Short notes on the Black Coucal in Northern Rhodesia

Volume: XXII

An Operational Utility Assessment: Measuring the Effectiveness of the Joint Concept Technology Demonstration (JCTD), Joint Forces Protection Advance Security System (JFPASS)

Sponsored Report (for Acquisition Research Program)Planning modern military operations requires an accurate intelligence assessment of potential threats, combined with a detailed assessment of the physical theater of operations. This information can then be combined with equipment and manpower resources to set up a logistically supportable operation that mitigates as much of the enemy threat as possible. Given such a daunting challenge, military planners often turn to intelligent software agents to support their efforts. The success of the mission often hinges on the accuracy of these plans and the integrity of the security umbrella provided. The purpose of this project is to provide a comprehensive assessment of the Joint Forces Protection Advanced Security System (JFPASS) Joint Concept Technology Demonstration (JCTD) to better meet force-protection needs. It will also address the adaptability of this technology to an ever-changing enemy threat by the use of intelligent software. This project will collect and analyze data pertaining to the research, development, testing, and effectiveness of the JFPASS and develop an operational effectiveness model to quantify overall system performance.Naval Postgraduate School Acquisition Research ProgramApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited

ALMA Nutator Design and Preliminary Performance

We report the past two years of collaboration between the different actors on the ALMA nutator. Building on previous developments, the nutator has seen changes in much of the design. A high-modulus carbon fiber structure has been added on the back of the mirror in order to transfer the voice coils forces with less deformation, thus reducing delay problems due to flexing. The controller is now an off-the-shelf National Instrument NI-cRIO, and the amplifier a class D servo drive from Advanced Motion Controls, with high peak power able to drive the coils at 300 Volts DC. The stow mechanism has been totally redesigned to improve on the repeatability and precision of the stow position, which is also the reference for the 26 bits Heidenhain encoders. This also improves on the accuracy of the stow position with wind loading. Finally, the software, written largely with National Instrument's LabView, has been developed. We will discuss these changes and the preliminary performances achieved to date. Keywords: ALMA, nutator, class D, high-modulus carbon fiber.Comment: Published: 23 August 2012; 12 page

3D UK? 3D History and the Absent British Pioneers

The recent television ‘rediscovery’ of a small cohort of 1950s British 3D films (and the producers who made them) has offered a new route into considering how the historical stories told about 3D film have focused almost exclusively on the American experience, eliding other national contexts. This article challenges both the partiality of existing academic histories of 3D, and the specific popular media narratives that have been constructed around the British 3D pioneers. Offering a rebuttal of those narratives and an expansion of them based around primary archival research, the article considers how the British 3D company Stereo Techniques created a different business and production model based around non-fiction short 3D films that stand in contrast to the accepted view of 3D as an American feature film novelty. Through an exploration of the depiction (and absence) of these 3D pioneers from existing media histories, the article argues for a revision to both 3D studies and British cinema history

The Heroes We Mistake for Villains: the Truth Behind Self-Sacrifice and Transformation

Throughout the centuries of human civilization, the notion of the self-sacrificing hero has evolved in parallel to the evolution of societies. Heroes are shaped by their creators the populace of a society in regards to the ideals that society wishes to uphold. A hero is a person who represents the greatest aspects of human beings, epitomizing the characteristics that society holds most dear. These characteristics have transitioned in their levels of importance over time, shifting the ideal self-sacrificing hero from one figure to another. However, as these transitions occur, inevitable discrepancies will evolve in the varying minds of the participants in society. Those who wish to value one attribute above another will disagree with another\u27s archetype of the ideal self-sacrificing hero. Ultimately, one view will prevail in the mind of society itself, while the other will fall by the wayside. This thesis has been written to contend that the contemporary view of the self-sacrificing hero is incomplete, and that another type of self-sacrifice should be recognized for its contribution to society\u27s greater good. The introduction portion of this thesis will explain the evolution of the heroic figure over the course of time. In this process, we will examine the attributes of the hero that are most valued by society as the hero morphs from one form into another. Next, we will examine the relationship between ethics and heroism and utilize this connection to describe the contemporary view of heroism through modern ethicists. Finally, a brief overview of the rest of the thesis will be laid out in order to provide an understanding of the structure of the argument that some self-sacrificing heroes sacrifice more than their lives to save their societies, and that they merit recognition for their contributions as well as other heroes

Ovarian cancer patient preferences in the gynecologic oncology clinic waiting room during the COVID-19 pandemic

Access to thesis permanently restricted to Ball State community onlyThis study investigated the preferences of ovarian cancer patients within the waiting room environment during the Covid-19 pandemic. During the gynecologic oncology treatment process, waiting rooms become a routine environment for patients. Oncology patients often face long wait times coupled with the high emotional stress and anxiety that comes from living with uncertainty. Waiting room design has been fairly stagnant over the years with the exception of positive distractions (Pati & Nanda, 2011; McCuskey Shepley, 2006; Quan et al., 2016) and perception of quality of care (Arneill & Devlin, 2002; Otani et al., 2009; Kinnaird, 2009). The aims of this research were to investigate the quality of life of ovarian cancer patients, gain a better understanding of their preferences regarding privacy regulation and territoriality, as well as better understand how Covid-19 safety protocols impacted patient experiences regarding proxemics and spatial behavior — all within the physical environment of the gynecologic oncology clinic waiting room. The objective was to uncover design considerations for waiting rooms that better support the specific culture of the ovarian cancer patient population. This study was conducted in the form of a Qualtrics online survey for patients to participate in from the comfort and safety of their personal mobile device. A mixed methods research approach was used to explore diverse perspectives and uncover relationships between the intricate layers of the research questions. The ovarian cancer patients who participated, including those diagnosed with the rarer Granulosa Cell Tumor, all proved to have a good quality of life. Covid-19 safety protocols impacted the patients’ spatial contextual awareness and preferences regarding privacy regulation and territoriality within the waiting room environment. There also appeared to be a correlation between the Covid-19 safety protocols implemented in the waiting room and the patient’s unwillingness to participate within that environment.Thesis (M.S.