Jet Makers: The Aerospace Industry from 1945 to 1972

This volume presents the history of the American jet aircraft manufacturing industry from World War II to 1972, documenting the evolution of its technology and covering the intricacies of its management, economics, and relations with the government. A valuable contribution to general aviation history, it also provides a unique opportunity to study the dynamic of a major U.S. industry. Charles D. Bright traces the momentous revolution of the aerospace era from birth to maturity, using as a base the jet aircraft industry. He investigates all significant aspects: the coming-of-age of aviation during World War II, including global transportation and aerodynamics; the development of jets and missiles from the Truman era to the Vietnam War; the controlling influence of national military strategy; the U.S. Air Force and other government markets; the mechanics of government procurement—bidding, pricing, buying; difficulties in the commercial airliner business; the ordering of technology and the prevailing “design or die” philosophy; and different systems of production through the years. Special attention is given to major problems such as the industry’s need for diversification and the skyrocketing costs that threaten to make aerospace products uneconomical. The conventional economic concerns of entry into and exit from the industry are treated in depth. Bright focuses on the overall economic pattern, from the first demand for aerospace machines for military, space, and commercial uses to the failures of recent times as the industry entered recession and peacetime equilibrium. He tells of the desperate competition among giants of the industry, those companies on the frontiers of technology that manufactured fixed-wing aircraft of their own design. This is the group that bore the brunt of adaptation to the jet age: Boeing, Curtiss-Wright, Douglas, Fairchild, General Dynamics, Grumman, Lockheed, martin, McDonnell, North American Northrop, and Republic. Central to the story are the reasons for Americas leadership in the jet age: enterprising business managers, scientists, and engineers; the pressure of economics; and manifold competition brought on by economics; and manifold competition brought on by the cold war. Bright points to an industry that has responded to incredible demands and that has shown the strength to weather storms. This volume is illustrated with fifty-five photographs depicting the growth in aircraft technology from 1945 to 1972. As a unique blend of aeronautic, economic, business, and military history, it will fascinate not only those connected with aviation and the aerospace industry, but also those interested in the history of technology, business management, and government-military-business relations. The Jet Makers received Honorable Mention in the 1977 History Manuscript award competition of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Description Lt. Col Charles D. Bright (1921–2014) was World War II Eighth Army Air Force lead B-17 navigator and flew fighter jets during the Korean War. After receiving his Ph.D. in history from Kansas State University he became professor of business administration at Southwestern College, and later went on to found and chair the business and economics department at Mt. St. Clare College. Roger D. Launius retired in 2016 as Associate Director for Collections and Curatorial Affairs, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian. From 1990 to 2002 he served as chief historian for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). His numerous publications include Exploring the Solar System: The History and Science of Planetary Probes and Spaceflight and the Myth of Presidential Leadership, coauthored with Howard E. McCurdy. This Kansas Open Books title is funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Humanities Open Book Program.https://digitalcommons.pittstate.edu/kansas_open_books/1006/thumbnail.jp

Teachers’ Perceptions of Causes of Gender Differences in Mathematics Achievement Among Secondary School Students

The study investigated teachers’ perceptions of the causes of gender differences in mathematics achievement among secondary school students. The study was carried in Owerri Education Zone I of Imo State Nigeria using descriptive survey research design. A sample of 150 mathematics teachers was used for the study comprising of 90 males and 60 females. A 21-item likert 4 points type of questionnaire titled Causes of Gender Differences in Mathematics Achievement (CGDMA) drawn by the researchers was used for data collection. The instrument had reliability coefficient (r) of 0.81 determined using Crounbach’s alpha method. The data generated were analyzed using mean and standard deviation to answer research questions while the hypotheses were analyzed using chi-square (x2) and t-test statistical tools tested at 0.05 level of significance. The result of the study revealed series of factors causing gender differences in mathematics achievement which are teacher, students and parent related. Based on the result, it was recommended that teachers should use innovative strategies in teaching mathematics to get both male and female students involved in classroom activities

