Mitigation of blast effects on existing structures in austere environments

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2012.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 52-53).Military commanders in austere environments often face challenges in setting up headquarters buildings that offer protected areas for sensitive equipment. One solution to this problem is simply to build a structure that can be used for this purpose. This method can prove to be difficult in that it could either require large amounts of prefabricated concrete, heavy earthmoving equipment, or a significant effort in digging by hand. Clearly, all of these options are unsuitable for constructing a headquarters building that would be occupied for a short time or if the resources required were unavailable. Another solution to this problem is to simply occupy an existing structure. This method is extremely favorable with respect to resources required; with the major drawback being that at times existing structures may offer limited protection from hostile forces. Since the US Army often has overwhelming firepower when compared to contemporary threats, many times hostile forces will resort to suicide or remotely detonated explosive devices when attempting to destroy or damage structures of this type. In order to determine the feasibility of mitigating this threat, this paper will explore the effects of various explosive devices on model building types that may be found in austere environments, and explore the effects of possible reinforcement schemes in mitigating blast threats to these structures.by Andrew J. Maxa.S.M

Risk factors associated with lambing traits

peer-reviewedThis article was first published in Animal (2016), 10:1, pp 89–95, © The Animal Consortium 2015The objective of this study was to establish the risk factors associated with both lambing difficulty and lamb mortality in the Irish sheep multibreed population. A total of 135 470 lambing events from 42 675 ewes in 839 Irish crossbred and purebred flocks were available. Risk factors associated with producer-scored ewe lambing difficulty score (scale of one (no difficulty) to four (severe difficulty)) were determined using linear mixed models. Risk factors associated with the logit of the probability of lamb mortality at birth (i.e. binary trait) were determined using generalised estimating equations. For each dependent variable, a series of simple regression models were developed as well as a multiple regression model. In the simple regression models, greater lambing difficulty was associated with quadruplet bearing, younger ewes, of terminal breed origin, lambing in February; for example, first parity ewes experienced greater (P7.0 kg) birth weights, quadruplet born lambs and lambs that experienced a more difficult lambing (predicted probability of death for lambs that required severe and veterinary assistance of 0.15 and 0.32, respectively); lambs from dual-purpose breeds and born to younger ewes were also at greater risk of mortality. In the multiple regression model, the association between ewe parity, age at first lambing, year of lambing and lamb mortality no longer persisted. The trend in solutions of the levels of each fixed effect that remained associated with lamb mortality in the multiple regression model, did not differ from the trends observed in the simple regression models although the differential in relative risk between the different lambing difficulty scores was greater in the multiple regression model. Results from this study show that many common flock- and animal-level factors are associated with both lambing difficulty and lamb mortality and management of different risk category groups (e.g. scanned litter sizes, ewe age groups) can be used to appropriately manage the flock at lambing to reduce their incidence

Acoustic Detection System Based on Two Microphones

Tato bakalářská práce se zabývá vytvořením akustického detekčního systému založeného na principu dvou mikrofonů. Cílem systému je monitorovat okolí a po detekci akustické impulzní události tuto událost zaznamenat a výsledná data odeslat na vzdálený server. Systém se skládá z hlavní DPS obsahující MCU, modul Wi-FI, GPS modul a dvou menších desek pro přesné umístění MEMS mikrofonů. Po zaznamenání akustické události na obou mikrofonech a určení časového zpoždění mezi dopadem akustické vlny na první a druhý mikrofon jsou data odeslána pomocí Wi-Fi a TCP protokolu na vzdálený server. Odeslaná data obsahují nahraná akustická data a metadata obsahující časové zpoždění, polohu jednotky a časovou značku získanou pomocí GPS. Systém je založen na dvou mikrofonech pro minimalizaci počtu jednotek potřebných pro 2D lokalizaci akustikckých událostí. Jelikož je každá jednotka osazena dvěma mikrofony stačí pro lokalizaci teoretiky jen dvě jednotky.This bachelor's thesis focuses on developing an acoustic detection system based on the principle of two microphones. The system aims to monitor the surroundings and, upon detecting an acoustic impulse event, record the event and send the resulting data to a remote server. The system consists of a main board containing an MCU, Wi-Fi module, GPS module, and two smaller boards for precise placement of the MEMS microphones. After capturing the acoustic event on both microphones and determining the time delay between the impact of the acoustic wave on the first and second microphones, the data is transmitted via Wi-Fi and TCP protocol to a remote server. The transmitted data includes recorded acoustic data and metadata containing time delay, unit location, and timestamp obtained through GPS. The system is based on two microphones to minimize the units required for acoustic event localization. Theoretically, with each unit equipped with two microphones, only two units are sufficient for localization

Evaluation of different global navigation satellite tracking systems and analyses of movement patterns of cattle on alpine pastures

