The Brazilian report to the 7th LANDSAT Technical Working Group (LTWG) meeting

Described is the current status of the INPE LANDSAT receiving and processing facilities, as well as the experience in the related activities during the period from June 1984 to February 1985

Los Métodos de Identificación como Elementos Fundamentales de la Radiología Forense

La Virtopsia no sólo es el punto de encuentro entre dos disciplinas médicas para el diagnóstico radiológico y la medicina forense, sino, también, la evolución y, tal vez, una revolución en la medicina forense donde se realizan necropsias no invasivas y no destructivas. Durante los últimos años las técnicas en Imagenología se han modernizado y han sido precursoras en medicina forense, como la resonancia magnética y, especialmente, la tomografía computarizada, las cuales incrementan su implementación en las evaluaciones post mórtem. Estas técnicas no invasivas pueden aumentar su uso y, eventualmente, reemplazar la autopsia tradicional, obteniendo imágenes las cuales son útiles para el médico forense identificar aquellas estructuras anatómicas afectadas y brindar un diagnóstico oportuno de lo sucedido. Mediante el caso acá plasmado queda la evidencia de la versatilidad y el apoyo que se emplea en la investigación de cadáveres para determinar la causa de su muerte y llegar a esclarecer los hechos de una investigación. Existen reglamentaciones establecidas por la ley para verificar el procedimiento de cadena de custodia; de ahí la importancia de reconocer el cadáver con el que se encuentra, los elementos materiales probatorios, y las evidencias físicas, ya que mediante ello se determina el método de identificación a utilizar, ya sea indiciario o fehaciente. Y gracias al avance de la tecnología y a sus constantes actualizaciones se ha logrado perfeccionar en todas las distintas áreas, favoreciendo la utilización de los distintos métodos para la identificación de cadáveres en el campo de la medicina legal. Palabras clave: forense, investigación, cadáver, radiología, identificaciónVirtopsy is not only the meeting point between two medical disciplines, for radiological diagnosis and forensic medicine, but also evolution and perhaps a revolution in forensic medicine where non-invasive and non-destructive necropsies are performed. During the last years, imaging techniques have been modernized and have been precursors in forensic medicine, such as magnetic resonance imaging and, especially, computed tomography, which are increasing their implementation in post-mortem evaluations. These non-invasive techniques can increase their use, and eventually, replace the traditional autopsy, obtaining images which are useful for the forensic doctor to identify those affected anatomical structures and provide a timely diagnosis of what happened. Through the case reflected here, there is evidence of the versatility and support used in the investigation of corpses, to determine the cause of death and to clarify the facts of an investigation. There are regulations established by law to verify the chain of custody procedure; hence the importance of recognizing the corpse with which it is found, the material probative elements, and the physical evidence, since this determines the identification method to be used, whether indicative or reliable. And thanks to the advancement of Technology and its constant updates, it has been possible to improve in all the different areas, favoring the use of different methods for the identification of corpses in the field of legal medicine. Keywords: Forensic, investigation, corpse, radiology, identification

Lateral distribution of high energy hadrons and gamma ray in air shower cores observed with emulsion chambers

A high energy event of a bundle of electrons, gamma rays and hadronic gamma rays in an air shower core were observed. The bundles were detected with an emulsion chamber with thickness of 15 cm lead. This air shower is estimated to be initiated with a proton with energy around 10 to the 17th power to 10 to the 18th power eV at an altitude of around 100 gmc/2. Lateral distributions of the electromagnetic component with energy above 2 TeV and also the hadronic component of energy above 6 TeV of this air shower core were determined. Particles in the bundle are produced with process of the development of the nuclear cascade, the primary energy of each interaction in the cascade which produces these particles is unknown. To know the primary energy dependence of transverse momentum, the average products of energy and distance for various average energies of secondary particles are studied

Real-time monitoring of small animal cortical hemodynamics by photoacoustic tomography

For the first time, the hemodynamics within the entire cerebral cortex of a mouse were studied by using photoacoustic tomography (PAT) non-invasively and in real time. The PAT system, based on a 512-element full-ring array with cylindrical focusing, received the PA signal primarily from a slice of about 2 mm thickness. This system can provide not only high resolution brain vasculature images but also hemodynamic functional images. We recorded the wash-in process of a photoacoustic contrast agent in a mouse brain in real time. Our results demonstrated that PAT is a powerful imaging modality to study real-time small animal neurofunctional activities that cause changes in hemodynamics

Observations of M87 and Hydra A at 90 GHz

This paper presents new observations of the AGNs M87 and Hydra A at 90 GHz made with the MUSTANG bolometer array on the Green Bank Telescope at 8.5" resolution. A spectral analysis is performed combining this new data and archival VLA data on these objects at longer wavelengths. This analysis can detect variations in spectral index and curvature expected from energy losses in the radiating particles. M87 shows only weak evidence for steepening of the spectrum along the jet suggesting either re-acceleration of the relativistic particles in the jet or insufficient losses to affect the spectrum at 90 GHz. The jets in Hydra A show strong steepening as they move from the nucleus suggesting unbalanced losses of the higher energy relativistic particles. The difference between these two sources may be accounted for by the different lengths over which the jets are observable, 2 kpc for M87 and 45 kpc for Hydra A.Comment: 11 pages, submitted to Ap

A demonstration of mobile phone deployment to support the treatment of acutely ill children under five in Bushenyi district, Uganda

Background: Benefits of mobile phone deployment for children <5 in low resource settings remain unproven. The target population of the current demonstration study in Bushenyi District, Uganda, presented with acute fever, pneumonia, or diarrhoea and were treated by community health workers (CHWs) providing integrated community case management (iCCM).Methods: An observational study was conducted in five parishes (47 villages) served by CHWs well versed in iCCM with supplemental training in mobile phone use. Impact was assessed by quantitative measures and qualitative evaluation through household surveys, focus group discussions, and key informant interviews.Results: CHWs in targeted sites improved child healthcare through mobile phone use coupled with iCCM. Of acutely ill children, 92.6% were correctly managed. Significant improvements in clinical outcomes compared to those obtained by CHWs with enhanced iCCM training alone were unproven in this limited demonstration. Nonetheless, qualitative evaluation showed gains in treatment planning, supply management, and logistical efficiency. Provider confidence and communications were enhanced as was ease and accuracy of record keeping.Conclusion: Mobile phones appear synergistic with iCCM to bolster basic supportive care for acutely ill children provided by CHWs. The full impact of expanded mobile phone deployment warrants further evaluation prior to scaling up in low-resource settings.Keywords: mobile phone deployment, ill children under five, Bushenyi district, Ugand

Size distributions of air showers accompanied with high energy gamma ray bundles observed at Mt. Chacaltaya

Size distributions of air showers accompanied with bundle of high energy gamma rays and/or large size bursts under emulsion chambers, to study the composition of primary cosmic rays and also characteristics of high energy nuclear interaction. Air showers initiated by particles with a large cross section of interaction may develop from narrow region of the atmosphere near the top. Starting levels of air showers by particles with smaller cross section fluctuate in wider region of the atmosphere. Air showers of extremely small size accompanied with bundle of gamma rays may be ones initiated by protons at lower level after penetrating deep atmosphere without interaction. It is determined that the relative size distribution according to the total energy of bundle of gamma rays and the total burst size observed under 15 cm lead absorber