The Calculus of Conventional War: Dynamic Analysis without Lanchester Theory

For decades, a single set of tools has dominated the dynamic analysis of conventional balances: the Lanchester equations, named for Frederick William Lanchester. In this study, Joshua M. Epstein argues that Lanchester's equations fail to capture the basic dynamics of warfare and that they offer a fundamentally implausible picture of combat. He also presents new, alternative equations of his own.