Nickel-hydrogen battery design for the Transporter Energy Storage Subsystem (TESS)

Information is given in viewgraph form on nickel hydrogen battery design for the transporter energy storage subsystem (TESS). Information is given on use in the Space Station Freedom, the launch configuration, use in the Mobile Servicing Center, battery design requirements, TESS subassembley design, proof of principle testing of a 6-cell battery, possible downsizing of TESS to support the Mobile Rocket Servicer Base System (MBS) redesign, TESS output capacity, and cell testing

Therapeutic indices for transchest defibrillator shocks: Effective, damaging, and lethal electrical doses

Although prospective studies of defibrillator shock overdose cannot be performed in man, the therapeutic indices of various defibrillating current waveforms can be measured in animals. We determined the ratios TD50/ED50 and LD50/ ED50 (where TD50 = median toxic or damageinducing dose, ED50 = median effective or defibrillating dose, and LD50 = median lethal dose) as measures of the therapeutic index for damped sine wave defibrillator shocks in dogs. Death of an animal and/or any degree of cardiac damage found by gross or microscopic examination were defined as harmful effects of shock, analogous to drug toxicity. In terms of peak current, the ED50, TD50, and LD50 were 1.1, 5.8, and 24 amperes/ kg; the therapeutic indices were TD50/ED50 = 5 for morphologic damage and LD50/ED50 = 22 for death. In terms of delivered energy the ED50, TD50, and LD50 were 1.5, 30, and 470 joules/kg; the therapeutic indices were TD50/ED50 = 20 for damage and LD50/ED50 = 320 for death. These data indicate a reasonable margin of safety for damped sine wave defibrillator shocks in dogs, and are consistent with reported incidences of suspected shockinduced damage in humans

Organic Field-Effect Transistors as Flexible, Tissue-Equivalent Radiation Dosimeters in Medical Applications

Radiation therapy is one of the most prevalent procedures for cancer treatment, but the risks of malignancies induced by peripheral beam in healthy tissues surrounding the target is high. Therefore, being able to accurately measure the exposure dose is a critical aspect of patient care. Here a radiation detector based on an organic field‐effect transistor (RAD‐OFET) is introduced, an in vivo dosimeter that can be placed directly on a patient\u27s skin to validate in real time the dose being delivered and ensure that for nearby regions an acceptable level of low dose is being received. This device reduces the errors faced by current technologies in approximating the dose profile in a patient\u27s body, is sensitive for doses relevant to radiation treatment procedures, and robust when incorporated into conformal large‐area electronics. A model is proposed to describe the operation of RAD‐OFETs, based on the interplay between charge photogeneration and trapping

Consistent patterns of common species across tropical tree communities

Trees structure the Earth’s most biodiverse ecosystem, tropical forests. The vast number of tree species presents a formidable challenge to understanding these forests, including their response to environmental change, as very little is known about most tropical tree species. A focus on the common species may circumvent this challenge. Here we investigate abundance patterns of common tree species using inventory data on 1,003,805 trees with trunk diameters of at least 10 cm across 1,568 locations1,2,3,4,5,6 in closed-canopy, structurally intact old-growth tropical forests in Africa, Amazonia and Southeast Asia. We estimate that 2.2%, 2.2% and 2.3% of species comprise 50% of the tropical trees in these regions, respectively. Extrapolating across all closed-canopy tropical forests, we estimate that just 1,053 species comprise half of Earth’s 800 billion tropical trees with trunk diameters of at least 10 cm. Despite differing biogeographic, climatic and anthropogenic histories7, we find notably consistent patterns of common species and species abundance distributions across the continents. This suggests that fundamental mechanisms of tree community assembly may apply to all tropical forests. Resampling analyses show that the most common species are likely to belong to a manageable list of known species, enabling targeted efforts to understand their ecology. Although they do not detract from the importance of rare species, our results open new opportunities to understand the world’s most diverse forests, including modelling their response to environmental change, by focusing on the common species that constitute the majority of their trees.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Stalk Cutter.

