The purpose of this paper is to compare two different approaches regarding Air Policing missions. This comparison is necessary to understand which approach is most appropriate according to 21st century concerns and realities. Because of asymmetric and irregular threats since 9/11, the question of Air Policing continues to be a preoccupation of the military and politicians. The first theory is a historical one and represents the British Royal Air Force way of employing airpower between WW I and WW II in British colonies. The RAF used all types of air assets against various targets, to include ground targets, during peacetime and war in order to gain or regain the necessary social order. The British, historically, have used Air Policing as a way to prosecute irregular threats. On the other hand, the NATO modern approach describes Air Policing as a specific DCA (Defensive Counter Air) fighter mission, OPCON/TACON (Operational Control/Tactical Control) to an Air Operation Center during peacetime in order to maintain 24/7 control over an assigned AOR. This is the normal procedure to conduct Air Policing for airspace control in all European NATO countries and was also adopted by the USAF for homeland defense after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The British historical approach is closer to the concept of using airpower in Counter Insurgency (COIN) Operations and Counter Terrorism (CT) where situations change rapidly from warfighting to policing and back, while the NATO/USAF way to accomplish Air Policing is as a DCA mission (warfighting) with applicability during peace (or during crisis situations in worst case) with very specific TTPs (Tactics, Techniques and Procedures).


Aiming at certain sheet pile wharf,the dreging reconstructional shemes were studied based on numerical simulation.It is found that the bending moment and settlement of sheet pile increase after dredging;among three reconstructional schemes,sheme 1(that is to say,reinforcing the soil clay in the bottom of sheet pile)has oversize bending moment,sheme 2(that is to say,installing barrier piles in the rear side of sheet piles)has oversize settlement of pile head,and sheme 3(that is to say,combining sheme 1 with sheme 2)meet all demands and has higher stability,especially,sheme 3 has lesser bending moment,settlement and horizontal displacement of sheet pile head all the same when load on the faceplate increase doubly.The following conclusions can be drawn that sheme 3 which reinforce the soil clay in the bottom of sheet pile and install barrier piles in the rear side of sheet piles is a better sheme.


Study Design This investigation measured the immediate effects of 10, 20, and 30 repeated neck retraction movements on the retraction range of motion and resting neck posture in asymptomatic subjects. Objectives The results provide baseline gross kinematic data concerning the effects of neck retraction movements. Future work involving patients is anticipated and proposed. Summary of Background Information Neck retraction movements are an assessment maneuver and a treatment technique advocated by Robin McKenzie for patients with neck pain. They are a commonly prescribed physical therapy technique used to treat patients with neck pain and dysfunction. No previous studies of this maneuver have been reported. Methods Two groups of 15 subjects, one group 20–29 years old and the other 50–59 years old, participated. Each group performed three sets of 10 repeated movements. The position of the head and neck were recorded by the 3Space Isotrak System using markers placed over the spinous processes of selected vertebrae and the tragus of the ear. Results After the repeated movements, no statistically significant difference was found in neck retraction range of motion, but a statistically significant change in the resting neck posture was detected. Conclusions Any changes in neck retraction range of motion observed after the execution of this maneuver in patients with neck pain may be the result of changes in a pathological process. If the postural change were to occur in patients, this treatment maneuver could be beneficial for those attempting to maintain a more retracted neck position for pain relief.


Nowadays adult higher education's examination and assessment exists the value orientation of diplomaism which is contrary to the ideal of lifelong education in the era of knowledge economy.What has an effect on its value orientation is from society and education.If we want to reconstruct the correct value orientation,we need have correct opinion of person with ability on adult higher education,establish the new model of educational assessment and reform the examination.


