The effort to build machines that are able to learn and undertake tasks such as datamining, image processing and pattern recognition has led to the development of artificial neural networks in which learning from examples may be described and understood. The contribution to this subject made over the past decade by researchers applying the techniques of statistical mechanics is the subject of this book. The authors provide a coherent account of various important concepts and techniques that are currently only found scattered in papers, supplement this with background material in mathematics and physics, and include many examples and exercises.

The effort to build machines that are able to learn and undertake tasks such as datamining, image processing and pattern recognition has led to the development of artificial neural networks in which learning from examples may be described and understood. The contribution to this subject made over the past decade by researchers applying the techniques of statistical mechanics is the subject of this book. The authors provide a coherent account of various important concepts and techniques that are currently only found scattered in papers, supplement this with background material in mathematics and physics, and include many examples and exercises.

A wide-ranging anthology of primary texts in American foreign relations—now expanded to include documents from the Trump years to today How should America wield its power beyond its borders? Should it follow grand principles or act on narrow self-interest? Should it work in concert with other nations or avoid entangling alliances? America in the World captures the voices and viewpoints of some of the most provocative, eloquent, and influential people who participated in these and other momentous debates. Now fully revised and updated, this anthology brings together primary texts spanning a century and a half of U.S. foreign relations, illuminating how Americans have been arguing about the nation’s role in the world since its emergence as a world power in the late nineteenth century. Features more than 250 primary-source documents, reflecting an extraordinary range of views Includes two new chapters on the Trump years and the return of great power rivalries under Biden Sweeps broadly from the Gilded Age to emerging global challenges such as COVID-19 Shares the perspectives of presidents, secretaries of state, and generals as well as those of poets, songwriters, clergy, newspaper columnists, and novelists Also includes non-American perspectives on U.S. power

Systems' Verification Validation and Testing (VVT) are carried out throughout systems' lifetimes. Notably, "quality-cost" expended on performing VVT activities and correcting system defects consumes about half of the overall engineering cost. "Verification, Validation and Testing of Engineered Systems" provides a comprehensive compendium of VVT activities and corresponding VVT methods for implementation throughout the entire lifecycle of an engineered system. In addition, the book strives to alleviate the fundamental testing conundrum, namely: What should be tested? How should one test? When should one test? And, when should one stop testing? In other words, how should one select a VVT strategy and how it be optimized?

The book is organized in three parts: The first part provides introductory material about systems and VVT concepts. This part presents a comprehensive explanation of the role of VVT in the process of engineered systems (Chapter-1). The second part describes 40 systems' development VVT activities (Chapter-2) and 27 systems' post-development activities (Chapter-3). Corresponding to these activities, this part also describes 17 non-testing systems' VVT methods (Chapter-4) and 33 testing systems' methods (Chapter-5). The third part of the book describes ways to model systems' quality cost, time and risk (Chapter-6), as well as ways to acquire quality data and optimize the VVT strategy in the face of funding, time and other resource limitations as well as different business objectives (Chapter-7). Finally, this part describes the methodology used to validate the quality model along with a case study describing a system's quality improvements (Chapter-8).

Fundamentally, this book is written with two categories of audience in mind. The first category is composed of VVT practitioners, including Systems, Test, Production and Maintenance engineers as well as first and second line managers. The second category is composed of students and faculties of Systems, Electrical, Aerospace, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering schools. This book may be fully covered in two to three graduate level semesters; although parts of the book may be covered in one semester. University instructors will most likely use the book to provide engineering students with knowledge about VVT, as well as to give students an introduction to formal modeling and optimization of VVT strategy.

How should America wield its enormous power beyond its borders? Should it adhere to grand principles or act on narrow self-interest? Should it partner with other nations or avoid entangling alliances? Americans have been grappling with questions like these throughout the nation's history, and especially since the emergence of the United States as a major world power in the late nineteenth century. "America in the World" illuminates this history by capturing the diverse voices and viewpoints of some of the most colorful and eloquent people who participated in these momentous debates.

