Task 12: Laser cleaning of contaminated painted surfaces. Semi-annual report, April 1, 1996--September 30, 1996

Paint contaminated with radionuclides and other hazardous materials is common in Department of Energy (DOE) facilities. Facility decommissioning and decontamination requires the removal of contaminated paint. Paint removal technologies include laser- and abrasive-based systems. F2 Associates are utilizing a pulsed-repetition CO{sub 2} laser that produces a 2.5-cm x 2.5-cm beam which can be scanned across a 30- x 100-cm raster and, when placed on a robot, can be designed to clean any surface that the robot can be programmed to follow. Causing little or no damage to the substrate (concrete, steel, etc.), the laser ablates the material to be removed from a given surface. Ablated material is then pulled into a filtration and collection (VAC-PAC) system to prevent the hazardous substances from entering into the atmosphere. The VAC-PAC system deposits the ablated material into waste drums which may be removed from the system without compromising the integrity of the seal, allowing a new drum to be set up for collection without leakage of the ablated material into the atmosphere

Kepler constraints on planets near hot Jupiters

We present the results of a search for planetary companions orbiting near hot Jupiter planet candidates (Jupiter-size candidates with orbital periods near 3 d) identified in the Kepler data through its sixth quarter of science operations. Special emphasis is given to companions between the 2∶1 interior and exterior mean-motion resonances. A photometric transit search excludes companions with sizes ranging from roughly two-thirds to five times the size of the Earth, depending upon the noise properties of the target star. A search for dynamically induced deviations from a constant period (transit timing variations) also shows no significant signals. In contrast, comparison studies of warm Jupiters (with slightly larger orbits) and hot Neptune-size candidates do exhibit signatures of additional companions with these same tests. These differences between hot Jupiters and other planetary systems denote a distinctly different formation or dynamical history

Combining data from multiple sources using the CUAHSI Hydrologic Information System (Invited)

The Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science, Inc. (CUAHSI) has developed a Hydrologic Information System (HIS) to provide better access to data by enabling the publication, cataloging, discovery, retrieval, and analysis of hydrologic data using web services. The CUAHSI HIS is an Internet based system comprised of hydrologic databases and servers connected through web services as well as software for data publication, discovery and access. The HIS metadata catalog lists close to 100 web services registered to provide data through this system, ranging from large federal agency data sets to experimental watersheds managed by University investigators. The system\u27s flexibility in storing and enabling public access to similarly formatted data and metadata has created a community data resource from governmental and academic data that might otherwise remain private or analyzed only in isolation. Comprehensive understanding of hydrology requires integration of this information from multiple sources. HydroDesktop is the client application developed as part of HIS to support data discovery and access through this system. HydroDesktop is founded on an open source GIS client and has a plug-in architecture that has enabled the integration of modeling and analysis capability with the functionality for data discovery and access. Model integration is possible through a plug-in built on the OpenMI standard and data visualization and analysis is supported by an R plug-in. This presentation will demonstrate HydroDesktop, showing how it provides an analysis environment within which data from multiple sources can be discovered, accessed and integrated

HydroShare – A Case Study of the Application of Modern Software Engineering to a Large Distributed Federally-Funded Scientific Software Development Project

HydroShare is an online collaborative system under development to support the open sharing of hydrologic data, analytical tools, and computer models. With HydroShare, scientists can easily discover, access, and analyze hydrologic data and thereby enhance the production and reproducibility of hydrologic scientific results. HydroShare also takes advantage of emerging social media functionality to enable users to enhance information about and collaboration around hydrologic data and models. HydroShare is being developed by an interdisciplinary collaborative team of domain scientists, university software developers, and professional software engineers from ten institutions located across the United States. While the combination of non–co-located, diverse stakeholders presents communication and management challenges, the interdisciplinary nature of the team is integral to the project’s goal of improving scientific software development and capabilities in academia. This chapter describes the challenges faced and lessons learned with the development of HydroShare, as well as the approach to software development that the HydroShare team adopted on the basis of the lessons learned. The chapter closes with recommendations for the application of modern software engineering techniques to large, collaborative, scientific software development projects, similar to the National Science Foundation (NSF)–funded HydroShare, in order to promote the successful application of the approach described herein by other teams for other projects

