Analysis of cost and performance of physical security systems can be a complex, multi-dimensional problem. There are a number of point tools that address various aspects of cost and performance analysis. Increased interest in cost tradeoffs of physical security alternatives has motivated development of an architecture called Cost and Performance Analysis (CPA), which takes a top-down approach to aligning cost and performance metrics. CPA incorporates results generated by existing physical security system performance analysis tools, and utilizes an existing cost analysis tool. The objective of this architecture is to offer comprehensive visualization of complex data to security analysts and decision-makers.

Some recent measurements of excitation of multiply charged ions by electrons studied in beam-beam experiments are highlighted. The emphasis is on absolute total cross sections measured with the merged electron-ion beams energy-loss (MEIBEL) technique, although some results obtained with the crossed-beams fluorescence method are also presented. The MEIBEL technique allows the investigation of optically-allowed and forbidden transitions with sufficient energy resolution, typically about 0.2 eV, to resolve resonance structures in the cross sections. Results from the JILA/ORNL MEIBEL experiment on dipole-allowed transitions in several ions demonstrate the success of various theoretical methods in predicting cross sections in the absence of resonances. Comparisons of R-matrix calculations and measured cross sections for spin-forbidden transitions in Mg-like Si{sup 2+} and Ar{sup 6+}, however, show that further refinements to the theory are needed in order to more accurately predict cross sections involving significant contributions from dielectric resonance`s and interactions between neighboring resonances.