Helicopter transmission research at NASA Lewis Research Center

A joint helicopter transmission research program between NASA Lewis Research Center and the U.S. Army Aviation Systems Command has existed since 1970. Program goals are to reduce weight and noise and to increase life and reliability. Reviewed are significant advances in technology for gears and transmissions and the experimental facilities at NASA Lewis for helicopter transmission testing are described. A description of each of the rigs is presented along with some significant results from the experiments

Multiwavelength observations of the Be/X-ray binary 4U1145-619

We report optical and infrared observations of the massive X-ray binary system 4U1145-619 (V801 Cen) which show that the circumstellar disc of the Be star component is in decline. Infrared J,H,K,L magnitudes of V801Cen have been monitored from 1993 March to 1996 April. H alpha spectra have been obtained throughout the same period. We find that both the infrared excess and the Balmer emission have been in decline throughout the period of observations. A 13 year optical and X-ray history of the source has been collated, revealing a possible correlation between the optical and X-ray activity. In addition, we have used u,v,b,y,beta indices, corrected for both circumstellar and interstellar effects, to calculate the physical parameters of the underlying B star.Comment: 8 pages postscript. Accepted by MNRA

Potential Influence of Advance Care Planning and Palliative Care Consultation on ICU Costs for Patients With Chronic and Serious Illness.

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the potential ICU-related cost savings if in-hospital advance care planning and ICU-based palliative care consultation became standard of care for patients with chronic and serious illness. DESIGN AND SETTING: Decision analysis using literature estimates and inpatient administrative data from Premier. PATIENTS: Patients with chronic, life-limiting illness admitted to a hospital within the Premier network. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Using Premier data (2008-2012), ICU resource utilization and costs were tracked over a 1-year time horizon for 2,097,563 patients with chronic life-limiting illness. Using a Markov microsimulation model, we explored the potential cost savings from the hospital system perspective under a variety of scenarios by varying the interventions\u27 efficacies and availabilities. Of 2,097,563 patients, 657,825 (31%) used the ICU during the 1-year time horizon; mean ICU spending per patient was 11.3k (SD, 17.6k). In the base-case analysis, if in-hospital advance care planning and ICU-based palliative care consultation were systematically provided, we estimated a mean reduction in ICU costs of 2.8k (SD, 14.5k) per patient and an ICU cost saving of 25%. Among the simulated patients who used the ICU, the receipt of both interventions could have resulted in ICU cost savings of 1.9 billion, representing a 6% reduction in total hospital costs for these patients. CONCLUSIONS: In-hospital advance care planning and palliative care consultation have the potential to result in significant cost savings. Studies are needed to confirm these findings, but our results provide guidance for hospitals and policymakers

Patterns of Cost for Patients Dying in the Intensive Care Unit and Implications for Cost Savings of Palliative Care Interventions.

BACKGROUND: Terminal intensive care unit (ICU) stays represent an important target to increase value of care. OBJECTIVE: To characterize patterns of daily costs of ICU care at the end of life and, based on these patterns, examine the role for palliative care interventions in enhancing value. DESIGN: Secondary analysis of an intervention study to improve quality of care for critically ill patients. SETTING/PATIENTS: 572 patients who died in the ICU between 2003 and 2005 at a Level-1 trauma center. METHODS: Data were linked with hospital financial records. Costs were categorized into direct fixed, direct variable, and indirect costs. Patterns of daily costs were explored using generalized estimating equations stratified by length of stay, cause of death, ICU type, and insurance status. Estimates from the literature of effects of palliative care interventions on ICU utilization were used to simulate potential cost savings under different time horizons and reimbursement models. MAIN RESULTS: Mean cost for a terminal ICU stay was 39.3K ± 45.1K. Direct fixed costs represented 45% of total hospital costs, direct variable costs 20%, and indirect costs 34%. Day of admission was most expensive (mean 9.6K ± 7.6K); average cost for subsequent days was 4.8K ± 3.4K and stable over time and patient characteristics. CONCLUSIONS: Terminal ICU stays display consistent cost patterns across patient characteristics. Savings can be realized with interventions that align care with patient preferences, helping to prevent unwanted ICU utilization at end of life. Cost modeling suggests that implications vary depending on time horizon and reimbursement models

Enhanced activation of an amino-terminally truncated isoform of the voltage-gated proton channel HVCN1 enriched in malignant B cells

The final published version can be found here: http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1411390111M.C. is the recipient of a Bennett Fellowship from Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research (ref. 12002). M.A.B. is supported by a GlaxoSmithKline Oncology–Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council Collaborative Awards in Science and Engineering PhD studentship. This work was supported by National Institutes of Health Grants GM087507 and GM102336 (to T.E.D.)