Acoustic gunshot detection systems when deployed in urban environments need to account for reverberations in the acoustic channels. In order to improve the detection performance in such environments, we investigate the potential deployment of a two-stage methodology comprising of a blind system identification and deconvolution (BSID) stage followed by a support vector machine (SVM)-based classification stage. Given that gunshot detection systems are typically equipped with a microphone array, BSID module makes use of the spatial diversity achieved through multiple recordings of the same acoustic event and implements a maximum likelihood approach to the estimation and subsequent mitigation of the reverberation effects. In order to simulate gunshots' audio recordings in an urban environment, we use audio clips of gunshots with negligible reverberations that were recorded in an open area, and pass them through experimentally measured channel responses corresponding to a semi-enclosed outdoor courtyard. Using an extensive database of gunshots as well as outsider signals, our results indicate that introducing the BSID module achieves a dramatic improvement in detection performance, albeit under constraints necessary for working of the BSID approach. We achieve an impressive detection performance of more than 99% and a negligible false alarm rate even in the face of strong reverberations.


FIELD: organic chemistry, medicine, pharmacy. SUBSTANCE: invention relates to derivatives of piperidine of the general formula (I): or their pharmaceutically acceptable salts or isomers wherein Q means nitrogen atom (N); X and Z are chosen independently from group consisting of -CH and N under condition that one or both groups among Q and Z mean N; R, R 4 , R 5 , R and R are chosen independently from group consisting of hydrogen atom (H) and (C 1 -C 6 )-alkyl; R 1 means H, (C 1 -C 6 )-alkyl, R 9 -aryl-(C 1 -C 6 )-alkyl-, (C 1 -C 6 )-alkyl-SO 2 -, (C 3 -C 6 )-cycloalkyl-SO 2 -, fluoro-(C 1 -C 6 )-alkyl-SO 2 -, R 9 -aryl-SO 2 -, R 9 -heteroaryl-SO 2 -, -N(R 22 )(R 23 )-SO 2 -, (C 1 -C 6 )-alkyl-C(O)-, (C 3 -C 6 )-cycloalkyl-C(O)-, fluoro-(C 1 -C 6 )-alkyl-C(O)-, R 9 -aryl-C(O)-, CH 3 CH 2 -NH-C(O)- or R 9 -aryl-NH-C(O)-; R 2 means H or (C 1 -C 6 )-alkyl, and R 3 means H, (C 1 -C 6 )-alkyl, (C 1 -C 6 )-alkoxy-(C 1 -C 6 )-alkyl-, (C 3 -C 10 )-cycloalkyl-, (C 3 -C 10 )-cycloalkyl-(C 1 -C 6 )-alkyl-, R 9 -aryl, R 9 -aryl-(C 1 -C 6 )-alkyl- or R 9 -heteroaryl under condition that each X and X doesn't mean N, or R 2 and R 3 in common mean =NOR 10 . Proposed compounds can be used as selective CCR 5 antagonists. Compounds are useful in HIV treatment. Also, invention describes a pharmaceutical composition based on compounds thereof and combination with antiviral or anti-inflammatory agent. EFFECT: valuable medicinal properties of compounds and pharmaceutical composition. 16 cl, 4 tbl, 5 ex


Under the dual pressure of energy transformation and environmental protection, how to use the innovative network and enhance technical innovation (TI) are significant problems for new energy vehicle (NEV) enterprises in China. Based on the patent data of China's NEV industry from 2001 to 2022, combined with the logical framework of "Patent Analysis—Network Evolution—Empirical research", this study deeply discusses the influence of enterprises' innovative network on TI. It is shown that there is an inverse U-relationship between the cooperation breadth of the enterprises, and that the appropriate cooperation breadth favors TI. At the same time, structural holes, knowledge diversity and technical value have a significant positive impact on TI. In addition, the study performs a series of robustness tests and heterogeneity checks. The conclusions are conducive to further improving the study of the relationship between innovative networks and TI, which is important both theoretically and practically for promoting the energy transformation of automotive enterprises.


Disclosed are a wireless power transmitter, a wireless power receiver, and a method of wirelessly receiving power. The wireless power receiver includes a receiving unit receiving the power from the wireless power transmitter using resonance, and a rectifying unit rectifying the power received therein from the receiving unit to supply the power to a load side. The rectifying unit changes an output impedance of the wireless power receiver in order to change an input current of the wireless power transmitter.


