Human Performance Enhancement"No attributes are more foundational to success in combat than the physical and cognitive performance of warfighters.
Technological advantage has always played a central role in war, from the bow and arrow to modern missiles, but technologies are mere tools in the hands of warfighters. People, not widgets, fight wars. Militaries have long sought to directly enhance the physical and cognitive performance of warfighters, and indeed some human performance enhancement drugs are widely used across the U.S. military today, such as caffeine. Existing technologies have demonstrated the ability to improve individual physical and cognitive performance above baseline levels and in key areas central to military competition: strength, focus, attention, learning, and resistance to fatigue. Many of these technologies are already being used in civilian settings, in licit or illicit contexts. The U.S. military is not fully capitalizing on the advantages enabled by human performance technology today and is woefully unprepared for some of the potential changes that could come from future advances in biotechnology. War is dangerous, and enhancements that allow soldiers to carry more protective gear, be more alert, or be better trained all have significant payoffs in terms of improving soldier survivability. Human performance enhancement technologies raise important legal, ethical, and social issues, some of which are unique to military settings. [...] DoD must urgently increase research into the benefits and risks of human performance technologies and begin a cross-disciplinary dialogue on policies surrounding their use in military settings. The United States owes its warfighters the very best advantages on the battlefield to improve their survivability, and DoD leaders have a duty to seriously consider enhancements that could potentially save service members' lives."