Whether you are a ter, weightlifter, or other power athlete, teaching your body how to express its strength at the right moment is paramount to your athletic success.

That is why improving your body’s rate of force development is so important.  Maximal strength development has a place in the training cycle, but if you do not hone your capabilities of developing force at the appropriate times the maximal gains in strength will not be properly employed for your athletic endeavor be it , weightlifting, sprinting, etc…

For the purposes of this article, we will examine the rate of force development through the lens of weightlifting i.e. the snatch, clean, and jerk, but the principles outlined can be applied to any sport where power development is crucial to performance.

To improve the rate at which you can produce force, employ the following framework:

Position –> Activation –> Repetition

Any athletic endeavor is all about angles.  Joint angles, that is.  When an athlete puts his or her body into optimal positions, performances improve.

FullSizeRender (5)

Chart taken from A.S. Medvedyev A System of Multi-Year Training in Weightlifting.

In the figure above, these are the optimal “average” joint angles in both the clean and snatch.  (*Note different arm, leg, and torso lengths have a profound effect upon optimal positioning.  These numbers are simply averages.)  Notice, in the third figurine above the lower leg is vertical.  It is at this angle that the athlete can generate the largest amount of force. (Zatsiorsky, Kraemer.  Science and Practice of Strength Training, p 39)

Tongue out is optional, but not the vertical shins and tight back as the bar is at the knee.

Tongue out is optional, but note the vertical shins and tight back as the bar is passing above  the knee.

One of the simplest things you can do as a weightlifter to find the appropriate position to get the most force into the barbell is to practice lift offs with either a snatch or a clean grip.   This allows you to practice the first pull of your lifts without without the added layers of complexity which you would encounter should you do the full lift.  Be sure to perform this movement slowly and deliberately.  The bar speed is not as important.  In fact, if you move the barbell from the floor too quickly you will most likely be out of optimal position and not be able to generate as much force into the bar at the right moment.

*Key points to remember:

  • Slower and more deliberate pull off the floor.
  • Tight upper and lower back.  The back angle remains the same from the floor to above the knee.

Once you have started to get a feel for finding your hamstrings and setting yourself up in a good position, it’s time to learn when and how to turn on the most amount of force.  The second pull (from the knee to the hip i.e. the “finish”) is where the rubber meets the road.  Once the bar passes the knee, the load must be accelerated quickly, with the most speed happening at the mid thigh.

While this may seem like a simple task to do, there are three steps that must be done in the following sequence and at the right moment to put the most force possible into the bar.

1.  Flex your lats.  The big wing like muscles (latissimus dorsi) that run from your upper back down to your lumbar spine are essential for not only keeping your lower back engaged and protected, but also  guiding the bar to the correct point of contact on your hips/thighs (depending on if you are cleaning or snatching.)  As the bar travels up the thigh during the second pull, the lats should be constantly engaged.  However, right at the moment the bar is about to meet the power position, flex your lats and swoop the bar close to your body.  This will prep for step two.

2. Punch your feet through the floor.   This is simply a pointer toward fully extending the knees and the hips forcefully.  When the bar is in the power position, it is time to GO!  While full extension must happen quickly, bear in mind that this is no substitute for punching as HARD as you can.  Many beginning lifters make the mistake of shorting their second pulls, thinking that they need to get under the bar fast.  Rush the second pull and you cheat yourself out of a lot of power you could have used to make the bar float weightlessly for a longer time, allowing you a better chance of getting under the bar.

3.  Shrug.  Hard.  In my experience, cueing the shrug of the shoulders to an athlete is one way to solve the problem of a short second pull.  Try and shrug a weighted bar too early before the hips and knees have fully extended.  Weird, right?  A good old fashioned hard shrug of the shoulders is a good way to cue full extension.

A great way to learn this sequence of activation and to tone down the complexity of a lift from the floor is to lift from blocks.  Blocks are valuable training tools.  For starters, they place less strain on the body as the distance the bar has to travel is shorter and therefore the time under tension is less.  Second, blocks reduce the complexity of lift.  Going from the floor involves lots of moving parts.  Hitting lifts from the blocks allows you to focus on a portion of the lift.  In this case, the portion most important towards the rate of force development.

It’s a pretty simple truth: The more opportunities you have to practice a skill the better you become.  If you are at a point in your training cycle where you are looking to improve your rate of force development over your maximal strength, intensity (i.e. amount of weight lifted) is less important than positions and timing.  I recommend loads of no more than 80% of your 1 RM Clean and Snatch during this stage in your training and trying to stick with blocks for long stretches in your training cycles (3-4 weeks or until you get comfortable with sequencing).  Stacking bars with heavy loads (90% or greater of 1 RM) and looking to hit personal records is not the goal.  By working with loads around 80% you really focus on the timing and positioning that is required to eventually help you lift HEAVIER.  So check your ego at the front desk, be patient, and focus on dialing in your positioning and activation.  You’ll thank me once the PRs start melting the barbell!


Search programme

Syllabus for

Academic year
FFY091 - Optics
Syllabus adopted 2015-02-20 by Head of Programme (or corresponding)
Owner: TKTFY
6,0 Credits
Grading: TH - Five, Four, Three, Not passed
Education cycle: First-cycle
Major subject: Engineering Physics
Department: 16 - PHYSICS

Teaching language: Swedish

Course module   Credit distribution   Examination dates
Sp1 Sp2 Sp3 Sp4 Summer course No Sp
0194 Examination 4,5 c Grading: TH   4,5 c   15 Mar 2016 pm SB,  08 Apr 2016 pm SB,  22 Aug 2016 pm SB
0294 Laboratory 1,5 c Grading: UG   1,5 c

In programs

Docent  Jörgen Bengtsson

  Go to Course Homepage

Course specific prerequisites

EEF031 or equivalent course and basic knowledge of Matlab programming.

Aims to introduce optics, as an important part of physics, in the Engineering physics programme.

After completion of the course, the participant should be able to

numerical propagation
- identify and translate Fourier integrals in optics to FFT-based calculations in Matlab.
- recognize results that are influenced be numerical errors.
- propagate through compound systems containing multiple optical components.
- compare propagation based on plane wave decomposition (PAS) and Huygens-Fresnel's principle (HFM).
- explain how the beam propagation method (BPM) for thick components uses PAS and the thin-component formalism.
- predict qualitatively, without calculations, how optical phenomena are influenced by changes in geometrical and physical parameters based on experience from numerical simulations.

analytic rules of thumb for propagation
- use HFM to show that the Fourier transform is obtained in the far field and in the focal plane of a lens, respectively.
- use HFM to derive the rules of thumb for smallest spot size (size of focus) and smallest beam divergence, and how well they relate to the exact results for a Gaussian beam and abeam with a circular top hat intensity in the starting plane.

thin optical components
- derive the transmission functions for important components such as the lens and spherical mirror.

- know how the intensity in different diffraction orders of a grating can be controlled.
- use the grating equation to determine the periodicity of an illuminated object, or the wavelength of the light to be analyzed (spectroscopy).

polarization-changing components
- explain the origin of the refractive index of a substance, and how some substances can exhibit birefringence.
- extract Jones matrices for important optical components and multiply them together for a compound system.
- explain how the 3D movie and the twisted nematic liquid crystal display work, respectively.

- explain the requirements to obtain a high-quality image.
- explain the methods used to gain information about the image, and what information is obtained:
i. geometrical optics
ii. point-source-by point-source propagation from object to image plane.
iii. convolution with the point spread function (PSF).
iv. "showers" of temporally coherent fields
- use the construction rules in geometrical optics for a system with one or more lenses/mirrors, and thus obtain the system magnification and position of image plane.
- explain how aberrations can influence the image quality.

- explain the meaning of field correlation in terms of predictability in time and space and how this comes into the definition of coherence.
- estimate coherence time and spatial coherence length for an optical field from a given source, and thus predict the outcome of a measurement with a Michelson interferometer or a Young's double slit, respectively.
- describe why using light of lower quality (less coherent) can sometimes be an advantage.
- explain stellar interferometry.

thick optical components and waveguiding
- explain the principles of waveguiding in typical waveguides for microwaves and for light.
- explain what modes are, and how the field in the waveguide automatically becomes a mode (or superposition of several modes).
- explain single and multimode waveguides, GRIN fibers, and multimode interference (MMI).
- explain what is meant by a nonlinear effect in optics, in what respect the Kerr effect is nonlinear, and how this effect influences the propagation.

- assemble an optical system with lenses for focusing and collimation of light from a laser source or a conventional light source.
- create the far field of gratings and different apertures, and measure and evaluate these fields.
- create different types of polarized light and analyze light with an unknown state of polarization.
- determine concentration of some substances by using optical activity.

- derive the critical angle for total internal reflection and the Brewster angle, and give examples of their practical use.
- explain how multiple reflections enable antireflection treatment and distributed (DBR) mirrors, and some practical applications.
- explain the basic function and essential parts of a laser.
- explain the advantages and disadvantages of considering light as a stream of particles (photons).

