Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Kinesiology / Katie M. Heinrich / Tactical athletes (e.g., law enforcement, military, firefighters) require a proportionate fitness level, along with specific technical and tactical skills, to achieve short-term objectives and disable various threats. Although these professions have unique job duties and workplace exposures, tactical athletes share many commonalities. A tactical athlete’s occupation requires her to be physically prepared for the unknown to protect the public. So what happens when the tactical athlete becomes pregnant? Benefits of physical activity throughout pregnancy for athletes, non-athletes, and baby have been well-documented. However, certain common tactical occupational conditions may result in adverse birth outcomes. These include shift work, high job stress, and exposures such as lead handling or high ambient temperatures. Additionally, extreme physical exertion around the implantation period may harm the developing embryo. In an unpredictable, potentially extremely physically demanding and stressful job environment, the pregnant tactical athlete may have higher risk for adverse birth outcomes compared to other women. The purpose of this dissertation was to examine the reproductive health of physically active females with specific focus on tactical athletes. First, we wanted to determine any exercise limits for pregnant athletes. We were also interested whether reproductive health was an important concern for this population, and if their adverse birth outcomes were higher compared to the United States national average. Chapter one reviews the literature, examining the female athlete and tactical athlete, the physical and occupational demands of tactical professions, and the reproductive health concerns among law enforcement officers (LEOs) and firefighters. Chapter two is a comprehensive review on prenatal exercise. It highlights the lack of scientific rigor presented in earlier guidelines, and states the need for more research on the upper limits of exercise intensity for athletes. Female athletes can usually maintain regular exercise training during pregnancy. Chapter three uses grounded-theory to investigate reproductive health concerns among firefighters. Results indicate that reproductive health is unquestionably a large concern, with four resulting themes (i.e., decision-making, recruitment and retention, policy variation, and lack of research). Chapter four investigates adverse reproductive health outcomes in female LEOs. Miscarriage rates are compared with a large prospective linkage study, preterm birth rates are compared to a large systematic US review study, and links are explored between specific job exposures and pregnancy loss. Miscarriage rate for our population are 19.1%, and preterm birth rates are 16.4%, both significantly higher than US averages. Physical activity, including strenuous occupational demands during pregnancy, is not associated with pregnancy loss among female LEOs. Chapter five presents a findings summary and future research directions. Miscarriage and preterm birth appear to be higher than average for both female firefighters and LEOs. Exercise did not play a large role in the concerns of female firefighters, or findings from female LEOs. Future research should be conducted specifically on females working in tactical occupations, with an emphasis on reproductive health concerns. More education should be provided at the organization level on the potential occupational exposures that can cause increased risk of adverse birth outcomes in female tactical athletes.

Against a backdrop of controversy surrounding market timing, this research assesses the merits of a tactical asset allocation strategy for the South African market. The purpose of this research is to assess whether a simple quantitative method - initially presented by Faber (2007) - can successfully reduce volatility and increase returns of selected indices within the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). The All Share (ALSI), Financial&Industrial (FINI), Resource (RESI), Africa Gold Mining (AGMI), Government Bond (GOVI) and Property Unit Trust (PUTI) indices were examined. A strategy based on a ten-month simple moving average was compared against a buy-and-hold strategy, with results presented for these strategies both excluding and including transaction costs. The strategies were tested over a 50-year period from 1961 to 2010. The results show that superior risk-adjusted returns are possible even in the presence of high transaction costs. Further insights suggest that tactical asset allocation strategies yield improved performances when used in specific sectors and/or asset classes, instead of in consolidated sectors represented by the market.Copyright / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

<p> One of the important objectives of a Radar Warning Receiver (RWR) aboard a tactical aircraft is to evaluate the level of threat posed by hostile radars in an extremely complex Electronic Warfare (EW) environment in reliable, robust and timely manner. For the RWR objective to be achieved, it passively collects electromagnetic signals emitted from potentially hostile radars. One class of such radar systems is the Multi-Function Radar (MFR) which presents a serious threat from the stand point of a RWR. MFRs perform multiple functions simultaneously employing complex hierarchical signal architecture. The purpose of this paper is to uncover the evolution of the operational mode (radar function) from the view point of a target carrying the RWR when provided with noisy observations and some prior knowledge about how the observed radar functions. The RWR estimates the radar's threat which is directly dependant on its current mode of operation. This paper presents a grid filter approach to estimate operational mode probabilities accurately with the aid of pre-trained Observable Operator Models (OOMs) and Hidden Markov Models (HMMs). Subsequently, the current mode of operation of a radar is estimated in the maximum a posteriori (MAP) sense. Practicality of this novel approach is tested for an EW scenario in this paper by means of a hypothetical MFR example. Finally, we conclude that the OOM-based grid filter tracks the mode of operation of a MFR more accurately than the corresponding HMM-based grid filter. </p> / Thesis / Master of Applied Science (MASc)

