Expendable launch vehicle propulsion

The current status is reviewed of the U.S. Expendable Launch Vehicle (ELV) fleet, the international competition, and the propulsion technology of both domestic and foreign ELVs. The ELV propulsion technology areas where research, development, and demonstration are most needed are identified. These propulsion technology recommendations are based on the work performed by the Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee (COMSTAC), an industry panel established by the Dept. of Transportation

Value creation and change in social structures: the role of entrepreneurial innovation from an emergence perspective

Aim: Our aim is to develop a more complete understanding of how processes that entrepreneurs perform interact with wider society and the causal effects of society on entrepreneurial behaviour and vice versa. We aim to show how entrepreneurial agency is put into effect in relation to the disruption of social structure and social change. This has implications for innovation and entrepreneurship policy and practice, and for entrepreneurship theory. We also investigate the role of ‘value’ in these processes. Contribution to the literature Our central argument is that emergent forms (or ‘emergents’) may be short lived (ephemeral) but have causal power on the performance of the actors in the system of inter-relationships in the innovation ecosystem. The emphasis on inter-related social processes and ontological stratification provides theoretical development of extant entrepreneurship theory on new venture creation (by explaining process), effectuation (by linking individualism and holism) and opportunity recognition (by deconstructing opportunity into anticipation, ontology and process). Methodology The paper takes an 'emergence' perspective as a way to understand entrepreneurial processes that give rise to innovation. The anticipation of value and the inter-relationship with social and organisational structures are fundamental to this perspective. A longitudinal analysis of a case study of the development of a new business model within an entrepreneurial firm is described. The case is followed through seven phases in which the relationship between process and emergent ontological status is shown to have destabilising and stabilising effects which produce emergent properties. Results and Implications One methodological contribution is framing how to conceptualise the empirical evidence. Emergents have causal effects on the anticipations of value inherent in their particular system of innovation. This causality is manifest as the attraction of resource in the firm; the stabilisation of the emergent constitutes strategy in the enterprise. A key role of the entrepreneurs in our case study was the creation and maintenance of evolving ontological materiality, as meaningful to themselves and to those with whom they interacted. In simple terms, they made things meaningful to people who mattered

When will we learn: key factors and potential barriers

The overall aim of this research was to improve the dissemination of Lessons Learned in construction projects so that contractors’ project teams have access to the most relevant lessons at the most appropriate time, in the most appropriate format. The outcome of the research aimed to provide (1) an understanding of the different systems and tools used for recording Lessons Learned amongst major construction contractors; (2) an understanding of the needs in terms of what sort of lessons are required, the level of detail required and how best these should be made available; and (3) an approach on how best to disseminate Lessons Learned. The key objectives of the research were to: 1. Investigate current practice for recording and disseminating Lessons Learned; 2. Identify potential barriers for successfully disseminating Lessons Learned; and 3. Identify key factors affecting company processes to encourage a more systematic dissemination of Lessons Learned. The study was conducted in three phases. The first investigated contractors’ current practices for recording and disseminating Lessons Learned through a questionnaire survey. The second phase identified key factors that would encourage the institutionalisation of Lessons Learned and also the factors that inhibit their use. The third phase examined how current processes could be adapted to develop a process that would embed the systematic dissemination of Lessons Learned within an organisation’s existing practices. This report focuses on the second stage of the project that identified from the end users those factors that would encourage the institutionalisation of Lessons Learned and also the factors that inhibit their use of Lessons Learned

The dog-duty ascetic: the politics of action in modern Burma and the Pali Canon

In the Kukkuravatika-sutta we fi nd two ascetics, the dog duty ascetic (go-vatika) and the ox duty ascetic (kukkura-vatika). They both strive for liberation by adopting the behavior of a dog or an ox. This article examines the kammic consequences of such practices in the light of the Buddha’s advice to both ascetics. The notion of kamma as presented in this discourse suggests a complexity that popular descriptions often ignore. It will also make comparisons between animal like behavior and their kammic consequences in the Pali Ni

Love thy neighbour: proxemic bias in the voting strategy of contestants in the TV quiz-show "The Weakest Link"

We observed the pattern of voting in the first round of 72 episodes of the UK version of the TV quiz-show „The Weakest Link‟ (WL). The first round culminated as each of the nine contestants carried out an eight-alternative-forced-choice task by voting for one of their peers as the WL. Rudimentary probability theory was used to generate the frequencies of votes that would be expected purely due to chance for all eight relative positions of voter-to-candidate spatial relationships. The observed frequencies from the episodes were then compared to the expected pattern. Consensus, the number of contestants voting for the eventual WL, was also recorded in each of the 72 first rounds. Two main findings emerged:- i.) contestants avoided voting their direct neighbour as the WL, although the propensity to vote for a peer was not a simple function of distance per se; ii.) the „neighbour-avoidance‟ effect increased as the group consensus as to the identity of the WL decreased

