W
Volume 4, Issue 35, September 2009
avelength The CENTROFIN Newsletter
The Case of the Errant Hookers
She's powerful, unpredictable and pushy. If you don't keep a firm hold it could mean a rocky relationship gets very deadly.
Japan, Kagoshima and ShibushiBay (Image: NASA)
The Master Let's talk about Chandra. That's not his real name but he was a real master, 44 years old with 27 years seafaring experience and seven years as a master.
The Ship 'The Venture'. His vessel was a Panamanian registered Panamax bulk carrier of 36,080 gross tones with a crew of four Indians and 15 Filipinos. She carried a cargo of 40,280 metric tones of corn from New Orleans, United States, to Shibushi Bay in Kagoshima prefecture, Japan. '
Kagoshima Bay, and he'd have to return to Shibushi Bay anyway. Staying where he was might shorten the time needed to complete the cargo discharge by a day or more. Chandra put the starboard anchor out to six shackles on the sandy bottom of the bay 25 metres down and kept an eye on the approaching storm with weather fax, Navtex and Inmarsat-C. The officer on watch noted down the wind speed and direction of the typhoon.
The Voyage A little after 07.30 on July 22, 2002, the ship arrived in Shibushi Bay and began discharging her cargo. Already, there were warnings that Typhoon number 9 was on its way and expected to pass south of the bay. The next day Chandra spoke with the local agent, we will call him Koichi. Koichi told Chandra that Japanese authorities were recommending that vessels evacuate from Shibushi Bay. Chandra asked where they should anchor and Kiochi told him that large ships normally sheltered in Kagoshima Bay. At 10.40 on the 24th Chandra suspended cargo operations and set sail for Kagoshima Bay. Then he changed his mind, it would take 11 hours to reach Kagoshima Bay in rough weather, he didn't know
In this issue pg 1-3
The Case of the Errant Hookers pg 4
At noon the typhoon was recorded travelling west at 17 knots with a maximum wind speed of 127 kilometres an hour. Later the typhoon was down-graded to a severe tropical storm with a maximum wind speed of a little over 100 kilometres an hour expected 24 hours later. In Shibushi Bay the wind speed was about 36 kilometres an hour.
Wrong Input – Wrong Outcome
Chandra's decision seemed to be confirmed when a second large bulk carrier anchored in the northern part of the bay that evening. He was confident that the typhoon would die down.
Naming Ceremonies
At 06.00 the next morning Shibushi Bay entered the typhoons gale zone. At 09.00 it was predicted that Shibushi Bay would be within the right, and most dangerous, side of the typhoon.
cont'd on pg 2
pg 7
Accidents and ..... Causes pg 8-9
pg 10
A Road Map to a Just Culture pg 14
Thirty-Six Stratagems
THOUGHT OF THE MONTH "The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will" Spend some time this month reflecting on the fact that we have no excuses when it comes to the difficulties or struggles that we find ourselves involved in these days. It is unproductive to blame others, or to excuse ourselves because of lack of physical strength or financial wealth. Compared to most others, we best recognise we are really members of the chosen few, who have 'made it' in terms of overcoming the dilemmas most of humanity faces with respect to pure physical needs for food, water, shelter and security. Most of us as well have the good fortune of an education and appreciate the importance of physical health and well being, in maintaining a quality life.
"All men dream; but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recess of their minds awake to find that it was vanity; But the dreamers of day are dangerous men. That they may act their dreams with open eyes to make it possible" By T.E.Lawrence, Lawrence of Arabia. Our capacity to be dreamers of daytime is one of the distinct human qualities we possess, and yet without practice it withers. Spend some time reflecting on the dream you need to now be cultivating in your moments of opportunity that present themselves to you. Create your own intuitions, a vision of something important you want to accomplish. Then take the next step, and with open eyes begin to start making this dream come alive.
THOUGHT OF THE MONTH
Our real barrier to advancement, whatever that means to us, is found within the 'lack of will' that we have grown accustomed to. Reflect this month on where you see yourself on 'will power' and 'self determination'. Let your mind imagine what it would be like if you mentally 'broke free' and could realise those dreams you used to have (or still have) about your future. With the gap in mind, and the anxiety raised a bit, perhaps you might take a decision to turn your attention to development of your will, and courage to reach out for your dreams in a determined way.
TO THE MASTER:
Please circulate copies of this Bulletin to the CREW.
To reach our Seafarers
Today is the first day of the rest of your life. 'If the rate of change on the outside exceeds the rate of change on the inside, the end is near'. The rate of change continues to accelerate on the outside -- but what about the inside? How are you handling / maintaining attention to keeping your rate of change on in the inside? We all need to cultivate the inside, inclusive but not limited to our thinking, dreaming, visioning and learning. Those who fail to nurture the inside fall victim to the 'hardening of the mind'. It is what happens when we lose our sence of curiosity, joy and wonder of being alive in this world. Make a decision and then take a specific action.
The Case of the Errant Hookers
from pg 1 Confirmation Bias
Chandra kept his anchor at six shackles, expecting that the wind would drop and that he could maintain the vessel's position with the anchor, engine and rudder.
What happened? In part, Chandra was a victim of confirmation bias, a dangerous influence on decision-making. He didn't want to lose time discharging cargo if he didn't have to. The 11 hour journey to a bay he didn't know discouraged him from following the advice of the Japanese authorities. The weather information available to him after he'd left the berth seemed to confirm his decision to stay put. The anchoring of the second vessel in the northern part of Shibushi Bay further confirmed his decision.
At 16.00 the north wind suddenly grew to more than 54 kilometres an hour. Chandra reinforced the anchor watch but stayed where he was. 24 minutes later, Chandra started the ship's engines. He was going to fight the typhoon with engine, rudder and six shackles.
When a critical decision can cost lives and lose the ship it's a good idea to question the grounds for that decision. It's called critical thinking. Does the presence of another ship really prove that your own is in a safe position? Or has the other master made a bad decision?
Then the right side of typhoon ripped into Shibushi Bay. A half hour later the wind changed to North East, pushing the waves up to 3 metres. Over the next two and a half hours typhoon number 9 dug its claws into Shibushi Bay. By 19.30 it switched direction to East North East, with winds gusting to more than 100 kilometres an hour with 5 metre waves that grew as a swell entered the bay.
Typhoons are notoriously unpredictable. Maybe Chandra could have, and should have, found an alternative way to maintain contact with the local agent and his moment-by-moment knowledge of what the storm was actually doing.
At 20.30 Chandra lost the fight the wind was gusting up to almost 148 kilometres an hour with 8 metre waves and the anchor was dragging. Ten minutes later Chandra tried to heave anchor but could only bring in two of the six shackles, there was too much tension on the anchor chain to bring in more. For another 35 minutes Chandra fought a battle he has already lost and at 21.15 the Venture grounded in 10 metres of water and snapped in two amidships sending its cargo and nearly 350 tonnes of fuel oil into the sea. Chandra gave the order to abandon ship and 19 officers and crew donned hard hats and lifejackets and boarded the lifeboat.
