Smart Power and Military Force: An Introduction

Abstract

Smart power is comprised of two elements: the quest for building society among states and between states and non-state actors; as well as the desire for cleaner forms of power projection. This special issue explores how states continue to fumble over achieving the optimum mix of hard and soft power across several country cases and themed articles. This set of contributions suggests that smart power is not unlike a ‘Swiss Army Knife’ analogy: multifunctional and challenging to choose the right combination of ideational and material tools.     

无人驾驶汽车视觉导航中车道线检测的研究

为了提高无人驾驶汽车视觉导航系统中车道线检测的准确性和实时性,在对车道线检测技术进行深入研究的基础上,提出一种能快速准确检测出车道线的新算法。首先采用分块思想将RGB图像中与道路无关的区域去除,以缩短数据处理时间。然后对余下的RGB图像进行灰度化处理,接着用中值滤波法消除随机噪声,再用最大类间方差法(Otsu法)初步得到二值图像。最后对二值图像利用数学形态学进一步边缘细化,使位于车道线上的每个像素行只有一个像素特征点,再采用Hough变换检测出车道线。Matlab仿真结果表明,此算法能够快速准确地检测出车道线,较传统检测算法具有更强准确性和实时性。     

Military Expenditures and Natural Resources: Evidence from Rentier States in the Middle East and North Africa

It has been argued that the discovery of a new natural resource greatly increases the risk of conflict. This research aims to study the effect of natural resources on military spending, using the data from rentier states in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries from 1987 to 2012. In considering the ‘resource curse,’ the types of natural resources matter. Our empirical results demonstrate that the ‘resource curse’ arising from the abundance of certain natural resources, particularly oil and forest resources, leads to increases in military spending. In contrast, the rent from coal and natural gas has a negative impact on military spending, while the rent from minerals has no impact on military spending, controlling for GDP growth and per capita income.     

基于改进GM(1,1)模型的导弹贮存可靠性预测方法

针对导弹系统技术复杂、贮存样本量受限、测试数据波动性较大等特点,结合装备的具体情况提出了基于改进GM(1,1)模型的导弹贮存可靠性预测方法。该方法首先利用"对数-幂函数变换"对导弹的历史可靠性数据进行处理,提高数据光滑度,然后依据GM(1,1)模型计算得到可靠性预测值和残差,再利用残差建立残差修正模型,得到残差修正值,减少残差对结果的影响,最后利用残差修正值修正可靠性预测值并还原,求得可靠性最终预测值。实例表明,该改进模型对导弹系统可靠性变化的描述比传统模型更加准确有效,预测结果精度更高,为导弹贮存可靠性预测分析提供了一种有效的改进方法,其算法设计推广性强,可作为其他装备寿命预估的重要工具。     

结合层次法与主成分分析特征变换的宫颈细胞识别

对宫颈细胞进行多分类可以自动识别出不同状态的细胞,进而为宫颈癌诊断提供科学依据。在用6种多分类算法进行实验后,选取支持向量机作为基分类器,先用一对一策略训练6个分类器进行3分类,然后再训练1个2分类器,这种二层4分类方法提高了识别准确率。考虑不同层特征模式的差异性,在保证识别性能的同时,每层分类前先采用主成分分析法将原始154维特征变换到低维空间,去除冗余特征,加快识别速度。实验证明,所提层次主成分分析法在宫颈细胞分类中相比6种传统多分类方法有更高的识别准确率,可达90%以上;识别速度也较普通层次法提升了21.31%。     

Soldiers as victims: behind military barracks in the post-colonial African army

This paper examines the ways in which the military infringes on the social and political rights of soldiers who joined the Zimbabwe National Army in post-independence Zimbabwe. Contrary to the scholarly and policy debates that present Zimbabwean soldiers as the silent prop behind President Robert Mugabe and the perpetrators of political violence, this paper argues that these soldiers have also been victimised in army barracks. The victimhood of soldiers has been explicit in the ways in which they are forced to execute their duties beyond their professional expectations. In substantiating this argument, the paper explores the unethical military training and the ways in which soldiers are disciplined and punished through Chapter 11:02 of the draconian Defence Act. The paper’s contribution stems from a ‘rights’ perspective that emphasises the right to freedom, justice and protection, which is usually quite silent in the military. But the question is how can soldiers’ concerns be translated into new practices without compromising so-called ‘state security’?     

方差全局灵敏度求解的空间分割结合无迹变换方法

为有效计算基于方差的全局灵敏度指标尤其是非线性程度较高的响应函数的,将积分空间的可加性以及无迹变换结合起来,利用函数在子空间内非线性程度会降低以及无迹变换方法在概率空间内对低非线性函数性质具有强捕捉能力的特点,提出计算基于方差的全局灵敏度指标的高效方法。该方法只需产生一组无迹变换样本就可以近似求得各阶灵敏度指标,并且该近似解随空间分割个数的增加而收敛于真值。通过非线性程度较高的验证算例及工程算例验证了所提方法在处理非线性功能函数上的高效性和准确性。     

The NATO Response Force: A qualified failure no more?

With much fanfare, NATO declared its rapid reaction force—the NATO Response Force (NRF)—an Initial Operational Capability in 2004. This article addresses four questions: Where did the NRF come from? What does it look like in 2017? What have been the major obstacles for the NRF fulfilling its promises? And where is the NRF likely to go? The article holds two main arguments. First, due to inadequate fill-rates and disagreements as to the force’s operational role, the NRF was for many years a “qualified failure.” The force failed to become the operational tool envisioned by the allies in 2002. While not without effect, it fell hostage to the harsh reality of the expeditionary wars of Iraq and Afghanistan. Second, the NRF is off to a fresh beginning and will likely be considered at least a partial success by the allies in the years to come.     

从线性供应到网络化保障——英军陆地作战后勤保障转型构想及措施

随着联合作战条件下后勤保障复杂性的日益增加,以及历次战争中后勤保障暴露出诸多不足,为赢取陆地作战的胜利,着眼于不同的陆地作战类型和作战区域,英军提出后勤保障从线性供应转型为网络化保障构想,并提出一系列具体措施,完成陆地作战后勤保障网络的构建,实现转型。     

基于U变换的空间站交会调相非线性协方差分析方法

针对空间站交会调相过程中的长时间偏差传播问题,提出一种基于U变换的协方差分析方法 UTCAM。在给出空间站交会轨道调相策略和轨道机动参数计算方法后,对UTCAM的原理和流程进行了介绍,通过和STK以及Monte-Carlo的对比验证表明,UTCAM与该两种分析方法的协方差相对误差均在1.2%以内,且计算耗时仅为Monte-Carlo的1/460,可快速准确地实现非线性系统的均值和协方差预报。最后基于UTCAM对长达20天的空间站交会调相的偏差传播进行了分析,并采用Monte-Carlo仿真对其分析结果进行了验证,验证了该方法的有效性。