A Review of State-of-the-Art Large Sized Foam Cutting Rapid Prototyping and Manufacturing Technologies.

Purpose – Current additive rapid prototyping (RP) technologies fail to efficiently produce objects greater than 0.5?m3 due to restrictions in build size, build time and cost. A need exists to develop RP and manufacturing technologies capable of producing large objects in a rapid manner directly from computer-aided design data. Foam cutting RP is a relatively new technology capable of producing large complex objects using inexpensive materials. The purpose of this paper is to describe nine such technologies that have been developed or are currently being developed at institutions around the world. The relative merits of each system are discussed. Recommendations are given with the aim of enhancing the performance of existing and future foam cutting RP systems. Design/methodology/approach – The review is based on an extensive literature review covering academic publications, company documents and web site information. Findings – The paper provides insights into the different machine configurations and cutting strategies. The most successful machines and cutting strategies are identified. Research limitations/implications – Most of the foam cutting RP systems described have not been developed to the commercial level, thus a benchmark study directly comparing the nine systems was not possible. Originality/value – This paper provides the first overview of foam cutting RP technology, a field which is over a decade old. The information contained in this paper will help improve future developments in foam cutting RP systems

The Search for Counterparts: A Labor-Community Agenda Must Cross Borders As Well

[Excerpt] Mexico has been discovered by individuals and organizations in the U.S. and Canada for the first time as a result of the proposed North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). NAFTA is presented by the Bush, Salinas and Mulroney administrations as an initiative to formalize the economic integration process between the three countries. They see the deal as only the first step in constructing Bush\u27s proposed Enterprise for the Americas initiative which intends to create a new order for capital from Anchorage to Tierra del Fuego

Using the Finite Element Method to Determine the Temperature Distributions in Hot-wire Cutting.

Hot-wire cutting is a common material removal process used to shape and sculpt plastic foam materials, such as expanded polystyrene (EPS). Due to the low cost and sculpt-ability of plastic foams they are popular materials for large sized (> 1 m³) prototypes and bespoke visual artefacts. Recent developments in robotic foam sculpting machines have greatly increased the ability of hot-tools to sculpt complex geometrical surfaces bringing the subject into the realm of subtractive rapid prototyping/manufacturing. Nevertheless foam cut objects are not being exploited to their full potential due to the common perception that hot-wires are a low accuracy cutting tool. If greater accuracy for hot-wires can be obtained, it could provide a low cost method of producing high value functional engineering parts. Polystyrene patterns for lost foam casting are one such possibility. A nonlinear transient thermal finite element model was developed with the purpose of predicting the kerf width of hot-wire cut foams. Accurate predictions of the kerfwidth during cutting will allow the tool paths to be corrected off-line at the tool definition stage of the CAM process. Finite element analysis software (ANSYS) was used to simulate the hot-wire plastic foam cutting. The material property models were compiled from experimental data and commonly accepted values found in literature. The simulations showed good agreement with the experimental data and thus the model is thought to be reliable. The simulations provide an effective method of predicting kerf widths, under steady state cutting conditions. Limitations and further developments to the model are described

Why a Wealth Tax is Definitely Constitutional

Wealth tax reform proposals are playing a major role in the 2020 presidential campaign. However, some opponents of these wealth tax reform proposals have claimed that a wealth tax would be unconstitutional. Other prominent critics have argued that wealth tax reforms are probably unconstitutional, so that, after review by the courts, the “likeliest outcome is that a wealth tax will raise exactly zero dollars.” These claims are wrong. More precisely, these claims are wrong conditioned on wealth tax legislation being carefully drafted so as to ensure its constitutionality. As we will explain in this essay, properly drafted, wealth tax reform legislation is definitely constitutional and thus capable of raising substantial revenues to fund new spending programs. Constitutional scholars disagree about whether a new federal wealth tax would need to be uniform or apportioned in order to be constitutional. We explain how wealth tax legislation could be drafted to ensure its constitutionality regardless of how the Supreme Court ultimately decides on this question. In particular, we explain how Congress could design an apportioned federal wealth tax made equitable through the use of a fiscal equalization program, and could legislate this as a fallback option in case the Supreme Court were to rule against an unapportioned federal wealth tax

Exhibit on Historical Accord Makes Debut at Law School

Newspaper article from Concord Monitor newspaper dated April 12, 2016. The article includes a description of the Magna Carta: An Enduring Legacy, 1215-2015 exhibit and symposium, as well as remarks by the University of New Hampshire School of Law Library Director Sue Zago. In addition to details about the exhibit, the article features historic information on the Magna Carta as well as some interesting examples of its present day influence

Individual Philanthropy Patterns in Metro Atlanta

This report responds to the question of what do Metro-Atlanta nonprofit leaders know about why individuals give to charity. Specifically, there are several questions that are fundamental to this initial study. They include:* Who is giving?* What motivates individuals to give?* How much is being given?* Where is the giving being directed?The study is an initial attempt commissioned by The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta to collect reliable baseline data on individual giving patterns in the Twenty-two County Atlanta region. The information is to be used for understanding the demographic characteristics of givers as well as their perceptions, beliefs, values, and attitudes about charitable giving, volunteering, charitable organizations, and the factors that motivate them to support nonprofit organizations. In addition, the data also provides insight into the types of information that are most useful to individuals when making their giving decisions, and direction about issues the nonprofit sector must address to increase giving and enhance its visibility and legitimacy

Summary of along-track data from the earth radiation budget satellite for several representative ocean regions

For several days in January and August 1985, the Earth Radiation Budget Satellite, a component of the Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE), was operated in an along-track scanning mode. A survey of radiance measurements taken in this mode is given for five ocean regions: the north and south Atlantic, the Arabian Sea, the western Pacific north of the Equator, and part of the Intertropical Convergence Zone. Each overflight contains information about the clear scene and three cloud categories: partly cloudy, mostly cloudy, and overcast. The data presented include the variation of longwave and shortwave radiance in each scene classification as a function of viewing zenity angle during each overflight of one of the five target regions. Several features of interest in the development of anisotropic models are evident, including the azimuthal dependence of shortwave radiance that is an essential feature of shortwave bidirectional models. The data also demonstrate that the scene classification algorithm employed by the ERBE results in scene classifications that are a function of viewing geometry