The Venturesplits amidships
Japan's Maritime Accident Inquiry Agency ran a simulation of conditions in Shibushi Bay that day and found that Chandra could have held his own of he had only been dealing with a head wind. The holding power of the anchor reduced as the power of the wind on the vessel lifted chain from the seabed but it would have held. The villain of the piece, the typhoon's secret weapon, was the wave action. Adding that to the wind speed, with six shackles down, Chandra's vessel lost holding power when the wind hit 36 kilometres an hour. When the wind hit 90 kilometres an hour, Chandra needed more than twelve shackles to hold the ship, he only had six. Wind direct, speed and wave height effects
The remains of the lifeboat, smashed against the hull
As the lifeboat lowered on the falls in the storm it was smashed against the hull of the stricken ship. The crew evacuated the damaged lifeboat. Fifteen made it to shore and safety.
Above: With headwind only, the vessel holds firm with six shackles.
The ships was a total loss. Worse, four crew members died, four were injured. Typhoon Number 9 won the fight.
Bottom: Waves double the required shackles.
The ship that had given Chandra confidence had anchored in the north east part of Shibushi Bay on the advice of a pilot and put down ten shackles. Her anchor dragged, too, but she did not ground.
So when you drop the hook for a typhoon, as far as possible, regularly update yourself from local knowledge on what is happening. When anchoring, bear in mind that the winds will gust as much as twice the given maximum wind speed, and waves can reach double their average maximum height.
The Foreigner Factor A 2005 report by Japan's Maritime Accident Inquiry Agency shows that foreign vessels account for just one in 20 casualties in Japanese waters but 16 out of 20 seafarer deaths. That is because most of those foreign vessels are total losses. Green segments indicates foreign ship casualties (Left) relative to Japanese vessels and (Right) foreign seafarers dead or missing compared to Japanese
Above all, think twice about whether you are going to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Compliments MAIA Typhoon Report
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Mathematical Creativity in China Students in China may have a reputation for excelling in mathematics, but Professor Shing-Tung Yau of Harvard University worries that young people in his home country are falling behind. “There are many bright and hardworking students in China,” he told the Templeton Report, “but due to government policy and the established education system, there is enormous pressure to do well in standardized examinations. Deep thinking and scientific creativity are often sidelined or simply ignored.” Winner of the prestigious Fields Medal (considered the Nobel Prize of mathematics), chairman of the mathematics department at Harvard, and director of the Center of Mathematical Sciences at Zhejiang University, Yau has launched an ambitious project to help stimulate mathematical creativity among Chinese students. Modeled after the long-standing Westinghouse competition in the U.S., the Shing-Tung Yau High School Mathematics Awards have been developed with the support of a three-year, $1.2 million grant from the John Templeton Foundation. Unlike other wellknown math competitions, the Yau program does not pose questions and ask students to provide pre-determined answers. It is a research-based competition. With the guidance of teachers or mentors, students are asked to come up with an original issue for investigation and then to create the mathematical tools necessary to address their topic. Yau hopes that the program will not only influence individual students in China but also encourage teachers and schools to think about how to integrate creativity and original research into their curricula. He also wants to build more relationships between research mathematicians and high schools. The competition is "a highly visible landmark in the educational landscape," Yau said, and it "establishes the validity and importance of other measures for success,” beyond "examination-based activities.” Professor Shing-Tung Yau
In its first year, winners for which were announced last December, the competition received entries from every province in China.
Photo: © Rick Friedman
STATUTORY ALERT Persian Gulf area ballast water management regulations APPLICABILITY All shipowners, operators and charterers
Mathematics competition launch ceremony in Beijing (with S.T. Yau, second from the right)
Yau singles out the achievement of the team from the city of Wenzhou that won the gold medal. He notes that the city is not well known for its higher education and that the students did not have a lot of resources available to them. And yet, he says, they “came up with an outstanding problem and solution in number theory.” Among the judges were Yau himself (chair); John Coates, the Sadleirian Professor of Pure Mathematics at the University of Cambridge; Wilfried Schmid, the Dwight Parker Robinson Professor of Mathematics at Harvard; Benedict Gross, also a professor of mathematics at Harvard and a member of the National Academy of Sciences; David Chang, chancellor of the Polytechnic Institute of New York University; and Tony Chan, a professor of mathematics at UCLA.
INFORMATION With effect from November 1, 2009, all ships, regardless of flag, will be required to exchange, treat or deliver to a shore reception facility all ballast water taken up outside the Regional Organisation for the Protection of the Marine Environment (ROPME) Sea Area*. This comprises the states of Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Vessels arriving from outside the ROPME Sea Area are to exchange ballast water in waters at least 200 metres deep and 200 nautical miles from the nearest land. If this is not possible for safety reasons, ballast may be exchanged in areas within the 200 nautical mile limit, as long as such exchanges are more than 50 miles from the nearest land and in waters at least 200 metres deep. If a ship cannot exchange ballast in the specified depths or at the required distance from land, it will be required to provide the respective port authority with the reason why exchange cannot be achieved. Further ballast water management measures may also be required. Ballast which has been treated with a ballast water treatment system approved in accordance with IMO standards need not be exchanged. Ships will be required to have on board an approved ballast water management plan in accordance with the IMO standards. Ships should also have and maintain a ballast water record book. * The ROPME Sea Area (RSA) is defined as extending between the following geographic latitudes and longitudes, respectively: 16°39'N, 53°3'30''E; 16°00'N, 53°25'E; 17°00'N, 56°30'E; 20°30'N, 60°00'E; 25°04'N, 61°25'E.
Sir John Templeton had a "strong interest in China," according to Mark Saul, a senior scholar at the HELP US TO HELP YOU – if you are an owner or operator and require further assistance, Templeton Foundation who has served as a consultant please get in touch with your local Lloyd’s Register Group office at the earliest opportunity on the project. “It's a country on the move. There is a lot and we will be happy to assist. of what he would call 'untapped human potential' there." As Saul stressed, Sir John "considered genius a key engine of human progress" and hoped to encourage its development by identifying and nurturing exceptional talent in science and mathematics. This year's Shing-Tung Yau High School Mathematics Awards contest already has received 800 entries. Winners will be annouced in December.
Wrong Input – Wrong Outcome MAIB Safety Digest - Crown Copyright Reproduced under permission Radar image of close-quarters situation
The Lessons 1. The radar was set up to be sea stabilised, but the log input was reading zero knots.
CASE 4 Narrative A ferry was on a regular night time crossing with the master, officer of the watch (OOW) and a lookout on the bridge. The weather was fine and visibility was very good. Ahead of the ship were a number of fishing vessels, which were acquired for tracking with the ARPA radar. The radar was north-up, off-centred and sea stabilised, and set to display true target vectors and true trails. The ferry was steering 098°(T) and her GPS ground track was correctly displayed on the radar screen. However, the log speed input read zero knots, which meant that the vectors displayed relative rather than true target information. A new small target was noted on the radar a little over 4 miles ahead of the ship and about 10° to port of the heading line. It was showing the lights for a vessel trawling, and a green sidelight. The true trail from the radar indicated that the fishing vessel was on a southerly heading, which agreed with the visual identification of the target. However, the ARPA target data indicated that the fishing vessel was making a course of 267°(T) and speed of 16.3 knots, from which it was interpreted that the fishing vessel would pass clear down the port side. Although this would have meant that the vessel could not have been fishing and should have been showing a red sidelight, the master and OOW chose to rely on these data and to maintain course and speed. Over the next 15 minutes, the true bearing of the target changed by 1°, by which time it had closed to 0.5 mile. The master intervened, and altered course by 10° to starboard, which he later increased to 17°. The fishing vessel skipper also took action by putting the helm hard-tostarboard. This resulted in the two vessels passing at an estimated range of 20 metres.
