Thursday, January 29, 2009

Product Design and Manufacture or For Democracys Sake

Product Design and Manufacture

Author: Robert M Wygant

Basic yet comprehensive in approach, this book introduces readers interested in engineering, technology, and design to the methods and theory of concurrent or simultaneous design (i.e., design for manufacturing), where all aspects of product design and manufacturing are involved, from the outset of the planning effort as a totality. It explores a broad range of methods for general product design and considers the significant issues that must be addressed early in the design process. This book examines historical antecedents, information, and data on product design theory and procedures. It considers computer applications in design and manufacturing and explores human factors (ergonomics) in design, and their applications to products and tools. The book discusses physical materials used in the design of quality products, and the methods employed to process these materials. It highlights special applications to graphics design and packaging and surveys the history of the functional, material and visual requirements of product design, and the methods used in industrial, engineering, and crafts design. Also explained are the legal aspects of product design relative to protecting the rights to intellectual property, and the issues of product liability.



Go to: The Sources of Economic Growth or ActiveBook Excellence in Business Communication

For Democracy's Sake: Foundations and Democracy Assistance in Central Europe

Author: Kevin FF F Quigley

Assisting democracy has become a major concern of the international community since the end of the cold war. Not only governments, but private actors -- foundations and other non-governmental organizations -- are playing a growing role in these efforts, rivaling that of governments and international institutions. This pathbreaking study examines foundations' democracy assistance programs in Central Europe in the years immediately following the fall of the Berlin Wall, both measuring their size and evaluating their strategies.

For Democracy's Sake assesses such efforts in post-cold war Central Europe through extensive field research, a rare series of workshops in which Central Europeans knowledgeable about democracy efforts participated, and the author's own experience as a foundation executive. The book includes chapters concentrating on foundations' efforts in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia, a chapter on regional initiatives, and a chapter on the philanthropy of George Soros. This timely volume offers broadly applicable lessons regarding the most effective strategies, approaches, and techniques for helping others develop their own versions of democracy.

"Quigley presents a vast amount of new information, based on a comprehensive, sophisticated research effort. This material will be of great utility to persons interested in Eastern Europe, and the book will certainly become the standard work on the role of private foundations in the former communist states." -- Thomas Carothers, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, author of Assessing Democracy Assistance: The Case of Romania



Table of Contents:
Figures and Tables
Abbreviations and Acronyms
Acknowledgments
1Introduction: A New World1
2Czech Republic: Standing Apart13
3Hungary: The Long Road29
4Poland: First among Equals43
5Slovakia: Slipping Behind59
6Regional Projects: Going against the Grain73
7George Soros: Leader of the Band87
8Conclusions and Recommendations103
App. 1Project Advisory Committee Members115
App. 2For Democracy's Sake Workshop Participants117
App. 3Data on Foundation Assistance121
Notes157
Select Bibliography173
Index183

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