Review of EM field theory, plane wave decomposition including the numerical method Propagation of Angular Spectrum (PAS), Huygens-Fresnel's principle with the four rules of thumb for propagation, thin optical components, reflection and transmission at material boundaries, diffraction, polarization, imaging with four different methods e.g. geometrical optics, coherence, waveguiding including the numerical method Beam Propagation Method (BPM), optical fibers, light sources, lasers, and the photon picture of light.

Home assignments/numerical labs (5), laboratory exercises (2), tutorials (5) and lectures (14).

Physics of Light and Optics, J. Peatross and M. Ware, 2013 edition, freely downloadable from the Internet.

To pass the course all the laboratory exercises and home assignments must have received a pass. A written exam must also receive a pass; the exam consists of questions related to the home assignments and the laboratory exercises, and discussion and problem solving tasks of the type that is treated at the tutorials.

Page manager Published: Mon 28 Nov 2016.


Fangde Liu
National Center For Computer Animation, Media School, Bournemouth University
Email: fliu@bmth.ac.uk
Xiaosong Yang
NCCA, Media School, Bournemouth University
Jianjun Zhang
NCCA, Media School, Bournemouth University
Adaptive motion synthesis normally involves complicate computation from physical simulation. However some
biological researchers believe that the neural system takes little effort in motor control. Instead of planning motion from
ground up, living creatures may only maintain or tweak some basic motion pattern for qualitative properties of
complicate interaction between body and environment. Inspired by this idea, in this paper, we proposed a new method for
adaptive motion synthesis based on the qualitative control theory. Adaptive motion control is achieved through enhancing
the structural stability, rather than counteracting perturbations. Compared with current simulation method, our algorithm
is more computational efficient and has the potential to be accelerated by GPU.
Character Motion Synthesis, Qualitative Dynamic, Physics Based Animation
Human beings are very sensitive to motions. From the variety in motion details, humans can infer the
changes in mental states, health conditions or even the surrounding environment. This makes Character
Motion Synthesis (CMS) a difficult task. In industry, high quality motions are still majorly generated
manually, animators need to tweak and set key frames for a large number of joints. To make things worse, it
is very difficult to reuse these motion data. When the environment or the character changed, new motions
have to be redesigned manually. To save animator from these tedious manual works, many researchers are
trying to generate lifelike motions by simulating the dynamic effects between body, environment and the
neural control system.
In Biology, lots of researchers have been working on the secret of motions for centuries and discovered
some important motion features of live creatures:
Adaptive Natural motions are adaptive to the changes in the environment or body. For example, a human
being can easily adjust its gait according to different terrains.
Agile The reaction of human and most animals is very fast. Even in a complicated changing environment,
human can adapt their motions in real time.
Energy Efficient According to Darwin’s Theory of Evolution, a natural motion should be energy efficient.
Live creatures spent far less energy than we expected. An example is that the energy consumed by human
walking is only 10% of that for a robot of the same scale.
Features above are very difficult to achieve by current CMS methods. In this paper, we will bring in the
Qualitative Control Theory (QCT). From the viewpoint of QCT, a natural motion is in nature a structural
stable autonomous system. Adaptation to different environment or characters will be produced
automatically with very little control effort. All the above three natural motion features can be achieved from
our system. It especially suits repetitive and low energy motion tasks which are most challenging for current
researches. Besides, our approach is computational efficient and has the potential to be accelerated by GPU.
2.1 Dynamic Motion Synthesis and Control
Dynamic Motion Synthesis synthesizes character motion through simulating the mechanics of the body. The
most difficult task is to design system with functionality of biological neural systems. Early research applied
classical PD controllers; first for locomotion (Raibert and Hodgins, 1991), later for different tasks like
running, bicycling, vaulting and balancing (Hodgins et al., 1995). Limit Circle Control (LCC) (Laszlo et al.,
1996) provided an alternative method for lower energy locomotion. However both methods need predefined
motion trajectories and are not good at generating adaptive motions.
Because of large number of redundant DOFs, in most cases, motion solutions are not unique. Many
optimization methods have been applied to choose the “best” motion. A popular idea is to minimize the
energy cost , such that
is the active force generated by actuators like motors or muscles. This is introduced to CMS
research as the Spacetime Constraints (Witkin and Kass, 1988), and serves as the foundation for many
modern CMS researches. Jain et al. (2009) provided an example for locomotion; Macchietto et al. (2009)
found a method for balance maintaining movement. Liu (2009) proposed a method for object manipulating
The Spacetime method may adapt the motion. However it is in nature a variational optimization method
and faces several problems.
Efficiency In many cases, it will take long time to find the "best" solution and there is no guarantee the
optimal solution can be achieved. For complex body structures the computation will takes prohibitive long
time (Anderson and Pandy, 2001). Optimization techniques like time window and multi-grid techniques were
proposed by Cohen (1992) and Liu et al. (1994). Still only a few researches (Popović and Witkin, 1999)
proposed Spacetime Constraint for full body dynamic animation.
Sensitive and Over Specific Current numeric methods are very sensitive to model accuracy and initial
conditions. Precise model for both the environment and body have to be prebuilt. Liu (2005) points out that
spacetime constraint methods only suit high energy motions like jumping and running; for low energy motion
tasks like walking the results don’t look natural. This is mainly because the muscle effects are neglected.
Motions like heart beating, breathing, or motions of other animals such as the swimming of fish and jellyfish,
flying of birds have not been synthesized with dynamic methods, mainly for the lack of a feasible dynamic
2.2 Biological Research
In biological research, motor control is an age old problem full of paradoxes. Motor control in nature is a
complex process involving many chemical, electrical and mechanical effects. An immediate idea is Motor
Control will involve complicated computation. However, the characteristics of biological neural systems are
on the opposite (Glynn, 2003). Neural signal transmitting speed is very slow; and there is a long delay
between neural signal firing and force generation in muscles. Besides, the neural signals are also noisy. The
body structure and environment are nonlinear, noisy and time varying.
Current research evidences and common life experience show that motor control involves little control
effort. Many experiments show motion can happen even without brain input. Despite the complexity of body
structures and environment, the natural motor control strategy seems simple and involves very little
computational work. For many animals, the neural structure active in motor control is the Central Pattern
Generator (CPG) which generates rhythmic signals.
Many biological ideas provide space for an efficient motion adaptation. Uncontrolled Manifold
Hypothesis proposed that some DOFs are not controlled and freely influenced by the environment (Latash,
2008). The Equilibrium Point Hypothesis (EPH) suggested that what the neural systems controls is not
trajectory, but the final position. The Impedance Control Hypothesis (Hogan, 1985) refined the idea of
EPH by providing an explanation of the functionality of the extra DOFs. Extra DOFs provide a way to
control the stability and admittance of final position according to the motion purpose. Morphological
Computation Theory (Nishikawa et al., 2007; Pfeifer and Iida, 2005) believed that both the body structure
and the environment play a crucial role. Basic motion patterns are generated by body and environment; the
neural systems only maintain or tweak basic motion patterns.
Inspired by the biological research, in this paper we adopt a different strategy for motion adaptation.
Perturbations are allowed to freely affect the motion, and motion control is applied to maintain the qualitative
3.1 The Qualitative Control Theory
The Qualitative Control Theory is a mathematical description of the Morphological Computation Theory. In
qualitative control theory the basic patterns of motion are called motion primitive. We propose that in
mathematic viewport, motion primitives are structural stable autonomous systems.
3.1.1 Basic Concepts of Qualitative Dynamics
The configuration of system is described by state vector ,
is the state space which is a manifold, motion
is a trajectory
, which is usually represented by ordinary differential equation in the form (1).
where is the control effort.
is determined by the system’s natural property. If
, systems of no
control input are autonomous systems. For every point
and determines a derivative vector .
All the vectors over the full space of
form the vector field .
is the integral curve of , which is
defined as flow , all the flows form the phase portrait, which illustrates all the possible motions of the
dynamic system.
On the phase plane, flows only intersect at some special position, Fix Point
and Limit
, both of which are also called equlibria.
At each equilbria, the local space can be divided into three subspaces: centre manifold, stable
manifold, and unstable manifold. They divide the state space into different regions, result in a cellular
topological structure. In each region, all the flows converges to one attractor, the corresponding region is
called basin of attraction.
3.1.2 Motion Adaptation and Structural Stability
A mechanical system can be stable without any control effort. This kind of stability is rough stability or
structure stability (Andronov and Pontryagin, 1937) which is determined by the topology structure of the
system (Jonckheere, 1997). Motion adaptation can be modeled as homeomorphism. Homeomorphic flows