Therefore the target’s true data was not correct. Collision avoidance was being assessed by reference to the target’s and own ship’s true vectors, in that if the ends of the two vectors touched, then a risk of collision existed. The fact that own ship was not displaying a true vector, due to the zero speed input, seems to have been missed, and a risk of collision was not initially identified. The relative vector and the CPA information under these conditions will indicate the correct situation. The CPA indicated was 0.0, and this was displayed as part of the ARPA target data, but was ignored. The relative vector would have pointed directly at the display origin. Had either of these been referred to, or used, a better assessment of the risk of collision by ARPA could have been made.
Culture What is Culture? Our interest is continuously focused on the multicultural, multi-national and multi-faith crews onboard today's vessels. Below is an assortment of comments collected from various sources. Economics, not long ago, was the queen of the social sciences. Human beings were assumed to be profit-maximising creatures, trending toward reasonableness. As societies grew richer and more modern, it was assumed, they would become more secular. As people became better educated, primitive passions like tribalism and nationalism would fade away and global institutions would rise to take their place. As communication technology improved, there would be greater cooperation and understanding. As voters became more educated, they would become more independent-minded and rational. None of these suppositions turned out to be true. Although world has become richer and educated, religion hasn't withered; it has become stronger and more fundamentalist. Nationalism and tribalism haven't faded away.
2. The true bearing of the approaching fishing vessel did not appreciably change as the two vessels approached each other. A more traditional method of assessing risk of collision by monitoring the compass bearing, rather than relying on ARPA data from an incorrectly set up radar, would have confirmed the visual assessment of the situation, would have highlighted the danger at a much earlier stage, and should have prompted earlier avoiding action. Don’t rely exclusively on ARPA; if the inputs are wrong, the output is wrong. 3. The skipper of the fishing vessel had a wealth of experience fishing these grounds. He had come to accept that the ferries normally passed close. Therefore, being the stand-on vessel and expecting the ferry to eventually alter course, he delayed his action until it was almost too late. The Colregs tell us that action to avoid collision must be substantial and made in good time. There is no doubt that the action taken by the skipper was substantial, but it could have been taken sooner. Guard against complacency expect the unexpected.
50 40 30
Know Your Fuels
(Compliments 'The Maritime Advocate Online') No two fuels are exactly the same. Quality can change depending on the crude oil and feedstock from which the fuel is derived, on the type of
- pg 5 -
Counts Instead, transnational institutions (as UN and EU) are weak and in crisis. All of this has thrown a certain sort of materialistic vision into crisis. We now know that global economic and technological forces do not gradually erode local cultures and values. Instead, cultures and values shape economic development. Moreover, as people are empowered by greater wealth and education, cultural differences become more pronounced, not less, as different groups chase different visions, of the good life, and react in aggressive ways to perceived slights to their cultural dignity. We have witnessed plenty of incidents during the past years; from caricatures and films to books and some irresponsible media reporting. The events of the past years have thrown us back to the murky realms of theology, sociology, anthropology and history. The fundamental change is that human beings now look less like self-interested individuals and more like socially embedded products of family and group.
> > > > > > > > > >behaviour, customs, way of life, ideas, beliefs and values, (or)
>Laws
about property, rules about incest and marriage, customs of taboo and avoidance, methods of settling disputes with a minimum of bloodshed, beliefs about the supernatural and practices relating to it, a system of social status and methods indicating it, initiation ceremonies for young men, courtship practices involving the adornment of females, systems of symbolic body ornament generally, certain activities set aside for men from which women are excluded, gambling of some kind, a tool and weapons-making industry, myths and legends, dancing, adultery and various doses of homicide, suicide, homosexuality, schizophrenia, psychoses and neuroses, and various practitioners to take advantage of or cure these, depending on how they viewed,
Does history move forward or is it cyclical? Events have forced different questions on us. If the biggest th contest of the 20 century was between planned and free-market economies, the big question of this century will be understanding how cultures change and can be changed, how social and cultural capital can be nurtured and developed, and how destructive cultural conflict can be turned to healthy and tolerable cultural competition. We try below a definition of culture, as described by the various experts:
>The sum of a social group's patterns of
(or, in a more detailed alphabetical list but less amusingly phrased,)
>Age-grading,
athletic sports, bodily adornment, calendar, cleanliness training, community organisation, cooking, cooperative labour, cosmology, courtship, dancing, decorative art, divination, division of labour, dream interpretation, education, eschatology, ethics, ethnobiology, etiquette, faiththe healing, family, feasting, firebetter
> > > > > > > > > >making,
folklore, food taboos, funeral rites, games, gestures, gift giving, government, greetings, hairstyles, hospitality, housing, hygiene, incest taboos, inheritance rules, joking, kin groups, kinship nomenclature, anguage, law, luck superstition, magic, marriage, mealtimes, medicine, modesty concerning natural functions, mourning, music, mythology, numerals, obstetrics, penal sanctions, personal names, population policy, postnatal care, pregnancy usages, property rights, propitiation of supernatural beings, puberty customs, religious rituals, residence rules, sexual restrictions, soul concepts, status differentiation, surgery, tool making, trade, visiting, weaning and weather control.
> >Lists such as these one hopes to be of help to
the marine human resources department in ensuring that the right focus is contemplated. Of course this writer is not personally familiar with every existing human culture; this is the work of the experts. People who think about global development are out in front researching these matters. But even then, when did academics ever manage to agree on anything? The human mind likes to think in terms of binary oppositions (black/white, left/right, male/female, them/us, nature /culture, etc). Why we do this is open to question, but this binary thinking pervades all human institutions and practices, including dinner-party debates of the academic and the chattering classes. Ed.
>
processing it receives at the refinery, and on the way it is stored, blended and delivered to ships. At one time, shipowners used not to worry unduly about the quality of the fuel they were buying. But, in the 1980s, in response to a steady deterioration in the quality of bunkers, the first dedicated fuel testing agencies started to appear. Today, such agencies play a vital role in determining whether fuel is fit to burn, or just another hostage to arbitration or litigation. It is now standard practice to send a bunker sample off for laboratory analysis. But the problems do not always end there. Owners and charterers still have to understand the results, appreciate the implications, and know what it is reasonable to expect and possible to accept. In this way, they can avoid costly mistakes. A new book from Petrospot seems likely to be a help in this regard. 'An Introduction to Fuel Analysis' is written by Nigel Draffin, who has forgotten more about bunkers than most of us know. And Nigel has forgotten nothing in his new book, which explains in a bright, simple and
effective way the importance of knowing the fuels you are dealing with. The book contains a wealth of information that will enable everyone from the newcomer to the old hand to understand bunker fuels and what they contain, how to test each key parameter and what the test results actually mean, and what happens when problem results appear. The book includes numerous detailed diagrams, tables, charts and photographs which will help anyone who has any doubts about what can be found in marine fuels and, once found, what to do about it. There are also useful appendices detailing places to go for help, lists of abbreviations, and a multilingual glossary of the words and terms most often found in fuel test analysis reports. To order a copy of the book, which is priced at ÂŁ39.95 / $79.95 / â‚Ź49.95 + carriage, and for which volume discounts are available, go to. http://www.petrospot.com/books-fuel_analysis.asp
equipment before using it, always has an eye on alternatives and never takes anything for granted. Prudence would never dream of relying on a single source of navigational information, checking and double checking. Prudence would recall that even the best radars fail to detect sizeable targets, such as that glass fibre yacht or wooden fishing boat that the mark one eyeball is more likely to discover after it has crept unnoticed among the clutter, under the guard rings of the radar.
