Monitoring and control technologies for bioregenerative life support systems/CELSS

The development of a controlled Ecological Life Support System (CELSS) will require NASA to develop innovative monitoring and control technologies to operate the different components of the system. Primary effort over the past three to four years has been directed toward the development of technologies to operate a biomass production module. Computer hardware and software required to operate, collect, and summarize environmental data for a large plant growth chamber facility were developed and refined. Sensors and controls required to collect information on such physical parameters as relative humidity, temperature, irradiance, pressure, and gases in the atmosphere; and PH, dissolved oxygen, fluid flow rates, and electrical conductivity in the nutrient solutions are being developed and tested. Technologies required to produce high artificial irradiance for plant growth and those required to collect and transport natural light into a plant growth chamber are also being evaluated. Significant effort was directed towards the development and testing of a membrane nutrient delivery system required to manipulate, seed, and harvest crops, and to determine plant health prior to stress impacting plant productivity are also being researched. Tissue culture technologies are being developed for use in management and propagation of crop plants. Though previous efforts have focussed on development of technologies required to operate a biomass production module for a CELSS, current efforts are expanding to include technologies required to operate modules such as food preparation, biomass processing, and resource (waste) recovery which are integral parts of the CELSS

Carbon dioxide and water exchange rates by a wheat crop in NASA's biomass production chamber: Results from an 86-day study (January to April 1989)

Gas exchange measurements were taken for a 20 sq m wheat stand grown from seed to harvest in NASA's Biomass Production Chamber. Respiration of the wheat stand caused the CO2 concentrations to rise an average of 440 ppm during the 4-h dark period each day, or 7.2 umol/sq m/sec. Dark period respiration was sensitive to temperature changes and could be increased 70 to 75 percent by raising the temperature from 16 C to 24 C. Stand photosynthesis (measured from the rate of CO2 drawdown immediately after the lights came on each day) peaked at 27 umol/sq m/sec at 25 days after planting and averaged 15 umol/sq m/sec throughout the study. By combining the average light period photosynthesis and average dark period respiration, a net of 860 g or 470 liters of CO2 were fixed per day. Stand photosynthetic rates showed a linear increase with increasing irradiance (750 umol/sq m/sec PPF the highest level tested), with an average light compensation point after day 30 of 190 umol/sq m/sec. Stand photosynthesis decreased slightly when CO2 levels were decreased from 2200 to 800 ppm, but dropped sharply when CO2 was decreased below 700 to 800 ppm. Water production from stand transpiration peaked at 120 L/day near 25 days and averaged about 90 L/day, or 4.5 L/sq m/day throughout the study

Proximate Composition of Seed and Biomass from Soybean Plants Grown at Different Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Concentrations

Soybean plants were grown for 90 days at 500, 1000, 2000, and 5000 ubar (ppm) carbon dioxide (CO2) and compared for proximate nutritional value. For both cultivars (MC and PX), seed protein levels were highest at 1000 (39.3 and 41.9 percent for MC and PX) and lowest at 2000 (34.7 and 38.9 percent for MC and PX). Seed fat (oil) levels were highest at 2000 (21.2 and 20.9 percent for MC and PX) and lowest at 5000 (13.6 and 16.6 percent for MC and PX). Seed carbohydrate levels were highest at 500 (31.5 and 28.4 percent for MC and PX) and lowest at 2000 (20.9 and 20.8 percent for MC and PX). When adjusted for total seed yield per unit growing area, the highest production of protein and carbohydrate occurred with MC at 1000, while equally high amounts of fat were produced with MC at 1000 and 2000. Seed set and pod development at 2000 were delayed in comparison to other CO2 treatments; thus the proportionately high fat and low protein at 2000 may have been a result of the delay in plant maturity rather than CO2 concentration. Stem crude fiber and carbohydrate levels for both cultivars increased with increased CO2. Leaf protein and crude fiber levels also tended to rise with increased CO2 but leaf carbohydrate levels decreased as CO2 was increased. The results suggest that CO2 effects on total seed yield out-weighed any potential advantages to changes in seed composition

Las traducciones al inglés de las novelas de José Saramago creadas por Giovanni Pontiero y su recepción en Inglaterra

Las novelas de José Saramago se dieron a conocer en el mundo de habla anglosajona a través de las traducciones de Giovanni Pontiero. A partir de las múltiples dudas que surgieron al traductor en su tarea y que envió al escritor establecieron una relación que desembocó en una gran amistad. El presente artículo documenta la cooperación entre el autor y el traductor con miras a crear una versión óptima en inglés de los originales portugueses. El artículo contiene numerosos ejemplos de preguntas del traductor y explicaciones del autor y de su efecto en el texto traducido.The novels of Jose Saramago were first made known to the English-speaking world through the translations of Giovanni Pontiero. Through the many queries the translator sent to the author concerning various points of style and content, Saramago and Pontiero established a regular working relationship, which culminated in close friendship. The present article documents the cooperation between author and translator in the interest of creating an optimal English version of the Portuguese originals. It gives numerous examples of translator queries, author explanations, and actual instances of texts affected by these interactions

Ressenyes

Obra ressenyada: Silvia GAMERO PÉREZ, La traducción de textos técnicos (Descripción y análisis de textos alemán-español). Barcelona: Ariel, 2001

Review of \u3ci\u3eThe Johnson~Sims Feud: Romeo and Juliet, West Texas Style\u3c/i\u3e by Bill O\u27Neal

