Soldiers contra diplomats: Britain’s role in the Zimbabwe/Rhodesia ceasefire (1979–1980) reconsidered

Abstract

This article re-examines part of the literature on Britain’s role in the December 1979 to March 1980 Zimbabwe/Rhodesia ceasefire. The ceasefire ushered in an era of peace after a protracted internal war and it was an integral part of the transition from colonial white minority rule, towards black majority independence. Scholars present Britain’s success in brokering and monitoring the Zimbabwe/Rhodesia ceasefire as the result of its judicious and accordant management of the road to peace. However, this article argues that in fact deep internal divisions plagued the British managers of the ceasefire. Internal divisions centred on authority struggles between diplomats and military actors, conflicting personalities, discordant approaches to and goals in the ceasefire, and inter-institutional rivalry between the Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence. The article concludes that Britain only managed the ceasefire effectively because its military’s independence, political nous, and competence ultimately prevailed over the injudicious views and machinations of diplomats.     

空气/煤油/水燃气发生器点火特性试验研究

燃气发生器是超燃冲压发动机地面试验系统中的关键设备,为提高系统安全性和经济性设计了空气/煤油/水燃气发生器,在富燃状态下进行了一系列点火试验,试验结果表明：该型燃气发生器,实现可靠点火的余氧系数下限为0.51;水的加入使得化学反应速率和火焰传播速度降低,燃气发生器点火和火焰稳定困难,提高余氧系数可以提高点火可靠性。同时水的加入容易引起燃烧不稳定,通过提高余氧系数可消除低频不稳定燃烧。     

9/11: WHAT DID WE KNOW AND WHEN DID WE KNOW IT?

In February 1998, Osama Bin Laden published a signed statement calling for a fatwa against the United States for its having ‘declared war against God’. As we now know, the fatwa resulted in the unprecedented attack of 9/11. The issue of whether or not 9/11 was in any way predictable culminated in the public debate between Richard Clarke, former CIA Director George Tenet and the White House. This paper examines whether there was any evidence of a structural change in the terrorism data at or after February 1998 but prior to June 2001, controlling for the possibility of other breaks in earlier periods. In doing so, we use the standard Bai–Perron procedure and our sequential importance sampling (SIS) Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method for identifying an unknown number of breaks at unknown dates. We conclude that sophisticated statistical time‐series analysis would not have predicted 9/11.     

TERRORISM AND TOURISM: THE CASE OF TURKEY

Using a time series method called ‘transfer function’, this paper examines the effect of terrorism on tourism in Turkey. The results indicate that there exists a negative but small impact of terrorism, which is observed within approximately one year. However, terrorist attacks in Turkey have accounted for a reduction of six million foreign tourists over the last nine years. Moreover, the economic cost of terrorism in the tourism industry was more than $700 million in 2006. However, terrorist attacks in continental Europe and America, and an active war involving a neighboring country, had no effects on tourism in Turkey.     

Remaking the military industrial relationship: A French‐American comparison

Defense industrial complexes in leading Cold War nations have downsized and reallocated resources to other productive activities in the 1990s. In this paper, we analyze the experience of two key countries ‐ the US and France. Comparing the two countries, we find similar outcomes in budgetary retrenchment and large firm restructuring but marked differences in the pace of downsizing and diversification among small and medium‐sized firms. We hypothesize that three sets of contextual differences may explain these differences: 1) institutional differences in the way that the State bureaucracies ‐ the Pentagon and the French Délégation générale pour l'armement (DGA) ‐ oversee defense industrial matters, 2) differences in military industry ownership and firm size patterns, and 3) differences in the regional distribution of defense industrial capacity and associated regional policies. In closing, we note that the two countries’ defense industrial complexes are becoming more alike and speculate on the significance of invidious competition and interactions between them. We address briefly the future of French/American arms industrial competition and cooperation, given the trend towards transnational security arrangements and defense industry globalization     

Notes on Cataneo's Scale,Some Gunners' Daggers and a Gunners' Rule

Abstract

Cataneo's scale, published in 1571, relates the weight of shot to the internal muzzle diameter of guns ranging between 0.04–0.21 m. Plots of calculated shot density versus muzzle diameter suggest that diameters of 0.10 m and above apply to iron shot and those below apply to lead and lead/iron composite shot. Similar plots are used to compare Cataneo's scale with other contemporary scales and with scales engraved on the blades of five Italian gunners' daggers dating to around 1650. Variations and errors in the daggers' scales might suggest a symbolic rather than a practical role; nevertheless there is remarkable consistency with Cataneo's scale in the shape of the plots in spite of the considerable length of time after its publication. A simple wooden scale from the Spanish Armada ship La Trinidad Valencera also confirms to Cataneo's general pattern although there appears to be a fundamental error in its mathematical construction.     

界面热阻对金刚石/银复合材料导热率的影响

研究了金刚石／银复合材料的导热率与金刚石的含量、粒度等之间的关系,着重讨论了界面热阻对复合材料导热率的影响。并阐述了金刚石表面镀钛,能有效改善金刚石对银的润湿性,降低界面热阻,从而提高金刚石／银复合材料的导热率。     

大学英语四、六级考试最新改革特点及对策研究

2013年最新改革后的大学英语四、六级考试,在考试内容、分值比例和难度系数等方面都作了诸多调整,呈现出新的特点。结合此次改革特点和对某军校150名学员展开的问卷调查,提出三大对策：利用考试“反拔效应”,引发学员对于输出性技能的重视;充分重视翻译策略讲解,加强中国文化渗透;努力培养学员自主学习意识养成,提高学员自我听力训练量。     

导弹初始大角度转弯复合控制研究

基于直接力/气动力复合控制方法,研究了导弹初始快速大角度转弯问题。给出了直/气复合控制回路稳定性分析方法,并应用极点配置求得系统控制参数。最后对直/气复合控制回路稳定性进行了分析,对其时域跟踪进行了数学仿真。仿真结果表明,提出的控制方法可以提高系统转弯快速性,验证了复合控制方法的可行性。     

Ukrainian and Belorussian dimensions of Turkmenistan foreign policy: small states in a multipolar world

As the USA continues to decline both in relative and absolute terms, the global order emerges where no center of power exists. This creates a complicated and instable geopolitical situation where small states could act behind the back of the great powers. The relationship between Turkmenistan and Ukraine is the example of this sort of relationship. Whereas Ukraine wants to get cheap gas, Turkmenistan wants to find the way to sell its gas to the West. It looks as though both countries pay little attention to Russian objection and act without direct help from either the USA or other great powers.