Every Voyage Every voyage is an adventure varying only in the intensity of its challenges. Each challenge is faced by a dedicated, intelligent, experienced officer who knows what to do next…or not. The human factor remains the most important. It all depends on the Education he has acquired. Education: Experience, Faith, Courage, Understanding and most of all the Ability to Think and Act. The mark of an Educated man is again the Ability to make a reasoned guess on the basis of insufficient information. Education means Action. Every Voyage needs Seamanship and seamanship is Prudence, as in our previous issue (W2) has been explained. Prudence anticipates the worst, and when the worst happens as it inevitably does, has an immediate strategy to allow for it. “Prudence is the assumption that things invariably go wrong, as Michael Grey has written and said time and time over, it is the ingrained ability of spatial awareness and the need for sea room, the likelihood that the person on the other bridge does not comprehend the collision rules and is mad, blind or drunk. Prudence tests every item of
Knowledge and experience. Seamanship is indeed prudence, but seamanship is also a craft heavily based on knowledge and experience, of watching and listening”. (Don't hide behind the chartroom preparing the 'Crew List' for the immigration authorities at next morning's port of call!).”It takes discipline and commitment from the top to inhibit seamanship. For all the science and technology, it is the walk around the deck at the end of the watch that reveals the deck cargo starting to come loose, the frayed guy, the undogged door. The keen ears of the experienced engineers that first detect the menacing vibration of an overheating bearing, the senses of the engineer-seaman which smells the oil mist from the fracturing hydraulic or fuel line before it has become critical. It takes discipline and regular procedures to emerge from the insulated cocoon of the wheelhouse or engine control room, to make the checks rather than make assumptions, which might be tragically wrong.” Seamanship is to have the intelligence of what to expect and the knowledge of how to respond. We close this article by quoting the Chief Inspector of Maritime Accidents Stephen Meyer in his August 2009 MAIB Safety Digest; over the reliance on technology: “Technology provides a wonderful aid (sic) to seafarers, but does not replace the application of professional knowledge and good seamanship. The visual aspect of the other vessel”, (in this case a ferry on a regular night crossing with the master, the OOW and a lookout on the bridge, under fine weather and very good visibility, and a fishing boat nearby), “and its relative vector on radar, should have alerted the OOW and the master to the fact that the ARPA was dangerously in error. Do not blindly take information from electronic aids at face value!” Ed. She said that Edward had also taken much pressure off her husband, Peter, because he was no longer her sole carer. She said: "If we go out, Peter's not going as my carer, he's going as my husband, and that is so important for the relationship."
'Lifesaver' dog is paid for work A dog described as a "lifesaver" by a disabled Devon woman is being given money by a local council to help with its upkeep.
foto dog
Wendy Hillings, 59, from West Yelland, near Barnstaple, suffers from a condition which leaves her skin very fragile and prone to blistering badly. Two-year-old Edward, a golden retriever, helps her with tasks to prevent her skin from being damaged. Devon County Council gives Mrs Hillings £30 a week to help with his costs. Carer pressure Mrs Hillings' condition, dystrophic recessive epidermolysis bullosa, means that contact with many objects causes it to blister, restricting the use of her hands for everyday chores. She also has throat problems which can lead to her being unable to breathe. Edward has been with her since he was
nine-weeks-old and has been trained to obey more than 100 commands. They include helping her take her coat off, emptying the washing machine, retrieving money from a cash machine and fetching help if she has breathing problems. She said he had transformed her life. She said: "He has gone for help before if I need it. "If I stop breathing in the middle of the night and my husband and I are both asleep, Edward's worrying my husband's pillow, saying: 'She needs help'."
Edward's work means Mrs Hilling is getting direct payments from Devon County Council to help pay for his food and toys. The council said: "Mrs Hilling does receive direct payments for his upkeep. "Providing money in lieu of social care services gives people like Mrs Hilling greater flexibility, choice and control over their lives, and enables them to make their own decisions about how their care is delivered." Edward was provided by the charity Canine Partners. The charity currently has 300 people on its waiting list for its dogs. Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr//2/hi/uk_news/england/devon/7938443.st m Published: 2009/03/12 17:43:02 GMT © BBC MMIX
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Accidents and ..... Causes Saturday, July 18, 2009 (SF Chronicle) Cosco Busan pilot gets 10 months in prison Bob Egelko, Chronicle Staff Writer PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- A federal judge sentenced a veteran ship's pilot to 10 months in prison Friday for the 2007 Cosco Busan oil spill in the bay, saying his carelessness was exactly what Congress intended to punish when it toughened maritime laws after the Exxon Valdez disaster.
licensed pilot for 27 years, navigated the 901-foot Cosco Busan when it struck a tower of the bridge in thick morning fog Nov. 7, 2007, spilling more than 53,000 gallons of fuel oil into the bay. The oil spread along 26 miles of shoreline and killed more than 2,400 birds. The government estimates the cleanup cost at $70 million.
U.S. District Judge Susan Illston in San Francisco imposed the maximum term proposed in the plea agreement that Capt. John Cota accepted in March when he admitted to two misdemeanor charges of polluting the waters and killing migratory seabirds by running the container ship into the Bay Bridge.
She rejected a prosecution request for a $30,000 fine, noting that Cota, along with the ship's owner and operator, are still defendants in multimillion-dollar lawsuits from the spill. He is scheduled to report to prison Sept. 18. 27-year pilot Cota, a
Bornstein said 10 months was far too harsh for "a man who was trying to do his job." He accused prosecutors of scapegoating Cota for an accident that could have been avoided if the Coast Guard had warned the pilot that he was steering toward the bridge tower. Captain's call Likewise, the defense lawyer said, the captain, Mao Cai Sun, who was immunized from prosecution, made the ultimate decision to sail in the fog and misinformed Cota about symbols on the navigation chart. Bornstein said Cota had been wrong to rely on the captain and crew but shouldn't be singled out for punishment.
The ship's operating company, Fleet Management Ltd., is to go to trial in September on the same two misdemeanor charges as well as felony charges of fabricating documents to interfere with a federal investigation.
Cota, 61, of Petaluma, is the first ship's pilot in U.S. history to be sent to prison for an accident, said his lawyer, Jeffrey Bornstein. He argued for a two-month sentence, the low end of the plea agreement, saying Cota accepted responsibility for the accident but that many others were also to blame. "This was a tragedy with a lot of authors," Illston agreed, "but Capt. Cota was right in the middle."
the plea agreement. 'Inexcusable' "His actions that day were inexplicable and inexcusable for a person of his training and experience," Assistant U.S. Attorney Stacey Geis told Illston in arguing for a 10month sentence.
