Editor's Corner.

Military operations in urban terrain (MOUT) is a popular Pentagon buzzword. Defense planners believe that U.S. forces need to be prepared for MOUT-style conflicts. But how do forces train for urban warfare? How is it different from the traditional forms of training? What role do main battle tanks have in these conflicts?

Our cover story this month attempts to answer some of these questions. Assistant Editor Roxana Tiron spoke with trainers and trainees at the Army's new MOUT site in Fort Knox, Kentucky. The bottom line, they all agreed, is that urban combat is an "ugly, nasty" business, but U.S. troops must learn how to win in such fights.

The story begins on page 20.

Military training also is a topic that worries environmental groups and watchdog organizations. The Defense Department is one of this nation's largest landowners. Nevertheless, it is under pressure to cut back on live-fire exercises in many parts of the United States, because there are concerns about the hazards these exercises may pose on civilian populations. This is just one among many other issues being debated among Pentagon leaders, who recently attended a conference in Austin, Texas, focusing on the challenges of environmental stewardship. Their views are the subject of a special report by Managing Editor Harold Kennedy, which begins on page 32.

Given the decline in defense spending during the past 15 years or so, small businesses that seek funding to develop new technologies increasingly...