The Sextet Arcs: a Strongly Lensed Lyman Break Galaxy in the ACS Spectroscopic Galaxy Survey towards Abell 1689

We present results of the HST Advanced Camera for Surveys spectroscopic ground-based redshift survey in the field of A1689. We measure 98 redshifts, increasing the number of spectroscopically confirmed objects by sixfold. We present two spectra from this catalog of the Sextet Arcs, images which arise from a strongly-lensed Lyman Break Galaxy (LBG) at a redshift of z=3.038. Gravitational lensing by the cluster magnifies its flux by a factor of ~16 and produces six separate images with a total r-band magnitude of r_625=21.7. The two spectra, each of which represents emission from different regions of the LBG, show H I and interstellar metal absorption lines at the systemic redshift. Significant variations are seen in Ly-alpha profile across a single galaxy, ranging from strong absorption to a combination of emission plus absorption. A spectrum of a third image close to the brightest arc shows Ly-alpha emission at the same redshift as the LBG, arising from either another spatially distinct region of the galaxy, or from a companion galaxy close to the LBG. Taken as a group, the Ly-alpha equivalent width in these three spectra decreases with increasing equivalent width of the strongest interstellar absorption lines. We discuss how these variations can be used to understand the physical conditions in the LBG. Intrinsically, this LBG is faint, ~0.1L*, and forming stars at a modest rate, ~4 solar masses per year. We also detect absorption line systems toward the Sextet Arcs at z=2.873 and z=2.534. The latter system is seen across two of our spectra.Comment: Accepted for publication in Ap

Exploiting simultaneous observational constraints on mass and absorption to estimate the global direct radiative forcing of black carbon and brown carbon

Atmospheric black carbon (BC) is a leading climate warming agent, yet uncertainties on the global direct radiative forcing (DRF) remain large. Here we expand a global model simulation (GEOS-Chem) of BC to include the absorption enhancement associated with BC coating and separately treat both the aging and physical properties of fossil-fuel and biomass-burning BC. In addition we develop a global simulation of brown carbon (BrC) from both secondary (aromatic) and primary (biomass burning and biofuel) sources. The global mean lifetime of BC in this simulation (4.4 days) is substantially lower compared to the AeroCom I model means (7.3 days), and as a result, this model captures both the mass concentrations measured in near-source airborne field campaigns (ARCTAS, EUCAARI) and surface sites within 30%, and in remote regions (HIPPO) within a factor of 2. We show that the new BC optical properties together with the inclusion of BrC reduces the model bias in absorption aerosol optical depth (AAOD) at multiple wavelengths by more than 50% at AERONET sites worldwide. However our improved model still underestimates AAOD by a factor of 1.4 to 2.8 regionally, with the largest underestimates in regions influenced by fire. Using the RRTMG model integrated with GEOS-Chem we estimate that the all-sky top-of-atmosphere DRF of BC is +0.13 Wm[superscript −2] (0.08 Wm[superscript −2] from anthropogenic sources and 0.05 Wm[superscript −2] from biomass burning). If we scale our model to match AERONET AAOD observations we estimate the DRF of BC is +0.21 Wm[superscript −2], with an additional +0.11 Wm[superscript −2] of warming from BrC. Uncertainties in size, optical properties, observations, and emissions suggest an overall uncertainty in BC DRF of −80%/+140%. Our estimates are at the lower end of the 0.2–1.0 Wm[superscript −2] range from previous studies, and substantially less than the +0.6 Wm[superscript −2] DRF estimated in the IPCC 5th Assessment Report. We suggest that the DRF of BC has previously been overestimated due to the overestimation of the BC lifetime (including the effect on the vertical profile) and the incorrect attribution of BrC absorption to BC.United States. Environmental Protection Agency. Office of Research and Development National Center for Environmental Research Science to Achieve Results (STAR) Program (Grant RD-83503301