This article discusses the difficulties associated with military-led stability and nationbuilding operations and argues that the United States' current policy negatively affects defence capabilities, unduly influences how stability operations are prioritized and conducted, limits State Department capacities, and allows the military to be seen as the 'face' of American foreign policy. Several options exist for the United States to adequately address this issue to include the working within the established system, a reassignment of leadership responsibilities, or restraining the American tendency to intervene. The United States' military has proven that it is capable of conducting nation-building operations, but at the cost of global misperception, painful inefficiency, significant risks to United States' overall defence capabilities, and the issues of civilian control that follow from reliance on warriors in the role of diplomats.


Fires occurring on logged areas were typically of higher severity than those in unlogged forests, but the specific effects of fire and logging varied widely among forest types and as a result of weather patterns during and prior to the fire. Carbon emissions due to fire were higher on logged areas compared to undisturbed sites. Post-fire soil respiration decreases found for both site types partially offset carbon losses. Carbon emissions from fire and post-fire ecosystem damage on logged sites are expected to increase under changing climate conditions and as a result of anticipated increases in future forest harvesting in Siberia. Materials and Methods


The purpose of this study was to examine the preschool teachers' view of their competence in art and art creation, as well as the competence they consider that a preschool teacher should have and h ...


The title monomers 1 and 2 were polymerized by Ru-, Ir-, Mo-, W- and Re-based metathesis catalysts to yield polymers with cis contents ranging from 10% to at least 90% for 1 and 23-60% for 2. Assignments of the 13 C NMR spectra were made. No significant head-tail bias was observed in either polymer. A high-trans polymer made from the optically active endo monomer ((-)-1) was atactic, while high-cis polymers could be either atactic or biased towards syndiotactic, depending on the catalyst


