This volume describes a systematic approach to strategic center of gravity analysis and a decision-support software agent, called Disciple-COG, which incorporates this approach. Disciple-COG assists a military leader in analyzing a strategic situation, such as Operation Enduring Freedom – Afghanistan 2001-2002, and determining the potential strategic center of gravity candidates of the opposing forces. Disciple-COG is an intelligent agent that has been trained to perform center of gravity analysis based on the analyses of specific historical situations by a military expert. As a result, Disciple-COG has learned general analysis strategies that allow it to analyze new situations. Moreover, the resulting analysis is similar to the analysis that would have been performed by the training expert. This makes Disciple-COG exceptionally useful in the education and training of military personnel who, by using it, can learn to follow a systematic approach to center of gravity analysis.  Successive versions of Disciple-COG have been used successfully in courses at the US Army War College and the US Air War College to describe and analyze historic situations (e.g. World War II in Europe in 1943), current situations (e.g. Iraq) and future hypothetical situations. This volume provides both a detailed description of the Disciple-COG center of gravity analysis approach, and step by step instructions for using it. The accompanying CD includes the Disciple-COG agent and the lecture notes supporting its use in courses at senior service colleges.

Contributors: Dorin Marcu, Cristina Boicu, Marcel Barbulescu, Vu Le, William Cleckner

George Mason University Press, Fairfax, Virginia, USA
ISBN 978-0-615-23812-8
Copyright 2008, Learning Agents Center