DARPA Wants to MacGyver the Internet Using Only What's in Troop's Pockets

Modern technology is helping soldiers push to the limits of their physical capabilities on the battlefield, but advancements in communication and assimilation of data still rely on a 1990s-era legacy premise: a networked connection to a military data center. Today’s battlefields require significant information processing capabilities, such as the sending of images, videos and sensor data, yet extensive data processing and exchange relies on dependable network connections and bandwidth capabilities that don’t always exist. This is a problem the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency—the Defense Department’s research arm—has grappled with for years, but recent contract awards through its dispersed computing (DCOMP) program may be the first steps the U.S. military takes toward mitigating this problem.