Written in China more than 2,000 years ago, Sun Tzu's classic The Art of War is the first known study of the planning and conduct of military operations. These terse, aphoristic essays are unsurpassed in comprehensiveness and depth of understanding, examining not only battlefield maneuvers, but also relevant economic, political, and psychological factors. Indeed, the precepts outlined by Sun Tzu can be applied outside the realm of military theory....

"'Grunt' tackles the science behind some of a soldier's most challenging adversaries -- panic, exhaustion, heat, noise -- and introduces us to the scientists who seek to conquer them. Mary Roach dodges hostile fire with the U.S. Marine Corps Paintball Team as part of a study on hearing loss and survivability in combat. She visits the fashion design studio of U.S. Army Natick Labs and learns why a zipper is a problem for a sniper. She visits a repurposed...

With the premise that all civilizations owe their origins to war making, Keegan probes the meanings, motivations, and methods underlying war in different societies over the course of some two thousand years, from the ritualistic combat of Stone Age people to the mass destruction warfare of the present age.

Investigates the history and philosophy of the traditional form of Japanese sword fighting known as Kendo.

Tim Newark's lively narrative answers the most commonly asked questions about the Dark Ages. Who were the Vandals and the Goths? What were Attila the Hun and Charlemagne really like? From surviving contemporary literature and artifacts now shrouded in myth and legend, Newark reconstructs the battles, campaigns, sieges, and legendary leaders of one of the most mysterious eras of European history.

Describes how to listen to your inner protector and increase your sensitivity to threats before they happen.

Throughout history, great generals have done what their enemies have least expected. Instead of direct, predictable attack, they have deceived, encircled, outflanked, out-thought, and overcome often superior armies commanded by conventional thinkers. Collected here are the stories of the most successful commanders of all time, among them Hannibal, Genghis Khan, Napoleon, Stonewall Jackson, Sherman, Rommel, and Mao Zedong. Each demonstrated the strategic...

"Col. Katherine Powell, a military officer in command of an operation to capture terrorists in Kenya, sees her mission escalate when a girl enters the kill zone, triggering an international dispute over the implications of modern warfare."--

"A new industrial revolution has begun. Like mechanization or electricity before it, artificial intelligence will touch every aspect of our lives--and cause profound disruptions in the balance of global power, especially among the AI superpowers: China, the United States, and Europe. Autonomous weapons expert Paul Scharre takes readers inside the fierce competition to develop and implement this game-changing technology and dominate the future"--