US Real Estate Investment Performance: 1983-2012

This study provides an overview of real estate investment performance over a 1983-2012 time period. The results show that although equity REITs outperformed all other assets on average annual return, on a risk-adjusted basis both private retail and apartment real estate outperformed all other assets. The study also found a recent trend in increased correlation between common stocks and REITs

License to assemble : theorizing brand longevity

This study delineates the process of brand longevity: the achievement of social salience and ongoing consumer engagement over a sustained period. Our study contributes to branding theory by proposing a multi-level approach to understanding brand longevity through application of an assemblage perspective to answer the question: how do serial brands attain longevity within evolving socio-cultural contexts? By applying assemblage theory, we scrutinize the enduring success of a serial media brand over the past 55 years. To address this question, a wide range of archival brand-related data were collected and analyzed, including: analysis of films, books, marketing materials, press commentaries, and reviews, as well as broader contextual data regarding the socio-cultural contexts within which the brand assemblage has developed. Our findings empirically support the study of brand longevity in and of itself, and conceptualize brand longevity as relying on an evolutionary approach to assembling the brand, which looks outwards from the brand in order to consider the potential of brand elements to prevail in contemporary contexts and to ensure both continuity and change

Making space for art: a spatial perspective of disruptive and defensive institutional work in Venezuela’s art world

The physical and material aspects of space, such as geographical distance or boundaries, have social and symbolic consequences that impact how people influence and are influenced by institutions. Social actors can however contest how space is conceived, perceived and lived, thus making space a crucial lever in the disruption and defense of institutions. However, we lack understanding of the spatial aspects of such institutional struggles. In exploring how space is leveraged in institutional work, our study foregrounds the socio-political nature of space, building on and expanding the theorization of Lefebvre. We draw on an in depth longitudinal analysis of the material, social and symbolic aspects of the spatial dimensions of disruptive and defensive institutional work over the past twenty years in Venezuela’s art world. Following the Bolivarian Revolution in the late 1990s, the incoming government transformed the organization of the national cultural landscape, resulting in a prolonged period of institutional disruption and defense. We demonstrate that actors use the material, social, and symbolic dimensions of space to challenge and maintain their key values and practices, and that those three dimensions are intertwined

Chip formation in machining of unidirectional carbon fibre reinforced polymer laminates : FEM based assessment

Finite-element (FE) method offers a low cost virtual alternative to assist in optimisation of critical process parameters in machining of composites. This study is focussed on understanding the mechanics of chip formation in orthogonal cutting of unidirectional (UD) carbon-fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminates through development of FE models. Machining responses of UD CRFP laminates with fibre orientation of 45° (measured with respect to the cutting direction) are assessed. Modelling of material removal in the form of fragmented chips is considered. Damage initiation is determined using the Hashin stress criterion for the fibre component, while matrix failure predicted using Puck criteria. Subsequent damage evolution events are modelled using a strain-based softening approach to degrade relevant material properties linearly. Primary numerical results compared with experimental data revealed that developed FE models are able to predict global machining responses (i.e. cutting forces) and characterise various discrete damage modes associated with machining response of quasi-brittle CFRP laminates successfully. The models also provide a valuable insight into variation in chip morphology

Study of the machining induced damage in UD-CFRP laminates with various fibre orientations : FE assessment

Finite elements (FE) provide an excellent and low-cost approach in the assessment of composite machining induced damage. This article is focused on the evaluation of the damage underlying the machined surface through the development of a novel 3D FE model in composite machining. Sub-surface damage of UD-CFRP with fibre orientations from 0o to 90o is evaluated. An algorithm to assess composite damage evolution and chip formation is inserted via user-defined subroutine. Damage initiation is determined using Hashin’s failure criteria for fibre damage modes, while matrix damage modes are assessed via Puck’s failure criteria. Subsequent damage evolution is modelled using an energy-based linear damage degradation law. Numerical results reveal relevant advances in the prediction of the damage induced underlying the machined surface for fibre orientations from 60o to 90o obtained in previous investigations

Determining Training Needs for Cloud Infrastructure Investigations using I-STRIDE

As more businesses and users adopt cloud computing services, security vulnerabilities will be increasingly found and exploited. There are many technological and political challenges where investigation of potentially criminal incidents in the cloud are concerned. Security experts, however, must still be able to acquire and analyze data in a methodical, rigorous and forensically sound manner. This work applies the STRIDE asset-based risk assessment method to cloud computing infrastructure for the purpose of identifying and assessing an organization's ability to respond to and investigate breaches in cloud computing environments. An extension to the STRIDE risk assessment model is proposed to help organizations quickly respond to incidents while ensuring acquisition and integrity of the largest amount of digital evidence possible. Further, the proposed model allows organizations to assess the needs and capacity of their incident responders before an incident occurs.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, 3 tables, 5th International Conference on Digital Forensics and Cyber Crime; Digital Forensics and Cyber Crime, pp. 223-236, 201

The evolution of cutting forces during slot milling of unidirectional carbon fiber reinforced polymer (UD-CFRP) composites

Cutting forces generated during traditional machining of fiber reinforced polymer composites play an important role in determining machined surface quality. The cutting force signals also provide a live indicator of the dynamic behavior of the chip formation process. Cutting forces in machining FRPs are dependent primarily on the instantaneous fiber cutting angle, chip thickness, cutting edge geometry and the current state of cutting edge wear. In this study, effects of the cutting edge rake angle and tool wear on cutting force evolution during slot milling of unidirectional carbon fiber reinforced polymer (UD-CFRP) composite was investigated. The cutting forces were measured in the feed and normal directions and then transformed to the tangential and radial directions of the tool path. A simplified cutting force model consisting of a shearing region and a pressing was used to determine the shearing and friction force components. This allowed determination of the friction coefficient on the clearance face of the tool. It was found that the friction coefficient varied significantly with rake angle and fiber cutting angle. The effect of rake angle on cutting forces is more discernable in the shearing region with positive rake angle tool providing the most efficient cutting. Furthermore, correlations were found between machining damage and the magnitude and orientation of the resultant shearing force