Preliminary estimates of galactic cosmic ray exposures for manned interplanetary missions

Preliminary estimates of radiation exposures resulting from galactic cosmic rays are presented for interplanetary missions. The calculations use the Naval Research Laboratory cosmic ray transport code. The heavy ion portion of the transport code can be used with any number of layers of target material, consisting of up to five different constituents per layer. The nucleonic portion of the transport code can be used with any number of layers of target material of arbitrary composition except hydrogen. Calculated galactic cosmic ray particle fluxes, doses, and dose equivalents behind various thicknesses of aluminum shielding are presented for solar maximum and solar minimum periods

Small Business Operations Strategy: Aligning Priorities and Resources

This article reports the perceptions of small business owner/managers in Jamaica regarding how to use operations strategy for improving firm profitability. The perspectives of classical economics and behavioral theory were integrated to evolve a model of small business operations. Two relevant hypotheses were examined using data from a survey of 101 owner/managers. Product quality is perceived to be of paramount importance but new firms may be less consistent than older small businesses. Owner/managers also perceive that a combination of priorities is necessary with technology adopted to improve the use of labor and materials. Labor emerged as the critical resource factor for executing competitive priorities. The findings have important implications for small business development and turnaround

Assessment of a flow-through balance for hypersonic wind tunnel models with scramjet exhaust flow simulation

The purpose of this investigation were twofold: first, to determine whether accurate force and moment data could be obtained during hypersonic wind tunnel tests of a model with a scramjet exhaust flow simulation that uses a representative nonwatercooled, flow-through balance; second, to analyze temperature time histories on various parts of the balance to address thermal effects on force and moment data. The tests were conducted in the NASA Langley Research Center 20-Inch Mach 6 Wind Tunnel at free-stream Reynolds numbers ranging from 0.5 to 7.4 x 10(exp 6)/ft and nominal angles of attack of -3.5 deg, 0 deg, and 5 deg. The simulant exhaust gases were cold air, hot air, and a mixture of 50 percent Argon and 50 percent Freon by volume, which reached stagnation temperatures within the balance of 111, 214, and 283 F, respectively. All force and moment values were unaffected by the balance thermal response from exhaust gas simulation and external aerodynamic heating except for axial-force measurements, which were significantly affected by balance heating. This investigation showed that for this model at the conditions tested, a nonwatercooled, flow-through balance is not suitable for axial-force measurements during scramjet exhaust flow simulation tests at hypersonic speeds. In general, heated exhaust gas may produce unacceptable force and moment uncertainties when used with thermally sensitive balances

Improving productivity of a financial firm: business model evolution in the Caribbean

Purpose – This study explores the role of business model as a state variable during transformation of a financial institution to become a multinational enterprise. Prior studies of the Uppsala model overlooked business model evolution for cross-border productivity and performance. Design/methodology/approach – The research design employs the resource-based view for an in-depth case study of JMMB, a family-managed Jamaica-based financial firm, using data from primary and secondary sources, covering the period 1992 to 2014. Findings – JMMB’s business model was the channel through which resources and capabilities gave rise to an innovative product for successful positioning in an international network. This was augmented by strong family orientation toward customer service, a distinctive asset that shaped the nature and trajectory of the business model. Cross-border alliancing and risk management were crucial dynamic capabilities for replicating the business model in foreign markets. Research limitations/implications – While the observations are not generalizable to other firms, they indicate that a business model is a key unit of analysis for understanding how the firm makes the transition to become a multinational enterprise. Practical implications – Financial institutions may internationalize in a small island, developing stages through a strategy of focused product differentiation based on disruptive innovation with cross-border partnerships for ease of market entry and experiential learning. Social implications – The research has identified opportunities for effective and efficient work methods in pursuit of productivity gains. Originality/value – The study is the first to illustrate business model as a state variable in the Uppsala model of multinational enterprise evolution for a financial firm

Improving the geological interpretation of magnetic and gravity satellite anomalies