A National Transportation Safety Board report in February faulted virtually everyone involved in the voyage - the ship's captain and crew, the company that failed to train them, the authorities who renewed Cota's license and Coast Guard spotters who failed to provide clear warnings. But it assigned much of the blame to Cota, whose job was to guide vessels safely through the bay. Cota set sail in a fog that kept other pilots in port, failed to inform the captain of his navigation plan and misread the ship's radar and navigation charts, the board said in findings that were similar to the criminal charges. The board also concluded that Cota's thinking had been impaired by prescription drugs. But prosecutors charged him only with lying to licensing authorities about his medications, and dropped those charges in
Cota's wife, Teresa Barrett, made a tearful plea for mercy and described the couple's nightmarish experiences after the accident that included death threats and a "media assault." Cota, in a brief statement at the end of the hourlong hearing, apologized to the judge and the public for the harm he had caused. "Pilots view themselves as protectors of the environment," he said."That's why it is painful to have played a role in an accident that has damaged it." Exxon Valdez lessons Illston told him the sentence reflected Congress' decision to stiffen criminal penalties for negligent water pollution after the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill of 11 million gallons of oil into Alaskan waters. The tanker's captain, Joseph Hazelwood, was fined $50,000 but spent no time in jail. "I think this is the classic case that is covered by the statute," Illston said.
Naming
Naming Ceremony of M/T Bermuda Spirit and M/T Hamilton Spirit In the end of May a ceremony was held in order to jointly name the vessels “Bermuda Spirit” (ex hull S363) and “Hamilton Spirit” (ex hull S364) at Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries (HSHI) in Mokpo, Korea. This event was in continuation of a long-term relationship with Teekay (which is responsible for the management of these vessels) and Gemini Tankers (which is the commercial operator). These 158,000 dwt suezmax tankers were built in one of the leading yards in the world (HSHI) under the joint technical supervision of Teekay and Centrofin, and were the first two in a series of five sister ships. The ceremony was well attended by a large number of delegates from Hyundai and Teekay. Centrofin was represented by Mr. Anthony Lambros (Director), Mr. Ioannis Pantos (Technical Manager) and Mr. Ioannis Vakkas (HSHI Site Manager).
Photos (left to right): The vessels' side showing the new names.
Ms. Sofia Tsami, Legal Dept Manager of Centrofin, acted as Godmother for the M/T “Bermuda Spirit”, while Mrs. Turid Sandvold of Sandvold Energy AS did the honors for M/T “Hamilton Spirit”. In his speech, Teekay CEO Bjorn Moller praised the efforts of the shipyard personnel in delivering a top quality vessel, and commented on the excellent cooperation between the three companies during construction. Ms. Tsami expressed her gratitude towards Hyundai and Teekay, and voiced her certainty that this day marked the commencement of stronger ties between all three companies. May these vessels face safe seas and success in their voyages!
The godmother sounding the horn of the Bermuda Spirit for the first time. Commemorative photograph including HSHI president, Teekay CEO and the two sponsors (godmothers). Ms. Sofia Tsami (right) and Mrs. Turid Sandvold (left) unveiling the names of the vessels.
Naming
- pg 9 -
Ceremonies Naming Ceremony and delivery of M/T George S. In an intimate ceremony on a rainy July day, the good vessel M/T George S. (ex hull S365) was named and delivered to her new owners Romeo Investments Inc. She commenced trading under the technical management of Marine Trust Ltd and the commercial management of Gemini Tankers. The ceremony was held on board the vessel while she was lying alongside at Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries (HSHI) in Mokpo, Korea, and was followed by luncheon hosted by the shipbuilder. The 158,000dwt suezmax tanker is named in the memory of one of the first directors of the company, the late George Stavrakis. It is the third of a series of five sister vessels. Ms. Maria Malegou Insurance and Claims Officer for the company acted as godmother for the vessel, by reciting the encomium: "I hereby name this vessel "GEORGE S." I wish you, your crew, and your owners a long life of happy and prosperous trading. May God be with you at all times, and protect you and all who sail on you." The ceremony was attended by almost 30 persons, led by President Hwang on behalf of HSHI, Mr. Anthony Lambros on behalf of the company, Mr. Ioannis Vakkas from HSHI Site Office and Capt. Dmytro Perkun on behalf of the ship's crew.
Photos (up to down): The godmother reciting the encomium naming the vessel. The site supervision team members I. Vakkas, S. Papadopoulos, Ch. Chatzigiaksoglou and S. Tsaltas, pictured here along with their spouses, the godmother, A. Lambros and Capt. A. Spanellis. Capt. A. Spanellis and Mr. I. Vakkas amongst Capt. D. Perkhun, Chief Engineer O. Ivanov and the new ship's officers. On the bridge wing after unveiling of the name: Capt. A.Spanellis, Capt. D. Perkhun, I. Vakkas, A. Lambros and the godmother from Centrofin. President & Mrs. Hwang, T.B.Lee and B.A.Park of HSHI.
Ceremonies
A Road Map to a Just Culture Enhancing the Safety Environment (Extracts reprinted by permission from the Global Aviation Information Network GAIN)
Foreword The term 'no-blame culture' flourished in the 1990s and still endures today. Compared to the largely punitive cultures that it sought to replace it was clearly a step in the right direction. It acknowledged that a large proportion of unsafe acts were 'honest errors' (the kind of slips, lapses and mistakes that even the best people can make) and were not truly blameworthy, nor was there much in the way of remedial or preventative benefit to be had by punishing their perpetrators. But the 'no-blame' concept had two serious weaknesses. First, it ignored -- or, at least, failed to confront -- those individuals who wilfully (and often repeatedly) engaged in dangerous behaviours that most observers recognise as being likely to increase the risk of a bad outcome. Second, it did not properly address the crucial business of distinguishing between culpable and non-culpable unsafe acts. In my view, a safety culture depends critically upon first negotiating where the line should be drawn between unacceptable behaviour and blameless unsafe acts. There will always be a grey area between these two extremes where the issue has to be decided on a case by case basis. This is where the guide lines provided by A Roadmap to a Just Culture** will be of great value. A number of aviation organisations have embarked upon this process, and the general indications are that the only around 10 per cent of actions contributing to bad events are judged as culpable. In principle, at least, this means that the large majority of unsafe acts can be reported without fear of sanction. Once this crucial trust has been established, the organisation begins to have a reporting culture, something that provides the system with an accessible memory, which, in turn, is the essential underpinning to a learning culture. There will, of course, be setbacks along the way. But engineering a just culture is the all-important early step; so much else depends upon it. By James Reason.
Overview of the issue Any effective safety information system depends on the willing participation of the workforce, the front line workers who are in direct contact with hazard. In aviation organisations, these are air traffic controllers, pilots, flight crew, maintenance personnel, and others who can provide key information about aviation safety problems and potential solutions. (This Editor's added Note: In the shipping industry the front line workforce are: Masters, Chief Engineers, Ships' officers & Ratings; Sea pilots; Office Operators/Engineers, visiting Superintendents, DPAs, Technicians, Shipboard Trainers etc). Achieving this reporting requires an organisational climate in which people are prepared to report their errors and incidents. Engineering an effective reporting culture must contend with actions whose consequences have focused on blame and punishment. A 'no-blame' culture is neither feasible nor desirable. A small proportion of unsafe acts are deliberately done (e.g. criminal activity, substance abuse, controlled substances, reckless non-compliance, sabotage, etc) and they require sanctions of appropriate severity. A blanket amnesty on all unsafe acts would lack creditability in the yes of employees and could be seen to oppose natural justice. What is needed is an atmosphere of trust in which people are encouraged to provide essential safety-related information, and in which they are also clear about where the line must be drawn between acceptable and unacceptable behaviour. The Just Culture operates by design to encourage compliance with the appropriate regulations and procedures, foster safe operating practices, and promote the development of internal evaluation programmes.
