Drone usage by militant groups: exploring variation in adoption

Judging by recent media reporting and pronouncements by senior US military and security officials, the use of drones by militant groups is both reshaping conflict between armed non-state actors and state parties and now presents a grave and direct threat to nations in the West and elsewhere. But does this threat warrant the attention it is currently receiving? To answer this question, this article surveys how various militant groups have used drones both tactically on the battlefield and for wider strategic purposes. Closely examining how drones have been employed and by whom provides a basis for understanding variation in adoption. The article shows how drone usage or non-usage is highly contingent on the setting of the conflict, the aims of different groups, and the capacity of groups to adopt the technology. Though advances in drone technology could make the use-case more appealing for militant groups, drones will be subject to the same back-and-forth, techno-tactical adaptation dynamic between adversaries that have accompanied prior military innovations.     

指挥院校英语课堂团队教学策略的实验研究

培养指挥类军事院校学员的团队精神,强化团队意识,把建立有效的激励机制等方法贯穿于教学的各个环节中。团队教学方法不仅可以提高指挥类军校学员的团队协作精神,同时团队教学策略又能显著提高指挥类军校学员的英语口语能力。     

某家具城火灾危险性研究

对西部家具城进行现场调研,了解其建筑概况以及内部可燃物种类、材质、数量等,统计火灾荷载,对其潜在的火灾危险性进行分析,提出减少火灾荷载、明确疏散路线和出入口、加强火源管理、提高消防安全意识等防火措施。     

轻集料钢筋混凝土梁受弯性能试验研究

轻集料混凝土应用于港口工程是一个待研究的课题.通过对4根轻集料钢筋混凝土梁和2根普通混凝土梁进行的抗弯对比试验,研究了轻集料钢筋混凝土粱的抗弯力学性能.结果表明,轻集料钢筋混凝土梁在承受正常荷载时,其力学性能与普通混凝土梁相比无明显差异;在破坏时脆性较同等级普通混凝土粱略大,延性略差.但考虑到轻集料混凝土的优点,在实际工程中可代替普通混凝土受弯构件工作.     

Capacity expansion under a service‐level constraint for uncertain demand with lead times

For a service provider facing stochastic demand growth, expansion lead times and economies of scale complicate the expansion timing and sizing decisions. We formulate a model to minimize the infinite horizon expected discounted expansion cost under a service‐level constraint. The service level is defined as the proportion of demand over an expansion cycle that is satisfied by available capacity. For demand that follows a geometric Brownian motion process, we impose a stationary policy under which expansions are triggered by a fixed ratio of demand to the capacity position, i.e., the capacity that will be available when any current expansion project is completed, and each expansion increases capacity by the same proportion. The risk of capacity shortage during a cycle is estimated analytically using the value of an up‐and‐out partial barrier call option. A cutting plane procedure identifies the optimal values of the two expansion policy parameters simultaneously. Numerical instances illustrate that if demand grows slowly with low volatility and the expansion lead times are short, then it is optimal to delay the start of expansion beyond when demand exceeds the capacity position. Delays in initiating expansions are coupled with larger expansion sizes. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2009     

Dynamic parameters of multi-cabin protective structure subjected to low-impact load – Numerical and experimental investigations

The dynamic response of a multi-cabin protective structure subjected to impact load directly affects the protective performance of materials; thus, studying the dynamic response and communication law of wave effect of the load plays an important role in the prediction of protective performance. In this study, the protection experiments of box-structure under air- and/or water-medium are conducted, the dynamic response of the structure subjected to low-impact load is analyzed, and the corresponding numerical simulations are analyzed using the theory of finite element method (FEM). Combined with experimental and FEM simulations, the shock strain distribution, acceleration attenuation, and signal energy in defensive materials are determined. Based on the results, the metal structure exhibits good absorption characteristics for shock vibration. Using the experimental data, we also show that the attenuation of shock wave in water medium should be significantly better than that in air medium, and the protective structure should be designed for a combination of water and air mediums. Meanwhile, the numerical simulation can provide a quantitative analysis process for dynamic analysis of defensive materials.     

救生伞背带参数对假人动载的影响研究

针对救生伞假人高速开伞空投试验,建立降落伞-背带-假人系统的动力学模型,分析背带及脱离锁参数对假人质心过载的影响。在合理简化的基础上,采用多体动力学方法建立降落伞、背带脱离锁和假人的十五自由度动力学模型;采用质量-阻尼弹簧模型建立背带模型,连接降落伞、脱离锁和假人;利用实测过载计算降落伞开伞力。利用所建立的动力学模型仿真典型状态下假人和背带的动力学响应,验证所建立模型的合理性。分析脱离锁位置、背带松紧程度、背带材料特性对假人质心最大过载的影响,用于指导背带设计以及确定最佳的背带脱离锁位置。     

救生伞背带分系统对假人动载的影响

为了改善救生伞背带分系统的安全性,建立降落伞-背带-假人系统的动力学模型,分析背带及脱离锁参数对假人质心过载的影响。针对救生伞假人高速开伞空投试验,采用多体动力学方法建立降落伞、背带脱离锁和假人的十五自由度动力学模型;采用半质量-阻尼弹簧模型建立背带模型,连接降落伞、脱离锁和假人;利用实测过载计算降落伞开伞力。利用所建立的动力学模型仿真典型状态下假人和背带的动力学响应,验证所建立模型的合理性。分析了脱离锁位置、背带松紧程度、背带材料特性对假人质心最大过载的影响,可用于指导背带设计以及确定最佳的背带脱离锁位置。     

A note on optimal pricing for finite capacity queueing systems with multiple customer classes

This article investigates optimal static prices for a finite capacity queueing system serving customers from different classes. We first show that the original multi‐class formulation in which the price for each class is a decision variable can be reformulated as a single dimensional problem with the total load as the decision variable. Using this alternative formulation, we prove an upper bound for the optimal arrival rates for a fairly large class of queueing systems and provide sufficient conditions that ensure the existence of a unique optimal arrival rate vector. We show that these conditions hold for M/M/1/m and M/G/s/s systems and prove structural results on the relationships between the optimal arrival rates and system capacity. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2008     

Competitive location and capacity decisions for firms serving time‐sensitive customers

In this article we explore how two competing firms locate and set capacities to serve time‐sensitive customers. Because customers are time‐sensitive, they may decline to place an order from either competitor if their expected waiting time is large. We develop a two‐stage game where firms set capacities and then locations, and show that three types of subgame perfect equilibria are possible: local monopoly (in which each customer is served by a single firm, but some customers may be left unserved), constrained local monopoly (in which firms serve the entire interval of customers but do not compete with each other), and constrained competition (in which firms also serve the entire interval of customers, but now compete for some customers). We perform a comparative statics analysis to illustrate differences in the equilibrium behavior of a duopolist and a coordinated monopolist. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2008