Record linkage to obtain birth outcomes for the evaluation of screening biomarkers in pregnancy: a feasibility study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Linking population health data to pathology data is a new approach for the evaluation of predictive tests that is potentially more efficient, feasible and efficacious than current methods. Studies evaluating the use of first trimester maternal serum levels as predictors of complications in pregnancy have mostly relied on resource intensive methods such as prospective data collection or retrospective chart review. The aim of this pilot study is to demonstrate that record-linkage between a pathology database and routinely collected population health data sets provides follow-up on patient outcomes that is as effective as more traditional and resource-intensive methods. As a specific example, we evaluate maternal serum levels of PAPP-A and free <it>β</it>-hCG as predictors of adverse pregnancy outcomes, and compare our results with those of prospective studies.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Maternal serum levels of PAPP-A and free <it>β</it>-hCG for 1882 women randomly selected from a pathology database in New South Wales (NSW) were linked to routinely collected birth and hospital databases. Crude relative risks were calculated to investigate the association between low levels (multiples of the median ≤ 5^thpercentile) of PAPP-A or free <it>β</it>-hCG and the outcomes of preterm delivery (<37 weeks), small for gestational age (<10^thpercentile), fetal loss and stillbirth.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Using only full name, sex and date of birth for record linkage, pregnancy outcomes were available for 1681 (89.3%) of women included in the study. Low levels of PAPP-A had a stronger association with adverse pregnancy outcomes than a low level of free <it>β</it>-hCG which is consistent with results in published studies. The relative risk of having a preterm birth with a low maternal serum PAPP-A level was 3.44 (95% CI 1.96–6.10) and a low free <it>β</it>-hCG level was 1.31 (95% CI 0.55–6.16).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study provides data to support the use of record linkage for outcome ascertainment in studies evaluating predictive tests. Linkage proportions are likely to increase if more personal identifiers are available. This method of follow-up is a cost-efficient technique and can now be applied to a larger cohort of women.</p

Measurement of the B0-anti-B0-Oscillation Frequency with Inclusive Dilepton Events

The $B^0$-$\bar B^0$ oscillation frequency has been measured with a sample of 23 million \B\bar B pairs collected with the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric B Factory at SLAC. In this sample, we select events in which both B mesons decay semileptonically and use the charge of the leptons to identify the flavor of each B meson. A simultaneous fit to the decay time difference distributions for opposite- and same-sign dilepton events gives $\Delta m_d = 0.493 \pm 0.012{(stat)}\pm 0.009{(syst)}$ ps$^{-1}$.Comment: 7 pages, 1 figure, submitted to Physical Review Letter

Measurement of D-s(+) and D-s(*+) production in B meson decays and from continuum e(+)e(-) annihilation at √s=10.6 GeV

This is the pre-print version of the Article. The official published version can be accessed from the links below. Copyright @ 2002 APSNew measurements of Ds+ and Ds*+ meson production rates from B decays and from qq̅ continuum events near the Υ(4S) resonance are presented. Using 20.8 fb-1 of data on the Υ(4S) resonance and 2.6 fb-1 off-resonance, we find the inclusive branching fractions B(B⃗Ds+X)=(10.93±0.19±0.58±2.73)% and B(B⃗Ds*+X)=(7.9±0.8±0.7±2.0)%, where the first error is statistical, the second is systematic, and the third is due to the Ds+→φπ+ branching fraction uncertainty. The production cross sections σ(e+e-→Ds+X)×B(Ds+→φπ+)=7.55±0.20±0.34pb and σ(e+e-→Ds*±X)×B(Ds+→φπ+)=5.8±0.7±0.5pb are measured at center-of-mass energies about 40 MeV below the Υ(4S) mass. The branching fractions ΣB(B⃗Ds(*)+D(*))=(5.07±0.14±0.30±1.27)% and ΣB(B⃗Ds*+D(*))=(4.1±0.2±0.4±1.0)% are determined from the Ds(*)+ momentum spectra. The mass difference m(Ds+)-m(D+)=98.4±0.1±0.3MeV/c2 is also measured.This work was supported by DOE and NSF (USA), NSERC (Canada), IHEP (China), CEA and CNRS-IN2P3 (France), BMBF (Germany), INFN (Italy), NFR (Norway), MIST (Russia), and PPARC (United Kingdom). Individuals have received support from the Swiss NSF, A. P. Sloan Foundation, Research Corporation, and Alexander von Humboldt Foundation

Total Column CO2CO_2 Measurements at Darwin, Australia – Site Description and Calibration Against In Situ Aircraft Profiles

An automated Fourier Transform Spectroscopic (FTS) solar observatory was established in Darwin, Australia in August 2005. The laboratory is part of the Total Carbon Column Observing Network, and measures atmospheric column abundances of $CO_2$ and $O_2$ and other gases. Measured $CO_2$ columns were calibrated against integrated aircraft profiles obtained during the TWP-ICE campaign in January–February 2006, and show good agreement with calibrations for a similar instrument in Park Falls, Wisconsin. A clear-sky low airmass relative precision of 0.1% is demonstrated in the $CO_2$ and $O_2$ retrieved column-averaged volume mixing ratios. The 1% negative bias in the FTS $X_{CO_2}$ relative to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) calibrated in situ scale is within the uncertainties of the NIR spectroscopy and analysis.Earth and Planetary SciencesEngineering and Applied Science