share the same topological structure, but with different shapes, which means motions are of different
trajectories but qualitatively the same. Structure stable autonomous systems maintain its topology structure
under perturbations, thus automatically generate adaptive motions that are qualitatively invariant. Qualitative
control will preserve the three natural motion features for the following reasons.
Adaptive Different perturbations will generate different motions.
Efficient Motion will be generated passively and follow the least energy path.
Agile Topological structure can be manipulated and maintained with very little computation.
In our research, only the final motion is concerned. In mathematical viewport, only the attractors of flows
are controlled, while the flow shape is not considered in motion control. According to the types of attractors,
motion can be categorized into two groups.
Discrete Motion Such motions have fix point attractors. Typical motions include posture control and picking
up motion of the arm.
Periodic Motion Such motion have periodic attractors, typical motion include walking, running and heart
3.2 The New Control Scheme from Qualitative Control Theory
An animal’s body and environment can be extremely complex. This usually leads to high dimensional
manifolds with complicated topological structure. Many have asked the same question whether such complex
system can be controlled with a simple method. Biology Research suggested that the motion is mainly
controlled by the Central Pattern Generator (CPG). The existence of CPG is very common, from primitive
animals like lamprey and fish, to high level animals like bird, mammal and human (Cohen, 1988). Motor
control by CPG can be modeled as entrainment (González-Miranda, 2004). Entrainment is the phenomenon
that two coupled oscillator systems synchronize. The phenomenon is universal, for some cases, stability can
be enhanced and chaotic behavior can be suppressed.
In this section, we will discuss a new control scheme based on biological entrainment. The neural system
forms one electrical oscillator; body and environment form the mechanical one. Mechanical oscillator can be
controlled by the oscillation property of the neural system through entrainment.
3.2.1 The Structural Stability of Neural Oscillator
Equation (2) is the extensively studied neural oscillation model developed by Matsuoka (1985).
where and are state variables, , , , are parameters of the oscillator.
Matsuoka oscillator is autonomous and adaptive; entrainments happen when it is coupled with different
oscillators. But because of the nonlinear properties, its behavior has not been completely understood.
Matsuota (Matsuoka, 1987) explained the adaptive properties by investigating location of the roots of
characteristic equation. Wilimas (Williamson, 1998) explained the properties in frequency domain.
Figure 1: Matsuta Oscillator
Figure 2: Passive Walker
Here we provide an idea based on structural stability analysis. The topology structure of neural oscillator
is simple; it includes one attractive limit circle and one repelling fix point. All the simulations we carried out
converged to the same limited circle. In most of the case, the flow will converge to the limit circle within one
period. Features above are shown in Figure 1.
These properties are very valuable in CMS research. An intuitive idea is that we can make the motion
structural stable by coupling body with Matsuoka Oscillator.
The basic idea of qualitative control for motion synthesis is boosting structural stability by coupling the
mechanical oscillator with neural oscillator. Our approach can be applied to many motion tasks. In this
section, we will discuss just one example in details, the bipedal walking. This is mainly because bipedal
walking is one of the most challenging and common locomotion styles. Bipedal walking is unstable which
makes it very difficult for adaptive gaits. While for artificial system, robust bipedal walking is difficult to
achieve. Many control method has been tried, but none of them shows comparable performance with human
In dynamic research, natural looking gaits can be generated by passive method (McGeer, 1990a, 1990b),
Passive walkers can walk down a slope without any effort, but the stabilities are very fragile.
From the Qualitative Control Theory, the reason behind passive walking is that there is a limit circle for
the dynamic interaction between body and ground. The fragile stability means the basin of attraction is small.
To generate adaptive walking gait, we plan to boost the stability of the passive walking machine by neural
oscillation entrainment.
4.1 2D Passive Walking Model
The mechanical model we adopted is illustrated in Figure 2. Passive walking is a hybrid dynamic system. We
separate the motion into two phases described by Equation (3, 4).
Leg Swing Phase During the swing phases, we suppose that one leg is fixed on the ground, the arc foot
makes the passive dynamic walker rolling without sliding (Wisse and Schwab, 2005).
Heel Strike Phase We suppose the heel strike the ground in a short time, the angular momentum is
preserved, as described by Equation(4) (Wisse and Schwab, 2005)
is the state variable after the collision,
is the state variable before the collision.
In the Equations (3, 4),
is the inertia matrix,
, is the constraint equation.
the constrained force, and is the constrained impulse.
4.2 Adaptive Walking Motion
The input of neural oscillator is defined by the difference angle between the two legs. Neural output will
drive the biped walker; torque is applied at the hip joint. After adding the neural control, the equation of the
dynamic system is as below.
Passive Walking When the passive walker walks down a slope, there is an equilibrium condition when the
heel strike energy lost is equal to the potential energy input. Because there is no extra control energy input,
such motion is the most energy efficient. Figure 3 shows the gait of the passive walker. After coupling the
neural oscillator, the basic pattern is not changed as shown in Figure 4.
Figure 3: Stable Passive Walking Gait
Figure 4: Walk down Slope with Neural Control
Walking On Plane However, the passive walker can’t walk on plane. The step size will decrease after each
step. Finally it will stop or fall over as illustrated in Figure 5.
After coupled with the neural oscillator, this walking machine can walk on plane, and exhibits gait similar to
the passive walker. Figure 6 shows the gait. From Figure 7(a) and Figure 7(b), we can see that the gait
converged to a stable limit circle.
Figure 5: Passive Gait Can’t be Maintained on Plane
Figure 6: Gait on Plane with Neural Control
Figure 7: Gait on Plane with Neural Control
To verify the structural stability, we introduce a variety of perturbations to the passive walker.
Different Initial Condition The original passive walker is not very stable. A slight change in initial
condition will result in walking failure. While after coupled with neural oscillator, a different initial condition
can still lead to a stable gait, as show in Figure 8. This means the basin of attraction has been enlarged.
Walking On Different Slopes Even walking down a steeper slope, stable gaits can still be maintained, as
shown in Figure 9. An important discovery is that although the walkers can walk down steeper slopes, it
cannot walk up slope, no matter how control parameters are tweaked. We think that this is mainly because
the proper limit circle does not exist anymore when walking up slope. Involving the upper body into this
structure may help to solve this problem.
Figure 8: Gait of a Different Initial Condition
Figure 9: Gait on a Different Slop
Leg Mass Variation Mass of one leg is added up to 150% and the gait is still maintained. The step length
and swing period of the two legs are different, this gait is similar to that with a crippled leg, see Figure 10.
Leg Length Variation Leg length is set to 1/8 shorter and the gait is maintained, see Figure 11 .
Figure 10. Gait of Different Leg Mass
Figure 11: Walking with shorter Legs
Qualitative Control Theory can synthesize motion with adaptive behavior while keeping the qualitative
properties. It provides a new method to synthesize adaptive motion efficiently. Since very little computation
involved in each controller, compared with traditional optimization based method, this method can generate
motions in real-time. And most importantly, our method is parallel in nature, in future; most of the
computational burden of our method can be shifted to GPU. This will make our algorithm generating agile
motions even with very complicated environment and involving whole body structures.
However since we bring in a new theory into the motion synthesis area, many works need to be done in
the future. For example, our current model only involves the lower body structure, upper body and more
joints will be considered in our future design. To proof the robustness, we will need experiment on more
complicate terrain and perturbations.
More Central Pattern Generators are needed for different kinds of motions. And how to turn the CPG
parameters for the animator purpose are still open. These topics will be covered in the future research.
We want to thank Richard Southern for the invaluable discussion and advice about organization of the paper.
The knowledge of mechanics and questions of Jian Chang also help to make the paper more clear.
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K. Nishikawa, A.A. Biewener, P. Aerts, A.N. Ahn, H.J. Chiel, M.A. Daley, T.L. Daniel, et al. Neuromechanics: an
integrative approach for understanding motor control. Integrative and Comparative Biology, 2007.
R. Pfeifer and F. Iida. Morphological computation: Connecting body, brain and environment. Japanese Scientific
Monthly, 58 (2): 48–54, 2005.
Zoran Popović and Andrew Witkin. Physically based motion transformation. In SIGGRAPH ’99: Proceedings of the 26th
annual conference on Computer graphics and interactive techniques, pages 11–20, New York, NY, USA, 1999. ACM
Press/Addison-Wesley Publishing Co. ISBN 0-201-48560-5. http://doi.acm.org/10.1145/311535.311536.
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(4): 349–358, 1991.
M.M. Williamson. Exploiting natural dynamics in robot control, 1998.
M. Wisse and A.L. Schwab. First steps in passive dynamic walking. In Proceedings of the International Conference on
Climbing and Walking Robots. Springer, 2005.
Andrew Witkin and Michael Kass. Spacetime constraints. In SIGGRAPH ’88: Proceedings of the 15th annual conference
on Computer graphics and interactive techniques, pages 159–168, New York, NY, USA, 1988. ACM. ISBN 0-89791275-6. http://doi.acm.org/10.1145/54852.378507.


