The ‘African COP’

The 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) had been anticipated as the ‘African COP’, not only due to the African venue but also due to the opportunity it would afford African countries – with South Africa at the helm – to steer the debate on a global climate change regime. With the conference now over, lobby groups, international organisations, negotiators, observers and commentators alike have been taking stock of its outcome. Despite the litany of developmental and security implications of climate change, COP17 got underway with little hope that much might actually be achieved. In light of the discouraging condition of the global economy, with leading developed economies suffering financially, states were hardly in a mood to be making concessions that would impact their fiscal health. Nonetheless, an agreement was reached. Questions remain, however, about the significance of the outcome of the African COP for the world at large, but ultimately also for Africa.     

ACHIEVING THE VISION OF THE NPT

This article assesses the prospects for a strategy of incrementalism to lead to achievement of the core bargain of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons: non-nuclear weapon states' nuclear nonproliferation in exchange for nuclear weapon states' nuclear disarmament to the point of “global zero.” Game theory, prospect theory, and liberal international theory are used to evaluate the potential of a strategy of incrementalism. While separately each has insights to offer, it is when all three theoretical approaches are used in tandem that meaningful explanatory gains emerge. The article concludes that incrementalism probably cannot lead to complete nonproliferation and global nuclear zero. Instead, signal events (as described by prospect theory) are needed to “punctuate” incremental processes in negotiations (best explained by liberal international theory) in order to move past hindrances such as international structural constraints (exemplified by game theory) and the conservative risk-taking propensities of state elites (described by prospect theory).     

Boko Haram and the challenges of Nigeria's war on terror

Boko Haram terrorism has been recognized by Nigerian President Jonathan as the most threatening and complex security issue in Nigeria since independence. In response, the Federal Government of Nigeria has committed itself to different counterterrorism measures, which are largely dominated by “hard politics” and military mobilization. Spending heavily on defense to upgrade military hardware and train personnel in a counterterrorism role, Nigeria has also boosted its strategic importance in the “Global War on Terror”. However, this attempt has become unpopular as it has failed to contain Boko Haram within a short time frame and has made insufficient headway against unabated terror, with human rights costs among the host communities and amidst a surge of stakeholders' discordance. As a matter of concern, this article seeks to assess Boko Haram as an opponent in Nigeria's war on terror (WOT) and to ascertain the challenges the country faces, the alternative measures open to it, and possible ways forward.     

VERIFIABILITY,RELIABILITY, AND NATIONAL SECURITY

The rejection of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) by the U.S. Senate in October 1999 could have been avoided, and the consequences of that vote still loom in the minds of supporters of the treaty. President Barack Obama has embraced the vision of a world free of nuclear weapons, and a key element of the Obama administration's arms control agenda is delivering on U.S. CTBT ratification. In order to secure the two-thirds majority in the Senate necessary to ratify the treaty, senators that remain skeptical of nuclear disarmament must also be convinced that the entry into force of the CTBT is in the national security interest of the United States. This article provides an analysis of the issues surrounding U.S. CTBT ratification divided into three segments—verifiability of the treaty, reliability of the U.S. stockpile, and the treaty's impact on U.S. national security—and concludes that CTBT ratification serves the security objectives of the United States. The CTBT constitutes an integral component of the multilateral nonproliferation architecture designed to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons, and it constrains the qualitative development of nuclear weapons, thereby hindering efforts by states of concern to develop advanced nuclear weapons.     

电力设备局部放电在线监测用传感器传输特性分析

电流传感器是电力设备局部放电在线监测系统中的一个重要组成部分 ,其局部放电信号传输特性直接影响测量结果。本文对电流传感器传输特性进行了理论分析 ,有关分析结果与实测结果一致     

计算机房防静电方法研究

本文在分析讨论计算机房静电危害的基础上,对计算机房地面泄漏电阻、人体峰值电位和人体静电电荷的衰减进行了现场测试,指出机房中存在的静电隐患,并提出了具体的防静电措施。     

柴油喷雾碰壁特性的模拟计算

提出一个柴油喷雾碰壁的数学模型,计算分析了垂直碰壁和倾斜碰壁时虽面射流的传播和混合特性.建立了新的壁面射流贯穿距离计算公式,结果显示这种计算方法是分析柴油喷注碰壁性能的简单而实用的工具.     

基于能力的装备型号体系结构开发方法

为适应装备型号需求生成的复杂性,必须开发面向作战能力应用的装备型号体系结构模型。按照装备型号需求生成工程化思想,建立了结构化的装备型号体系结构开发流程,并对每个环节进行了系统分析。装备型号作战体系结构和系统体系结构开发流程都划分为8个环节,为作战活动分析、系统功能分析提供了可追溯、可验证的模块化开发模式。装备型号体系结构关联开发流程分为4个环节,实现了作战能力对系统实体的关联关系,确保了系统需求对作战需求的支持,提高了装备型号需求成果的系统性和正确性。     

局部放电在线监测电流传感器的等效电路及其参数计算

局部放电在线监测是保证电力设备正常工作的重要手段。从变压器理论出发 ,提出了局放脉冲电流传感器等效电路及其参数计算方法 ,所提出的方法已成功地应用于实际局放在线监测传感器的设计中     

【将军论坛】从《实践论》《矛盾论》角度深刻领会习近平强军思想的内涵

哲学的本质是世界观和方法论,是指导各项科学事业发展的基础。马克思主义哲学是关于自然、社会和思维发展一般规律的学说,是唯物论和辩证法的统一,也是科学的世界观和方法论的统一。《实践论》《矛盾论》是毛泽东思想的标志性成果,是马克思主义世界观与方法论相统一的典范,是马克思主义与中国实际相结合的产物。学好习近平强军思想,必须下大力气掌握强军打赢的科学方法论,即要在思考和解决军事问题时坚决贯彻《实践论》《矛盾论》所蕴含的认识论和方法论原则,不断从中汲取科学智慧和理论力量,才能在工作中贯彻“知行合一”。