The military is currently attempting to develop itself into a force capable of networkcentric operations. While this effort has highlighted the military's dependence on interacting networks, it has also shown that there is a huge gap between what we need to know about networks and our fundamental knowledge about network behavior. This gap makes the military vision of NCO problematic. To help address this problem, the Army asked the NRC to find out whether identifying and funding a new field of "network science" could help close this gap. This report presents an examination of networks andthe military, an analysis of the promise, content, and challenges of network science, and an assessment of approaches to creating value from network science.


Table of Contents


Front Matter
Executive Summary
1 Introduction
2 Networks and Network Research in the 21st Century
3 Networks and the Military
4 The Definition and Promise of Network Science
5 The Content of Network Science
6 Status and Challenges of Network Science
7 Creating Value from Network Science: Scope of the Opportunity
8 Conclusions and Recommendations
Appendix A Biographical Sketches of Committee Members
Appendix B Committee Meetings and Other Activities
Appendix C Content of Network Science Courses
Appendix D Questionnaire Data
Appendix E Opportunities for Creating Value from Network Science
Appendix F Recommended Reading List