Anonymous: Polemics and Non-identity

The hacktivist collective Anonymous has been known to follow nonhierarchical, amorphous and sometimes contradictory strategies for online activism. This may weaken their potential to become a populist movement, as out-group members may find Anonymous’s politics obscure and out of reach. Anonymous’s communiqués compensate for this by enabling direct communication with the public. But as a critical discourse analysis finds, the communicative strategies employed deviate from logics of difference and non-identity. They express rigid beliefs, even at times under the banner of universal truth. However, these findings do not suggest Anonymous inevitably embraces identity. By adopting a Deleuzian concept of minor politics, this thesis proposes that Anonymous’s texts are strategic appropriations of molar identities, emphasizing how the minor never fully exists outside the molar. Rather, the minor is always a movement within or across immanent molar configurations. The tensions and contradictions within Anonymous are thus exemplary of a minor political struggle

Innovation in manufacturing through digital technologies and applications: Thoughts and Reflections on Industry 4.0

The rapid pace of developments in digital technologies offers many opportunities to increase the efficiency, flexibility and sophistication of manufacturing processes; including the potential for easier customisation, lower volumes and rapid changeover of products within the same manufacturing cell or line. A number of initiatives on this theme have been proposed around the world to support national industries under names such as Industry 4.0 (Industrie 4.0 in Germany, Made-in-China in China and Made Smarter in the UK). This book presents an overview of the state of art and upcoming developments in digital technologies pertaining to manufacturing. The starting point is an introduction on Industry 4.0 and its potential for enhancing the manufacturing process. Later on moving to the design of smart (that is digitally driven) business processes which are going to rely on sensing of all relevant parameters, gathering, storing and processing the data from these sensors, using computing power and intelligence at the most appropriate points in the digital workflow including application of edge computing and parallel processing. A key component of this workflow is the application of Artificial Intelligence and particularly techniques in Machine Learning to derive actionable information from this data; be it real-time automated responses such as actuating transducers or informing human operators to follow specified standard operating procedures or providing management data for operational and strategic planning. Further consideration also needs to be given to the properties and behaviours of particular machines that are controlled and materials that are transformed during the manufacturing process and this is sometimes referred to as Operational Technology (OT) as opposed to IT. The digital capture of these properties and behaviours can then be used to define so-called Cyber Physical Systems. Given the power of these digital technologies it is of paramount importance that they operate safely and are not vulnerable to malicious interference. Industry 4.0 brings unprecedented cybersecurity challenges to manufacturing and the overall industrial sector and the case is made here that new codes of practice are needed for the combined Information Technology and Operational Technology worlds, but with a framework that should be native to Industry 4.0. Current computing technologies are also able to go in other directions than supporting the digital ‘sense to action’ process described above. One of these is to use digital technologies to enhance the ability of the human operators who are still essential within the manufacturing process. One such technology, that has recently become accessible for widespread adoption, is Augmented Reality, providing operators with real-time additional information in situ with the machines that they interact with in their workspace in a hands-free mode. Finally, two linked chapters discuss the specific application of digital technologies to High Pressure Die Casting (HDPC) of Magnesium components. Optimizing the HPDC process is a key task for increasing productivity and reducing defective parts and the first chapter provides an overview of the HPDC process with attention to the most common defects and their sources. It does this by first looking at real-time process control mechanisms, understanding the various process variables and assessing their impact on the end product quality. This understanding drives the choice of sensing methods and the associated smart digital workflow to allow real-time control and mitigation of variation in the identified variables. Also, data from this workflow can be captured and used for the design of optimised dies and associated processes

Life-cycles and developmental processes in watershed partnerships: Sustaining the useful life of governance networks

