137,807 research outputs found
Arming the British Home Guard, 1940-1944
No full textThe Second World War saw British society mobilised to an unprecedented extent to
meet the threat of Total War. ‘Total Defence’ was manifest in organisations such as the
ARP and Home Guard. What sets the Home Guard apart was its combatant role. This
thesis examines the arms provided for the Home Guard, and concludes that its combat
power has been seriously underestimated. It benefitted from huge quantities of high
quality smallarms purchased from the United States, which were not issued to the
Regular Army, because they chambered American ammunition. What is extraordinary
is that these weapons are always characterised as ancient relics, yet the oldest of them
was years younger, in real and design terms, than the British Army equivalent.
In 1940 Britain lacked the capacity to manufacture arms in the quantities needed to
repair the losses of Dunkirk and meet the needs of the expanding armed forces. The
remedy was unorthodox weaponry such as the ‘Sticky Bomb’ and the ‘Blacker
Bombard’. These are always associated with the Home Guard, yet saw active service
against the Africa Corps. These unconventional weapons were more capable than many
modern authors suggest, but they suffer from an impenetrable ‘orthodox view’ that
characterises Home Guard weapons as ancient, whimsical and inefficient. This has its
origins in the Local Defence Volunteers’ disappointment when the Government failed
to meet its promise to arm every volunteer; their dismay at receiving foreign equipment;
the way in which the media portrayed the Home Guard; and the fact that the great
threats the Home Guard existed to combat – invasion and subversion – appeared to be
illusory, making the Home Guard itself seem quixotic.
This study strips away that conventional narrative, and exposes a Home Guard that was
well equipped for its tasks – frequently better equipped than other components of Home
Defence
Protocol: optimised electrophyiological analysis of intact guard cells from arabidopsis
No full textGenetic resources available for Arabidopsis thaliana make this species particularly attractive as a model for molecular genetic studies of guard cell homeostasis, transport and signalling, but this facility is not matched by accessible tools for quantitative analysis of transport in the intact cell. We have developed a reliable set of procedures for voltage clamp analysis of guard cells from Arabidopsis leaves. These procedures greatly simplify electrophysiological recordings, extending the duration of measurements and scope for analysis of the predominant K+ and anion channels of intact stomatal guard cells to that achieved previously in work with Vicia and tobacco guard cells
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United States Coast Guard Report CG-D-18-78
No full textAbstract: This study examines current Coast Guard message handling functions to (1) confirm the need for the application of communications automation techniques to such operations and (2) develop alternative approaches to accomplishing such automation
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United States Coast Guard Report CG-D-60-77
No full textAbstract: The prototype airborne oil surveillance system (AOSS I) developed for the U.S. Coast Guard by Aerojet ElectroSystems under Contract DOT-CG-22170A was modified and transferred from a HU-16 aircraft to a HC-130B aircraft. The added capabilities of the new system configuration were verified by a flight test program
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United States Coast Guard Report CG-D-53-78
No full textAbstract: The Coast Guard has undertaken research to identify educational alternatives in its long term efforts to improve the safety of recreational boating
Transportation Systems Center/U.S. Coast Guard L-Band Maritime Satellite Test Program : Test Summary: September - November 1974
No full textCG509/R5003Several L-band satellite communications tests with the NASA ATS-6 spacecraft and the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter SHERMAN are described. The tests included 1200 bit per second digital data, voice, simultaneous data and voice, ranging, multipath and antenna tracking. Preliminary results are discussed
Improved Coast Guard Communications Using Commercial Satellites and WWW Technology
