary approach to operations and planning.

Throughout its nearly 50 years in existence, NASA has taken great pride in operating at the cutting edge of technology in conducting important exploration and research missions for the nation. Now, with its new strategy to lead the way in extending the presence of human civilization throughout the solar system-beginning with the return of humans to the moon as early as 2018 and leading to the eventual human exploration of Mars-NASA will certainly be counting on a number of advanced technologies to go forward with its exploration activities.

NATO nations are incorporating new military and commercial technologies to extend both the capabilities and the reach of the alliance's communications and information systems. But, many technological challenges lie ahead before the alliance and other allied nations can interoperate in coalition operations. And some cultural barriers found at the heart of intelligence and military operations remain to be overcome.

Military and humanitarian relief personnel now can reach out from the field more easily with a product that combines voice and data communications capabilities in a single box. The approximately 65-pound kit is field portable, ruggedized and self-cooling. It uses open architecture standards and can be applied to hastily formed networks, military operations, disaster response and medical relief efforts.

Binoculars may become the U.S. Navy's next tactical communications system. A prototype technology allows optical viewing systems to transmit voice, video and data communications on a beam of non-laser light. The equipment can be easily fitted to any commercially available binoculars and provides warfighters with a way to coordinate operations without relying on radios.

Daring the world's robot builders and visionaries to design autonomous ground vehicles that could traverse the treacherous terrain of the Mojave Desert was not enough for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Always on the lookout for new ways to solve persistent problems, it is now taking its quest to the streets-the city streets, that is. Dubbing its latest competition Urban Challenge, the agency is enticing the mechanically inclined dreamers of the world with substantial cash awards to develop a driverless vehicle that can master the roads of a metropolis.

The U.S. Defense Department has launched a new policy initiative designed to provide increased security and interoperability for wireless devices and systems. The undertaking provides rules for the use of commercial wireless equipment on government networks and emphasizes the adoption of open standards for wireless technologies.

While information technology experts have been hard at work securing the national infostructure, other key sectors in the United States' vital infrastructure may be vulnerable to attack through their own information systems. Critical elements such as ports, railroads, the electrical grid, fuel pipelines and hazardous materials facilities may be equipped with information systems that are virtual open doors to malicious marauders ranging from rookie hackers to al-Qaida terrorists.