Definition of Just Culture According to James Reason, the components of a safety culture include: just, reporting, learning, informed and flexible cultures. Reason describes a Just Culture as an atmosphere of trust in which people are encouraged (even rewarded) for providing essential safety-related information, but in which they are also clear about where the line must be drawn between acceptable and unacceptable behaviour. A 'Just Culture' refers to a way of safety thinking that promotes a questioning attitude, is resistant to complacency, is committed to excellence, and fosters both personal accountability and corporate self-regulation in safety matters. A 'Just' safety culture, then, is both attitudinal and structural, relating to both individuals and organisations. Personal attitudes and corporate style can enable or facilitate the unsafe acts and conditions that are the precursors to accidents and incidents. It requires not only actively identifying safety issues, but responding with appropriate action.
- pg 11 aReckless Conduct
Four types of Unsafe Behaviours Not all of these behaviours necessarily warrant disciplinary sanction:
aHuman Error
is when there is general agreement that the individual should have done other than what they did. In the course of that conduct where they inadvertently caused (or could have caused) an undesirable outcome, the individual is labelled as having committed an error
aNegligent Conduct
HUMOUR A man enters a bar and orders a drink. The bar has a robot barman. The robot serves him a perfectly prepared cocktail, and then asks him, "What's your IQ?"
:)
The man replies "150" and the robot proceeds to make conversation about global warming factors, Quantum physics and spirituality, bio-mimicry, environmental interconnectedness, string theory, nanotechnology, and sexual proclivities. The customer is very impressed and thinks, "This is really cool." He decides to test the robot. He walks out of the bar, turns around, and comes back in for another drink. Again, the robot serves him the perfectly prepared drink and asks him, "What's your IQ?" The man responds, "About 100." Immediately the robot starts talking, but this time about football league, Holdens, racing, the new BIG Mac, tattoos, Jennifer Hawkins and women in general. Really impressed, the man leaves the bar and decides to give the robot one more test. He heads out and returns, the robot serves him and asks, "What's your IQ?" The man replies, "Err, 50, I think." And the robot says...real slowly... "So...............are ya gonna vote for George again?" ..................
aIntentional “wilful� violations
when a person knew or foresaw the result of the action, but went ahead and did it anyway.
The full document can be accessed at: <www.flightsafety.org/gain >. Comments are welcome. Ed.
(Compliments Bow-Wave)
Negligence is conduct that falls below the standard required as normal in the community. Negligence, in its legal sense, arises both in the civil and criminal liability contexts. It applies to a person who fails to use the reasonable level of skill expected of a person engaged in that particular activity, whether by omitting to do something that a prudent and reasonable person would do in the circumstances. To raise a question of negligence, there needs to be a duty of care on the person, and harm must be caused by the negligent action. In other words, where there is a duty to exercise care, reasonable care must be taken to avoid acts or omissions which can reasonably be foreseen to be likely to cause harm to persons or property. If, as a result of a failure to act in this reasonably skilful way, harm/injury/damage is caused to a person or property, the person whose action caused the harm is liable to pay damages to the person who is, or whose property is, harmed.
(gross negligence) is more culpable than negligence. The definition of reckless conduct varies between countries, however the underlying message is that to be reckless, the risk has to be one that would have been obvious to a reasonable person. In both civil and criminal liability contexts it involves a person taking a conscious unjustified risk, knowing that there is a risk that harm would probably result from the conduct, and foreseeing the harm, he or she nevertheless took the risk. It differs from negligence (where negligence is the failure to recognise a risk that should have been recognised), while recklessness is a conscious disregard of an obvious risk
Poem of the Week RISK
To laugh is to risk appearing the fool To weep is to risk appearing sentimental To reach out to others is to risk involvement To expose feelings is to risk exposing your true self To place your ideas, your dreams before a crowd is to risk their loss To love is to risk not being loved in return To live is to risk dying To hope is to risk despair To try is to risk failure But risks must be taken,because the greatest hazard in life is to do nothing. The person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing, and is nothing. They may avoid suffering and sorrow, but they cannot learn, feel, change, grow, love, live. Chained by their attitudes, they are a slave,they forfeited their freedom. Only the person who risks can be free Author unknown
"PRIME" GREEK LEGACIES
43,112
2
<< (One of the oldest surviving fragments of Euclid's Elements, found at Oxyrhynchus and dated to circa AD 100. The diagram accompanies Book II, Proposition 5).
Think of a really large number. Can you do that? How “big” of a number do you think you can imagine? This almost sounds like a “trick” question, and perhaps it is, since our experience and capacities as humans allow us to capture, or imagine, large numbers up to a certain “vague” point.
Let's see… Do you think that 264 is a large number? Let's perform the following clever experiment1 and find out ourselves. Consider an ordinary 8x8 chessboard, on which you start placing (actually do NOT try this at home!) quarters (≈2mm thick) in the following way: place 2 quarters on the 1st square, 4 quarters on the 2nd square, 8 quarters on the 3rd square, etc, and keep doubling the number of quarters at every following square. At the last square (the 64th) you would (not could!) have placed 264 quarters of 2mm width each. Can you guess how tall this pile of quarters is? It is a stunning 40 trillion km, which means that your pile of quarters will pass the Sun 267,000 times and almost reach the nearest star form Earth, 'Proxima Centauri', which is about 4.2 light years away! Now that's far…
But, if you think 264 is large then you might want to take a sit, as the next number will shock you. Allow me to introduce “Optimus Prime”, 243,112,609 1. Yes indeed, that's an insanely large number. Personally, I cannot conceive how big that number is, but here is an interesting analogy: Printing this number in an average size book would require the book to have about 6,500 pages! Stretching the number from those pages would have required a distance of 48 km2. If you “stack” it up with quarters of 2mm as in the experiment above, it would create a pile of roughly 243,112,600 trillion km, which is much further than anything astronomers know today. That's how big “Optimus Prime” is…
“Optimus Prime” belongs to a special family of numbers called primes. So let me turn to a more general discussion about primes now. Among others, primes are one of the most important contributions of our Greek ancestors to the world.
A prime number p is a number that is divisible only by p (i.e. itself) and 1.
For example, the following numbers are primes: 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17. Primes were explicitly studied in ancient Greece, and two of the most important results on primes can be found in Euclid's (≈300 BCE) book Elements (the most influential book ever written). In particular, The Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic, which states that “every positive integer greater than 1 can be represented uniquely as a product of primes”3. This statement is corollary to Euclid's Prop. 30, in Book VII, of the Elements. Another important statement is the Infinitude of Prime Numbers (i.e. “there are infinitely many primes”), which Euclid proved4 in the Elements (Book IX, Prop. 20). His proof of the latter is one of the most ingenious proofs in the history of mathematics, and is worth demonstrating here in modern notation:
Suppose that there are finitely many prime, say p1, p2, ...,pn. (ordered from smallest to largest).Consider the number a = p1p2...pn + 1. Then, a is either prime or not. If it is a prime, then a must be one of the primes on the list. But, a cannot be on the list since pn was the largest on the list and clearly a is larger than pn. On the other hand, if a is not a prime, then a must be divisible by one of the primes on the list (by the Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic). But, clearly a leaves remainder 1 when divided by any one of the primes on the list, hence it cannot be divisible by them. Hence, either way we arrive to a contradiction which means that our assumption (that there are finitely many primes) must be false. Therefore, there are infinitely many primes.