No full textInformation collection and distribution are essential components of most Coast Guard missions. However, information needs have typically outpaced the ability of the installed communications systems to meet those needs. This mismatch leads to reduced effectiveness of Coast Guard operations. One current need is for Coast Guard aircraft to communicate information on vessels sighted to the shipboard commander quickly and efficiently. This paper describes an R&D initiative to demonstrate a new concept of operations to meet this need using commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) technology. A database server installed at the R&D Center that can be accessed via the Internet collects the information and provides it to authorized users using web-based forms. A sighting report (from aircraft and cutters) is entered using the minimum amount of information; this information is then combined by the server with information from historical databases to make a complete record. The users (Coast Guard aircraft, stations, and cutters) access the information using standard WWW browser software. All users connect to the server using either fixed network connections to the Internet, Coast Guard Intranet, or dial-up PPP connections into a remote access server. Commercial satellite systems (AMSC and Inmarsat) provide the communications links for the mobile users (aircraft and cutters). This system was demonstrated in the New England area during March of 1997. This paper describes the concept, implementation, demonstration, and a preliminary analysis of the performance of the communication links to the mobile users. References. Pre-presentation copy; paper to be presented at International Mobile Satellite Conference (IMSC-97), Pasadena CA on 18 June 1997. 170k, 6p. Slides that accompanied this paper can be found at http://ntl.bts.gov/data/imsc-97-slides.pdf
Deployment Requirements for U.S. Coast Guard Pollution Response Equipment: Volume I. Analysis
No full textThis report presents the results of a study to examine the siting and equipment requirements that would have to be met by the U.S. Coast Guard to provide an adequate response within six hours for spills of up to 10,000 tons (28,000,000 gals.) of oil in U.S. waters. A data base of spills over 50,000 gallons in U.S. waters has been compiled from the Pollution Incident Reporting System and National Response Center files of the USCG. Spill rates are derived and applied for the U.S. as a whole and for four major sub-areas. A set of baseline pollution response equipment is adopted, and several equipment site configurations covering the U.S. are evaluated on the basis of six-hour coverage, historic spills encompassed and spill potential. Relative levels of equipment capability for the sites are derived from a simple optimization model. These relative levels are converted to specific equipment requirements on the basis of reasonable forecasts of oil movements in U.S. coastal waters, including oceanic tankers, coastal tank vessels, deepwater ports, and outer continental shelf production. The additional needs of the U.S. Coast Guard are estimated by subtracting the response capacity of equipment available from other response organizations. Finally, worldwide experience of oil spills larger than 1,000,000 gallons is examined for the decade 1968-1978, and three massive spill scenarios are present for the U.S. Atlantic and Pacific coasts. Corresponding response scenarios are evaluated, and site locations, equipment levels and logistic requirements are re-examined. System adjustments are noted, where indicated
U.S. Coast Guard SARSAT Final Evaluation Report. Volume III. Programs and Data Listings.
No full textCG524/R5011Volume I of this report, Technical Evaluation, presents the findings of the U.S. Coast Guard's two year demonstration and evaluation (D&E) of the COSPAS/SARSAT satellite-aided search and rescue system for locating distressed vessels and aircraft, a cooperative project of the US, USSR, France, and Canada. The report summarizes results of controlled tests and exercises; analyzes SARSAT's role in actual distress cases; discusses operations of the system's radio beacons; satellites, Cost Guard Rescue Coordination Centers, U.S. Mission Control Center, Local User Terminals, and ground communications; appraises the system's long-term economic costs and benefits; and assesses achievement of project objectives. Results indicate that the COSPAS/SARSAT system increased the role of radio beacons in search and rescue cases and provided key information in locating more than one-third of Coast Guard ELT/EPIRB distress cases during the D&E, resulting in the rescue of 74 persons. Volume II consists of appendices that give detailed information and data in support of each section of the Technical Evaluation; This Volume contains programs and data listings
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United States Coast Guard Report CG-D-42-77
No full textAbstract: The Coast Guard initiated a study to determine if a Dump Control Subsystem was feasible for use with an Ocean Dumping Surveillance System. This report contains a summary of the dump mechanisms on various Ocean Dumping vessels and recommended designs for Dump Control Subsystems
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