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A Modest Proposal

A Modest Proposal

Throughout the celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, a question rankled: what will happen to the monarchy when Queen Elizabeth passes away? Before I humbly outline a solution that, in my belief, would command near-ubiquitous support, let us examine the problem.

The jubilee demonstrated that, by and large, the people of this country love their monarch, but perhaps feel more ambivalent about the institution of the monarchy. Splurging on pageantry during a cost-of-living crisis struck many as inappropriate. As the bunting came down, many were left wondering whether revenue from the Crown Estate might be better spent on families who don’t privately own an estate in Norfolk and a castle in Scotland.

The recent outpouring of love for the Queen threw into relief the lack of popular support for her progeny. Polls suggest that only about half the population view Prince Charles favourably and the controversy surrounding the Duke of York (as well as the tittle-tattle that surrounds much of the rest of the family) threatens to tarnish the crown, and by extension the standing of the country.

All in all, there is a sense that the institution of the monarchy is in need of a shake-up, but that to abolish it entirely would be going too far. People like some of the traditions and aesthetics of royalty, and recognise their value to the tourist trade. In addition, finding an alternative head of state would be fraught with difficulty: an elected president, even if ceremonial in function, would be divisive, and diminish the dignity with which the royal family are able (in theory at least) to invest the role.

But there is an alternative that maintains the dignity of the monarchy and fulfils the constitutional requirements of the role, while simultaneously avoiding the pitfalls of the alternatives. There is clearly a degree of hunger for the trappings of royalty to be maintained and my proposal wouldn’t just maintain the spectacle of royalty, but would in fact increase it.

The answer, I suggest, is to install a dog on the throne. Crowning a dog (or indeed a bitch) would address many of the shortcomings with the current system, as well as bringing benefits from a constitutional perspective.

Firstly, and perhaps most importantly, a dog would be a universally popular monarch. The Queen might be widely liked, but the next in line are less well-loved. Dogs, by contrast, are perennial favourites of the British people.

Those that wish for a degree of democratic accountability in the process could be easily placated if we give the public a vote on the breed. In honour of the final human queen of England, it’s likely that the first canine monarch would be a corgi. Given their lifespan, though, there’d be another referendum within a dozen years or so.

The increased incidence of coronations and royal funerals would bring a more regular boost to tourism, as would the enhanced opportunities to see the monarch. Buckingham Palace can be opened to visitors, who could then watch the current king or queen frolicking in the gardens.

The constitutional requirements on the royal family are onerous for humans, but would be easy for a dog. For instance, the necessity of remaining politically neutral is second nature and there would be no possibility of a dog attempting to secure exemptions from inconvenient laws.

The aesthetics of a dog-king would also be superior to the current arrangement. Imagine a fox hound in silhouette on the stamps and bank notes. With allowance made for bowel movements, there’s no reason why replacing the current royal family with dogs would involve a diminishment of the dignity of the office.

The Queen is the ‘defender of the faith’, but what could be more faithful than a dog? And they certainly have a better track record of faithfulness than either of the next two currently in line to the throne. Considering the controversies that have engulfed the royal family in recent years, it is hard not to conclude that much embarrassment would have been avoided if it was common practice for them to be neutered.

One of the chief arguments for the abolition of the monarchy is that the current arrangements are expensive. A dog would put much less pressure on the public purse, even accounting for the costs of regular grooming.

There are only a few occasions in which the monarch is called upon to participate directly in the political process. The granting of royal assent to establish a new law is a formality, and a paw print would do just as well as a signature. The state opening of Parliament might, ostensibly, be trickier, but there is precedence for the speech to be read by the Lord Chancellor in the absence of the monarch and the regal hound could be encouraged to mark the occasion with a bark. The tradition of the monarch’s weekly audience with the Prime Minister would still occur and perhaps provide some mental health benefits for whoever is leading the government: a chance for them to unwind and get some exercise by taking the head of state for a walk.

I present this solution to the people of the United Kingdom in all sincerity and good faith. I have no personal interest in the enthronement of a dog, but rather see it as the only alternative to the present arrangement that has the power to unite this kingdom for generations to come.

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Pumpkin Is a Fruit

Pumpkin Is a Fruit, Why Not a Vegetable?

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Do you like gardening and growing vegetables? This time we will learn about pumpkins and know more about pumpkins. Is pumpkin included in gourds or categorized into a squash. The biggest question is why pumpkins are called fruit and are not said to be vegetables. In addition, we will also explain its health benefits.

If you often play with pumpkins, you may chew it and form a variety. Have you ever asked, whether pumpkin is a fruit because it contains seeds or not fruit because it is always cooked as a vegetable? Based on the fact, it turns out that pumpkin is not a vegetable at all but is a fruit.

Let Us Know What Are Pumpkins?

There are three types of plants that are almost the same, these are pumpkins, squash, and gourds. They belong to the “Cucurbitaceae” family, said missouribotanicalgarden.org. The family of this plant is not only three, but the species can also reach 900, including pumpkins, watermelons, even cucumbers. Pumpkin is also called winter squash. This is different from summer squash which has soft skin like zucchini. Well, this pumpkin in America is also called pumpkin.

Why Pumpkins Are Fruit

As we know above, pumpkin is squash, and is also called gourds, but is this called fruit or vegetable? This is the big question that we must answer now. To answer this, we must know the fruit definition first. The fruit is “usually edible reproductive body of a seed plant.” Pumpkin is something that is eaten. If you split the pumpkin into two parts, of course, you will see inside it consists of seeds. So, pumpkin is a fruit not a vegetable, it grows from creeping plants on other plants or on twigs.

is Pumpkin Is a Fruit

Are All Squash and Gourds Fruit?

Well, if we refer to the definition above, we know that all types of squash are fruit. In this article, we already know that squash is fruit and if you already say that squash is your favorite vegetable, maybe you need to review and understand this article.

About Pumpkin Nutrition

Pumpkin is a great source of fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C. It’s up to you to call, the pumpkin or not. This is a source of nutrition that is very good for health. The 49 calories can be obtained from a cup of fine/smooth shake pumpkin, this also contains fiber as much as 2.7 grams, certainly very good for keeping your stomach full. A small portion of fine pumpkin also contains vitamin A as much as 245% of what is recommended every day. While other nutrients are: Vitamin C 19%, potassium 16%, and contain magnesium as much as 11%.

So, based on the explanation above we know that pumpkin is called fruit because it contains seeds in it. This fruit from squash is very good if added in clear vegetables. You don’t just eat pumpkin, but the seeds are also delicious and delicious food. For the size of one and a half cups, roasted pumpkin seeds contain 17 grams of protein.


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Starting with Why is an inspiring book written by Simon Sinek. The primary purpose of writing this book was to empower her people to do what they want or want. Basically, Sinek reflects on the theme of Ted Talk; so many professionals have been inspired by this book.
Sinek speaks about how most politicians just claim what they do, the programs, or even items that add to the revenue. Some of them would also speak about how and how they use the process. Rarely do most politicians talk about WHY. Sinek concludes that when we start with WHY in everything we do action is inspired WHY always engage one’s emotions on the other hand WHAT will engage ones logical brain. Sinek argues that when we sell our WHAT we focus on prices to manipulate us while we attract customers in the business to believe in our WHY it builds trust and loyalty.

In the process of uncovering you’re why there are steps, one needs to follow. First look backward and focus on your initial motive of starting something. What particular problems do you want to solve and also the importance of solving that problem? This basically, means identification of the change you want to make. Secondly look outwards, this includes talking to friends or customers and wanting to know why it is they buy from you or even asks friends reasons for them wanting to be close to you. Once they understand that you are not insecure then their answers should be able to show you what an insight of progress or fail. Lastly look outwards this involves having a bigger vision that what you already have. Whatever vision one has for the future need to be inspirational, Therefore one needs to know what it is that drives them, what keeps them going. When someone communicates and focuses on why they are directly talking about that particular part of the brain that makes decisions. This particular part of the brain is called the limbic brain and the neocortex allows one to make decisions. The limbic brains often do not have language capability and it is, therefore, difficult to explain true feelings. When one makes a decision that seems right to them it’s so difficult to explain why they made that particular decision. The limbic part of our brain is a powerful one and it often drives one’s behaviors. You have to be so clear about Why you do what you do so that you are able to inspire others. After why then you can focus on the how you will do it. How allows you to hire right people and choose the right partners. Basically how is often a belief and how describes the actions you take to achieve your belief. The results of the actions will now be the products, marketing, Pr, services culture. Therefore why will give professionals and people something to believe in and this is what bring out champions in businesses.

Sinek in the book Start with Why mentions about a certain Samuel Pierpont, he was working on a project of inventing the airplane. This guy had a great goal but the problem is that he lacked a why. His purposes for building that plane were based on what. His main aim was fame and wealth like the one accorded to Graham Bell or Thomas Edison. On the Contrary, the Wright brothers Orville and Wilbur knew why they wanted to have a plane and their main aim was to change the world if only they knew how to make the plane work. They never had the resources and funds as Samuel Pierpont had. The Wright brothers had something that others could believe in and this made them have many people join and offer assistance to them, The brothers inspired and manipulated their followers and although they came late into the game they were able to emerge the winners. It is, therefore, necessary to have a Why in by our endeavors and this will make people believe in you and what you are doing. Sinek says that this is the core idea for success. It is evident that for one to become a great leader they must be in a position to inspire and come up with great ideas. They are always creating spaces for the ideas to happen and create the conducive environment for each and everyone.

Innovators for example always give us the challenge to see the world in a different way. They create a lot and great ideas and ignore imperfections. This is because they see potential in innovations that they make. After reading the book Start with why this has had a great impact on the way I do things. I first aim at knowing or why I am doing the particular thing. For example, in school, I first identify why I am in school. After identifying this then there is something to believe in for I have a goal that I want to achieve and I knower the reason I should achieve that particular goal. For someone to be a great leader and not only a leader but an inspirational leader then one should have a reason for doing something. For instance one should know why they want to be a leader, what are they aimed at. If there is a problem they want to solve then they should have the reason why they want to solve that particular problem. When one starts with why then it will be much easier for them to acquire whatever it is that they want.