Prior to 1980, the practice in multilevel autorack management was to load the railcars at various origin points, ship them to the destination ramps, unload them, and then return each car to the loading point where it originated. Recognizing the inefficiency of such a practice with respect to the fleet size that had to be maintained, and the associated poor utilization due to the excessive empty miles logged, a consolidation of the railcars was initiated and completed by February 1982. Under this pooling program, a central management was established to control the repositioning of three types of empty railcars for eight principal automobile manufacturers. Today, the practice is to consolidate the fleets of all automobile manufacturers for each equipment type, and to solve the distribution problem of repositioning empty multilevel autoracks of each type from points at which they are unloaded to automobile assembly facilities where they need to be reloaded. Each such problem is referred to in the railroad industry as a repositioning scenario. In this dissertation, we present two tactical models to assist in the task of centrally managing the distribution of empty railcars on a day-to-day basis for each repositioning scenario. These models take into account various practical issues such as uncertainties, priorities with respect to time and demand locations, multiple objectives related to minimizing different types of latenesses in delivery, and blocking issues. It is also of great practical interest to the central management team to have the ability to conduct various sensitivity analyses in its operation. Accordingly, the system provides for the capability to investigate various what-if scenarios such as fixing decisions on running a specified block of cars (control orders) along certain routes as dictated by business needs, and handling changes in supplies, demands, priorities, and transit time characteristics. Moreover, the solution methodology provides a flexible decision-making capability by permitting a series of runs based on a sequential decision-fixing process in a real-time operational mode. A turn-around response of about five minutes per scenario (on a Pentium PC or equivalent) is desired in practice. This dissertation begins by developing several progressive formulations that incorporate many practical considerations in the empty railroad car distribution planning system. We investigate the performance of two principal models in this progression to gain more insights into the implementation aspects of our approach. The first model (TDSS1: Tactical Decision Support System-1) considers all the identified features of the problem except for blocking, and results in a network formulation of the problem. This model examines various practical issues such as time and demand location-based priorities as well as uncertainty in data within a multiple objective framework. In the second model (TDSS2: Tactical Decision Support System-2), we add a substantial degree of complexity by addressing blocking considerations. Enforcement of block formation renders the model as a network flow problem with side-constraints and discrete side-variables. We show how the resulting mixed-integer-programming formulation can be enhanced via some partial convex hull constructions using the Reformulation-Linearization Technique (RLT). This tightening of the underlying linear programming relaxation is shown to permit the solution of larger problem sizes, and enables the exact solution of certain scenarios having 5,000 - 8,000 arcs. However, in order to accommodate the strict run-time limit requirements imposed in practice for larger scenarios having about 150,000 arcs, various heuristics are developed to solve this problem. In using a combination of proposed strategies, 23 principal heuristics, plus other hybrid variants, are composed for testing. By examining the performance of various exact and heuristic procedures with respect to speed of operation and the quality of solutions produced on a test-bed of real problems, we prescribe recommendations for a production code to be used in practice. Besides providing a tool to aid in the decision-making process, a principal utility of the developed system is that it provides the opportunity to conduct various what-if analyses. The effects of many of the practical considerations that have been incorporated in TDSS2 can be studied via such sensitivity analyses. A special graphical user interface has been implemented that permits railcar distributors to investigate the effects of varying supplies, demands, and routes, retrieving railcars from storage, diverting en-route railcars, and exploring various customer or user-driven fixed dispositions. The user has the flexibility, therefore, to sequentially compose a decision to implement on a daily basis by using business judgment to make suggestions and studying the consequent response prompted by the model. This system is currently in use by the TTX company, Chicago, Illinois, in order to make distribution decisions for the railroad and automobile industries. The dissertation concludes by presenting a system flowchart for the overall implemented approach, a summary of our research and provides recommendations for future algorithmic enhancements based on Lagrangian relaxation techniques. NOTE: (03/2011) An updated copy of this ETD was added after there were patron reports of problems with the file. / Ph. D.