Spanning the era from the Gilded Age to the Obama years, this unique reader collects more than two hundred documents--everything from presidential addresses and diplomatic cables to political cartoons and song lyrics. It encompasses various phases of American diplomatic history that are typically treated separately, such as the First World War, the Cold War, and 9/11. The book presents the perspectives of elite policymakers--presidents, secretaries of state, generals, and diplomats--alongside those of other kinds of Americans, such as newspaper columnists, clergymen, songwriters, poets, and novelists. It also features numerous documents from other countries, illustrating how foreigners viewed America's role in the world.

Ideal for classroom use, "America in the World" sheds light on the complex interplay of political, economic, ideological, and cultural factors underlying the exercise of American power on the global stage.Includes more than two hundred documents from the late nineteenth century to todayLooks at everything from presidential addresses to political cartoons and song lyricsPresents diverse perspectives, from elite policymakers to clergymen and novelistsFeatures documents from outside the United States, illustrating how people in other countries viewed America's role in the world

When the United States entered World War I, President Woodrow Wilson declared to Congress that the objective was not merely to bring "a new balance of power," but rather to bring a "just and secure peace" to the world by the end of the conflict. In this famous speech, known as "The Fourteen Points," Wilson offered the world a road map toward a more equitable international system in the midst of unprecedented global conflict, including ideas on the interconnectedness of democracy, trade, and the concept of a forum for peaceably resolving international disputes. Even decades after the end of the First World War, Wilson's ideas remained important and influenced many of his successors. But now, in the twenty-first century, there are forces at work in the world that Wilson could never have imagined, and those forces call for a new plan toward peace. In Fourteen Points for the Twenty-First Century: A Renewed Appeal for Cooperative Internationalism, Richard H. Immerman and Jeffrey A. Engel bring together a diverse group of thinkers who take up Wilson's call for a new world order by exploring fourteen new directions for the twenty-first century. The contributors -- scholars, policymakers, entrepreneurs, poets, doctors, and scientists -- propose solutions to contemporary challenges such as migration, global warming, health care, food security, and privacy in the digital age. Taken together, these points challenge American leaders and policymakers to champion an international effort, not to make America great again, but to work cooperatively with other nations on the basis of mutual respect.

"When George Bush went to China in 1974, our two countries were still very much in the discovery stage of our relationship. His honest and personal reflections provide a rare, almost 'behind the scenes' window into that fascinating time period, and are a great reminder of how far we have come. The book is also a wonderful insight into the thought processes of a future president, who I believe history will judge as one of our greatest foreign policy presidents."--Lt. Gen. Brent Scowcroft, USAF (ret.), former national security advisor to Presidents Gerald Ford and George H. W. Bush

"George H. W. Bush's China diary captures a pivotal moment when Americans were reintroduced to the Middle Kingdom after a generation of estrangement. It also reveals much of the humanity, humor, and light foreign policy touch of a future president and presidential father. We can be grateful to Jeffrey Engel for putting this important document into its rich historical context and making it accessible."--Timothy Naftali, author of "George H. W. Bush"

"Engel's historical editing is the perfect frame to this lucid window on late-Maoist China. In the Bush diary's candid entries the reader can 'eavesdrop' on a statesman educating himself for the personal, pragmatic diplomacy that would change the world."--Walter A. McDougall, author of Pulitzer Prize-winning "The Heavens and the Earth"

"Full of useful and previously unavailable information, "The China Diary of George H. W. Bush" is a timely publication. This valuable narrative offers a firsthand account of U.S.-China relations during a critical political juncture, talks about the opportunities and challenges that America faced in Vietnam and elsewhere, andrecords the life of the Beijing diplomatic circle in the last years of the Cultural Revolution. There is absolutely no doubt that this is an important book."--Chen Jian, Cornell University

""The China Diary of George H. W. Bush" is a real gem: accessible, lively, and informative. In its entirety, the diary makes a real contribution to our understanding of Bush's evolution as a politician and policymaker, and to our knowledge of Sino-American relations at a pivotal moment in time."--Michael Schaller, University of Arizona