In conclusion, a great leader should be in a position to create an impact and gather a lot of loyalty. Other people need to gain publicity and have a belief in you and whatever you are doing, the purpose and cause. This more of having a great vision that attracts great people and professionals, the vision will appear to be the public statement and many will focus on tit and gain believe out of the vision. For a company vision shows why a company exists, many companies collapse because they lack a vision and there fire the people they are supposed to serve lack confidence in them. The vision statement in accompanying is supposed to show the way forward and create guiding principles that are supposed to be followed. This book has in a great way improved a way of thinking and conducting of things. It has enabled one to think and come up with great ideas and methods of doing things. It has also created ways for innovation and leaders have been greatly inspired. Leaders need to have all these aspects to be great and create inspiration.

Simon Sinek Starts With Why 2002

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Protecting the “Breathing Lands”

Northern Ontario’s evocatively named Ring of Fire — upstream of the traditional territory of the seven First Nations forming the Mushkegowuk Council — is a hotbed of mineral deposits. But that’s not all this area is sitting on.

The overlapping Hudson and James Bay Lowlands are pockmarked by peatlands which are an incredibly dense and globally significant carbon storage site containing billions and billions of tonnes.

So, what happens if you disturb that peatland laid down over tens of thousands of years?

WWF-Canada is supporting the Mushkegowuk Council’s call for development moratorium on mining and industrial roads while the necessary baseline information is being gathered. We’re working with the Council to measure how much carbon in stored in their peatlands and determine the actions to ensure long term stewardship. We spoke to James Snider, VP of our Science, Knowledge and Innovation team, to find out more about this peat-inspired partnership.

Aerial view of the landscape typical of the Hudson Bay Lowlands, Ontario, Canada
© K. Rühland

What makes this region so special?

The traditional territory of the Mushkegowuk Cree extends from subarctic permafrost in the north, where there are polar bears, all the way to boreal forest in the south, where you’ll find species like wolverine, caribou and lynx.

But in the middle is a swath of peatlands, one of the largest networks in the world, and they store thousands of years of accumulated carbon. This vast complex of wetlands and coastal areas are also a globally important habitat for birds, from local Palm Warblers and loons to a whole host of migrating waterfowl and shorebirds.

It’s an area of importance in terms of climate change mitigation, it has tremendous biological and ecological value and, of course, it is home to Indigenous peoples who have been stewarding these lands, also for thousands of years.

Why is peat so important for climate?

Peatlands are a type of wetland — we often say peat bogs — so you have very slow decomposition of the vegetation and it can go down 10 to 15 feet deep. Globally, they hold almost twice as much carbon as forests, and about a quarter of the world’s remaining peatlands are here in Canada.

The important point is that they’ve accumulated all this carbon and it’s sitting in place. It’s crucial that we keep these ecosystems intact and not make the climate crisis even worse by releasing this absolutely massive amount of stored carbon into the atmosphere.

How did the partnership come about?

We’ve been working with the Council for about a year on a joint effort to measure and monitor the carbon stored in the peatlands. The goal is to better understand potential impacts of development on that carbon, and how the Mushkegowuk people can best continue stewarding this territory through land-use planning and tools like Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas. Together, we’re working to create new resources and materials that can answer these questions and, in turn, be used to inform future decision-making.

What’s next?

To bring together our scientific research approach and Indigenous knowledge systems, we’ve been doing a series of virtual knowledge exchanges with Elders in the Mushkegowuk communities. That’s allowing us to hear directly from the Elders about their relationship with the land and their understanding of these high-carbon areas — in Cree, they’re called the “breathing lands.”

These exchanges will also drive the design of the field sampling that we’ll do this summer. With researchers at the Remote Sensing Lab at McMaster University, we’re putting together training and guidance for a monitoring project that, given COVID restrictions, may be entirely community-run.


Building Resiliency: A New US Approach to East Asia

  • Published
  • By Maj Jason Giroux, USAF

The United States faces headwinds from several directions in East Asia: a rising global power in China, a declining Japan, instability on the Korean Peninsula, and complex human security issues in Southeast Asia. These challenges do not have clear solutions, and current US strategies that vacillate between maintaining liberal hegemony and retrenchment have so far been ineffective. Specifically, the United States has failed to cultivate the relational and liberal aspects of its regional alliances, instead focusing on building a military counterweight to China. This approach has resulted in a series of bilateral alliances with East Asian nations that work with the United States on specific security issues but not with each other to advance regional solutions. This article offers key steps the United States should take to ensure a stable and prosperous region.

In its long-standing post–World War II role as a superpower, the United States faces an unprecedented challenge in East Asia. Unlike during the Cold War, the region is not neatly divided into two ideological camps. Instead, it is a complex mix of national identity issues, economic integration, and power standoffs. East Asians’ desire for national autonomy means that they will tend not to cooperate based on shared values but will instead prefer to cooperate with major powers in areas of shared interests.1 This reality does not fit neatly into American desires for a liberal world order, leaving the United States to pursue more limited—yet attainable—policy goals. Simply recycling the Cold War policy of containment will only exacerbate the security challenge, as China possesses a military, economy, and national will to break such containment attempts.

The concept of societal resilience must underpin US strategy toward East Asia, as strengthening allies’ and partners’ societies provides the best method for constraining China’s aggressive activities. The current US focus on Chinese capabilities has resulted in a misguided approach to the region. Although pragmatic and continual engagement in the economic sphere is important, the United States must improve its efforts to advance core liberal principles. An expansive diplomatic and information campaign to move Asian nations beyond ethnic-based nationalism toward a civic identity based on equality and pluralism among key allies will help produce a more resilient region. A new US approach should also recognize human security threats as equally destabilizing as traditional military conflicts. The US military must complement this “liberal push” with regional military capabilities that emphasize a defensive and flexible posture that rapidly collects and shares information, employs more law enforcement forces, and takes advantage of long-range strike capabilities to both deter and counter Chinese activities.

Shifting US Focus from China to Partners

The US preoccupation with Chinese military capabilities continues to obfuscate a more holistic approach to East Asian security and has consequently resulted in a national strategy that does not align with core American values. Much of the current discussion on China revolves around its transitional power status and the subsequent security implications—namely, whether this transition will be violent or peaceful.2 America and its partners are concerned with how China is using its power to realign the existing order to support its own interests.3 Traditional notions of power and influence such as the size of China’s military and economy underpin these concerns and the assessments that inform them.

Realistically, there is little the United States can do to stop China’s increasing power in these areas short of a shooting or economic war. It has instead tried to create a network of alliances that will help it push back against Chinese expansion; however, East Asian geopolitical realities make this an unreliable strategy.

A US emphasis on its partners’ resiliency has two primary benefits. First, it focuses on nations that are already amenable to US influence. Second, it recognizes that resiliency across all forms of security threats will shape regional and international power dynamics.4 Historical examples of Germany’s rise under Bismarck or the United States overtaking Great Britain in the twentieth century help to shape the current understanding of security issues associated with a rising China, but today’s complex threats lack easy historical precedents.5 Instead, a region that begins to address societal tensions and complex human security issues that cross borders will provide the best defense against both China and nontraditional threats such as overfishing and climate change. A key challenge for the United States will be to measure its partners’ progress in terms of overall national resilience rather than simply how they compare to China in traditional forms of power.

Limits of Economic Power to Change Regional Dynamics

This article will include only a brief discussion on using economic power to increase resiliency. This is not to suggest that economic issues are not important for resiliency; rather, the size of China’s economy and existing multilateral economic agreements limit the United States’ ability to achieve meaningful influence on traditional trade issues, with the result that there are more opportunities to be had in the diplomatic, information, capacity-building, and military realms. American power in East Asia must contend with China’s economic clout, insofar as it will continue to grow as the dominant economic actor. The large democracies of Japan, Australia, and South Korea trade more with China than they do with the United States.6 This situation presents a predicament for increasing resiliency within the region, because increased dependency on China for economic progress makes Asian nations more vulnerable to an authoritarian regime even though an open Chinese market helps increase regional wealth, leading to increased stability within societies. To date, East Asia has tried to balance these issues through multinational agreements that respect national sovereignty while opening trade markets.7

America’s approach to international economic agreements has typically been at odds with East Asia’s desire for national autonomy. Its liberal approach emphasizes good governance through Western-led institutions such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.8 The region tends to view these institutions with suspicion due to the widespread belief that they exist to advance US priorities.9 East Asia is connected via a dense series of economic agreements that tend to reflect the region’s preference for state-to-state agreements centered around free trade and bilateral dealings.10 Besides states such as North Korea and Cambodia, which have become highly dependent on Chinese assistance, this system has produced a fairly stable region that has benefited many of the participants.11 The United States has largely participated in this system, but its promotion of multinational corporations, free flows of capital, and market deregulation is at odds with the region’s emphasis on sovereignty even in the economic sphere. Thus, this Western strategy’s success in Europe is unlikely to be repeated in East Asia.

