The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) gets a ton of funding to develop the science and technological future of the military.

This is the agency responsible for GPS, the internet and stealth planes. They're the real deal. 

We looked at their active projects to find the ones that might have massive civilian implications if they eventually produce real-world tech.

The last few times we did this, we focused on the Defense Science Office, the Information Innovation Office and the Microsystems Technology Office. This time, we look at the Strategic Technologies Office,  which is researching the weapons that will eventually define high-tech communications systems.