"The insightful diary entries, the helpful chapter introductions, and the superb footnote annotations make this a sure winner for experts and non-experts alike! "The China Diary of George H. W. Bush" will be a widely read, widely cited, and widely influential book."--Jeremi Suri, University of Wisconsin-Madison

This is the real story of how George W. Bush came to double-down on Iraq in the highest stakes gamble of his entire presidency. Drawing on extensive interviews with nearly thirty senior officials, including President Bush himself, The Last Card offers an unprecedented look into the process by which Bush overruled much of the military leadership and many of his trusted advisors, and authorized the deployment of roughly 30,000 additional troops to the warzone in a bid to save Iraq from collapse in 2007. The adoption of a new counterinsurgency strategy and surge of new troops into Iraq altered the American posture in the Middle East for a decade to come. In The Last Card we have access to the deliberations among the decision-makers on Bush's national security team as they embarked on that course. In their own words, President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, and others, recount the debates and disputes that informed the process as President Bush weighed the historical lessons of Vietnam against the perceived strategic imperatives in the Middle East. For a president who had earlier vowed never to dictate military strategy to generals, the deliberations in the Oval Office and Situation Room in 2006 constituted a trying and fateful moment. Even a president at war is bound by rules of consensus and limited by the risk of constitutional crisis. What is to be achieved in the warzone must also be possible in Washington, D.C. Bush risked losing public esteem and courted political ruin by refusing to disengage from the costly war in Iraq. The Last Card is a portrait of leadership—firm and daring if flawed—in the Bush White House. The personal perspectives from men and women who served at the White House, Foggy Bottom, the Pentagon, and in Baghdad, are complemented by critical assessments written by leading scholars in the field of international security. Taken together, the candid interviews and probing essays are a first draft of the history of the surge and new chapter in the history of the American presidency.

Listen to a short interview with Jeffrey A. Engel Host: Chris Gondek ] Producer: Heron & Crane

In a gripping story of international power and deception, Jeffrey Engel reveals the "special relationship" between the United States and Great Britain in a new and far more competitive light. As allies, they fought communism. As rivals, they locked horns over which would lead the Cold War fight. In the quest for sovereignty and hegemony, one important key was airpower, which created jobs, forged ties with the developing world, and, perhaps most importantly in a nuclear world, ensured military superiority.

Only the United States and Britain were capable of supplying the post-war world's ravenous appetite for aircraft. The Americans hoped to use this dominance as a bludgeon not only against the Soviets and Chinese, but also against any ally that deviated from Washington's rigid brand of anticommunism. Eager to repair an economy shattered by war and never as committed to unflinching anticommunism as their American allies, the British hoped to sell planes even beyond the Iron Curtain, reaping profits, improving East-West relations, and garnering the strength to withstand American hegemony.

Engel traces the bitter fights between these intimate allies from Europe to Latin America to Asia as each sought control over the sale of aircraft and technology throughout the world. The Anglo-American competition for aviation supremacy affected the global balance of power and the fates of developing nations such as India, Pakistan, and China. But without aviation, Engel argues, Britain would never have had the strength to function as a brake upon American power, the way trusted allies should.

Have you ever wondered, "What's it all about?" God's answers for all life's problems are recorded in the Bible. Each chapter of Within These Walls explains a different aspect to understanding the Scriptures, seeking to help the reader fit together all the pieces of the puzzle and receive God's love and wisdom for his or her life.

There are three important steps for every person to help him or her determine what this life is all about: find God, walk with God, and finish with God. There is one more necessary ingredient, and that is faith. God's Word is truth and there for us to receive, but without a person's faith, little benefit will be experienced. The journey must start with God, continue with God, and finish with God. If those steps are taken in faith, then what it's all about will no longer be a mystery.