Life-cycles and developmental processes in watershed partnerships: Sustaining the useful life of governance networks Governance networks ebb and flow, become dormant or extinct, only to resurface with new members, and names, forms, or boundaries. The paper uses a systematic qualitative analysis (e.g., coding, cross-case analysis) of data from 6 watershed governance efforts in the United States – Delaware Inland Bays, Lake Tahoe, Narragansett Bay, Salt Ponds, Tampa Bay, and Tillamook Bay – to examine these developmental processes. The study’s objective was to develop theory grounded in these data to explain the linkages between network structures and processes. The paper describes a four stage life-cycle model. Each stage represents a cluster of developmental challenges related to sustaining the health and useful life of a governance network. The activation stage is the turbulent period of network formation. The collectivity stage is exemplified by high member cohesion and reliable network processes. The institutionalization stage marks the solidification of network processes. The final stage is stability, decline, reorientation, or recreation, which recognizes the various paths mature networks follow. The model’s central feature is the convergence on a configuration of rules (formal and informal) that create the social architecture that structures network processes. These relatively long periods of convergence are punctuated by reorientations involving relatively rapid periods of discontinuous change that alter character of the network’s structure and processes. Recreations are also possible that involve the additional shift in core values. The analysis identifies three interrelated sets of rules that interact to form this social architecture by building on the work of Elinor Ostrom and her colleagues. Some rules are crafted deliberately. Others emerge as members confront developmental challenges or get imposed upon the network by funders, government agencies, or legislators. Two sets of boundary rules are particularly important – member rules and strategy rules. Decision rules create the processes members use to make decisions and include rules related to preference aggregation, distribution of power, distribution of roles or responsibilities, and the distribution of participation in decision making. As networks evolve, coordination rules emerge to specify resource exchanges, monitor behavior, enforce agreements, and resolve disputes. The analysis also found evidence of at least two reorientation (recreation) in each watershed, with examples of changes occurring both endogenously in response to self-organizing processes and exogenously as network actors responded to incentives provided by federal funding agencies. The social architecture is important because governance networks, like other organizational forms, are a functional enterprise with a useful life. The social architecture provides coordination, direction and shared purpose to network processes. However, once established, it can be costly and difficult to change. Similarly, once the network’s useful life has passed, it is time to disband, re-orient, or re-create the network to allow their resources to be redeployed in more productive public purposes. Accordingly, framework presented in the paper identifies important design choices that members should carefully consider during the development of governance networks

Mathematics of moving boundary problems in diffusion

This thesis is concerned with the development, generahzation and apphcation of a formal series technique for classical one-dimensional moving boundary diffusion problems. The solution procedure consists of two major steps. Firstly, the introduction of a boundary fixing transformation, which fixes the moving boundary and simplifies the transformed equations. Secondly, the assumption of a formal series solution which leads to a system of ordinary differential equations for the unknown coefficients in the series. The method generalizes to multi-phase and heterogeneous moving boundary problems for both constant temperature and Newton\u27s radiation conditions and yields simple and highly accurate estimates for both the temperature and boundary motion

A Pure Space To Be Mexican: Ethnic Mexicans And The Mexico-u.S. Soccer Rivalry, 1990-2002

This thesis examines the soccer rivalry between Mexico and the United States that has been evolving since the early 1990s. Neither Mexico nor the United States are soccer powerhouse nations, yet their rivalry is arguably one of the most passionate contests in the world. For the Mexican National team the rivalry has become a struggle to maintain dominance and power in one of the few arenas where Mexico traditionally has had an advantage. The ability of the United States to challenge Mexican hegemony has intensified the rivalry. Although the United States has been able to score some victories inside the field, acceptance in their home venues has been elusive. When playing against Mexico, even as the host team, the United States is consistently treated as the visiting team by the ethnic Mexicans living in the United States who compose the majority of the spectators. The rivalry has increased as a result of ethnic Mexicans\u27 overt preference for the Mexican National team. In the U.S. public sphere, ethnic Mexicans have been segregated, discriminated against, economically marginalized and considered invisible. Outside of the stadium, ethnic Mexicans in general have been sidelined by U.S. society. Inside the stadium, they have made their presence known and have become highly visible. By chanting for the Mexican team, wearing the colors of El Tri, and carrying the Mexican flag, the fans have asserted their identity and heritage