Plasma transferrin and hemopexin are associated with altered Aβ uptake and cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disease pathology

Background:Heme and iron homeostasis is perturbed in Alzheimer’s disease (AD); therefore, the aim of the studywas to examine the levels and association of heme with iron-binding plasma proteins in cognitively normal (CN),mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and AD individuals from the Australian Imaging, Biomarker and Lifestyle FlagshipStudy of Ageing (AIBL) and Kerr Anglican Retirement Village Initiative in Ageing Health (KARVIAH) cohorts.Methods:Non-targeted proteomic analysis by high-resolution mass spectrometry was performed to quantify relativeprotein abundances in plasma samples from 144 CN individuals from the AIBL and 94 CN from KARVIAH cohorts and21 MCI and 25 AD from AIBL cohort. ANCOVA models were utilized to assess the differences in plasma proteinsimplicated in heme/iron metabolism, while multiple regression modeling (and partial correlation) was performed toexamine the association between heme and iron proteins, structural neuroimaging, and cognitive measures.Results:Of the plasma proteins implicated in iron and heme metabolism, hemoglobin subunitβ(p= 0.001) was significantlyincreased in AD compared to CN individuals. Multiple regression modeling adjusted for age, sex, APOEε4 genotype, anddisease status in the AIBL cohort revealed lower levels of transferrin but higher levels of hemopexin associated with augmentedbrain amyloid deposition. Meanwhile, transferrin was positively associated with hippocampal volume and MMSE performance,and hemopexin was negatively associated with CDR scores. Partial correlation analysis revealed lack of significant associationsbetween heme/iron proteins in the CN individuals progressing to cognitive impairment.Conclusions:In conclusion, heme and iron dyshomeostasis appears to be a feature of AD. The causal relationship betweenheme/iron metabolism and AD warrants further investigation

Sensitivity of composite scores to amyloid burden in preclinical Alzheimer\u27s disease: Introducing the Z-scores of Attention, Verbal fluency, and Episodic memory for Nondemented older adults composite score

Introduction: Cognitive composite scores developed for preclinical Alzheimer\u27s disease (AD) often consist of multiple cognitive domains as they may provide greater sensitivity to detect β-amyloid (Aβ)-related cognitive decline than episodic memory (EM) composite scores alone. However, this has never been empirically tested. We compared the rate of cognitive decline associated with high Aβ (Aβ+) and very high Aβ (Aβ++) in cognitively normal (CN) older adults on three multidomain cognitive composite scores and one single-domain (EM) composite score. Methods: CN older adults (n = 423) underwent Aβ neuroimaging and completed neuropsychological assessments at baseline, and at 18-, 36-, 54-, and 72-month follow-ups. Four cognitive composite scores were computed: the ADCS-PACC (ADCS-Preclinical Alzheimer Cognitive Composite), ADCS-PACC without the inclusion of the mini-mental state examination (MMSE), an EM composite, and the Z-scores of Attention, Verbal fluency, and Episodic memory for Nondemented older adults (ZAVEN) composite. Results: Compared with Aβ+ CN older adults, Aβ++ CN older adults showed faster rates of decline across all cognitive composites, with the largest decline observed for ZAVEN composite (d = 1.07). Similarly, compared with Aβ- CN older adults, Aβ+ CN older adults also showed faster rates of cognitive decline, but only for the ADCS-PACC no MMSE (d = 0.43), EM (d = 0.53), and ZAVEN (d = 0.50) composites. Discussion: Aβ-related cognitive decline is best detected using validated neuropsychological instruments. Removal of the MMSE from the ADCS-PACC and replacing it with a test of executive function (verbal fluency; i.e., the ZAVEN) rendered this composite more sensitive even in detecting Aβ-related cognitive decline between Aβ+ and Aβ++ CN older adults