Opsomming 105 Acknowledgements 107 Chapter 1: Introduction 1 Most planktonic organisms feed on phytoplankton, making them the principal link between phytoplankton and higher trophic levels in almost every aquatic food chain. A major part of the diet of many aquatic animals is comprised of copepods and other planktonic organisms, as it is such a rich source of protein (Rupert & Barnes 1994). If symbionts associated with planktonic organisms cause any pathogenic harm to the hosts, it could cause the total collapse of aquatic food webs, due to the significant role of planktonic organisms in the feeding habits of aquatic communities. Freshwater copepods in southern Africa occupy a wide variety of habitats, including open waters of large impoundments, a wide range of temporary water bodies, backwaters of rivers, marshy areas and coastal lakes. Copepods do not occur in the main flow of rivers and have not been recorded from subterranean waters, in spite of the association with river systems (Rayner 2001). Within the group Cyclopoida there are several parasitic copepods, while the Calanoida and Harpacticoida do not contain any parasitic forms. The majority of copepods form part of the animal component of plankton. Ciliophorans are found in all moist habitats, are generally cosmopolitan in their distribution and may be free-living or symbiotic. Ciliophorans are extremely common and frequently numerous. It is rare to find a sample of natural water without some ciliophorans being present. Phenomenal adaptations to a wide variety of ecological niches have evolved, a great many of which resulted in parasitic or other symbiotic associations (Schmidt & Roberts 1977). Epibiosis is a facultative association of two organisms: the epibiont, an organism that lives attached to the body surface of another organism, whereafter it disperses to other organisms or habitats and the basibiont, the host organism (Wahl 1989). The epibiotic life style is apparent to the casual observer in the form of barnacles attached to whales. Equally conspicuous, on a smaller size scale, are epibionts such as bacteria, algae and protozoans (e.g. ciliophorans), that use crustacean zooplankton as a substrate organism (Green 1974). Chapter 1: Introduction 2 Epistylids belong to the peritrich ciliophorans, whose major characteristic is their colonial organisation. The colony attaches to the substrate by a first-order non contractile stalk, with zooids attached to the secondand third-order stalks. The features used for specific identification include the type of colonial ramification, the height of the colony and the number of zooids. In the present study, emphasis was placed on Epistylis Ehrenberg, 1830 species found associated with freshwater planktonic cyclopoid copepods, collected mainly from the Loch Logan Waterfront in Bloemfontein. During the course of this study, introduced freshwater crayfish of the genus Cherax Erichson, 1846 was brought to the laboratory from a commercial crayfish farm, outside Bloemfontein. Epistylids were noted on the antennae and carapace of the crayfish and the question immediately arose whether the epistylids are indigenous to South Africa, whether it has been reported from Africa before or if it was introduced along with the crayfish. Against this background the present study was undertaken with the following specific objectives: 1. to examine the copepod composition of plankton samples and to identify relevant species using available keys. 2. to study any sessiline ciliophorans associated with crustaceans, in various natural and man made water systems and if found, taxonomically describe such species. 3. to study the effect of epistylid symbionts on an introduced freshwater crayfish. 4. to obtain an understanding of the different host/symbiont associations in both cases. Chapter 1: Introduction 3 The layout of this dissertation is as follows: Chapter 2 explains the materials and methods used during field and laboratory work, in order to collect and fix material. Chapter 3 is the literature overview on the genus Epistylis, including the taxonomic history and position of this cosmopolitan epibiont, as well as a summary of Epistylis species associated with crustacean hosts and the general biology of Epistylis. In Chapter 4 the focus is placed on the hosts (both planktonic copepods and crayfish species) including the identification of the hosts, composition of the plankton samples, as well as the influence of introduced crayfish on our natural water systems. Statistical data, morphological descriptions of the Epistylis species associated with Eucyclops Clauss, 1893 sp. and Cherax destructor Clark, 1936 and a compendium of known euplanktonic Epistylis species follows in Chapter 5. Chapter 6 provides a general discussion on the present study and Chapter 7 contains the literature referred to in this manuscript, followed by the abstract and acknowledgements. Chapter 2: Materials and Methods 4 2.1 Collection Localities Plankton samples were collected at different localities including the Loch Logan Waterfront, Botanical Gardens and Sewerage Farm, in the vicinity of Bloemfontein from February 2002 until September 2003. A freshwater crayfish farm just outside Bloemfontein was also visited to collect external parasites from two introduced crayfish species; Cherax destructor and Cherax quadricarinatus Von Martens, 1868. Although other collection localities included once off collections at the Krugersdrif Dam, Pony Club, Soetdoring Nature Reserve, Botanical Gardens and Sewerage Farm, no ciliophoran infestations were found in these localities. Emphasis will therefore be placed on Loch Logan and the crayfish farm. 2.1.1 Loch Logan Waterfront Loch Logan (Figs 2.1; 2.2 A F) was built in one of the channels of Bloemspruit, in the Westdene area near the city centre Bloemfontein. This channel feeds Loch Logan with runoff water collected from the urban areas it runs through. The canal enters Loch Logan at its north-western side, opposite the impoundment wall. Eventually Bloemspruit flows into the Renosterspruit (about 12 km downstream from Loch Logan), which ends up in the Modder River, just outside of Bloemfontein (Vos 2002). Loch Logan's grid reference is 29o06'50.7"S and 26o12'30.3"E and has a volume of about 95 000 m, an area of approximately 4.2 ha, excluding the island and a mean depth of 2.26 m. There is an island in the middle of Loch Logan that divides the water mass in almost two equally sized arms. It is located in a summer rainfall area, which receives between 500-700 mm per annum, half of which is due to thunderstorms. This rain is runoff/storm water that is canalised to Loch Logan. Waste flushes into Loch Logan with rainstorms and contribute to algal blooms (Figs 2.2 D, E & F) when organic decomposed materials and inorganic nutrients are released into the water (Vos 2002). Chapter 2: Materials and Methods 5 In 1997 a shopping complex was developed on the banks of Loch Logan consisting of several shops, restaurants, pubs, a movie theatre as well as a gymnasium on the eastern bank. On the island there are Barbecue areas (Fig 2.2 A) and a performance stage. Human and commercial activities at the waterfront also contribute to the pollution of Loch Logan. When comparing digital images of Loch Logan Waterfront taken in November 2002 (Figs 2.2 A & B) to those taken in November 2003 (Figs 2.2 D, E & F), the environmental deterioration can clearly be seen in the increased amount of litter in the water. Algal blooms present in 2003 (Figs 2.2 D, E & F) are also an indication of a disrupted ecological system. 2.1.2 Freshwater Crayfish Farm Freshwater crayfish farming is not a new tendency in South Africa; there are several freshwater crayfish farms in the country. The only farm in the Free State is the small holding, La Menereze, of Dr. Herman Reinach, a well known orthodontic surgeon and business man from Bloemfontein (Fig 2.3 A). Farming consists mainly of two Australian freshwater crayfish species, Cherax destructor and Cherax quadricarinatus (Figs 2.3 D, E & F). This farm has existed for thirteen years and crayfish are exported and sold as pets and delicatessens to several countries, including Canada. According to the regulation of the Department of Environmental Affairs the crayfish must be kept indoors (Figs 2.3 A & B). They are kept in heated breeding tanks, which ensure optimum conditions for breeding (Fig 2.3 B). Plastic piping in the tanks, provide shelter for the crayfish (Fig 2.3 C). Quarantine tanks also exist where newly bought or sick crayfish are kept. The necessary permits for keeping, breeding and transporting crayfish are renewed annually. This is essential to prevent the spreading of the crayfish into natural river systems of South Africa, specifically in this case the Orange-Vaal River system. Fig 2.1 Map of Loch Logan, showing the three main sampling points (A – C). Redrawn from Vos (2002). Island First Avenue