Each chapter in Within These Walls helps the reader to understand God's Word and apply it to his or her life. As you read through the chapters of this book, ask God to open your spiritual eyes to what He is telling you.

This book discusses the building blocks of electronic circuits - the microchips, transistors, resistors, condensers, and so forth, and the boards that support them - from the point of view of mechanics: What are the stresses that result from thermal expansion and contraction? What are the elastic parameters that determine whether a component will survive a certain acceleration? After an introduction to the elements of structural analysis and finite-element analysis, the author turns to components, data and testing. A discussion of leadless chip carriers leads to a detailed thermal analysis of pin grid arrays. For compliant leaded systems, both mechanical (bending and twisting) and thermal stresses are discussed in detail. The book concludes with discussions of the dynamic response of circuit cards, plated holes in cards and boards, and the final assembly of cards and boards.

Have you ever wondered, "What's it all about?" God's answers for all life's problems are recorded in the Bible. Each chapter of Within These Walls explains a different aspect to understanding the Scriptures, seeking to help the reader fit together all the pieces of the puzzle and receive God's love and wisdom for his or her life.

There are three important steps for every person to help him or her determine what this life is all about: find God, walk with God, and finish with God. There is one more necessary ingredient, and that is faith. God's Word is truth and there for us to receive, but without a person's faith, little benefit will be experienced. The journey must start with God, continue with God, and finish with God. If those steps are taken in faith, then what it's all about will no longer be a mystery.

Each chapter in Within These Walls helps the reader to understand God's Word and apply it to his or her life. As you read through the chapters of this book, ask God to open your spiritual eyes to what He is telling you.

This book discusses the building blocks of electronic circuits - the microchips, transistors, resistors, condensers, and so forth, and the boards that support them - from the point of view of mechanics: What are the stresses that result from thermal expansion and contraction? What are the elastic parameters that determine whether a component will survive a certain acceleration? After an introduction to the elements of structural analysis and finite-element analysis, the author turns to components, data and testing. A discussion of leadless chip carriers leads to a detailed thermal analysis of pin grid arrays. For compliant leaded systems, both mechanical (bending and twisting) and thermal stresses are discussed in detail. The book concludes with discussions of the dynamic response of circuit cards, plated holes in cards and boards, and the final assembly of cards and boards.

How should America wield its enormous power beyond its borders? Should it adhere to grand principles or act on narrow self-interest? Should it partner with other nations or avoid entangling alliances? Americans have been grappling with questions like these throughout the nation's history, and especially since the emergence of the United States as a major world power in the late nineteenth century. "America in the World" illuminates this history by capturing the diverse voices and viewpoints of some of the most colorful and eloquent people who participated in these momentous debates.

Spanning the era from the Gilded Age to the Obama years, this unique reader collects more than two hundred documents--everything from presidential addresses and diplomatic cables to political cartoons and song lyrics. It encompasses various phases of American diplomatic history that are typically treated separately, such as the First World War, the Cold War, and 9/11. The book presents the perspectives of elite policymakers--presidents, secretaries of state, generals, and diplomats--alongside those of other kinds of Americans, such as newspaper columnists, clergymen, songwriters, poets, and novelists. It also features numerous documents from other countries, illustrating how foreigners viewed America's role in the world.

Ideal for classroom use, "America in the World" sheds light on the complex interplay of political, economic, ideological, and cultural factors underlying the exercise of American power on the global stage.Includes more than two hundred documents from the late nineteenth century to todayLooks at everything from presidential addresses to political cartoons and song lyricsPresents diverse perspectives, from elite policymakers to clergymen and novelistsFeatures documents from outside the United States, illustrating how people in other countries viewed America's role in the world

