2007 GREAT Day Program

SUNY Geneseo’s First Annual G.R.E.A.T. Day.https://knightscholar.geneseo.edu/program-2007/1001/thumbnail.jp

Using phase space attractors to evaluate system safety constraint enforcement : case study in space shuttle mission control procedure rework

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2009.Vita. Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 390-409).As the complexity and influence of engineering systems in modern society increases, so too does their potential to create counterintuitive and catastrophic accidents. Increasingly, the accidents encountered in these systems are defying the linearized notions of accident causality that-though developed for the simpler engineered systems of the past-are prevalently used for accident prevention today. In this dissertation, an alternative approach to accident prevention based on systems theory-the Systems-Theoretic Accident Model and Processes (STAMP) and STAMP-based hazard analysis (STPA)-is augmented with the notion of using phase space attractors to evaluate how well STAMP safety control structures enforce system safety constraints. Phase space attractors are mathematical results that emerge from the behavior of systems with dynamic structures that draw or constrain these systems to specific regions of their phase space in spite of a range of conditions. Accordingly, the goal in using this notion for the evaluation of safety constraint enforcement is to identify and analyze the attractors produced by a safety control structure to determine if it will adequately "attract" the system to safe states in spite of a range of unforeseeable conditions. Support for this approach to evaluating STAMP safety control structures is provided through the study of a safety control structure in an existing complex, socio-technical system. This case study is focused on a safety control process-referred to as Procedure Rework-used in Space Shuttle Mission Control to update procedures during in-flight operations as they are invalidated by changes in the state of the Space Shuttle and its environment.(cont.) Simulation models of procedure rework are developed through physical and human factors principles and calibrated with data from five Space Shuttle missions; producing simulation results with deviations from the historical data that are-as characterized by Theil Inequality Statistics-small and primarily due to cycles and noise that are not relevant to the models' purpose. The models are used to analyze the attractor produced by the Procedure Rework Process across varied conditions, including a notional crewed spacecraft mission to a distant celestial body. A detrimental effect in the process is identified-and shown to be potentially far more severe than light delay on a mission to a distant celestial body-and approaches to mitigating the effect are explored. Finally, the analysis conducted is described as a generalizeable process for using phase space attractors to evaluate system safety constraint enforcement in engineering systems.by Brandon D. Owens.Ph.D

The Center for Aerospace Research: A NASA Center of Excellence at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University

This report documents the efforts and outcomes of our research and educational programs at NASA-CORE in NCA&TSU. The goal of the center was to establish a quality aerospace research base and to develop an educational program to increase the participation of minority faculty and students in the areas of aerospace engineering. The major accomplishments of this center in the first year are summarized in terms of three different areas, namely, the center's research programs area, the center's educational programs area, and the center's management area. In the center's research programs area, we focus on developing capabilities needed to support the development of the aerospace plane and high speed civil transportation system technologies. In the educational programs area, we developed an aerospace engineering option program ready for university approval

Sustainability in design: now! Challenges and opportunities for design research, education and practice in the XXI century

Copyright @ 2010 Greenleaf PublicationsLeNS project funded by the Asia Link Programme, EuropeAid, European Commission

Risk Management for the Future

A large part of academic literature, business literature as well as practices in real life are resting on the assumption that uncertainty and risk does not exist. We all know that this is not true, yet, a whole variety of methods, tools and practices are not attuned to the fact that the future is uncertain and that risks are all around us. However, despite risk management entering the agenda some decades ago, it has introduced risks on its own as illustrated by the financial crisis. Here is a book that goes beyond risk management as it is today and tries to discuss what needs to be improved further. The book also offers some cases

Reports to the President

A compilation of annual reports for the 1988-1989 academic year, including a report from the President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, as well as reports from the academic and administrative units of the Institute. The reports outline the year's goals, accomplishments, honors and awards, and future plans

Aeronautical engineering: A continuing bibliography with indexes (supplement 276)

This bibliography lists 705 reports, articles, and other documents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system in Feb. 1992. Subject coverage includes: design, construction, and testing of aircraft and aircraft engines; aircraft components, equipment, and systems; ground support systems; and theoretical and applied aspects of aerodynamics and general fluid dynamics

Life Sciences Program Tasks and Bibliography for FY 1997

This document includes information on all peer reviewed projects funded by the Office of Life and Microgravity Sciences and Applications, Life Sciences Division during fiscal year 1997. This document will be published annually and made available to scientists in the space life sciences field both as a hard copy and as an interactive internet web page

Reports to the President

A compilation of annual reports for the 1985-1986 academic year, including a report from the President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, as well as reports from the academic and administrative units of the Institute. The reports outline the year's goals, accomplishments, honors and awards, and future plans