Abstract Six Sigma is a management philosophy that is widely accepted among global industries. This study reviews literature on the definitions of Six Sigma and business strategy. Also, the study constructs a preliminarily exploration model of integrating Six Sigma program with business strategy. The exploration model for business excellence includes independent dimensions of business strategy, Six Sigma implementation and the dependent dimension of quality performance. The dimensions of business strategy include the variables for organizational culture, organizational assessment, strategy formulation and improvement methodology. Meanwhile, the dimension of Six Sigma implementation includes steering organization of Six Sigma, skills of quality improvement, integrating orientation of quality improvement and performance bottom-line. The dependent dimension of quality performance is based on employees¡¦ motivation, customer satisfactory, increasing profit and deceasing cost. 1. For an exploration model integrating Six Sigma activities with business strategy, the organizational culture variable is the most important factor. The top management must have commitment towards the Six Sigma activities, involvement in the Six Sigma training and emphasis on customer satisfaction to enhance the integration of Six Sigma with business strategy. 2. The more integrated the dimension of business strategy, and then the variable of steering organization is more confirmed. The variable of skills of quality improvement will produce efficiently, performance bottom-line will be good outcome and integrating orientation of quality improvement is positively. 3. The 8 variables with the model of integrating Six Sigma activities with business strategy are positively related with the index of quality performance. The variable of strategy formulation within the dimension of business strategy and the variable of integrating orientation of quality improvement within the dimension of Six Sigma implementation are most highly related with the index of quality performance. It means that Six Sigma strategy must be confirmed and the business resource must be integrated to reach quality performance. 4. The key factors in the predicted model of quality performance by multiple regression methodology are as follows in sequential order: integrating orientation of quality improvement, performance bottom-line, organizational assessment, improvement methodology, organizational culture, skills of quality improvement, and steering organization. The best predictor is the variable of integrating orientation of quality improvement. It implies that the quality activities must be combined with management by objective, quality skills training must be implemented continuously and quality plans by executed by project for reach best quality performance. This study concludes that the firms do not necessarily have to adopt Six Sigma activity to reach excellent performance. Integrating the management activities of business strategy will help balance the technical elements of Six Sigma implementation for quality performance, and the business strategy dimensions that will make implementing Six Sigma more effective.

The attenuated total reflection (ATR) due to excitation of surface plasmon is usually applied to study the dielectric coefficient. In this study the surface plasmon has been excited on the interface between the liquid crystal and silver in Krestchmann configuration. We can obtain the effective reflection index and the tilt-angle of liquid crystal anchored on the interface with the excitation condition of surface plasmon. We also discuss the variation of the tilt-angle of liquid crystal with the various applied bias.

The purpose of the study is to examine the relationship between Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA) and Air Power with research methods of historical comparison and literature review. Specifically, this study is to explore characteristics and influences of RMA, a modern military concept, as well as to try to answer two questions listed as follows: 1. Whether RMS brings about Air Power¡¦s changes in its quality? What changes are they? 2. Is Air Power a dominant force in RMA? In other words, are Sea Power and Land Power no longer crucial or only subordinate to Air Power in RMA? To answer the previous two questions, this study discusses the following three issues from the perspectives of weapon system, fighting principles and organization: 1. What are essential characters of RMA? What are RMA¡¦s impacts on roles and labor division of Army, Navy and Air Force? Does RMA have the greatest impact on Air Force? 2. What is so called ¡§RMA¡¨ in USA? What impacts does RMA have on warfare? 3. As a super power in the world, what is USA Air Force¡¦s future direction? Being a mid-class military power, what new vision should ROC Air Force hold in terms of weapon system, fighting principles and organization? How should ROC Air Force respond to such a new trend as RMA? Three conclusions are come up as follows: 1. Military power has developed from focusing on changes in quantity to changes in quality. Many war theories that are generally recognized have been called in question. A modern war model will mainly pursue a quick end to a war and a decrease of soldiers and civilians¡¦ injury. Future study can try to find out which military force, such as Army, Navy, and Air Force, can play a dominant role from the beginning to the end of a war. 2. Though different military forces have different environmental characteristics, each one puts extensive dependence on one another and such dependence should be highly valued. Future research can study whether final goals of warfare entail Army, Navy and Air Force¡¦s contribution and cooperation in accomplishing missions. Given that Air Power cannot exist in isolation, future research can study whether definitions of military labor division, Air Force¡¦s role and war behavior anticipation will produce dramatic changes in Air Power. 3. RMA is indeed a world power¡¦s belief, asserting that a world power does not necessarily have a capability to occupy its adversary¡¦s territory with expansion of precision-guided weaponry. By promoting RMA, USA military forces realize their vision and prospect of the 21st century. New technology developed in RMA, such as aerospace unmanned hypersonic aircrafts and munitions, enables USA military forces to launch flash attacks on its enemy from USA soil; USA no longer needs to continuously rely on region coalitions and advance bases all over the world. As a matter of fact, aerospace forces have become the most powerful tools for USA to react all kinds of conflicts. Future study can examine how Taiwan, when encountering superior military forces, can counteract RMA rather than blindly follow and imitate USA¡¦s mindset. How to enforce and train military manpower with the guidance of our own military philosophy is a crucial issue worthy of our care and consideration.

