New Approaches to HSCT Multidisciplinary Design and Optimization

The successful development of a capable and economically viable high speed civil transport (HSCT) is perhaps one of the most challenging tasks in aeronautics for the next two decades. At its heart it is fundamentally the design of a complex engineered system that has significant societal, environmental and political impacts. As such it presents a formidable challenge to all areas of aeronautics, and it is therefore a particularly appropriate subject for research in multidisciplinary design and optimization (MDO). In fact, it is starkly clear that without the availability of powerful and versatile multidisciplinary design, analysis and optimization methods, the design, construction and operation of im HSCT simply cannot be achieved. The present research project is focused on the development and evaluation of MDO methods that, while broader and more general in scope, are particularly appropriate to the HSCT design problem. The research aims to not only develop the basic methods but also to apply them to relevant examples from the NASA HSCT R&D effort. The research involves a three year effort aimed first at the HSCT MDO problem description, next the development of the problem, and finally a solution to a significant portion of the problem

New Approaches to Multidisciplinary Design and Optimization

Research under the subject grant is being carried out in a jointly coordinated effort within three laboratories in the School of Aerospace Engineering and the George Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering. The objectives and results for Year 2 of the research program are summarized. The "Objectives" and "Expected Significance" are taken directly from the Year 2 Proposal presented in October 1994, and "Results" summarize the what has been accomplished this year. A discussion of these results is provided in the following sections. A listing of papers, presentations and reports that acknowledge grant support, either in part or in whole, and that were prepared during this period is provided in an attachment

Responding to COVID‐19 through Surveys of Public Servants

Responding to COVID‐19 presents unprecedented challenges for public sector practitioners. Addressing those challenges requires knowledge about the problems that public sector workers face. This Viewpoint essay argues that timely, up‐to‐date surveys of public sector workers are essential tools for identifying problems, resolving bottlenecks, and enabling public sector workers to operate effectively during and in response to the challenges posed by the pandemic. This essay presents the COVID‐19 Survey of Public Servants, which is currently being rolled out in several countries by the Global Survey of Public Servants Consortium to assist governments in strategically compiling evidence to operate effectively during the COVID‐19 pandemic

Understanding & Modeling State Stability: Exploiting System Dynamics

The potential loss of state stability in various parts of the world is a source of threat to U.S. national security. Every case is unique, but there are common processes. Accordingly, we develop a system dynamics model of state stability by representing the nature and dynamics of ‘loads’ generated by insurgency activities, on the one hand, and by articulating the core features of state resilience and its ‘capacity’ to withstand these ‘loads’, on the other. The problem is to determine and ‘predict’ when threats to stability override the resilience of the state and, more important, to anticipate propensities for ‘tipping points’, namely conditions under which small changes in anti-regime activity can generate major disruptions. On this basis, we then identify appropriate actionable mitigation factors to decrease the likelihood of ‘tipping’ and enhance prospects for stability

Measuring Stakeholders’ Perceptions of Cybersecurity for Renewable Energy Systems

Renewable energy systems need to be able to make frequent and rapid adjustments to address shifting solar and wind production. This requires increasingly sophisticated industrial control systems (ICS). But, that also increases the potential risks from cyber-attacks. Despite increasing attention to technical aspects (i.e., software and hardware) of cybersecurity, many professionals and scholars pay little or no attention to its organizational aspects, particularly to stakeholders’ perceptions of the status of cybersecurity within organizations. Given that cybersecurity decisions and policies are mainly made based on stakeholders’ perceived needs and security views, it is critical to measure such perceptions. In this paper, we introduce a methodology for analyzing differences in perceptions of cybersecurity among organizational stakeholders. To measure these perceptions, we first designed House of Security (HoS) as a framework that includes eight constructs of security: confidentiality, integrity, availability, technology resources, financial resources, business strategy, policy and procedures, and culture. We then developed a survey instrument to analyze stakeholders’ perceptions based on these eight constructs. In a pilot study, we used the survey with people in various functional areas and levels of management in two energy and ICS organizations, and conducted a gap analysis to uncover differences in cybersecurity perceptions. This paper introduces the HoS and describes the survey instrument, as well as some of the preliminary findings. Keywords: Smart Grid; Functional Area; Operational Technology; Organizational Aspect; Renewable Energy Resourc