Quantitative analysis of the geologic component of observed satellite magnetic and gravity fields requires accurate isolation of the geologic component of the observations, theoretically sound and viable inversion techniques, and integration of collateral, constraining geologic and geophysical data. A number of significant contributions were made which make quantitative analysis more accurate. These include procedures for: screening and processing orbital data for lithospheric signals based on signal repeatability and wavelength analysis; producing accurate gridded anomaly values at constant elevations from the orbital data by three-dimensional least squares collocation; increasing the stability of equivalent point source inversion and criteria for the selection of the optimum damping parameter; enhancing inversion techniques through an iterative procedure based on the superposition theorem of potential fields; and modeling efficiently regional-scale lithospheric sources of satellite magnetic anomalies. In addition, these techniques were utilized to investigate regional anomaly sources of North and South America and India and to provide constraints to continental reconstruction. Since the inception of this research study, eleven papers were presented with associated published abstracts, three theses were completed, four papers were published or accepted for publication, and an additional manuscript was submitted for publication

Texas minerals: trends in production

Bureau Publication GC6504 - to purchase a print copy please go to: https://store.beg.utexas.edu/geologic-circulars/386-gc6504.htmlMinerals play a vital role in the economy of an industrial State. In Texas, where annual production of minerals currently amounts to more than $4. 5 billion--twice the value of agricultural products, equal the value of manufactured products, and equal to half the value of all retail trade--mineral production is the principal part of the State's economic foundation. Analyses of past production trends and economic factors allow predictions of future trends in this vital and important segment of the Texas economy. Included herein are production graphs and brief annotations of production trends of principal or representative Texas mineral commodities. Period considered is 1950 through 1964, a period embracing significant post-war developments in the State and National economy.Bureau of Economic GeologyUT Librarie

Treatment Differences and Political Realities in the GAAP-IFRS Debate

The Securities Exchange Commission has introduced a Roadmap that describes a process leading to mandatory use of IFRS by domestic issuers by 2014. The SEC justifies this initiative on the grounds that global standardization yields cost savings and an ultimate gain in comparability, facilitating the search for global opportunities by U.S. investors and making U.S. capital markets more attractive to foreign issuers. This paper enters an objection, noting that the stakes include more than the choice of the framework for standard setting. The accounting treatments themselves are at issue, treatments that for the most part concern domestic reporting firms and domestic users of financial statements. We present a treatment by treatment comparison of GAAP and IFRS and go on to discuss the differences\u27 implications. FASB maintained its independence during its 35 year history in the teeth of opposition from corporate management, which experienced a steady diminution of its zone of financial reporting discretion. A switch to IFRS would allow management to reclaim some of the lost territory. Meanwhile, the interest group alignment that protected FASB, comprised of auditing firms, actors in the financial markets, and the SEC, has disintegrated as U.S. capital market power has waned in the face of international competition. Management is the shift\u27s incidental beneficiary, with possible negative effects for reporting quality in domestic markets

Treatment Differences and Political Realities in the GAAP-IFRS Debate

The Securities Exchange Commission has introduced a Roadmap that describes a process leading to mandatory use of IFRS by domestic issuers by 2014. The SEC justifies this initiative on the grounds that global standardization yields cost savings and an ultimate gain in comparability, facilitating the search for global opportunities by U.S. investors and making U.S. capital markets more attractive to foreign issuers. This paper enters an objection, noting that the stakes include more than the choice of the framework for standard setting. The accounting treatments themselves are at issue, treatments that for the most part concern domestic reporting firms and domestic users of financial statements. We present a treatment by treatment comparison of GAAP and IFRS and go on to discuss the differences\u27 implications. FASB maintained its independence during its 35 year history in the teeth of opposition from corporate management, which experienced a steady diminution of its zone of financial reporting discretion. A switch to IFRS would allow management to reclaim some of the lost territory. Meanwhile, the interest group alignment that protected FASB, comprised of auditing firms, actors in the financial markets, and the SEC, has disintegrated as U.S. capital market power has waned in the face of international competition. Management is the shift\u27s incidental beneficiary, with possible negative effects for reporting quality in domestic markets

Fiber Length in Normal and Foxtail Pinus Caribaea Mor.

Carribbean pine often develops a foxtail form when planted in tropical and subtropical locations. The normal procedure in many plantations is to destroy these trees, partly because it is thought they are of low wood quality. Since as many as 50% of the trees in a location may be affected by foxtailing, this procedure represents a huge loss, especially in areas where survival is already very low.This study was undertaken to determine if foxtailing lowers the fiber length of the affected tree. Ten normal and ten foxtails were sampled at two heights for fiber length. It was found that fibers from foxtail trees were on the average 13.5% longer than from normal trees growing in the same location