Global Positioning Systems (GPS) as one of the Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) have been applied in many studies especially focusing on wildlife but there are very few studies using GPS on domesticated animals under extensive conditions combined with extreme relief such as in the Alps. Therefore, the main aim of this study was to test, evaluate and support the development of new tracking systems based on GNSS- and GSM- technology. Furthermore, movement patterns of cattle and the workload of herdsman were analysed for a possible optimization of the management of grazing animals in mountainous areas. Two newly developed prototypes of companies GNSS_L and GNSS_M and two commercially available systems GNSS_H and GNSS_T were tested on several alpine farms (AF) over the pasture season of the year 2012 and 2013. The evaluation of GNSS devices focused on position accuracy, battery life, smartphone applications as well as availability of supportive functions and application of geo-fencing. Also a standardized dynamic accuracy test of a GPS data logger and four different tracking systems was conducted. Movement pattern analyses focused on distances walked by cattle from sequenced GNSS fixes and autocorrelation of recorded information. Parallel to the previous aims the workload management of different alpine farms was analysed to support the evaluation of advantages of using GNSS tracking systems in mountainous areas. Based on the results of a comparison of the tested tracking systems we can conclude that devices GNSS_M and GNSS_T performed better under the alpine conditions compared with GNSS_L and GNSS_H, when GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) reception was available. The standardized dynamic accuracy test showed significant differences (P≤0.001) among most of the tested GNSS collars and the GPS data logger, except between the prototypes GNSS_L and GNSS_M (P≥0.05). On average 62% of information on the distance walked by cattle were lost when GNSS fix intervals increased from 5 to 20 minutes. Finally, based on analyses of the workload of herdsmen this study showed potential of using GNSS tracking systems to reduce labour time requirement and workload for farming in mountainous regions

Use of Instructional Rubrics in Cooperative Extension Programming

This article looks at the concept of the instructional rubric as a nonformal evaluation tool. The premise is that educators can obtain evaluation information on short-term programs where formal evaluation design is not desired. Examples of instructional rubrics are given for 4-H, agriculture, and family and consumer science. In addition to the rubric itself, there are implications for educator intervention and retooling the experience

Use of Instructional Rubrics in Cooperative Extension Programming

This article looks at the concept of the instructional rubric as a nonformal evaluation tool. The premise is that educators can obtain evaluation information on short-term programs where formal evaluation design is not desired. Examples of instructional rubrics are given for 4-H, agriculture, and family and consumer science. In addition to the rubric itself, there are implications for educator intervention and retooling the experience

Optimization of Service Performance at the Operational and Information Center of the Fire and Rescue Service of the Karlovy Vary Region

Diplomová práce se zabývá tématem optimalizace výkonu služby v operačním řízení na Krajském operačním a informačním středisku Hasičského záchranného sboru Karlovarského kraje (dále jen ,,KOPIS"). V teoretické části je formulováno operační řízení jako proces koordinace složek integrovaného záchranného systému. Je definován statut operačního střediska s uvedením jeho úkolů, povinností a oprávnění. V práci je popsán proces budování KOPIS a jeho prostorové a organizační uspořádání. Je zde uveden vývoj početního stavu sloužících příslušníků a detailně definována organizace výkonu služby na tomto pracovišti. Praktická část je tvořena komparací dat z roku 2007 a 2020 o průběhu zpracování mimořádné události od příjmu tísňového volání po vyhlášení poplachu jednotkám požární ochrany. Za uvedené období je provedena deskripce nově zavedených technologických a organizačních změn ve výkonu služby. Na závěr je zpracována SWOT analýza výkonu služby na KOPIS. Z provedeného výzkumu vyplývá, že zavedením nových technologií a optimalizací operačních postupů došlo k zrychlení procesu zpracování mimořádné události. V závěru práce byly stanoveny klíčové body dalšího vývoje operačního řízení na KOPIS.The diploma thesis deals with the topic of optimizing of the service in operational management at the Regional Operational and Information Center of the Fire and Rescue Service of the Karlovy Vary Region (hereinafter "KOPIS"). The theoretical part formulates operational management as a process of coordination of services of the integrated rescue system. The statute of the coordination center is defined with an indication of its tasks, duties and authorizations. The thesis describes the process of building KOPIS and its spatial and organizational arrangement. The work presents the development of the number of serving members and defines the organization of the performance of the service at this workplace in detail. The practical part consists of the comparison of data from 2007 and 2020 about the process of an emergency from the receiving of an emergency call to the announcement of an alarm to fire brigade units. During this period, newly introduced technological and organizational changes in the performance of the service are described. Finally, a SWOT analysis of the service of KOPIS is presented. The research shows that the introduction of new technologies and optimization of operational procedures has accelerated the process of emergency processing. At the end of the work, the key points of further development of operational management at KOPIS were determined