A new edition of a classic on Malay weaponry and war, originally published in 1936 in an extremely limited printing now virtually impossible to find. In addition to his work in description and classification of all sorts of Malay weaponry, Gardner spent significant effort in discussions on the origin of the keris (or kris) and its close association with occult beliefs among Malays, an interest of Gardner's which was to have a huge effect on him, later in life. Following his retirement from the British Civil Service in Malaya, not long after the original publication of this book, Gardner returned to the UK, where he focussed his interests on magic and witchcraft, his writings and efforts eventually serving to revive the tradition. Garner is considered by many to be the 'Father of the Wicca Movement'. This book will be of interest to all who wish to understand the timeless link between weaponry and warfare, superstition and magic, in the greater Malay world.

In 2009, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released the report Warfighter Support: Independent Expert Assessment of Army Body Armor Test Results and Procedures Needed Before Fielding, which commented on the conduct of the test procedures governing acceptance of body armor vest-plate inserts worn by military service members. This GAO report, as well as other observations, led the Department of Defense Director, Operational Test & Evaluation, to request that the National Research Council (NRC) Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences conduct a three-phase study to investigate issues related to the testing of body armor materials for use by the U.S. Army and other military departments. Phase I and II resulted in two NRC letter reports: one in 2009 and one in 2010. This report is Phase III in the study.
Testing of Body Armor Materials: Phase III provides a roadmap to reduce the variability of clay processes and shows how to migrate from clay to future solutions, as well as considers the use of statistics to permit a more scientific determination of sample sizes to be used in body armor testing. This report also develops ideas for revising or replacing the Prather study methodology, as well as reviews comments on methodologies and technical approaches to military helmet testing. Testing of Body Armor Materials: Phase III also considers the possibility of combining various national body armor testing standards.

This report reviews and updates the 2002 National Research Council report, Technical Issues Related to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). This report also assesses various topics, including: the plans to maintain the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile without nuclear-explosion testing; the U.S. capability to detect, locate, and identify nuclear explosions; commitments necessary to sustain the stockpile and the U.S. and international monitoring systems; and potential technical advances countries could achieve through evasive testing and unconstrained testing. Sustaining these technical capabilities will require action by the National Nuclear Security Administration, with the support of others, on a strong scientific and engineering base maintained through a continuing dynamic of experiments linked with analysis, a vigorous surveillance program, adequate ratio of performance margins to uncertainties. This report also emphasizes the use of modernized production facilities and a competent and capable workforce with a broad base of nuclear security expertise. Table of Contents Front Matter EXECUTIVE SUMMARY SUMMARY 1 SAFETY, SECURITY, AND RELIABILITY OF THE U.S. NUCLEAR WEAPONS STOCKPILE 2 TECHNICAL MONITORING CAPABILITIES AND CHALLENGES 3 SUSTAINING U.S. TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES UNDER THE CTBT 4 POTENTIAL TECHNICAL ADVANCES FROM NUCLEAR-EXPLOSION TESTING 5 COMPLETE LIST OF FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS APPENDIX A Committee on Reviewing and Updating "Technical Issues Related to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty" (CTBT) APPENDIX B List of CTBT Committee and Seismology Subcommittee Meetings APPENDIX C The U.S. National Capability to Monitor for Nuclear Explosions APPENDIX D Monitoring Areas of High Interest APPENDIX E Dealing with Evasive Underground Nuclear Testing APPENDIX F Issues Related to Containment of Radioactivity APPENDIX G U.S. Satellite Nuclear Detonation Detection Capability: Options and Impacts APPENDIX H Satellite-Based Challenges and Solutions APPENDIX I References APPENDIX J List of Acronyms APPENDIX K Glossary of Key Terms from the 2010 CTBT NIE

International efforts to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction (WMD)-including nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons-rest upon foundations provided by global treaties such as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). Over time, however, states have created a number of other mechanisms for organizing international cooperation to promote nonproliferation. Examples range from regional efforts to various worldwide export-control regimes and nuclear security summit meetings initiated by U.S. president Barack Obama. Many of these additional nonproliferation arrangements are less formal and have fewer members than the global treaties. International Cooperation on WMD Nonproliferation calls attention to the emergence of international cooperation beyond the core global nonproliferation treaties. The contributors examine why these other cooperative nonproliferation mechanisms have emerged, assess their effectiveness, and ask how well the different pieces of the global nonproliferation regime complex fit together. Collectively, the essayists show that states have added new forms of international cooperation to combat WMD proliferation for multiple reasons, including the need to address new problems and the entrepreneurial activities of key state leaders. Despite the complications created by the existence of so many different cooperative arrangements, this collection shows the world is witnessing a process of building cooperation that is leading to greater levels of activity in support of norms against WMD and terrorism.