How Bad Governance Led to Conflict: The Case of Swat, Pakistan

The paper presents an alternative narrative to the what led to conflict in the once peaceful Swat Valley in Pakistan. The widely discussed view has been that Talibanization is what led to the conflict but this paper argues that it was in fact bad governance over a period of time that led to this conflict by creating an environment where a governance vacuum existed. This vacuum was exploited by local groups to establish their control over the region. The research is evidenced by a field study that gauged public perception.Conflict; International Aid; Aid Effectiveness; Swat; Pakistan; Governance; Armed Conflict; Post Conflict Reconstruction

A Compact and Wideband Coupled-Line Coupler with High Coupling Level Using Shunt Periodic Stubs

A wideband microstrip forward-wave coupled-line coupler with high coupling value is presented. Compared with the conventional edge-coupled microstrip forward-wave coupler, this symmetrical structure, consisting periodic shunt stubs between the two coupled-lines, achieves wider operating bandwidth and larger coupling level. To characterize this structure, the equivalent circuit model is established and verified by measurement and full-wave results. The designed and fabricated prototype is a 0-dB forward-wave coupler with 0.6 mm stub length. This coupler exhibits a coupled amplitude balance of ±2 dB, good matching (15dB) and at least 15dB isolation between adjacent ports over a wide bandwidth of 66% from 2 GHz to 4 GHz centered at 3 GHz. The coupled-line length and width of the proposed structure are approximately λg/2 and λg/13, respectively, which makes it more compact than the conventional forward coupled-line couplers

Wear maps for TiC composite based coatings deposited on 303 stainless steel

Dry sliding wear (pin-on-disc) tests were carried out under ambient conditions at room temperature for TiC coated and uncoated 303 stainless steel, using alumina as a counterface. The composite coating which was developed by Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) methods increased the surface hardness of the substrate and the sliding wear resistance of the substrate. Wear maps for both uncoated and coated materials were developed on the basis of tests results. The results indicated that the role of oxidative wear differed significantly for both coated and uncoated materials on the wear map. In addition, it was found that TiC composite coatings not only increased the wear resistance but also expanded the mild wear region towards higher loads and sliding speeds