Simple acoustical technique for automated measurement of drift tube anode wire tension

We describe a simple and inexpensive acoustical technique that permits rapid, accurate and in-situ measurement of drift tube anode wire tensions even if the anode wire is electrically discontinuous.Comment: 5 text pages, 6 figures. fixed typo, minor content change in sec

Bond’s New Bod: Gender (de)construction in Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, and Skyfall

This thesis examines how gender is constructed in the three most recent films of the James Bond series: Casino Royale (2006), Quantum of Solace (2008), and Skyfall (2012). The argument revolves around individual gender identity being structured by greater social and culture influences. The thesis argues that the three most recent Bond installments work to deconstruct the traditional masculine ideal established and reinforced throughout the series. Each film instead confronts the looming anxieties of outdated Western norms. Through the hypervisibility of Bond’s physical body, the detachment and increasing isolation created by emerging technological influence, and a nostalgia inflicted by the loss of British imperial power and dominating masculine power, the three films expose the interworking’s of a character that embodies greater Western ideals

Ecological non-linear state space model selection via adaptive particle Markov chain Monte Carlo (AdPMCMC)

We develop a novel advanced Particle Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm that is capable of sampling from the posterior distribution of non-linear state space models for both the unobserved latent states and the unknown model parameters. We apply this novel methodology to five population growth models, including models with strong and weak Allee effects, and test if it can efficiently sample from the complex likelihood surface that is often associated with these models. Utilising real and also synthetically generated data sets we examine the extent to which observation noise and process error may frustrate efforts to choose between these models. Our novel algorithm involves an Adaptive Metropolis proposal combined with an SIR Particle MCMC algorithm (AdPMCMC). We show that the AdPMCMC algorithm samples complex, high-dimensional spaces efficiently, and is therefore superior to standard Gibbs or Metropolis Hastings algorithms that are known to converge very slowly when applied to the non-linear state space ecological models considered in this paper. Additionally, we show how the AdPMCMC algorithm can be used to recursively estimate the Bayesian Cram\'er-Rao Lower Bound of Tichavsk\'y (1998). We derive expressions for these Cram\'er-Rao Bounds and estimate them for the models considered. Our results demonstrate a number of important features of common population growth models, most notably their multi-modal posterior surfaces and dependence between the static and dynamic parameters. We conclude by sampling from the posterior distribution of each of the models, and use Bayes factors to highlight how observation noise significantly diminishes our ability to select among some of the models, particularly those that are designed to reproduce an Allee effect

Napoleon Bonaparte’s Concordat and the French Revolution

In 1815, Napoleon Bonaparte and Pope Pius XVII signed an agreement called the Concordat, which was an agreement between the French state and the Catholic Church that reconciled the Church with the anti-religious policies established during the French Revolution. This paper discusses the conflicting viewpoints held by various historians concerning the legacy of the Concordat; that is, did the agreement fulfill the religious goals of the early revolutionaries or did it betray their ideals? Ultimately, the paper concludes that the Concordat did indeed uphold the religious principles established during the early stages of the Revolution

On the Mechanism of Townsend Avalanche for Negative Molecular Ions

Time projection chambers drifting negative ions (NITPC) instead of electrons have several advantages. A NITPC can operate at very high reduced drift fields without diffusion runaway, and the readout digitization sampling rate requirement is considerably relaxed due to the low drift speed of negative ions. The initiation of Townsend avalanches to allow gas gain in these devices has not been understood until now. It is shown here that the avalanche in low pressure CS$_2$ vapor is most likely initiated by collisional detachment of the electron from the negative molecular ion. In mixtures of Nitromethane vapor with CO$_2$ the mechanism appears to be more complex

Can One Believe the Ancient Sources That Describe Messalina?

This paper discusses the various ancient writings that discussed the empress Messalina. It ultimately concludes that the ancient authors wrote with profound biases, which discredits the accuracy of their negative accounts of her

A benign, low Z electron capture agent for negative ion TPCs

We have identified nitromethane (CH$_3$NO$_2$) as an effective electron capture agent for negative ion TPCs (NITPCs). We present drift velocity and longitudinal diffusion measurements for negative ion gas mixtures using nitromethane as the capture agent. Not only is nitromethane substantially more benign than the only other identified capture agent, CS$_2$, but its low atomic number will enable the use of the NITPC as a photoelectric X{}-ray polarimeter in the 1{}-10 keV band

Preventing and managing plant diseases (2017)

New 4/08; Revised 7/17/350

THE DHOFAR REBELLION: INFLUENCE OF EXTERNAL POWERS ON COUNTERINSURGENCY

This thesis endeavors to understand the significant role that external power influence plays on the success of a nation’s counterinsurgency strategy. Specifically, this thesis looks at the Dhofar Rebellion in Oman (1965–1975) as it pulled great powers of the 20th century into an insurgency fought on the Southern Arabian Peninsula and demonstrates the significant role that these powers played in the eventual outcome. The sociopolitical conditions in the Dhofar region of Oman that set the stage for the rebellion are important in order to determine the root cause that ignited the conflict. Many authors have already written on the Dhofar Rebellion from a purely counterinsurgency perspective. This thesis endeavors to consider the significant influence that the support provided by nations external to the conflict have on the outcome of an insurgency, and it concludes that success or failure of the insurgency can be determined by this level of support—or lack thereof—rather than solely by military operations.Outstanding ThesisLieutenant Commander, United States NavyApproved for public release. Distribution is unlimited