Analysis of Population Dynamics of Terrorist Cells

Applied mathematics connects many different fields of science. This research focuses on the population dynamics of terrorist organizations, namely Al Qaeda, by creating a mathematical model, while still considering social science fields, such as psychology. By considering psychological interrelations of a terrorist cell and their contact with citizens, we design a model that is a four-dimensional system of nonlinear differential equations to better understand the way in which recruitment ensues within such organizations. Using the computer program Mathematica, we are able to manipulate multiple parameters simultaneously in order to observe the impact of certain recruitment techniques on the general population. This results in either the absorption of the human race by the terrorist organization, or more positively, a ceiling on the terrorist population. Other scientists, such as psychologists, can use this information to implement new strategies to combat terrorism from a new intellectual perspective

Motivation

The ability of humans and animals to survive in a constantly changing environment is a testament to the power of biological processes. At any given instant in our lives, we are faced with an enormous number of sensory stimuli, and we can typically generate an equally large number of behaviors. How do we learn to ignore irrelevant information and suppress inappropriate behavior so that we may function in a complex environment? In this chapter we discuss motivation, the internal force that produces actions reflecting the interactions between our needs and the demands of our environment. We will first discuss what psychologists mean when they refer to motivation, and then review neural network theories that can expbin how motivation arises within biological nervous systems.Sloan Fellowship (BR-3122): Air Force Office of Scientific Research (F49620-92-J-0499, F49620-92-J-0334

Eritrea's Nation and State-building: Re-assessing the impact of 'the struggle'

In the April 2003 issue of Atlantic Monthly, Robert Kaplan describes Eritrea as 'newly independent, sleepily calm and remarkably stable'. Electricity is said to fail infrequently, corruption is rare, theft and crime almost unheard of, reflecting, Kaplan claims, 'a surprisingly functional social order' Eritrea is said to have 'achieved a degree of non-coercive social discipline' by implication, unusual for Africa. The country's political culture is described as 'an almost Maoist degree of mobilization and an almost Albanian degree of xenophobia.' In this account, Eritrea is an exotic specimen, not quite African, atypical in almost all respects. But is Eritrea accurately reflected or understood in this account? Is Eritrea really as isolated and marginal as this suggests? Is its development agenda and state-building project that divergent from elsewhere? Kaplan hints that Eritrea's sense of nationhood - 'rare in a world of nation-states rent by tribalism and globalisation' - exists despite globalisation. But this is in complete contrast to current research which emphasizes that 'transnationalism does not necessarily operate in opposition to nationalism but can at times work to reinforce it'. In contrast, Kaplan's article takes as read the official account of Eritrean nationalism, emphasizing that it is a product not simply of its history, but also of its having been isolated and alienated from international and regional influences: 'we Eritreans are different from our neighbours'.

On the possibility of agreement of measurements on AES Proton with the data on sidereal-daily variation and with different models of origin of cosmic rays

Comparison of Proton satellite data, sidereal daily variation, and nuclear energy spectrum and composition with models of origin of cosmic ray

The Politics of Neglect: the Egyptian State in Cairo, 1974-98

This thesis examines state-society relations in Egypt, and the logic of durable authoritarianism since 1952. It does so through an examination of the Egyptian state’s neglectful rule, from the 1970s through the 1990s, of its capital Cairo. In particular, the thesis focuses on state inaction vis-à-vis Cairo’s informal housing sector: those neighbourhoods established on land not officially sanctioned for urbanization. The central research question of the thesis is to explain why the Egyptian state has been unable to intervene effectively in these informal neighbourhoods—despite their stigmatization in Egyptian public discourse as threats to the nation’s social, moral and political health; the authoritarian state’s considerable unilateral power; and the availability of western assistance for development interventions. The short answer to the question, is that the very factors which sustain the authoritarian political order constrain the Egyptian state’s ability to intervene in its capital. Neglectful rule is a consequence of the autocratic post-1952 dispensation of power. That this neglect is not simply the result of structural resource constraints, is demonstrated through the examination of donor-funded urban-development projects—aimed at fostering an administratively competent Egyptian state able to intervene in its capital—none of which were successful or sustainable. The failure of these reform initiatives, which could have allowed Egyptian state agencies to upgrade informal Cairo and re-orient its growth, can be plausibly explained in terms of the challenges they posed to the logic of autocratic rule. Thus the reproduction of the informal city is, in part, a consequence of the post-1952 dispensation

Variations of cosmic rays and problems of solar-terrestrial physics

Solar cosmic ray variations and their relationship to solar physics, solar wind magnetic fields, electromagnetic radiation, and radiation hazards to manned space flight

Cosmic rays and dynamics of the solar wind, 1

Intensity modulation and deceleration dynamics of solar wind by cosmic ray