Dangerous Thresholds


Book Description

Escalation is a natural tendency in any form of human competition, and today's security environment demands that the United States be prepared for a host of escalatory threats. This analysis of escalation dynamics and approaches to escalation management draws on a range of historical examples from World War I to the struggle against global Jihad to inform escalation-related decisionmaking.




WHO Guidelines for Indoor Air Quality


Book Description

This book presents WHO guidelines for the protection of public health from risks due to a number of chemicals commonly present in indoor air. The substances considered in this review, i.e. benzene, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, naphthalene, nitrogen dioxide, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (especially benzo[a]pyrene), radon, trichloroethylene and tetrachloroethylene, have indoor sources, are known in respect of their hazardousness to health and are often found indoors in concentrations of health concern. The guidelines are targeted at public health professionals involved in preventing health risks of environmental exposures, as well as specialists and authorities involved in the design and use of buildings, indoor materials and products. They provide a scientific basis for legally enforceable standards.




Mexican Philosophy in the 20th Century


Book Description

Sánchez and Sanchez have selected, edited, translated, and introduced some of the most influential texts in Mexican philosophy, which constitute a unique and robust tradition that will challenge and complicate traditional conceptions of philosophy. The texts collected here are organized chronologically and represent a period of Mexican thought and culture that emerged from the Mexican Revolution of 1910 and which culminated in la filosofía de lo mexicano (the philosophy of Mexicanness). Though the selections reflect on a variety of philosophical questions, collectively they represent a growing tendency to take seriously the question of Mexican national identity as a philosophical question--especially given the complexities of Mexico's indigenous and European ancestries, a history of colonialism, and a growing dependency on foreign money and culture. More than an attempt to describe the national character, however, the texts gathered here represent an optimistic period in Mexican philosophy that aimed to affirm Mexican culture and philosophy as a valuable, if not urgent, contribution to universal culture.







Strategies to Protect the Health of Deployed U.S. Forces


Book Description

Since Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Gulf War veterans have expressed concerns about health effects that could be associated with their deployment and service during the war. Although similar concerns were raised after other military operations, the Gulf War deployment focused national attention on the potential, but uncertain, relationship between the presence of chemical and biological (CB) agents and other harmful agents in theater and health symptoms reported by military personnel. Strategies to Protect the Health of Deployed U.S. Forces which is one of the four two-year studies, examines the detection and tracking of exposures of deployed personnel to multiple harmful agents.




Niosh Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards


Book Description

The NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards presents information taken from the NIOSH/OSHA Occupational Health Guidelines for Chemical Hazards, from National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) criteria documents and Current Intelligence Bulletins, and from recognized references in the fields of industrial hygiene, occupational medicine, toxicology, and analytical chemistry. The information is presented in tabular form to provide a quick, convenient source of information on general industrial hygiene practices. The information in the Pocket Guide includes chemical structures or formulas, identification codes, synonyms, exposure limits, chemical and physical properties, incompatibilities and reactivities, measurement methods, respirator selections, signs and symptoms of exposure, and procedures for emergency treatment.




Cyber Operations and International Law


Book Description

This book offers a comprehensive overview of the international law applicable to cyber operations. It is grounded in international law, but is also of interest for non-legal researchers, notably in political science and computer science. Outside academia, it will appeal to legal advisors, policymakers, and military organisations.




Site Reliability Engineering


Book Description

The overwhelming majority of a software system’s lifespan is spent in use, not in design or implementation. So, why does conventional wisdom insist that software engineers focus primarily on the design and development of large-scale computing systems? In this collection of essays and articles, key members of Google’s Site Reliability Team explain how and why their commitment to the entire lifecycle has enabled the company to successfully build, deploy, monitor, and maintain some of the largest software systems in the world. You’ll learn the principles and practices that enable Google engineers to make systems more scalable, reliable, and efficient—lessons directly applicable to your organization. This book is divided into four sections: Introduction—Learn what site reliability engineering is and why it differs from conventional IT industry practices Principles—Examine the patterns, behaviors, and areas of concern that influence the work of a site reliability engineer (SRE) Practices—Understand the theory and practice of an SRE’s day-to-day work: building and operating large distributed computing systems Management—Explore Google's best practices for training, communication, and meetings that your organization can use




Modeling Environment-Improving Technological Innovations Under Uncertainty


Book Description

This book presents a compendium of methodologies for evaluating the economic impact of technological innovation upon climate-change policy. There is a broad consensus on the key elements of climate-change science and agreement that near-term actions are needed to prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. However, there is little agreement on the costs and benefits of climate policy. Any policy implementation will result in an irreversible but environment-improving investment in alternative technologies; this change will generate immediately-realized costs but significantly-delayed benefits. Hence, a critical element in policy selection is the inherent uncertainty in the climate and economy that can be expected over time.




The Albergo Diffuso Model


Book Description

The hospitality model called "Albergo Diffuso" (AD), or "scattered hotel," has been engneered by Mr Giancarlo Dall'Ara and described by The New York Times as a way of bringing life back to historic towns and rural hamlets by utilizing unused rooms for tourism. This "simple but genial" model devised in Italy in the mid-90's received an award from the UNDP for its sustainability, but despite the spread of AD's, no peer-reviewed books have previously been published in English focusing on this innovation. In this book, the author therefore begins by exploring the AD as a community-based hospitality model, examining both its pros and cons. He then considers conviviality, sense of security, and other factors that Hans Magnus Enzensberger referred to as luxuries of our time for urban dwellers. These represent the key pre-requisites a location must possess to be deemed suitable for this innovation. Next, investors and co-interested private, public and not-for-profit associations are provided with a structured framework to help them achieve a defensible competitive advantage by harnessing the economic potential of valuable, rare, inimitable and non-substitutable (VRIN) resources. The final section assesses the AD as a business model, evaluating various aspects at the heart of any business plan.