A fault risk prediction method for distribution network based on improved RelieF-Softmax algorithm is proposed. Firstly, the fault data of distribution network is obtained and 14 fault characteristics are extracted through data investigation. The improved relief filtering feature extraction method is adopted to screen the initial fault feature set and select key fault features. Finally, a distribution network fault warning method based on the cross entropy loss function of focal loss is proposed, and the results of calculation examples demonstrate the effectiveness of the method proposed in this paper.


1. Acritarchs are a polyphyletic group of unicellular organisms, essentially marine and fossil, with a very resistant organic membrane; the majority probably represent the cysts of microscopic, extinct eukaryote algae. This review gives a general account for the non‐specialist of their characteristics and affinities, but focuses, using selected examples, on their role as biostratigraphic tools for the specialist.


A 10-year-old castrated male Schnauzer (case 1) and a 13-year-old intact male Schnauzer (case 2) was referred with mass of left hind limb. We performed hemogram, serum chemistry, radiography, ultrasonography, computed tomography, fine needle aspiration and histopathology. The complete blood counts and serum biochemistry results were within the reference range. Radiography showed cutaneous mass with soft tissue density. The lesions of two dogs were revealed a definite marginated hyperechoic mass with vascularization in ultrasonography. Computed tomography showed an isodense mass in the left hind limb region with minimal contrast enhancing in case 1 and heterogenous enhancement in case 2. Cytology from ultrasonographic guided aspiration of the mass was suspected fibrous tissue-derived benign cell in two dogs. A surgical excision was performed in two dogs. In histological examination of the resected mass, cutaneous fibroma was revealed. The two patients were successfully treated by surgery and postoperative care. This report decribes and compares radiographic, ultrasonographic, computed tomographic, cytologic and histopathologic features of the cutaneous fibroma of two schnauzer dogs.