In short: The United States can more fully participate in the East Asian system to provide an alternative option to China, especially in Southeast Asia, but China’s economic size does pose real limits. Additionally, if the United States is to focus on building up regional resilience, it is uniquely suited toward helping to reduce intersocietal tensions among its partners and strengthening their security capabilities.

Reducing Intersocietal Tensions in Northeast Asia: Japan’s Wartime Past

Japan and South Korea are two of the United States’ most important regional military, economic, and societal allies. However, Japan’s historical relationship and societal tensions with South Korea pose a significant challenge to security cooperation in Northeast Asia. Japan’s unwillingness to adequately address its wartime past on issues such as Korean comfort women, mass atrocities, and present-day Yasukuni Shrine visits, combined with South Korea’s increasingly nationalist desires for Japanese repentance on South Korean terms, represent sources of significant tensions between the region’s leading democracies.12 The Yasukuni Shrine, built to commemorate those who died in Japan’s wars, exemplifies Japan’s and South Korea’s contentious wartime past. Visits to the shrine by various Japanese leaders, particularly since the enshrinement of 14 Class A war criminals in 1978, has received heavy criticism from South Korea.13 Whereas Japanese leaders view these visits as paying respect to their wartime dead, both South Korea and China see them as glorifying Japan’s militaristic past.14 These societal issues prevent the United States from presenting a united democratic approach to security issues with China. Therefore, the United States should exert maximum diplomatic and informational efforts to help reduce intersocietal tensions between its allies. While this effort is exceedingly complex, the United States should first work to improve this situation by strengthening domestic Japanese civil society.

The United States can support Japanese civil society and its engagement with South Korea through concerted state-level diplomatic, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and academic engagements. Engagements at the civic society level are necessary as official Japanese–South Korean talks have repeatedly failed in practice.15 Although US and Japanese NGOs and academic efforts to help overcome these issues will be slow and uneven, they hold the only real hope for progress, as nongovernmental dialogue may be able to avoid the national spotlight and work below the media’s radar.16 Additionally, the US government can put back-channel pressure on conservative Japanese officials not to undermine these efforts in exchange for potential US concessions on issues such as US basing and greater Japanese autonomy within the alliance. This process will also be hindered by the continual decline in NGO activity between the United States and Japan.17 The United States should work to rebuild these relationships and encourage funding and support for these efforts from a variety of sources: US and Japanese private donors, academic institutions, and business organizations. If successful, a common societal understanding of Japan’s wartime role will help build a more resilient society that will avoid promoting extremist elites and politicians while laying the groundwork for reconciliation with South Korea.

The United States can also promote this reconciliation by giving Japan more flexibility to chart its own path within the US-Japanese alliance and give power to a broader set of voices within Japanese society. The United States should not simply support Shinzo Abe–type nationalists for their military support, as America has to deal with a Japanese public that has serious concerns with the current US basing structure and the belief that US intentions are more about staging its own forces rather than defending Japan.18 Rather, it should also maintain ties with what Richard Samuels has dubbed “middle power internationalists.” These internationalists want to better balance Japan’s relationship between America and its Asian neighbors, and they tend to posit that Japan should derive security policy legitimacy from international institutions and a “balanced” approach to China’s rise that goes beyond the lens of military threats.19 This part of Japanese civil society more closely aligns with America’s liberal values than promilitary conservative elements. America’s force presence on Okinawa is a contentious issue that provides the United States an opportunity to support a broader set of Japanese factions.

To make its posture more sustainable as well as to create better relations with all of Japan’s domestic sociopolitical factions, the United States should seriously consider reducing its force presence on Okinawa to communicate its commitment to building a new relationship with Japan. The United States could demonstrate its commitment to bolstering Japanese civil society by finding a permanent solution to the Okinawa basing issue. This issue has caused turmoil for the US–Japan alliance and for Tokyo’s relationship with Okinawa’s inhabitants.

Okinawan civic instability has roots in Japan’s imperial past in that it was annexed in 1872 and has a distinct identity, is geographically remote from Tokyo, and contains most of the US bases in Japan.20 A reduction in US forces would show Okinawans that they have a meaningful say over their territory and that the United States and Tokyo can be responsive to their demands. Although the United States has typically been resistant to this idea due to operational concerns, it can take advantage of its increasing capabilities in unmanned platforms, long-range strikes, and intratheater tactical airlifts to scale down its Okinawa presence and diversify its force presence.21 US flexibility on this issue would demonstrate a strong commitment to its liberal values while also respecting those elite elements in Japanese society that desire more autonomy in the alliance for purposes of integrating more strongly with Asia. Specifically, these elements desire the flexibility to engage and balance Asian nations outside of the confines of its US alliance.22 The United States may have to accept a Japan that values international institutions and trading relationships more than military capabilities, which may convince Japan’s neighbors that it is not seeking to be a great power.23 This would help strengthen the alliance over the long term by promoting and emphasizing shared liberal values in addition to military concerns.

The United States should advocate for these changes, because if Japan remains a society divided about its international role, then the United States cannot effectively work with Japan and South Korea on a unified approach to regional security issues. This is crucial for stability due to China’s increasing power and its mutual animosity with Japan.

To be clear, this policy prescription is not based on a rosy assessment of Chinese practices or motives. The Chinese Communist Party has promoted an anti-Japanese narrative and supported demonstrations against Japanese activities.24 China’s national identity is deeply entrenched in its victimhood status within Japan’s imperial history.25 This deep-seated Chinese identity, combined with current geopolitical rivalry on questions such as the status of the Senkaku Islands, make a Japan–China diplomatic breakthrough highly unlikely.

Nonetheless, the United States’ near-term focus in greater Asia should remain on Japan and South Korea, because it is these two powers that can provide an effective hedge against China—if, that is, the two countries can extend their domestic democratic values to their international relationship. If unsuccessful in bridging relations based on a more common historical understanding, South Korea may gradually align with Chinese interests on security issues including a nuclear North Korea and Japan’s role in Asian security affairs.26 The United States must change its strategy in Northeast Asia to build a resilient and healthy Japanese society that can establish meaningful ties with South Korea and develop as an Asian power that does not cause security concerns for the region.

Human Security in Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia poses a unique challenge for any American strategy because it comprises a diverse group of nations that faces complex developmental challenges. Alongside the traditional security threat posed by China, Southeast Asia is a subregion that bears the weight of significant human security threats. Climate change is intensifying the severity of natural disasters, while illegal fishing threatens the sustainability of the region’s fish diets and ocean ecosystem.27 The United States should therefore increase its soft power influence in the subregion by helping to combat these threats. It should promote multilateral solutions in conjunction with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN); in fact, ASEAN provides the entry point into Southeast Asian geopolitics and is the forum through which outside powers can engage the region.

The challenge for the United States is that China’s soft power is gaining influence in Southeast Asia and that Southeast Asian domestic issues preclude individual nations from taking a side on US versus Chinese security issues. America’s economic withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership and its focus on domestic initiatives have enhanced China’s influence and resulted in a non-antagonistic approach by ASEAN to Chinese activities in the South China Sea.28 ASEAN’s perception that the United States is not as interested as China in Southeast Asian economic and political issues has resulted in declining US influence.29 Additionally, the US tendency to view every issue in terms of its strategic competition with China underappreciates the geopolitical realties of Southeast Asia. The island and peninsula geography allows the nations there to avoid being consumed culturally, economically, or militarily by larger powers, yet they can also experience domestic turmoil caused by transnational economic integration and “contested national identities” among various ethnic groups.30 These nations emphasize political autonomy and noninterventionist principles, relying on agile diplomacy to cooperate in areas of overlapping interests rather than permanently aligning with any major power.31 Consequently, the United States needs to partner with ASEAN on regionwide threats to maintain influence within the bloc.

A US pledge to help Southeast Asia deal with the impacts of climate change, illegal fishing, and all kinds of illicit trafficking will demonstrate to the subregion that the United States can address more than just traditional security threats. A multilateral approach through ASEAN would also demonstrate that the United States respects the position ASEAN occupies between two great powers. Both the United States and China can lead the way in reducing causes of climate change while also helping to provide technologies and capabilities that can respond to natural disasters. Climate change solutions can avoid nationalist pushback because they do not have origins in contested issues such as ethnicity, national identity, and past imperialism. Rather, nations broadly recognize climate change as a threat that requires transnational solutions.

China is a major cause of the region’s illegal fishing problem, which has greater connections to regional territorial disputes.32 Additionally, fishing disputes exist between many of the subregion’s states.33 This politically fraught issue provides the United States an opportunity to show that it is a responsible actor that respects ASEAN strategic concerns, and, because it is not a party to the problem, it can help mediate the dispute. Even if progress is slow or uneven, the United States could be seen as a responsible and important actor in ASEAN issues beyond traditional military disputes. These steps can help increase US soft power and positively affect its relationship with individual ASEAN states, which may influence future economic agreements, security partnerships, and political support for US positions.

US Military Posture to Reinforce Regional Resiliency

Although the centerpiece of any US strategy should focus on liberal norms of multinational collaboration and intersocietal (e.g., Japan–South Korea) understanding, China’s military buildup requires a US force posture that aligns with its liberal values while also providing a strong deterrent. Additionally, any force posture and contingency planning efforts must also account for regional preferences of noninterference and skepticism of collective security missions. Specifically, the United States should drop any notion of a NATO-like structure in East Asia that will collectively respond to China across a range of activities.

