Changing the paradigm: Simulation,now a method of first resort

Decades ago, simulation was famously characterized as a “method of last resort,” to which analysts should turn only “when all else fails.” In those intervening decades, the technologies supporting simulation—computing hardware, simulation‐modeling paradigms, simulation software, design‐and‐analysis methods—have all advanced dramatically. We offer an updated view that simulation is now a very appealing option for modeling and analysis. When applied properly, simulation can provide fully as much insight, with as much precision as desired, as can exact analytical methods that are based on more restrictive assumptions. The fundamental advantage of simulation is that it can tolerate far less restrictive modeling assumptions, leading to an underlying model that is more reflective of reality and thus more valid, leading to better decisions. Published 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics 62: 293–303, 2015     

An Ideological Response to Combating Terrorism – The Singapore Perspective

The article examines alternative strategies to combating the scourge of terrorism beyond military approaches. There is now more realization, especially after the difficulties experienced in Iraq today, that an innovative multi-pronged mix of methods is needed to combat international terrorism. The paper looks at an ideological response towards combating terrorism by looking at the Singapore experience. The Singapore government recognizes the importance of an ideological response as an integral part of counterterrorism measures. Terrorism occurs when opportunity, motivation and capability meet. The prevention of terrorism requires the elimination of at least one of these three factors- motivation- often driven by ideology. The paper will look at direct and indirect initiatives undertaken in Singapore to combat terrorism and will also look at the Muslim community in Singapore's response to the threat to Singapore society. Lastly, the article will examine some lessons learnt from the Singapore experience in applying an ideological approach in combating terrorism as well as some recommendations of what more can be done to move forward.     

多弯头管道磁致伸缩导波无损检测技术

为了研究超声导波在弯管中的传播特性及检测可行性,使用磁致伸缩导波仪器及传感器对多弯头管道进行了检测实验,并对弯管中导波的传播速度、模态转换、能量衰减等现象进行了探讨。结果表明:当弯管弯曲程度较小时,弯管中导波传播速度与直管中近似;弯管中导波存在明显的模态转换现象;弯管中导波能量随着时间近似呈指数形式衰减,且衰减规律与激励频率存在密切联系。该研究结果可以为复杂结构弯曲管道的导波检测提供参考。     

基于分岔理论的数字液压缸稳定性分析与设计

为将分岔理论应用于数字液压缸稳定性分析与设计,对系统非线性模型进行了等价变换和光滑处理,同时为克服刚性问题影响,基于量纲分析理论通过选择合适的基本量将模型无因次化,并采用预测-校正延拓法确保分岔求解的精度和效率。在各自可行区间内,对重要参数和不确定参数进行了单参数分岔分析,结果表明:数字液压缸的初始设计具有一定的稳定裕度和鲁棒性,系统受不确定参数的影响较小;运用分岔理论,能够有效揭示各参数对系统动态稳定性的影响,为系统参数设计提供指导。     

Drone Strikes and Grand Strategy: Toward a Political Understanding of the Uses of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Attacks in US Security Policy

This article analyzes the political utility of US drone strikes theoretically and deductively. Placing strikes within the context of the theorized political functions of force and considering how they fit into two grand strategies, restraint and selective engagement, I argue that these strikes buy the United States relatively little in the way of political effects assuring its own security because the terrorism threat they are intended to combat is a limited one within the skein of US global interests. Furthermore, their contribution to counter-terrorism efforts is likely to diminish with the adoption of armed drones by non-state actors. Drone strikes can, however, provide leverage over recalcitrant US client states while reassuring liberal partners and giving them some leverage over US choices. In addition, within the counter-terrorism sphere, drone strikes are less likely to inflame popular opinion than are alternative uses of force. This analysis contributes to an increasingly rigorous examination of the strikes’ role in US foreign and security policy.     

Book reviews

Export or Die: Britain's Defence Trade with Iran and Iraq. by Davina Miller, London: Cassell, 1996, ISBN 0-304-33852-4 (hbk), £40.00, 04-33853-2 (pbk), £11.99.

The Storm Passed By: Ireland and the Battle of the Atlantic, 1940-1941. by Trevor Allen, Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 1996, ISBN 0-7165-2616-6, (hbk) £17.50.

Arms Control Toward the 21st Century. by Jeffrey A. Larsen and Greqory J. Rattray (eds). Boulder: Lynne Rienner, 1996.

Asia-Pacific Security, Less Uncertainty, New Opportunities. Edited by Gary Klintworth. Melbourne: Addison Wesley Longman, 1996, ISBN 0-582-80321-7, £24.99.

Masters of War, Military Dissent and Politics in the Vietnam Era. by Robert Buzzanco, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996, ISBN 0-521-48046-9 (hbk), £29.95

Controlling the Arms Trade: the West Versus the Rest. By Paul Cornish, London: Bowerdean Publishing Co., 1996, ISBN 0-906097-44-4 (pbk), £9.99.

Secret Agencies: US Intelligence in a Hostile World. by Loch K. Johnson, London: Yale University Press, 1997, ISBN 0-300-06611-2 (hbk), £22.50.