Shear-flexible finite-element models of laminated composite plates and shells

Several finite-element models are applied to the linear static, stability, and vibration analysis of laminated composite plates and shells. The study is based on linear shallow-shell theory, with the effects of shear deformation, anisotropic material behavior, and bending-extensional coupling included. Both stiffness (displacement) and mixed finite-element models are considered. Discussion is focused on the effects of shear deformation and anisotropic material behavior on the accuracy and convergence of different finite-element models. Numerical studies are presented which show the effects of increasing the order of the approximating polynomials, adding internal degrees of freedom, and using derivatives of generalized displacements as nodal parameters

Neoliberal globalization and trade unionism: toward radical political unionism?

This article revisits the question of changing forms of trade unionism within the context of neoliberal globalization. While broadly accepting the argument that globalization might encourage the development of more radical forms of unionism as survival strategies, it argues that such radicalism cannot be understood satisfactorily by the term social movement unionism (SMU). This is due to over-reliance on theories of the new social movements (NSMs), which produce a largely de-classed and de-politicized perspective. The article uses insights gained from theoretical work on protest and labour movement development to bring the state back into the analysis and applies this analysis to oppositional trade union practice in a variety of institutional contexts. It concludes by making a case for understanding contemporary forms of oppositional trade union strategy through the term radical political unionism which takes account of both its social and political determinants as well as the agency role played by political leaderships

The crisis of social democratic unionism: the opening up of civil society and the prospects for union renewal in the UK, France and Germany

This article defines and explores the crisis of social democratic trade unionism in three countries in western Europe. The authors contend that a particularized form of postwar trade union orientation was socially constructed in Britain, Germany, and France in which a party union nexus gave special privileges to unions in return for compliance with state policies in the national interest. This arrangement has broken down in recent years under the pressure of global product market competition. As a result, trade unions are being forced to adopt alternative strategic orientations, involving both a fracture in the party union nexus and a willingness to work within wider civil society

Beyond ‘Political Economism’: new identities for unions in Western Europe?

This article engages critically with Richard Hyman’s work on union identity and European integration. It includes a sympathetic review of Hyman’s contribution to the debate on these topics over the past two decades, alongside a critique of Hyman’s approach that highlights certain weaknesses and contradictions resulting from his uncritical use of a range of categories and concepts taken from regulation theory. The authors question Hyman’s argument that developments in European unionism can be conceptualised adequately through an analysis of the development and crisis of ‘political economism’: a dominant union identity that Hyman aligns with the development and crisis of Fordism. An alternative model for understanding the reorientation of European unions is presented based on a critical and dialectical conceptualisation of the relationship between unions and capitalist development. This is used to construct a model of contemporary union reorientation along the dimensions of ‘accommodation’ and ‘opposition’ to neoliberalism and to ‘national’ and ‘international’ modes of organisation and mobilisation

Beyond the chains that bind: the political crisis of unions in Western Europe

The dynamics of neo-liberal restructuring have generated serious tensions in the institutional alignments between social democratic political parties and labor unions in Western Europe. This article explores the origins, development and consequences of the resulting political crisis through a detailed analysis of the institutional alignment of parties and unions in Sweden, Germany, UK and France. The authors reject the argument that the changing contours of the party-union nexus can be understood solely on the basis of a rational choice analysis of labor movement actors in favor of an account that also highlights the importance of historical path dependency and ideological orientation. The resulting complexity of union responses to the crisis of the party-union nexus is explored through the construction of a typology that charts union reorientation along the dimensions of accommodation with, or resistance against, neo-liberalism and within and beyond the national political context. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Respiratory Therapy Modalities in the Treatment of Acute Respiratory Failure

Rapid advances have been made in the field of respiratory therapy in the past several years, resulting in an increasing sophistication and range of application. Properly applied, these modalities have led to significantly increased survival in patients with acute respiratory failure and a decreased morbidity among individuals with chronic pulmonary insufficiency. It is the purpose of this article to put into perspective respiratory therapy techniques and their application in the treatment of acute respiratory failure. To this end, we may divide respiratory therapy into five categories: 1) oxygen delivery, 2) airway hygiene, 3) expansion therapy (lung inflation), 4) artificial airways, and 5) mechanical ventilation

Recent Advances in the Management of Chronic Airway Obstruction

Recent advances in our understanding of the natural history of chronic airway obstruction have identified aspects of this process that may enhance the morbidity and mortality of patients with a progressive increase in airway resistance. These advances have helped us to be more specific in the investigation and quantitation of the disease in the pulmonary function laboratory and to be more precise in our therapeutic management. Experience has taught us that the most useful measurement with which to characterize the degree of disease and its rate of progression is the forced expired volume in one second (FEV1). The comprehensive studies of Dr. Charles Fletcher in London have demonstrated that the single most important therapeutic factor is avoidance of all airway irritants. The application of aggressive bronchial hygiene in patients with obstructive airways disease may produce an initial improvement in the FEV1 but will not in itself alter the rate of decline in pulmonary function. As the degree of airway obstruction increases, a number of interrelated physiologic abnormalities develop including hypoxemia, hypercarbia, polycythemia, cor pulmonale, and eventually, acute or chronic respiratory failure. These abnormalities account for most of the morbidity in this condition and the majority of patients who develop them have a high degree of airway obstruction. It is not unusual, however, to see patients with a moderate degree of airway obstruction who also manifest these problems. The purpose of this paper is: (1) to review the relationship between a progressive increase in airway obstruction and the associated physiologic abnormalities, and (2) to discuss the therapeutic interventions that show promise of reducing the morbidity from these accelerated physiologic abnormalities

The Effects of Increased Body Temperature on Motor Control during Golf Putting

This study investigated the effect of increased core temperature on the performance outcome and movement kinematics of elite golfers during a golf putting task. The study aimed to examine individual differences in the extent to which increased temperature influenced the rate of putting success, whether increased temperature speeded up the timing of the putting downswing and whether elite golfers changed their movement kinematics during times of thermal stress. Six participants performed 20 putts to each of four putt distances (1, 2, 3, and 4 m) under normal temperature conditions and when core body temperature was increased. There was no significant difference in the number of successful putts between the two temperature conditions, but there was an increase in putterhead velocity at ball impact on successful putts to distances of 1 and 4 m when temperature was elevated. This reflected an increase in swing amplitude rather than a reduction in swing duration as hypothesized. There were individual differences in the motor control response to thermal stress as three of the golfers changed the kinematic parameters used to scale their putting movements to achieve putts of different distances at elevated temperatures. Theoretical implications for these findings and the practical implications for elite golfers and future research are discussed