Marine natural products biogenetically derived from the pyrrole-imidazole oroidin (i) display fascinating structural diversity and exhibit a wide range of significant biological activities. Hence, they have attracted great interest from the synthetic community leading to the development of new synthetic methodologies and providing an admirable set of strategies and tactics to assemble the most complex representatives of this class of alkaloids. In this work, a synthesis of the potent antitumor dibromophakellstatin (ii) was devised featuring a highly diastereoselective acylation of the C2-symmetric prolyl-prolyl anhydride (iii), an intramolecular Mitsunobu reaction installing the C6 aminal and a tandem Hofmann rearrangement/cyclization that delivered the targeted imidazolidinone of the phakellstatins. Both enantiomers of phakellstatin were prepared starting from either D- or L- proline. Building on several findings made in the course of the synthesis of phakellstatin, namely the differential reactivity of the aminal centers (C6 and C9) and the formation of an oxidized phakellstatin, a second generation approach towards these deceitfully simple alkaloids was initiated. The second generation synthetic strategy towards phakellstatin (iv) and phakellin (v) utilizes a novel variation of Du Bois' C-H insertion involving a urea or a guanidine. This approach appears more amenable to the annulation of the phakellin substructure for the final stages of the synthesis of the potent immunosuppressant palau'amine (vi).

Modern power systems are now stepping into the post-restructuring era, in which utility industries as well as ISOs (Independent System Operators) are involved. Attention needs to be paid to the reliability study of power systems by both the utility companies and the ISOs. An uninterrupted and high quality power is required for the sustainable development of a technological society. Power system blackouts generally result from cascading outages. Protection system hidden failures remain dormant when everything is normal and are exposed as a result of other system disturbances. This dissertation provides new methods for power system vulnerability analysis including protection failures. Both adequacy and security aspects are included. The power system vulnerability analysis covers the following issues: 1) Protection system failure analysis and modeling based on protection failure features; 2) New methodology for reliability evaluation to incorporate protection system failure modes; and, 3) Application of variance reduction techniques and evaluation. A new model of current-carrying component paired with its associated protection system has been proposed. The model differentiates two protection failure modes, and it is the foundation of the proposed research. Detailed stochastic features of system contingencies and corresponding responses are considered. Both adequacy and security reliability indices are computed. Moreover, a new reliability index ISV (Integrated System Vulnerability) is introduced to represent the integrated reliability performance with consideration of protection system failures. According to these indices, we can locate the weakest point or link in a power system. The whole analysis procedure is based on a non-sequential Monte Carlo simulation method. In reliability analysis, especially with Monte Carlo simulation, computation time is a function not only of a large number of simulations, but also time-consuming system state evaluation, such as OPF (Optimal Power Flow) and stability assessment. Theoretical and practical analysis is conducted for the application of variance reduction techniques. The dissertation also proposes a comprehensive approach for a TTC (Total Transfer Capability) calculation with consideration of thermal, voltage and transient stability limits. Both steady state and dynamic security assessments are included in the process of obtaining total transfer capability. Particularly, the effect of FACTS (Flexible AC Transmission Systems) devices on TTC is examined. FACTS devices have been shown to have both positive and negative effects on system stability depending on their location. Furthermore, this dissertation proposes a probabilistic method which gives a new framework for analyzing total transfer capability with actual operational conditions.

Management practices that may increase soil organic matter (SOM) storage include conservation tillage, especially no till (NT), enhanced cropping intensity, and fertilization. My objectives were to evaluate management effects on labile [soil microbial biomass (SMB) and mineralizable, particulate organic matter (POM), and hydrolyzable SOM] and slow (mineral-associated and resistant organic) C and N pools and turnover in continuous sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench.], wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), and soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.], sorghum-wheat/soybean, and wheat/soybean sequences under convent ional tillage (CT) and NT with and without N fertilization. A Weswood silty clay loam (fine, mixed, thermic Fluventic Ustochepts) in southern central Texas was sampled at three depth increments to a 30-cm depth after wheat, sorghum, and soybean harvesting. Soil organic C and total N showed similar responses to tillage, cropping sequence, and N fertilization following wheat, sorghum, and soybean. Most effects were observed in surface soils. NT significantly increased SOC. Nitrogen fertilization significantly increased SOC only under NT. Compared to NT or N addition, enhanced cropping intensity only slightly increased SOC. Estimates of C sequestration rates under NT indicated that SOC would reach a new equilibrium after 20 yr or less of imposition of this treatment. Labile pools were all significantly greater with NT than CT at 0 to 5 cm and decreased with depth. SMB, mineralizable C and N, POM, and hydrolyzable C were highly correlated with each other and SOC, but their slopes were significantly different, being lowest in mineralizable C and highest in hydrolyzable C. These results indicated that different methods determined various fractions of total SOC. Results from soil physical fractionation and 13C concentrations further supported these observations. Carbon turnover rates increased in the sequence: ROC < silt- and clayassociated C < microaggregate-C < POM-C. Long-term incubation showed that 4 to 5% of SOC was in active pools with mean residence time (MRT) of about 50 days, 50% of SOC was in slow pools with an average MRT of 12 years, and the remainder was in resistant pools with an assumed MRT of over 500 years.

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Thesis (M.S.)--Ohio State University, 2008. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2002. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 79 p. : ill. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 71-79).

Thesis (M.S.)--Worcester Polytechnic Institute. / Keywords: Lean construction; strategic management; total quality management. Includes bibliographical references (p.70-71).