This dissertation explores how urban leaders and stakeholders can leverage urban innovation to address complex challenges and the uncertainties come with them at the local level, specifically for marginalized communities. Through a series of three standalone articles, including a pilot study on tactical urbanism and two systematic reviews on urban innovation governance and just city implications, the research employs an abductive approach to reconceptualize urban innovation as a platform for collective action and self-governance. The pilot study examines tactical urbanism as a promising trend for addressing uncertainties at the hyper-local level during the COVID-19 pandemic, using a qualitative analysis of academic and grey literature, as well as case studies of tactical urbanism interventions. Building upon these findings, the first systematic review delves into the concept of "urban innovation governance," proposing a participatory, community-based governance conceptualization. This review employs a mixed method meta-synthesis research strategy and an umbrella review methodology to assess the available evidence on urban innovation governance from a multidisciplinary perspective. Through triangulating my theoretical lens, the second review explores urban innovation as a platform for active and inclusive citizenship, utilizing a scoping review methodology to synthesize the practical implications of just city research, and identifying strategies for promoting equitable and inclusive urban transformations. By synthesizing insights from these studies, this dissertation challenges technocratic and top-down perspectives, arguing that community-driven urban innovation is key to locally attuned, inclusive action. The findings contribute to debates on public governance, community development, and innovation, offering evidence-based principles to guide localized innovation governance regimes tailored to unique urban contexts. This research highlights the transformative potential of urban innovation when approached through a self-governing, community-level lens.

I Försvarsmaktens doktriner uttrycks manöverkrigföring och uppdragstaktik som teori och lednings­filosofi. I de taktiska reglementena beskrivs hur uppdragstaktik och manöverkrigföring tillämpas som metod i händelse av fred, kris eller krig. Vidare syftar taktikreglementena till att vara en utgångspunkt för hur våra marina krigsförband utbildas, organiseras och utrustas.   Syftet med undersökningen är att utreda inverkan av införandet av Taktikreglemente för Marinen TRM 1(A) avseende uppdragstaktik och manöverkrigföring. hur uppdragstaktik och manöverkrigföring som metod, inom den svenska Marinen, kan ha påverkats vid införandet av Taktikreglemente för Marinen, TRM 1(A). Undersökningen gjordes genomfördes som en kvalitativ jäm­förande fallstudie där Taktikreglemete för Flottan, TRFL, och Taktikreglemente för Kustartilleriet, TRKA jämfördes med TRM 1(A). Vid textanalysen nyttjades en analysmodell som påvisar uppdrags­taktik och resultaten analyserades därefter mot militär­teoretiker så som Clausewitz, Corbett och Mahan utifrån perspektivet uppdragstaktik och manöver­krig­föring.   Resultatet av undersökningen visar att TRFL och TRKA är att se mer som läroböcker vilka, utan att i detalj beskriva taktiska lösningar, beskriver hur officerare ska tänka i fråga om taktik. Nuvarande regle­mente, TRM 1(A), presenterar i första hand vad Marinen är och upplevs därför mer som en handbok över Marinen snarare än ett taktiskt reglemente. Detta med anledning av att kapitel som om­fattar militär­teori, sjökrigets natur, syfte och metoder utelämnats, vilket gör att den svenska taktiska särarten saknas i TRM 1(A). Övriga slutsatser är att TRM 1(A) exkluderat hur amfibiestridskrafterna taktiskt ska nyttjas samt att reglementet inte harmonierar med Försvarsmaktens doktriner avseende uppdragstaktik och man­överkrigföring. / Manoeuvre warfare and mission-type orders are expressed as theory and philosophy in the Swedish military doctrine. The tactical doctrines describe how manoeuvre warfare and mission-type orders is implemented in case of peace, crisis’s or war. Furthermore, tactical doc­trines provide a starting point in the development of new units and equipment. They are also used in the education of officers and they constitute a foundation in planning and imple­men­tation of operations both at home and abroad.   The aim of the thesis project is to analyse if the implementation of Taktikreglemente för Marinen, TRM 1(A) has affected the way the Swedish Navy and Marines approach manoeuvre war­fare and mission-type orders. The project is a qualitative comparative case study where Taktikreglemete för Flottan, TRFL, and Taktikreglemente för Kustartilleriet, TRKA are com­pared to TRM 1(A). During the project we used a theory on mission-type orders and then com­pared with military theorists such as Clausewitz, Corbett and Mahan from the perceptive of man­oeuvre warfare and mission-type orders. The result of the study shows that TRFL and TRKA are textbooks explaining how a commander should think without in detail describing tactical solutions. TRM 1(A) presents a blueprint of what the Swedish Navy and Marines are, rather than to be considered as a guiding tactical doctrine. Hence, it lacks the founding principles of military theory of land and sea warfare trans­lated to Swedish circumstances.  Other conclusions of the study show that the tactical use of marine units is excluded, and the tactical doctrine do not harmonise with the view on man­oeuvre warfare and mission-type orders with in Swedish military doctrine.   Apart from the abstract, the study is written in Swedish.