USMA Athena
USMA Athena is a secure digital service managed by the United States Military Academy Library to make the work of USMA scholars freely available, while also ensuring these resources are organized to preserve the legacy of USMA scholarship. The mission of USMA Athena is to showcase the academic impact and intellectual capital that has become synonymous with the celebrated heritage of educational prowess attributed to the Long Gray Line. Scholarship submitted to USMA Athena benefits from added visibility and discoverability via Google Scholar in addition to the use of persistent URLs that will provide enduring access to the work over time.
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Recent Submissions
Evaluating the implementation of operational readiness and maintenance policies in US army aviation
(Sage, 2025-03) Semmel, Austin; McConnell, Brandon; Heese, Hans Sebastian
This study examines AH-64 Apache dispatch decisions to assess the implementation of operational readiness (OR) and maintenance policies in the US Army. Current policies are designed to promote a ready and flexible force that is prepared to respond to global force projection requirements. The Army dictates a 75% OR target for aviation equipment and urges units to utilize aircraft uniformly to distribute maintenance capacity and prevent backlog. Given these objectives, we would expect a reduced OR rating to compel fewer sorties and uniformly distributed flying hours over the phase maintenance horizon. However, using a generalized additive model (GAM), findings indicate that diminished OR does not deter flight operations. Moreover, aircraft are more likely to be grounded when approaching scheduled phase maintenance. Further analysis exposes a significant interaction effect; units place greater weight on an aircraft’s hours until phase maintenance in the presence of low OR, highlighting a potential risk aversion in decision-making. Interestingly, control variables (the day of the week and reporting period proximity) highly correlate with flight decisions. The findings suggest that current aviation readiness metrics may have an unintended influence on units’ resource allocation. Future research should investigate unit-specific decision-making frameworks to improve aviation maintenance and OR efficiency.
Tactics and Techniques of Information Operations: Gaps in USResponse to Counter Malign Influence
(International Conference on Cyber Warfare and Security, 2025-03-25) Eerhart, Daniel; Master, Alex; Starck, Nicholas; Harrell, Nicholas
The modern information environment has transformed the dynamics of international conflict and politics. A byproduct of the capabilities offered by ubiquitous hyperconnectivity is continuous efforts by state and non-state actors to shape, manipulate, distort, or exploit information to influence public perception. These operations can deliberately disrupt social cohesion or undermine the stability and security of governments and societies. A thorough understanding of modern information threats is necessary to maintain the rules-based international order. Information threats (e.g., campaigns spreading false health information, exacerbation of domestic social issues, attacks on national reputation) aim to sow distrust and discord to gain a competitive advantage. Over the past two decades, US government agencies have been forced to modify outdated policies to counter information threats, often with mixed results. Despite recent academic frameworks and policy efforts to address information threats, gaps remain in addressing those that cross authorities, disciplines, and boundaries by their nature. This survey systematizes the tactics and techniques used in the conduct of information operations. We then present case studies to elucidate gaps and align the features of information operations against current US counter malign influence policies.
Visualizing System and Technology Trade-offs in the Water–Energy Nexus
(ACS ES&T Water, 2025-01-08) Krueger, Brett; Bennett, Elle; Pytlar, Alexander; Galaitsi, Stephanie; Linvill, Chelsea; Butkus, Michael; Pfluger, Andrew
Many systems have interconnected relationships, including those that consume energy to produce water and those that consume water to produce energy. These interconnections constitute the water–energy nexus, aspects of which have been the subject of recent study. Several visualizations of the water–energy nexus are available; however, many do not readily portray trade-offs between different water–energy technologies. In this Perspective, we present several visualizations and/or approaches that can help decision-makers better understand nexus trade-offs. First, a quadrant graph with water produced/consumed (x-axis) and energy produced/consumed (y-axis) shows how fossil fuel and renewable energies are related to one another within the nexus. Among other observations, the graph specifically highlights the current absence of systems that produce both water and energy. As emerging technologies such as anaerobic wastewater treatment become more prevalent, stakeholders can use the quadrant graph to examine how each compares to existing water–energy technologies. Finally, complementary to the quadrant graph, a figure presenting the normalization of energy produced to water consumed highlights the dominance of wind power over other technologies and how evaporative losses impact hydropower. Each of these visualizations and/or approaches can help decision-makers and stakeholders make improved decisions regarding the use of technologies within the water–energy nexus.
Academic Library Outreach: Unleashing Student Potential
(N/A, 2024-11-07) Chess, Jennifer; Gomez, Lisa; Mullooly, Lori
This presentation showcased how three academic librarians - the Exhibition Librarian, the Events and Programming Librarian, and the Communications and Marketing and Librarian - successfully harnessed the interests and strengths of their students to create greater engagement and increase scholarly output. From working with students as "clients" on academic projects, to empowering student clubs to lead programming initiatives, to tapping into the specialized knowledge of students for curating exhibits, this presentation outlined ways to rethink student involvement in academic libraries.
A Celebration of West Point Scholars and Creators July 2023 - June 2024
(USMA Library, 2024) Maroney, Barbara J.
We celebrate the 137 works of scholarship produced at the Academy between July 2023 - June 2024.
The presentations will highlight the theme of innovation, technology, and the future of national defense.