Search results

Vehicle weight reduction represents a viable means of meeting tougher regulatory requirements designed to reduce fuel consumption and control greenhouse gas emissions. This paper aims to present an empirical and comparative analysis of lightweight magnesium materials used to replace conventional steel in passenger vehicles with internal combustion engines. The very low density of magnesium makes it a viable material for lightweighting given that it is lighter than aluminium by one-third and steel by three-fourth.

A structural evaluation case study of the “open access” Wikispeed car was undertaken. This included an assessment of material design characteristics such as bending stiffness, torsional stiffness and crashworthiness to evaluate whether magnesium provides a better alternative to the current usage of aluminium in the automotive industry.

The Wikispeed car had an issue with the rocker beam width/thickness (b/t) ratio, indicating failure in yield instead of buckling. By changing the specified material, Aluminium Alloy 6061-T651 to Magnesium EN-MB10020, it was revealed that vehicle mass could be reduced by an estimated 110 kg, in turn improving the fuel economy by 10 per cent. This, however, would require mechanical performance compromise unless the current design is modified.

This is the first time that a comparative analysis of material substitution has been made on the Wikispeed car. The results of such work will assist in the lowering of harmful greenhouse gas emissions and simultaneously augment fuel economy.

The review begins with a study of several analyses of statistics relating to interlibrary loan. The subjective nature of some of these is stressed and the danger of using statistical data in isolation is highlighted. Statistical evidence is also brought into the discussion about the conflict between interlending and preservation which centres on the difference between the book and the text. Whilst two authors take a rather conservative approach, the third looks on the problem with a more liberal attitude. Although the intrinsic safety of the materials involved is a partial barrier to interlending in developing countries, writers from both Africa and Latin America emphasize the major obstacles to advancing ILL are professional attitudes and jealousies. The proceedings of a seminar in India are reported in which a number of participants put forward possible interlending models for their country. The deliberations in Australia also centre round the alternative models available, and arguments over the costs involved persist leading to some novel arguments about making ILL a free service. The development of interlending in Illinois is examined in some detail. The impact of interlending on acquisitions policies is discussed in two papers which show that interlending is still a backup for low use material when viewed in this context. The review closes with a discussion of the future particularly in terms of money and resources which are likely to become more and more limited. The demise of the US plan for a National Periodicals Center is used to show that money and power are major elements in deciding the fate of interlending schemes.

This review covers three broad areas. Firstly, interlending statistics from West Germany and France are summarized. Secondly papers on interlending of specialist materials (microform, audiovisual materials and music) are discussed. Thirdly, the review looks at some recent applications of new technology: the use of electronic mail for request transmission in Canada, three experiments with telefacsimile transmission of documents in the USA together with a proposal for high‐speed telefacsimile transmission via satellite in Australia, and the use of microcomputers in interlibrary loan departments. A new article delivery service in the USA and the demise of the Pacific Northwest Bibliographic Center are reported. Finally, the publication of a draft version of guidelines on union catalogues of serials is mentioned.

The review begins with a look at the interlending of audiovisual materials. The main obstacles in this area are fear of damage in transit and packaging problems, costs of transportation, copyright and contractual restrictions, the lending/reference conflict, and problems of incompatibility of technical equipment. The general problems are discussed and also the situation in the United Kingdom and Australia. The interlending of music is examined with a critical look at an ambitious scheme for combining ILL and publication on demand by using telefacsimile. A continued growth in the volume of interlending traffic is detected by analysing figures from Canada, the USA, the German Democratic Republic, and the UK. The administration of ILL systems is critical for their efficiency and the questions of staffing and finance are examined. The nature of ILL work has changed so as to require more qualified staff and it is necessary to look at all the components of interlending work to estimate what elements, if any, should be charged to the system itself and what are overheads for general library use. Finally the value of grandiose networking schemes in Third World countries is questioned in the light of experiences from the Arab World, India, and Brazil.

Using the philosophical lenses of revisionist ontology and the politics of personhood, this paper explores the notion of Black Founders of the United States. I introduce the concept critical intellectual agency to argue that Black Founders brought unique contributions to the American experience. Their efforts were twofold. First, Black Founders established separate Black institutions that would become staples in Black communities after emancipation. Second, Black Founders challenged the supposed egalitarian beliefs of White Founders through media outlets. To illustrate, I focus on one Black Founder, Benjamin Banneker and his letter to Thomas Jefferson to illustrate how Black Founders philosophically responded and challenged White Founders prejudicial beliefs about Blackness. This paper seeks to challenge social studies teachers’ curricular and pedagogical approaches to Black Americans during the colonial period by providing a heuristics and language to explore the voices of Black Americans in U.S. history.

We give more space than usual to the Conference of the Library Association, but, even so, our correspondent has attempted impressions rather than factual accounts of the papers read. Good as those papers were, the main effect of our conferences is to provide for every type of librarian a sense of community and of unity with librarianship in general. This was achieved in a large measure at Edinburgh. Moreover, as our correspondent suggests, there was interest in problems that do not affect, at least at present, many who participated. Nearly every session, general or special, was so well attended, that we can infer that the vitality of interest in library matters is as great as it ever has been; indeed, it is possibly greater.

Effective communication has been recognised as an important issue for the management of incidents involving decontamination; evidence shows that failure to communicate effectively may result in increased public anxiety and non‐compliance. This paper aims to examine current provision for communicating with members of the public during decontamination, to facilitate the development of improved responder communication strategies.

To examine the current provision for communicating with members of the public, the authors reviewed open source decontamination guidance documents for responders, as well as published reports of emergency preparedness exercises involving decontamination.

The review of decontamination guidance documents showed that specific guidance for professional responders on how to communicate with the public during incidents that involve decontamination could be improved. Similarly, the review of published decontamination exercises shows that a stronger emphasis on communication with members of the public is needed, in addition to the use of exercises to evaluate the effectiveness of communication strategies.

The present research summarises existing evidence relating to how communication strategies employed by responders can shape public responses to decontamination. Analysed alongside current decontamination guidance for emergency responders, this evidence highlights potential gaps in planning for communicating with members of the public during decontamination. It is hoped that this will promote an increased understanding of the importance of communication during these types of incidents, which will in turn facilitate the development of more comprehensive responder communication strategies.

Examines the effect of weather and temporal factors on the total calls for service (CFS) at the Minneapolis Police Department. Aims at the eventual development of an instrument to predict short‐term variations in CFS over time ‐ a goal which at present is unique. Finds that CFS increase at times when individuals have less habitual routine activities, e.g. after dark; during vacation months. Suggests that temporal factors have much more impact than the weather. Points out some practical implications for the criminal justice system, e.g., future schedules can be adjusted for temporal variations, thus helping in the deployment of officers. Shows that accurate prediction of the overall number of CFS is possible when temporal and weather factors are used.