In The Johnson-Sims Feud, Bill O\u27Neal describes how interactions soured between two West Texas families due, in part, to an unfortunate marriage. Joining numerous scholars who have traced the presence of violence in frontier areas, O\u27Neal contends that the bad blood between the Johnsons and the Simses escalated into a feuding state that lasted for decades. The work begins in the late 1870s with the arrival of early settlers Billy Johnson and Dave Sims, two men determined to create cattle empires in the rugged vastness of West Texas. Embracing the intricacies of ranching life, they both met with great success and raised large families in the neighboring counties of Kent and Scurry. Out of these connections came the 1905 marriage of Ed Sims and Gladys Johnson, which ended in divorce and the public murder of Ed by Gladys and her brother

The Relationship Between Academic and Psychological Help Seeking and Attachment Styles

Research has shown a relationship between an individual’s attachment style and help seeking behaviors. However, most studies have focused either on academic or psychological help seeking separately. The goal of my study was to see if, for Trinity College students, there were differences in attitudes about two different types of help seeking depending on one’s attachment style. I predicted that students with a secure attachment would report willingness to seek help in both academic and psychological settings when necessary. Students with an avoidant attachment would report a strong resistance to seeking both psychological and academic help. Students with an anxious/ambivalent attachment would report the greatest willingness to seek help. Lastly, I predicted that female participants would report greater willingness to seek both academic and psychological help than male participants. To measure attachment style I used the Adult Attachment Scale (Collins and Read, 1990). To measure students’ propensity for seeking psychological help I used the Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help Scale-Short Form (Fischer & Farina 1995). To measure students’ willingness to seek academic help I used Karabenick’s Help-Seeking Scale (2003). No significant relationship was found between students’ attachment styles and their willingness to seek psychological help, but there do appear to be some differences in attachment styles’ influence on academic help seeking. There also appears to be a relationship between gender and willingness to seek psychological help

Review of \u3ci\u3eThe Johnson~Sims Feud: Romeo and Juliet, West Texas Style\u3c/i\u3e by Bill O\u27Neal

In The Johnson-Sims Feud, Bill O\u27Neal describes how interactions soured between two West Texas families due, in part, to an unfortunate marriage. Joining numerous scholars who have traced the presence of violence in frontier areas, O\u27Neal contends that the bad blood between the Johnsons and the Simses escalated into a feuding state that lasted for decades. The work begins in the late 1870s with the arrival of early settlers Billy Johnson and Dave Sims, two men determined to create cattle empires in the rugged vastness of West Texas. Embracing the intricacies of ranching life, they both met with great success and raised large families in the neighboring counties of Kent and Scurry. Out of these connections came the 1905 marriage of Ed Sims and Gladys Johnson, which ended in divorce and the public murder of Ed by Gladys and her brother

Effects of elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations on water and acid requirements of soybeans grown in a recirculating hydroponic system

Establishing mass budgets of various crop needs, i.e. water and nutrients, in different environments is essential for the Controlled Ecological Life Support System (CELSS). The effects of CO2 (500 and 1000 umol mol (exp -1)) on water and acid use (for pH control) by soybeans in a recirculating hydroponic system were examined. Plants of cvs. McCall and Pixie were grown for 90 days using the nutrient film technique (NFT) and a nitrate based nutrient solution. System acid use for both CO2 levels peaked near 4 weeks during a phase of rapid vegetative growth, but acid use decreased more rapidly under 500 compared to 1000 umol mol (exp GR) CO2. Total system water use by 500 and 1000 umol mol (exp -1) plants was similar, leaving off at 5 weeks and declining as plants senesced (ca. 9 weeks). However, single leaf transpiration rates were consistently lower at 1000 umol mol (exp -1). The data suggest that high CO2 concentrations increase system acid (and nutrient) use because of increased vegetative growth, which in turn negates the benefit of reduced water use (lower transpiration rates) per unit leaf area

Atmospheric leakage and condensate production in NASA's biomass production chamber. Effect of diurnal temperature cycles

A series of tests were conducted to monitor atmospheric leakage rate and condensate production in NASA's Biomass Production Chamber (BPC). Water was circulated through the 64 plant culture trays inside the chamber during the tests but no plants were present. Environmental conditions were set to a 12-hr photoperiod with either a matching 26 C (light)/20 C (dark) thermoperiod, or a constant 23 C temperature. Leakage, as determined by carbon dioxide decay rates, averaged about 9.8 percent for the 26 C/20 C regime and 7.3 percent for the constant 23 C regime. Increasing the temperature from 20 C to 26 C caused a temporary increase in pressure (up to 0.5 kPa) relative to ambient, while decreasing the temperature caused a temporary decrease in pressure of similar magnitude. Little pressure change was observed during transition between 23 C (light) and 23 C (dark). The lack of large pressure events under isothermal conditions may explain the lower leakage rate observed. When only the plant support inserts were placed in the culture trays, condensate production averaged about 37 liters per day. Placing acrylic germination covers over the tops of culture trays reduced condensate production to about 7 liters per day. During both tests, condensate production from the lower air handling system was 60 to 70 percent greater than from the upper system, suggesting imbalances exist in chilled and hot water flows for the two air handling systems. Results indicate that atmospheric leakage rates are sufficiently low to measure CO2 exchange rates by plants and the accumulation of certain volatile contaminants (e.g., ethylene). Control system changes are recommended in order to balance operational differences (e.g., humidity and temperature) between the two halves of the chamber