A medium-range air combat game solution by a pilot advisory system

Air-to-air combat between two aggressive aircraft , both equipped with medium-range guided missiles, is .a key element of future air warfare. This dynamic coni lict can be viewed as an interaction of a twotarget diiferential game (between the air--craft) and two independent missileaircraft pursuit-evasion games. The information structure is, however, rather intricate: though perfect information can be assumed between the two aircraft, the missiles have a limited detection range, beyond which information has to be forwarded by the launching aircraft. Moreover, missile firing cannot be assumed detectable. Problems of such complexity haven't been treated yet in the frame of\ud classical differential game theory. In this paper a prototype Pilot Advisory\ud System (PADS), designed to solve the problems facing the pilot in such an\ud engagement, is described. PADS proposed to be an expert System, which operates in real--time and has a "knowledge base" incorporating differential game concepts and solution elements. PADS simultaneously evalua.tes potential success with the respective risks and advises the pilot when to fire his missile and when to start an evasive maneuver. This advisory system can guarantee survival when so desired by the pilot. but in most situations it maximizes the probability of victory with an accepted level of' risk

H-alpha Survey of the Local Volume: Isolated Southern Galaxies

We present our H-alpha observations of 11 isolated southern galaxies: SDIG, PGC 51659, E 222-010, E 272-025, E 137-018, IC 4662, Sag DIG, IC 5052, IC 5152, UGCA 438, and E149-003, with distances from 1 to 7 Mpc. We have determined the total H-alpha fluxes from these galaxies. The star formation rates in these galaxies range from 10^{-1} (IC 4662) to 10^{-4}_{\odot}/yr (SDIG) and the gas depletion time at the observed star formation rates lies within the range from 1/6 to 24 Hubble times H_0^{-1} .Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure

Saint or Sinner?: A Reconsideration of the Career of Prince Alexandre de Merode, Chair of the International Olympic Committee’s Medical Commission, 1967-2002

This article explores the role of Prince Alexandre de Merode in heading the IOC’s fight against drugs from the 1960s to 2002. History has not served de Merode very well. He has been presented in simplistic ways that emerge from context rather than evidence – as either a saint or a sinner. IOC-sanctioned accounts cast him in the mould of the saint: a moral and intelligent man who saved sports from doping. In contrast, sports academics have tended to portray him as a sinner: an ineffectual leader who did not develop either the testing systems or the punishments required to prevent doping and who deliberately concealed evidence of high-profile doping cases. This article assesses both representations before presenting information to support a richer and more complicated interpretation