Criminal responsibility due to other action is not just one of the exceptions in fundamental principles of criminal law, in fact, reflects the perpetrator's fault. Criminal responsibility in accordance with Article 142 of the Islamic Penal Code, adopted in 2013, means that a person is legally responsible for other acts, whether or not committed in blame, or in relation to the outcome of another act of committing the offense. Therefore, with regard to the absence of an instance for the elementary part of the article and its need for a clear legal text and the flexibility of all the examples to the second paragraph of Article 142 of the Islamic Penal Code, it is possible, in relation to Articles 508 and 528 of the above law, to do this. It finds that a criminal offender will be punished on account of a non-verb under Article 142 and will not be punished by other stewards, unlike all other cases related to the assignment that both the causative agent and the persecutor are punished according to the extent of the effect of the action or on the basis of being present. However, under article 142, only the criminal prosecutor will be punished, not the steward.


Development of network communication in a homogeneous sensor network environment is straightforward as the nodes can share message layouts simply by letting the compiler lay out messages in an arbitrary fashion and using the same executable code on all nodes. However, this simple approach does not usually work in a heterogeneous sensor network setting because different compilers may generate different message layouts, and different processors often have different basic type representations and alignments. The traditional solutions to this problem is to either require programmers to insert network-byte-order and host-byte-order conversions, or to use a compiler that automatically generates marshalling and unmarshalling routines. Unfortunately, these approaches are in-adequate for sensor networks because they are either error-prone and/or add significant overheads to already resource-constrained sensor motes. Instead, we propose a language extension --- network types --- which supports heterogeneous networking in a simple and efficient way. We have implemented network types in the nesC, the language of the TinyOS sensor network operating system and its applications. We have used network types to supports heterogeneous networking between micaz and telos motes (which have different alignment restrictions). We also show that our implementation introduces a negligible amount of overhead in runtime and code size. Network types have the additional benefit of requiring few changes to existing TinyOS code.


Strongly adhered to a polymer coating on a conductive surface a process of depositing an electrical graft, for forming the undercoating P onto said surface, and the general formula :( meth) active monomer having an acrylic acid X0 ester include making electrochemical grafting to the surface, where X is either a portion of the preformed polymer, or an intermediate agent for the polyaddition reaction, or at least one complementary reactive group process is an anchor group for attachment of molecules with. Such process allows the formation of new primed by one stage electrical grafting of reactive polymer, referred to as macromonomers. Such a process is also called grafting from method, i.e. for increasing the coating thickness from the polymerization of a second monomer, or a covalent bond through X ester group between the undercoat and the overcoat by the so-called graft-on toe method the other types through polymer for introducing (also referred to as a topcoat), to allow the first further modification of the electrical grafted polymer (referred to as undercoat). Such a process is also functional polymers, peptides, proteins, makes it possible to graft a compound on the undercoat, such as oligonucleotides, dyes, drugs, antimicrobial compounds.


Purpose: The leaf span for a Varian MLC is 15 cm. Fields larger than this in the leaf motion direction must be split into multiple ports with a "carriage shift" between ports. Leaf position is a function of both carriage position and leaf position within the carriage. The carriage position is dictated by the outermost leaf position, and the carriages do not move during radiation delivery. We have developed a test to assess carriage positioning accuracy by comparing the same abutting MLC‐shaped fields both with and without carriage motion between the delivery of the two fields. Methods and Materials: A 14 cm wide × 40 cm long field was split into two 7 cm wide rectangular ports shaped by the MLC. Width is defined in the leaf motion direction. These two fields were delivered using two separate static MLC files, then using a single DMLC file. In the former case, the carriages move while the leaves remain stationary with respect to the carriages. In the latter case, the carriages remain stationary while the leaves move with respect to the carriages. Kodak XV film was taped to the collimator face for both cases and compared. Results: Both films appeared identical upon visual inspection. A quantitative analysis of the profiles was performed using the RIT software system. Comparison of the profiles revealed that the FWHM of the abutting region agreed to within 0.2 mm between the two films. Conclusion: If accuracy of leaf calibration has been demonstrated, differences between these profiles would imply carriage miscalibration. Carriage miscalibration would result in mispositioning of all leaves within the carriage, thereby causing significant dose delivery errors. This carriage calibration test could be performed routinely as part of the QA procedure for MLCs used for IMRT delivery.