A Land Link for Western Montana: Keeping Land in Agriculture from One Generation to the Next

Western Montana’s agricultural land is rapidly being developed in the wake of an increasing population and aging farmers and ranchers. The subsequent high land values make it difficult for producers to access agricultural land. The Community Food and Agriculture Coalition has prioritized the creation of a land link matching service to help connect farm and ranch owners with people looking for agricultural land to expand or start production operations. This professional paper aims to provide the first step towards this objective by exploring how a matching service might be designed, administered and implemented. The research has two components: 1) to learn from existing land link programs about their strategies to facilitate farm and ranch transfers and suggestions about starting a matching service, and 2) listen to landowners’ reactions and thoughts about how a land link might encourage their participation and meet their needs and concerns. Six existing land link programs were analyzed through informal interviews of their directors and staff. Twenty-four of the region’s farm and ranch owners were informally phone surveyed. Based on the perspectives of western Montana’s farm/ranch owners and land link professionals, the report concludes by outlining recommendations and options for establishing a matching service in western Montana

Telling the Whole Store: Native Americans and the Development of Urban Spaces

This paper places the subject of urban Indians in North America within the historical reality of their existence and emphasizes the need to rework current assumptions about Native peoples. Not only were Native peoples intimately involved in the act of building up villages, forts, and trading posts – which would eventual evolve into the cities that dot the continent today – but they have also very much been a part of the urban scene in major cities since the middle of the twentieth century. The cities around Puget Sound would not have been able to exist without the direct aid of the Indian laborers. Major metropolitan areas such as Los Angeles, Chicago, and San Francisco saw great increases in their Indian populations in the twentieth century due to myriad reasons. All of these point to the essential fact that Indians have long played an integral part in American history outside of their role on the reservation. Fighting stereotypical images of Native Americans as people who are locked in the past requires a shift in how they are viewed by the modern community. When people understand the massive impact that Native Americans have played in various urban areas throughout North America they will see Indians in a new light. To do this is vital, not only because it is a more accurate interpretation of history, but also because it begins to right the wrongs that Native Americans have traditionally faced

A cost system for a calfskin tannery

Thesis (M.B.A.)--Boston Universit

Improving lessons learnt outcomes in multi-phase project environments

The capture and beneficial application of learning from past experiences in projects has been an area of interest and debate for many years. The implementation of lessons learnt is commonly acknowledged as difficult. Existing studies point to the deficiencies in current practice but few propose practical approaches to improve the situation. A key barrier to learning in projects is the time-critical nature of most projects which makes the creation of time and space to learn and then apply the resultant learning problematic. Other inhibitors include the variety and temporality of project teams, the geographical spread of many projects and client pressures to reduce costs. The aim of this research was to improve project learning processes in multi-phase project environments through the identification and application of relevant organizational learning and knowledge management theories. The research was based on a single company longitudinal case study in an infrastructure support services organization. An event-based approach to project lessons was developed which focuses on benefits realisation and measurement. The processes employed overcome some of the key barriers to the effective capture of lessons learnt and their subsequent implementation i.e. shortage of time, different learning styles of individuals, lack of effective capture mechanisms, poor articulation of benefits realisation, lack of management sponsorship. A model was also developed which acts as a multi-faceted lens which aids the understanding of the dynamics of project-based learning. The model was tested through a series of workshops. In order to assist the roll-out of the new approach across the case study organisation and outline implementation guide that has been developed. The approach can also be promoted externally to improve project management practice across the wider construction industry. In addition, the study also revealed that event-based enactment of complex/abstract theories can be used as a tool to create improved praxis by overcoming the need to explain the theories to the actors involved. The main contribution to research is the development of a new approach which extends existing theory in the areas of learning, knowledge management and boundary objects in multi-phase project contexts. It achieves this through the synergistic use of the theories employed which support the development of reflective practitioners with the skills to engender a ‘learning how to learn’ culture within project-based environments. Further testing of ongoing benefits monitoring and establishing causality is needed. Overall, the methodology developed is highly adaptable and can be used by others in different organizational contexts to improve organizational learning, business performance, client satisfaction and wider stakeholder outcomes