HIGH TECHNOLOGY AND NATIONAL-SECURITY - A PRELIMINARY ASSESSMENT

This article argues that high technology, defined in terms of the explosion of information gathering and disseminating capability, is becoming a much more important component of national security. At one level, high technology is the driving force behind economic competitiveness and thus economic security. More specifically, five specific national security impact areas are examined: dual-use technologies and their impact on technology transfer; the international character of the technology process; the relationship between high technology and economic security; the effects of communications technology on crisis management; and the difficulty of maintaining national political control over technology dispersion. The article concludes that technology is changing so rapidly that it is increasingly difficult to keep up with its effects.