That was Euclid's argument, the conclusion of which prohibits the existence of a largest prime. There is no largest prime, in principle, but that's different from asking what is the largest prime we know (or discovered) so far. That is actually the prime we have seen above, Optimus Prime. It was discovered in 2008 by E. Smith, with the help of supercomputers running for several days, as part of the project GIMPS (Great Internet Mersenne Prime Search). Optimus Prime is actually a special type of a p prime number a Mersenne prime. Those are of the form 2 1, where p is a prime. This is not to say that every number of the form 2p - 1 must be a Mersenne prime. Actually, it is not. For example, 211 1 (=2047) is not even a prime. We don't know, until today, whether there are infinitely many Mersenne primes or not.
Live Beautifuly
'The future belongs to those
who believe in the beauty of their dreams;
'Enjoy life, is not a rehearsal;
'Live each day in the present and make it beautiful; 'Believe that your life is worth living and your beliefs will help create the fact;
'Heal the past, live the present, dream the future; 'Don't count the days, make days count; 'The key to happiness is having dreams… The key to success is making dreams come true;
LiveBeaut 'Think highly of yourself because the world takes you at your own estimate;
'Don't fear pressure, for pressure is what turns rough stones into diamonds;
'Whenever you go, take your whole heart along;
'If you love life, life will love you back;
'The world is a mirror, if you face it smiling it smiles right back; ' 'Happiness is not having what you want. It's wanting what you have;
- pg 13 -
(Euclid, as imagined by Raphael in this detail from "The School of Athens". No likeness or description of Euclid's physical appearance made during his lifetime survived antiquity. Therefore, Euclid's depiction in works of art depends on the artist's imagination).
2,600
(Euclid is known to almost every high school student as the author of The Elements, the long studied text on geometry and number theory. No other book except the Bible has been so widely translated and circulated. From the time it was written it was regarded as an extraordinary work and was studied by all mathematicians, even the greatest mathematicians of antiquity).
Finding primes is not, in general, an easy task. The ancient Greeks knew that, and they devised a clever method of finding relatively small primes (less that 10,000,000). Eratosthenis of Kyrene (≈250 BCE) invented an efficient algorithm called “Sieve of Eratosthenis” that produces all primes less than a given integer. That was probably done in his books Platonicus or On Means (both lost). We know about the Sieve by Nicomedes (≈250 BCE) in his Introduction to Arithmetic. W. F. Clocksin and C. S. Mellish, describe5 the algorithm in a poem by an anonymous author as follows:
grating and the even spreading of sound in hall acoustics, higher dimensional diffusors, graphic design, etc9.
Finally, the elegance and mystery of primes have influenced many people in the arts and literature (e.g. see C. Sagan's novel Contact, 1985), which further enhances the idea that our Greek ancestors not only originated important ideas and influenced humanity, but they are also as contemporary and relevant as ever.
64
2
Sift the Two's and sift the Three's, The Sieve of Eratosthenes. When the multiples sublime, The numbers that remain are Prime.
So interesting was the study of primes for the ancients that even Plato (≈300 BCE), a great proponent of geometry over arithmetic, might have “secretly” studied them in his Laws too6!
The next new and important discoveries on primes will not occur until the 17th century and thereafter, with the works among others of P. Fermat, L. Euler, C. F. Gauss, B. Riemann, J. Hadamard, P. Erdos, etc, respectively. Beyond the importance of primes in mathematics and the abundance of open problems7 they generated, what is the benefit of studying primes today, in the 21st century? There are many practical applications today in which primes play a crucial role. For example, the field of public-key cryptography (the study of encryption / decryption of messages) uses large prime numbers for the protection or secure transmission of messages8,9. Can you imagine doing your online correspondence or banking transactions without the security of the safe transmission of your messages? Large prime numbers guarantee that security to a huge degree. Other applications include reflection phase-
Notes: 1. K. Devlin, Mathematics: The New Golden Age, 1999. 2. J. Rehmeyer, “Largest known prime number found”, Science News, 2008. 3. G. H. Hardy and E. M. Wright, An Introduction to the Theory of Numbers, 1979. 4. Euclid, Elements, (by D.E.Joyce, 1998.) 5. W. F. Clocksin and C. S. Mellish, Programming in Prolog: Using the ISO Standard, 2003. 6. A. Vardulakis and C. Pugh, “Plato's Hidden Theorem on the Distribution of Primes”, The Mathematical Intelligencer, 2008. 7. For example, Goldbach's Conjecture (≈1750 CE): Every even integer greater than 2 can be written as the sum of two primes. Still unproved, for more than 250 years now. 8. K. Rosen, Discrete Mathematics and its Applications, 2007. 9. M. Schroeder, Number Theory in Science and Communication, 1984.
Dr. Michael Aristidou Assistant Professor, Dept. of Mathematics, Barry University, Miami Shores, FL, aristidou75@yahoo.com
Snippets from China
'Learn to listen. Opportunity sometimes knocks very softly; 'Life would be infinitely happier if we could only be born at the age of eighty and gradually approach eighteen;
'Success is to get what you want, Luck is to keep what you get;
'I look to the future because that's where I'm going to spend the rest of my life;
tifuly 'Good times, become good memories. Bad times, become good lessons;
'People are lonely because they build walls instead of bridges.
'It's not only the scenery you miss by going too fast…
Have a nice day!
There are four intonations used in pronouncing Chinese words. Two words can have the same pronunciation but different intonations. A person can be misunderstood if he pronounces a word correctly but uses the wrong intonation. The Chinese grammar is completely different from the English. There are no singular or plural forms of nouns. Adjectives are used to indicate the number. There are no tenses in Chinese verbs and adverbs are used to indicate the time element. For example, to the Chinese, 'I go yesterday' is clear enough and there is no need to alter the verb. The language has its own word order in the sense structure. To convert a remark into a question, one simply adds the word ma at the end. Important! Our Chinese seafarer must learn to express himself in the English way without resorting to Chinese structure and expressions ! Otherwise: “Think in English” and I add: in his maritime English to give emphasis to 'meaning over grammar'.
Thirty-Six Stratagems Continued from previous issue W34.
Chapter 5: Proximate Stratagems 25. Replace the beams with rotten timbers (traditional Chinese: 偷梁換柱; simplified Chinese: 偷梁换柱; pinyin: Tōu liáng huàn zhù) Disrupt the enemy's formations, interfere with their methods of operations, change the rules in which they are used to follow, go contrary to their standard training. In this way you remove the supporting pillar, the common link that makes a group of men an effective fighting force.
Lucius Junius Brutus feigned idiocy for many years while he secretly prepared to depose Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, the last King of Rome. The Forty-seven Ronin used this strategy to take revenge for their master. They waited over a year and when the opponent let his guard down, they took their revenge.
28. Remove the ladder when the enemy has ascended to the roof
To discipline, control, or warn others whose status or position excludes them from direct confrontation; use analogy and innuendo. Without directly naming names, those accused cannot retaliate without revealing their complicity.