East Asian Geopolitical Realities

Japanese society is broadly skeptical of collective security missions, and South Korea views its military alliance with the United States as solely focused on peninsular issues.34 Southeast Asian nations, especially those that maintain a maritime buffer with larger powers, are unwilling to align permanently with major powers or give up national prerogatives in pursuit of multilateral security arrangements.35 For example, Malaysia has been deepening its bilateral military ties with the United States due to Chinese activities yet has not promised any support to a crisis not involving Malaysia.36 This challenges US military planning efforts because the United States will have to help develop regional military capabilities that will be useful in a crisis yet do not automatically commit small and middle powers to getting involved in a China crisis.

East Asian middle and small powers’ lack of desire to fully commit to US efforts to counterbalance and contain China greatly complicates US military planning efforts. Asian powers typically pursue regional economic cooperation while also maintaining credible power projection capabilities.37 They tend to use these capabilities to balance their interests among the great powers and do not see military conflict as beneficial in a globalized world.38 This stands in contrast to the US military that values military capabilities for their deterrent effects but also perceives benefits in employing them. The US military views basing rights, logistical support agreements, intelligence sharing, and combat power integration as providing a deterrent and yet expects them to be available during military operations.

This mismatch in strategic culture requires the United States to develop partnered capabilities that align with East Asian nations’ propensity to balance their interests between the United States and China, respect national autonomy, and help individual economies while still creating shared regional capabilities that can be beneficial during a conflict. Domain awareness facilitated by space capabilities provides a good start.

Domain Awareness from Space

Today’s world is an information contest, and this is true across all forms of national power. A nation’s ability to collect data and rapidly turn it into useful information supports diplomatic, economic, and military power. Therefore, the US military should focus on establishing regional domain awareness capabilities through increased space assets; space capabilities match the geopolitical complexities of East Asia because of their inherent flexibility. Focusing on domain awareness provides East Asian nations their desired flexibility, as this capability is a less threatening form of power but still supports economic development, humanitarian responses, military power projection, and leadership decision-making.

Asian powers’ concerns are vast and include military operations by other nations in the maritime and air domains, significant weather events, and illicit economic activities such as illegal fishing and wildlife trafficking by China.39 Domain awareness can therefore also support crisis responses and military operations if deterrence fails. Using space assets incentivizes regional cooperation because those assets operate in the “global commons” and are at the forefront of technical progress.

Space assets are best suited to overcoming inherent challenges in domain awareness across East Asia’s vast geography because they possess the speed, range, and permanence not available to other forms of military and commercial capabilities. Additionally, space access does not pose the same political challenges as other domains. A network of imaging and sensing satellites in low-earth orbit could provide nations the ability to accurately find, identify, and track both commercial and military activities, thereby providing a foundation to curb illicit activities or to deter nefarious nation-state activities that try to operate undetected.40 These capabilities have become much more cost-effective thanks to advances in commercial launch technology and payload size, which have provided robust space sensing capabilities to entities beyond great powers.41 The dual-use nature of space power is an important factor for incentivizing East Asian states to increase their space capabilities. The same assets that can alert nations to a Chinese troop buildup or fishing flotilla could also support construction projects or disaster management. The United States is well-positioned to help Asian partners, as it has the most experience with building and using these technologies.

Space assets provide a unique partnering opportunity for the United States even though many East Asian powers tend to avoid aligning too closely with any single nation. The physical characteristics of space power make it less threatening than other assets that can contribute to domain awareness. Nations legally accept that national boundaries do not extend into space. A space intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) asset, especially one with commercial origins, does not possess the political sensitivities of a naval or air collection asset operating just outside 12 nautical miles of a nation’s borders. Military activities are a significant cause of many of the disputes in the East and South China seas; therefore, reducing naval and air intelligence platforms can help reduce tensions. Nations can then use space to more openly employ intelligence assets. Ideally, the United States would complement these efforts with a regional data-sharing network, but even if domestic situations prevent that, allies and partners that make better-informed decisions still benefit the United States. If partners employ space technologies on a consistent basis, the sharing capability could be scaled up in a crisis. This would create a more resilient region better able to understand and react to Chinese activities, providing flexibility as part of a national or multinational response.

Law Enforcement and Security Capabilities

Domain awareness is necessary for building regional resilience, but it is not sufficient. Chinese activities in the East and South China Seas have resulted in multiple territorial crises in the twentieth century. The United States and its allies have been slow to counter these provocations because US blue-water warships are insufficient to respond to increasing Chinese fishing or activist behaviors and because many smaller powers do not typically possess the necessary capabilities to effectively respond. The United States and its partners require maritime law enforcement capabilities that can respond to Chinese gray-zone provocations without immediately becoming a military confrontation. Aided by robust domain awareness, the United States and its partners could better counter Chinese gray-zone activities by utilizing rapid response forces that are trained in maritime law enforcement and low-level security operations.

Japan provides the most prominent example of building law enforcement capabilities for dealing with the complexities of East Asian maritime issues. It has significantly increased the size and scope of its Coast Guard to project influence without appearing to be destabilizing as a traditional military buildup.42 The Japanese Coast Guard was involved in firefights with North Korean vessels in 2001 and was at the center of the 2004 and 2010 Senkaku crises with China.43 It proved to be important in these situations despite still causing international crises. It was better suited than larger navy warships to respond to Chinese activists landing on the Senkakus and illegal activities by Chinese fishing trawlers. China’s ability to advance its sea claims via these gray-zone methods requires a law enforcement capability that can deal with provocations without immediately escalating to a larger military standoff.

The United States should make extensive use of a forward-deployed Coast Guard presence to conduct patrols with regional partners and should also aid in developing allied capabilities. It is counterproductive for the United States and its allies to respond to Chinese Coast Guard and fishing fleet activities with advanced US Navy assets, as this misuses critical power projection capabilities for law enforcement activities while also helping to create a Chinese narrative of a belligerent US Navy. Although these capabilities would not address underlying legal issues stemming from the United Nations Law of the Sea and China’s maritime claims, they can help defuse local crises.44 The multiple rounds of crises surrounding the Senkakus also showed that political engagement and dialogue are key ingredients to keeping a crisis under control, but these disputes were aided by the fact that engagements were not happening between military vessels.45 Future disputes will continue in East Asian waters, and law enforcement capabilities with personnel trained in the complexities of these operations provide a more effective response than military options. This being said, China’s traditional military threat is significant, and the threat of conventional military power must continue to support US and partner interests.

Survivability and Long-Range Strike

Advanced forms of conventional capabilities remain paramount even though this analysis has been on softer forms of military power. Advanced Chinese capabilities necessitate that the US military put resilience at the center of its force posture. The US military must be highly responsive to changing situations and be able to operate while under attack in multiple domains. This article will not identify every aspect of what the US military needs to change; rather, it will focus on key capabilities that can be successful considering the geopolitical realities of East Asia.

East Asian states’ desire for national autonomy and their unwillingness to fully commit to the United States on all military issues should force the United States to rethink its force posture. Security cooperation such as mutual intelligence support, basing rights, and partnered operations will likely be limited to the few select countries that are involved in a crisis. The United States should not expect a broad coalition that actively participates in a counter-China operation. US troops in the region, such as those in South Korea, may be able to leave their locations to participate in operations but will be unlikely to come back for maintenance and resupply.46 Regional powers will not want to get involved in a China scenario unless it directly threatens their nation due to China’s overwhelming military and role as the region’s largest trading partner. These realities should force the United States to emphasize long-range and unmanned strike capabilities as the backbone of its conventional military deterrence.

The United States does not have to establish an overly offensive presence to create a credible military deterrent. It should ignore calls for a heavy offensive posture that will only aggravate the security dilemma with China and instead convey a posture of advanced defense with nonoffensive purposes.47 Long-range precision-strike capabilities in both manned and unmanned platforms provide the foundation of this deterrent capability. These include all types of platforms in the air, land, and sea, employing traditional in addition to hypersonic weapons. Other capabilities such as the previously mentioned domain awareness, robust command and control, electronic warfare, and mine warfare capabilities will surely become critical components as well.48 However, long-range strikes will provide the key components around which the United States should posture its forces.

Long-range strike capabilities can help with the basing rights challenges, as the United States can project power from large distances. Guam, Hawaii, and the continental United States all provide staging areas from which to launch operations. Advances in hypersonic missile technologies will also help cover these large distances in ever-shrinking amounts of time.49 These systems could disrupt potential Chinese military operations when aided by a robust ISR capability that can identify operational movements and provide targeting information. This may help military planners avoid having to secure every island and chokepoint to restrict Chinese movements, as a Chinese blue-water navy could be held at risk at far greater distances from China’s shores. This could also help alleviate Japanese concerns about Chinese activities if Japan is confident that the US military and perhaps its own military could threaten the Chinese military, especially its navy, nearly anywhere in the region.