In semiconductor spintronics, the generation of highly spin-polarized carriers and the efficient probe of spin order (due to strong ferromagnetism) -- at or above room temperature -- are crucial because it allows for the design of spin-based semiconductor devices. Usually, such goals were fulfilled in room-temperature ferromagnetic semiconductors, being rare materials in nature. While room-temperature antiferromagnetic semiconductors are plentiful, the possibility for creating highly spin-polarized carriers and strong ferromagnetism in these materials remain to be unraveled. Here, we explore such a possibility by first-principles simulations, working with CaTcO$_3$ and NaOsO$_3$ perovskites -- being room-temperature antiferromagnetic semiconductors. We find that doping them by electrons or holes results in these materials to be highly spin-polarized, carrying enormous ferromagnetic moments. Doping electrons with moderate carrier density can yield strong ferromagnetism in them, with the ferromagnetic moments being comparable to that in typical ferromagnetic semiconductors. Our work thus indicates the merit of perovskite antiferromagnetic semiconductors in spintronics -- for a possible replacement of ferromagnetic semiconductors.


Almost all change management guidance emphasizes that without senior management commitment, true change is difficult or impossible. Yet little guidance is available that describes in detailed terms what actions senior managers must take to demonstrate such commitment. This paper draws on the author's experiences in change management (primarily in implementing capability models) to discuss what senior management commitment means in practice. Senior managers must understand and then act upon five principles. Senior managers establish a common vision of an improved organization, demonstrate their commitment by actions that are taken "in the heat of battle," engage other managers, provide resources, and actively address organizational incompetence. Examples are given of actions that demonstrate strong commitment and of actions that convey a different message. Change programs are most likely to succeed when the commitment is strong and clear. WHY IMPROVE PROCESSES? If a company is presently profitable, why change? Why invest in process improvement when that only adds to the overhead rate? The answer is survival, in a world that is constantly changing. Competitors are discovering better ways to work that produce higher quality products, faster, at a lower cost. Companies that don't do the same will be out of the game in a few years. Process improvement is an important means to an end of business improvement or improvement of project performance. In the government-contracting arena, where many large system development efforts are concentrated, the government also is beginning to demand not only good processes that are likely to get the government good products reliably, but also continuously improving processes. In search of better controlled programs and better products, the government is asking for increasing levels of compliance with capability models such as the Capability Maturity Model® for Software (SWCMM®) [SEI 1993] and now the Capability Maturity Model, Integrated (CMMI®) [SEI 2000]. Companies 1 Capability Maturity Model® and CMM® are registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. CMMI is a service mark of Carnegie Mellon University. that wish to win or retain government contracts are finding that they must demonstrate process improvement based on these capability models. For these reasons, many organizations establish process improvement efforts. The investment is sizeable, so it is important to attend to success factors such as senior management commitment. WHY ARE SENIOR MANAGERS IMPORTANT IN PROCESS IMPROVEMENT? Senior managers set the tone for the organization as a whole. Senior management attention makes things happen. Senior management actions are both overt and behind the scenes. Overt actions include allocation of resources: how large an overhead rate is the manager willing to accept in order to fund process improvement? A low overhead rate will make winning contracts more likely in the short run, but a process improvement effort of substance can make the company more survivable in the long run. Priorities also are both overt and unstated. Although overt priorities drive initial actions, unstated priorities determine what really happens over the long term. On what does the senior manager follow through? What incentives does the manager place in subordinates' performance review plans? On what activities does the manager demand status during program and organizational reviews? Are there financial reviews discussing immediate profits and losses without follow through on more strategic items such as the progress of process improvement? If so, eventually the organization's attention and resources end up in the tactical arena, and improvement efforts suffer. In summary, the senior manager has to do more than just fund process improvement appropriately. The senior manager must also insist on change at the top levels (in his or her own work, as well as the work of his or her direct reports) and maintain such attention over the long term. WHY IS SENIOR MANAGEMENT COMMITMENT DIFFICULT TO GET? In general, senior managers have wide-ranging responsibilities necessarily involving long work weeks. Some