(Chinese: 上屋抽梯; pinyin: Shàng wū chōu tī) With baits and deceptions, lure your enemy into treacherous terrain. Then cut off his lines of communication and avenue of escape. To save himself, he must fight both your own forces and the elements of nature. The Grande Armee was destroyed in the 1812 invasion of Russia by a combination of the Russian winter, a scorched earth strategy, and the Russian army. Napoleon had been spurred on by the prize of capturing Moscow and with it the defeat of Russia; however, all he found was a burnt out and empty city and his forces cut off in hostile terrain and weather with no supplies.
27. Feign madness but keep your balance
29. Deck the tree with false blossoms
(traditional Chinese: 假痴不癲; simplified Chinese: 假痴不癫; pinyin: Jiǎ chī bù diān) Hide behind the mask of a fool, a drunk, or a madman to create confusion about your intentions and motivations. Lure your opponent into underestimating your ability until, overconfident, he drops his guard. Then you may attack.
(traditional Chinese: 樹上開花; simplified Chinese: 树上开花; pinyin: Shù shàng kāi huā) Tying silk blossoms on a dead tree gives the illusion that the tree is healthy. Through the use of artifice and disguise, make something of no value appear valuable; of no threat appear dangerous;
26. Point at the mulberry tree while cursing the locust tree (traditional Chinese: 指桑罵槐; simplified Chinese: 指桑骂槐; pinyin: Zhǐ sāng mà huái)
of no use appear useful. This is the same stratagem as Potemkin villages.
30. Make the host and the guest exchange roles (traditional Chinese: 反客為主; simplified Chinese: 反客为主; pinyin: Fǎn kè wéi zhǔ) Usurp leadership in a situation where you are normally subordinate. Infiltrate your target. Initially, pretend to be a guest to be accepted, but develop from inside and become the owner later.
Chapter 6: Defeat Stratagems 31.The beauty trap (honey trap) (traditional Chinese: 美人計; simplified Chinese: 美人计; pinyin: Měi rén jì) Send your enemy beautiful women to cause discord within his camp. This strategy can work on three levels. First, the ruler becomes so enamoured with the beauty that he neglects his duties and allows his vigilance to wane. Second, other males at court will begin to display aggressive behaviour that inflames minor differences hindering co-operation and destroying morale. Third, other females at court, motivated by jealousy and envy, begin to plot intrigues further exacerbating the situation. Even though this has been done many times, perhaps the most famous historical example is Xi Shi who was sent to the State of Wu during the Spring and Autumn Period.
C.
M
AGEMENT I N AN
IN
CE
- pg 15-
NTROF
QUOTATIONS ¶ ¶The perfect bureaucrat everywhere is the man who manages to make no decisions and escape all responsibility. ¶The best way to compile inaccurate information that no one wants is to make it up. ¶Talk low, talk slow, and don't talk too much. ¶Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds.
32. The empty fort strategy (traditional Chinese: 空城計; simplified Chinese: 空城计; pinyin: Kōng chéng jì) When the enemy is superior in numbers and your situation is such that you expect to be overrun at any moment, then drop all presence of military preparedness, act calmly and appear disrespect of the enemy. The enemy will think you have hidden huge power and you want to trap them into the fort with your calm and easiness. This has to be used when in most of the cases, you do have huge power hidden under the disguise and you only play the real empty rarely. Use this against people who are really smart[4].
¶Frugality without creativity is deprivation. longer considers you to be an immediate threat. The second is a way of ingratiating yourself to your enemy by pretending the injury was caused by a mutual enemy.
35. Chain stratagems (traditional Chinese: 連環計; simplified Chinese: 连环计; pinyin: Lián huán jì) In important matters, one should use several stratagems applied simultaneously after another as in a chain of stratagems. Keep different plans operating in an overall scheme; however, in this manner if any one strategy fails, then the chain breaks and the whole scheme fails.
36
33. Let the enemy's own spy sow discord in the enemy camp
(traditional Chinese: 反間計; simplified Chinese: 反间计; pinyin: Fǎn jiàn jì) Undermine your enemy's ability to fight by secretly causing discord between him and his friends, allies, advisors, family, commanders, soldiers, and population. While he is preoccupied settling internal disputes, his ability to attack or defend, is compromised. During the Second World War the German intelligence agency the Abwehr under Wilhelm Canaris actively colluded with the Allies to undermine the Nazi regime.
34. Inflict injury on one's self to win the enemy's trust
(traditional Chinese: 苦肉計; simplified Chinese: 苦肉计; pinyin: Kǔ ròu jì) Pretending to be injured has two possible applications. In the first, the enemy is lulled into relaxing his guard since he no
36. If everything else fails, retreat
(traditional Chinese: 走為上; simplified Chinese: 走为上; pinyin: Zǒu wéi shàng) If it becomes obvious that your current course of action will lead to defeat, then retreat and regroup. When your side is losing, there are only three choices remaining: surrender, compromise, or escape. Surrender is complete defeat, compromise is half defeat, but escape is not defeat. As long as you are not defeated, you still have a chance. This is the most famous of the stratagems, immortalized in the form of a Chinese idiom: "Of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, fleeing is best." (三十六計， 走為上策 - sānshí liù jì, zǒu wèi shàng cè)
¶Courage is the ladder on which all the other virtues mount. ¶It's choice - not chance - that determines your destiny. ¶To live a creative life, one must lose one's fear of being wrong. ¶Acting is not being emotional, but being able to express emotion. ¶In the field of observation, chance favours only the prepared mind. ¶We have too many high sounding words, and too few actions that correspond with them. ¶All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsion, habit, reason, passion, and desire. ¶ A sign of celebrity is that his name is often worth more than his services. ¶Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear. ¶How much easier it is to be critical than to be correct. ( To be continued on the next issue W35)
OCIMF TMSA Guidelines :
(extract)
Element 4. Reliability and Maintenance Standards
Critical Equipment Ship operators should establish and maintain procedures to identify mechanical, electrical and other items of equipment that, in the event of a failure, may result in a hazardous situation. This is particularly important in relation to critical equipment, for example, the main propulsion systems, steering gear and cargohandling equipment.
equipment
pProvide timely support and ensure the availability of approved and/or fit-for-purpose spares, materials and other resources necessary to carry out maintenance procedures, including reconciliation procedures pEnsure that maintenance records and reports are consistently available, both on board and in the shore-based management office pEstablish procedures for monitoring class-condition reports, which provide an overview of the state of specific shipboard equipment pEstablish a requirement for superintendents to conduct routine ship inspections and confirm that planned maintenance has actually taken place pProvide a defect-reporting and close-out system that can be monitored both on board and ashore. The system should specify a formal process for notifying shore management when critical equipment is taken out of service and should include methods for recording management's approval of any mitigating steps introduced while the equipment is out of service.
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maintained through an appropriate monitoring programme
pEnsure that all relevant vessel certification remains valid pDefine the steps required to achieve safe operation of all shipboard
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pEnsure that the structural integrity of all vessels in the fleet is
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Main Objective Establish maintenance standards so that all ships in the fleet are capable of operating safely without the risk of an incident or detention. Equipment reliability depends on factors such as design, construction, initial commissioning, operating practices and maintenance. For installed equipment, properly planned maintenance procedures are essential if ships are to operate reliably and avoid unnecessary downtime or costly incidents. Element 4 sets out the requirement for establishing sound maintenance practices. It encourages ship operators to establish formal, consistent maintenance systems that ensure the reliable operation of the ships in their fleets.
Maintenance Procedures Ship operators should arrange procedures and systems for controlling maintenance. These procedures are intended to:
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