Long-range strike capabilities do not negate the need for forward-based troops. These will still be necessary to help defend allies especially Japan and South Korea. However, they do provide the political opportunity to scale back some of these forward-based forces while still ensuring that adequate combat power is available for defending US allies. Long-range strike capabilities will also not be able to single-handedly defeat the Chinese military in a Taiwan scenario; however, they can help deny China a quick and easy victory.50

The United States should not underestimate this benefit for two reasons. First, China does not have any operational military experience since its short 1979 border war with Vietnam. It lacks experience with modern command and control, joint operations, and rapid targeting. A prolonged engagement may put China at a disadvantage given the recent decades of US combat experience in these areas. Second, a protracted engagement would likely cause the international community to put China under extreme pressure to settle the dispute and even risks dragging regional states directly into the conflict. Neither of these scenarios plays to China’s operational strengths. If the United States can implement a force posture that puts long-range strike capabilities at the forefront, it can help provide a more flexible basing structure that better aligns with regional states’ desire for political flexibility.

The United States can most effectively address East Asian geopolitical realities by pursuing a strategy of bolstering regional resilience both in societies and militaries. China’s economic clout means that the United States should focus its initial resilience-building efforts on helping Japanese society overcome its wartime past internally and with its neighbors, particularly South Korea. Any attempts at reconciliation will be slow and halting and will require NGOs and academic engagements to do the bulk of the work. This process is critical for regional stability; otherwise, Japan will be unable to take an active regional security role that diffuses, rather than exacerbates, tensions. The United States must also advance its soft power in Southeast Asia by focusing on a multilateral approach to human security threats. Issues such as climate change, illegal fishing, and environmental forms of trafficking pose an existential threat to Southeast Asia’s continued development and exist alongside traditional state-to-state security issues. These issues cut across societies and require multinational responses that, if successful, will increase regional resilience to twenty-first century challenges.

If the United States focuses on making progress on historical, identity, and human security issues, it must still commit to providing the hard military power necessary to deter Chinese aggression. It can do this by helping its partners build domain awareness through space capabilities and competing with China in a law enforcement manner. The United States can then use its advanced long-range strike capabilities to reduce its forward presence and diversify its basing structure while continuing to hold Chinese forces at risk in the region. Advanced defensive capabilities would significantly raise the cost of any major Chinese military action. This strategy requires the United States to take a more nuanced approach to the region by addressing long-term regional challenges that, if left unattended, will ultimately undermine any short-term gains. A successful East Asia is one whose societies, aided by the United States, are proactively working toward addressing the region’s important security issues while enhancing their resiliency to moderate China’s growing ambitions.

Maj Jason Giroux, USAF

Major Giroux is a USAF intelligence officer and graduate of Air Command and Staff College’s Political-Military Affairs Strategist Program. He has worked at the tactical, operational, and strategic levels in various roles throughout the intelligence community.

I wish to thank Dr. Michael Kraig and Maj Holly Giroux, USAF, for their thoughtful comments and suggestions. All errors found herein are my own.

1 Michael Kraig, “Managing a Sustainable Balance of Interests and Power in Asia: Understanding the Role of ‘Buffered Maritime Powers’” (unpublished manuscript, 2021), 2.

2 G. John Ikenberry, “A New Order in East Asia?,” in East Asian Multilateralism: Prospects for Regional Stability, ed. Kent E. Calder and Francis Fukuyama (Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008), 222.

3 G. John Ikenberry, “A New Order in East Asia?,” 224.

4 Uri Friedman, “The Pandemic Is Revealing a New Form of National Power,” The Atlantic, 15 Nov. 2020, https://www.theatlantic.com/.

5 G. John Ikenberry, “A New Order in East Asia?,” 222–23; Uri Friedman, “New Form of National Power.”

6 Kent E. Calder, Pacific Alliance: Reviving U.S.-Japan Relations (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2010), 15; Thomas S. Wilkins, “Australia: A Traditional Middle Power Faces the Asian Century,” in Middle Powers and the Rise of China, ed. Bruce Gilley and Andrew O’Neil (Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2014), 153.

7 Michael Kraig, “The Globalized System, Air and Space Power, and the Geostrategic Value of Small and Middle Powers in Maritime Asia,” Journal of Indo-Pacific Affairs 2, no. 2 (Summer 2019): 45, https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/.

8 Michael Kraig, “Interests and Power in Asia,” 6.

9 David Hundt, “South Korea between China and Japan: Lifting the Cold War Lens,” in China-Japan Relations in the 21st Century: Creating a Future Past?, ed. Michael Heazle and Nick Knight (Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing, 2007), 230.

10 Michael Kraig, “Interests and Power in Asia,” 53.

11 Michael Kraig, “Interests and Power in Asia,” 23–24.

12 David Hundt, “South Korea between China and Japan,” 232–35; Michael Kraig, “Japan’s Internal Malaise and the Future of the US Basing System: The Interlinked Nature of Japan’s Falling Demography, Struggling Political Economy, Internal Identity Schisms, and Deadlock on Constitutional Amendment” (unpublished manuscript, 20 Oct. 2020), 4.

13 David Hundt, “South Korea between China and Japan,” 234; Michael Kraig, “Future of the US Basing System,” 17.

14 Hiroko Tabuchi, “With Shrine Visit, Leader Asserts Japan’s Track from Pacifism,” New York Times, 26 Dec. 2013, https://www.nytimes.com/.

15 Michael Kraig, “Future of the US Basing System,” 8.

16 Michael Kraig, “Future of the US Basing System,” 8.

17 Calder, Pacific Alliance, 25–26.

18 Richard J. Samuels, Securing Japan: Tokyo’s Grand Strategy and the Future of East Asia, Cornell Studies in Security Affairs (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2008), 115–17.

19 Richard J. Samuels, Securing Japan, 127–28.

20 Vicky Tuke, “Understanding the Complexity of Okinawa,” East Asia Forum, 2 Nov. 2012, https://www.eastasiaforum.org/.

21 Mike Mochizuki and Akikazu Hashimoto, “Revise the Plan to Build the U.S. Marine Base in Henoko, Okinawa,” The Diplomat, 11 Sep. 2015, https://thediplomat.com/.

22 Samuels, Securing Japan, 128–29.

23 Samuels, Securing Japan, 128–29.

24 Susan L. Shirk, China: Fragile Superpower; How China’s Internal Politics Could Derail Its Peaceful Rise (New York: Oxford University Press, 2008), 144–45.

25 Shogo Suzuki, “The Importance of ‘Othering’ in China’s National Identity: Sino-Japanese Relations as a Stage of Identity Conflicts,” Pacific Review 20, no. 1 (Mar. 2007): 1.

26 David Hundt, “South Korea between China and Japan,” 227.

27 Michael Kraig, “Interests and Power in Asia,” 9, 58.

28 Mark J. Valencia, “How the US is Losing Hearts and Minds in Southeast Asia to China,” South China Morning Post, 6 Nov. 2019, https://www.scmp.com/.

29 Mark J. Valencia, “How the US is Losing Hearts and Minds.”

30 Michael Kraig, “Interests and Power in Asia,” 2, 20.

31 Michael Kraig, “Interests and Power in Asia,” 5, 20.

32 Michael Kraig, “Interests and Power in Asia,” 65.

33 Michael Kraig, “Interests and Power in Asia,” 45.

34 Michael Kraig, “Future of the US Basing System,” 8; “Interests and Power in Asia,” 40.

35 Michael Kraig, “Interests and Power in Asia,” 5.

36 Michael Kraig, “Interests and Power in Asia,” 51.

37 Michael Kraig, “The Globalized System,” 44–45.

38 Michael Kraig, “The Globalized System,” 45.

39 Michael Kraig, “The Globalized System,” 50.

40 Michael Kraig, “The Globalized System,” 52.

41 Michael Kraig, “The Globalized System,” 52–53.

42 Richard J. Samuels, “‘New Fighting Power!’ Japan’s Growing Maritime Capabilities

and East Asian Security,” International Security 32, no. 3 (Winter 2007/2008): 85.

43 Richard J. Samuels, “New Fighting Power!,” 96; Sanaa Yasmin Hafeez, “The Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands Crises of 2004, 2010, and 2012: A Study of Japanese-Chinese Crisis Management,” Asia-Pacific Review 22, no. 1 (2015): 75, 77.

44 Michael Kraig, “Interests and Power in Asia,” 7.

45 Sanaa Yasmin Hafeez, “The Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands Crises,” 91–92.

46 Michael Kraig, “Interests and Power in Asia,” 40.

47 Jonathan F. Solomon, “Demystifying Conventional Deterrence: Great-Power Conflict and East Asian Peace,” Strategic Studies Quarterly (Winter 2013): 118.

48 Jonathan F. Solomon, “Demystifying Conventional Deterrence,” 141–42.

49 Megan Eckstein, “US Navy Conducts First Live-fire Test of Hypersonic Missile Motor,” Defense News, 27 May 2021, https://www.defensenews.com/; John Tirpak, “Air Force Will Try Again to Launch ARRW Hypersonic Missile in July,” Air Force Magazine, 3 June 2021, https://www.airforcemag.com/.

50 Jonathan F. Solomon, “Demystifying Conventional Deterrence,” 143.