A guide to systems engineering that highlights creativity and innovation in order to foster great ideas and carry them out Practical Creativity and Innovation in Systems Engineering exposes engineers to a broad set of creative methods they can adopt in their daily practices. In addition, this book guides engineers to become entrepreneurs within traditional engineering companies, promoting creative and innovative culture around them. The author describes basic systems engineering concepts and includes an abbreviated summary of Standard 15288 systems' life cycle processes. He then provides an extensive collection of practical creative methods which are linked to the various systems' life cycle processes. Next, the author discusses obstacles to innovation and, in particular, how engineers can push creative ideas through layers of reactionary bureaucracy within non-innovative organizations. Finally, the author provides a comprehensive description of an exemplary creative and innovative case study recently completed. The book is filled with illustrative examples and offers effective guidelines that can enhance individual engineers' creative prowess as well as be used to create an organizational culture where creativity and innovation flourishes. This important book: Offers typical systems engineering processes that can be accomplished in creative ways throughout the development and post-development portions of a system's lifetime. Includes a large collection of practical creative methods applicable to engineering and other technological domains Includes innovation advice needed to transform creative ideas into new products, services, businesses and marketing processes Contains references and notes for further reading in every section Written for systems engineering practitioners, graduate school students and faculty members of systems, electrical, aerospace, mechanical and industrial engineering schools, Practical Creativity and Innovation in Systems Engineering offers a useful guide for creating a culture that promotes innovation.

A wide-ranging anthology of primary texts in American foreign relations—now expanded to include documents from the Trump years to today How should America wield its power beyond its borders? Should it follow grand principles or act on narrow self-interest? Should it work in concert with other nations or avoid entangling alliances? America in the World captures the voices and viewpoints of some of the most provocative, eloquent, and influential people who participated in these and other momentous debates. Now fully revised and updated, this anthology brings together primary texts spanning a century and a half of U.S. foreign relations, illuminating how Americans have been arguing about the nation’s role in the world since its emergence as a world power in the late nineteenth century. Features more than 250 primary-source documents, reflecting an extraordinary range of views Includes two new chapters on the Trump years and the return of great power rivalries under Biden Sweeps broadly from the Gilded Age to emerging global challenges such as COVID-19 Shares the perspectives of presidents, secretaries of state, and generals as well as those of poets, songwriters, clergy, newspaper columnists, and novelists Also includes non-American perspectives on U.S. power

The specter of global war loomed large in President Franklin Roosevelt's mind as 1941 began. He believed the United States had a role to play in the battle against Nazi and fascist aggression already underway in Europe. Isolationists, political opponents, and arguably the majority of Americans disagreed. The wounds of the First World War had not yet fully healed, while the Great Depression largely still raged. The words he used to rally the nation towards war ultimately defined not only what Americans fought for in World War II, but how they defined themselves as a people for generations after. Roosevelt framed America's role in the conflict, and ultimately its role in forging the post-war world to come, as a question of freedom. Four freedoms, to be exact: freedom of speech, freedom from want, freedom of religion, and freedom from fear. His words inspired, but more importantly his four freedoms formed the basis for how ensuing generations of Americans conceive of liberty for themselves and for the world. Six scholars come together in this volume to explore how each of Roosevelt's freedoms evolved over time, for Americans and for the wider world, while additionally showing why Roosevelt spoke as he did, and how our understand of his words has evolved over time. The Four Freedoms: Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Evolution of an American Idea explores this moment of history, and the evolution of each of the four freedoms from those dark days of 1940 to the present day.

The fall of the Berlin Wall sent shock waves around the world. It was, quite literally, a world-changing event. Now, more than two decades after the Wall's collapse, this book brings together leading authorities who offer a fresh look at how leaders in four vital centers of world politics--the United States, the Soviet Union, Europe, and China--viewed the world in the aftermath of this momentous event. Jeffrey Engel contributes a chronological narrative of this tumultuous period, followed by substantive essays by Melvyn Leffler on the United States, Chen Jian on China, James Sheehan on Germany and Europe, and William Taubman and Svetlana Savranskaya on the Soviet Union. These historians reinterpret the meaning of 1989 in the context of global history in the late 20th and early 21st century and explore such questions as why communism failed in Europe, why China took a different route following the turmoil of Tiananmen Square, and why the peace of 1989 might well prove illusory.