The Ohara glass S‐FTM16 is of considerable interest for near‐infrared optical designs because it transmits well through the K band and because negative S‐FTM16 elements can be used to accurately achromatize positive calcium fluoride elements in refractive collimators and cameras. Glass manufacturers have sophisticated equipment to measure the refractive index at room temperature, but cannot typically measure the refractive index at cryogenic temperatures. Near‐infrared optics, however, operate at cryogenic temperatures to reduce thermal background. Thus, we need to know the temperature dependence of S‐FTM16's refractive index. We report here our measurements of the thermal dependence of S‐FTM16's refractive index between room temperature and ∼77 K. Within our measurement errors we find no evidence for a wavelength dependence or a nonlinear temperature term, so our series of measurements can be reduced to a single number. We find that Δnabs/ΔT = -2.4 × 10-6 K−1 between 298 and ∼77 K and in the wavelength range 0.6–2.6 μm. We estimate that the systematic error (which dominates the measurement error) in our measurement is 10%, sufficiently low for most purposes. We also find the integrated linear thermal expansion of S‐FTM16 between 298 and 77 K is −0.00167 m m−1.


Projection system comprising, on the imaging portion projected image pickup generated by the projecting portion, a processing portion a predetermined process to the predetermined projected portion projected the image light projection unit in accordance with the imaging results of the imaging unit generates the imaging lens of the imaging unit arranged outside the reflection region of the direct reflected light of the projected image.


Along with the economic reforms, rapid urbanization, and the growth of a free land market, Chinese cities witness the emergence of new forms neighborhood poverty and increasing residential segregation by social class, migration status, and housing tenure. But little is known about the consequences of this growing social-spatial differentiation for children's academic achievement in China. Using nationwide data from the China Family Panel Studies in 2010, this study examines the effect of neighborhood socioeconomic status (SES) on children's test scores in urban China and explores the mechanisms through which neighborhood environment affects children. The results show that neighborhood SES is positively associated with children's verbal and math test scores after accounting for myriad individual and family characteristics. These neighborhood effects are partly transmitted through the quantity and types of neighborhood institutions and through collective socialization. Peer contagion, neighborhood social organization, and parenting behavior account for only a small portion of the effects of neighborhood SES on children's test scores.


Fredman, M. From Idomeneo to Die Zauberflote: A conductor's Commentary on the Operas of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. (Brighton: Sussex Academic Press, 2002) 205p. [Book] 1-903900-10-7.

Research background:

The mature operas of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart continue to form a large proportion of the core repertoire of modern-day opera companies.

Research contribution:

This is the first book by an experienced conductor to explore Mozart's mature operatic works from the perspective of the opera pit. It contains a wealth of practical and anecdotal knowledge, of value not just to aspiring conductors but also scholars of Mozart's operas who wish to understand them more completely as works of art which live ultimately in performance.

Research Significance:

Published by UK-based academic press Sussex Academic in 2002.


Halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) were modified with (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane to introduce amino groups on the HNT surfaces. Subsequently, poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers were synthesized on the HNT surfaces through the alkylation with methyl acrylate and amidation with ethylenediamine. The buildup of generation was confirmed by FT-IR and XPS analysis. In addition, the back titration with NaOH showed that the amount of amino groups increased with the increase in the generation of PAMAM dendrimers. The adsorption capacity of Cr(VI) ions had the maximum value at pH 3.0 and 30°C. The results of the temperature dependence suggest that the aminosilane layer is subject to degradation at higher temperatures. Under the above optimum conditions, the adsorption capacity increased to 0.95 mmol/g, or 49.3 mg/g, for the HNT sample with 7th generation. This value is higher than or comparable to those of other adsorbents prepared from HNT. These results emphasize that HNT samples with PAMAM dendrimers exhibit a significant potential as an adsorbent for removal of Cr(VI) ions from aqueous medium and wastewaters.