Patent for a new and improved stalk cutter. This design "consists in the combination of a suitable frame, which is drawn along by two horses, so as to straddle a row of plants, a diagonal guide for guiding the plants, a guiding finger or piece for guiding the plants toward the knife, and a rake for raking the plants in piles or heaps as fast as they are cut" (lines 13-19)

Detection and quantification of renal fibrosis by computerized tomography.

ObjectivesReliable biomarkers for renal fibrosis are needed for clinical care and for research. Existing non-invasive biomarkers are imprecise, which has limited their utility.MethodsWe developed a method to quantify fibrosis by subject size-adjusted CT Hounsfield units. This was accomplished using CT measurements of renal cortex in previously irradiated non-human primates.ResultsRenal cortex mean CT Hounsfield units that were adjusted for body size had a very good direct correlation with renal parenchymal fibrosis, with an area under the curve of 0.93.ConclusionsThis metric is a promising and simple non-invasive biomarker for renal fibrosis

Forests and rivers : the archaeology of the north eastern Congo

The Central African Rainforest was long thought to be a green desert. Intensive archaeological research during the last decades has shown the contrary. The rainforest of the Congo bassin has a long and rich history, but its heavy vegetation cover made it difficult to find evidence of human settlements. Indeed, an overview of archaeological collections held at the RMCA (Royal Museum for Central Africa), shows that, before the 1980's, very few sites were reported for the Rainforest area of DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo). Since then a series of river-born reconnaissance have shown that there were sites aplenty in the Inner Congo Basin. Latter surveys along the Congo River and its tributaries further East, between Bumba and Kisangani (DRC), indicate that this is also true in the North-Eastern part of the Congo River. Our results show that the region's archaeological record consists primarily of pottery finds associated with old soil horizons or pottery arranged in pit-structures, with lithic assemblages being relatively rare. This work offers a first assessment of the past 2000 years of human occupation in a region that was an archaeological terra incognita. In the process, we also confirm a powerful research strategy, combining forestry inventories with systematic archaeological sampling. Recent work in forestry showed that there was not a single primeval rainforest, but rather a patchwork of forests. This approach allowed us to access inter-fluvial portions of a dense rainforest environment and provided essential data for the regional chrono-stratigraphy.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Post-Irradiation Treatment with a Superoxide Dismutase Mimic, MnTnHex-2-PyP, Mitigates Radiation Injury in the Lungs of Non-Human Primates after Whole-Thorax Exposure to Ionizing Radiation

Radiation injury to the lung is the result of acute and chronic free radical formation, and there are currently few effective means of mitigating such injury. Studies in rodents indicate that superoxide dismutase mimetics may be effective in this regard; however, studies in humans or large animals are lacking. We hypothesized that post-exposure treatment with the lipophilic mitochondrial superoxide dismutase mimetic, MnTnHex-2-PyP (hexyl), would reduce radiation-induced pneumonitis and fibrosis in the lungs of nonhuman primates. Rhesus monkeys () received 10 Gy whole thorax irradiation, 10 Gy + hexyl treatment, sham irradiation, or sham irradiation + hexyl. Hexyl was given twice daily, subcutaneously, at 0.05 mg/kg, for 2 months. Animals were monitored daily, and respiratory rates, pulse oximetry, hematology and serum chemistry panels were performed weekly. Computed tomography scans were performed at 0, 2, and 4 months after irradiation. Supportive fluid therapy, corticosteroids, analgesics, and antibiotics were given as needed. All animals were humanely euthanized 4.5 months after irradiation, and pathologic assessments were made. Multifocal, progressive lung lesions were seen at 2 and 4 months in both irradiated groups. Hexyl treatment delayed the onset of radiation-induced lung lesions, reduced elevations of respiratory rate, and reduced pathologic increases in lung weight. No adverse effects of hexyl treatment were found. These results demonstrate (1) development of a nonhuman primate model of radiation-induced lung injury, (2) a significant mitigating effect of hexyl treatment on lung pathology in this model, and (3) no evidence for toxicity of hexyl at the dose studied