Aircraft body-axis rotation measurement system

A two gyro four gimbal attitude sensing system having gimbal lock avoidance is provided with continuous azimuth information, rather than roll information, relative to the magnetic cardinal headings while in near vertical attitudes to allow recovery from vertical on a desired heading. The system is comprised of a means for stabilizing an outer roll gimbal that is common to a vertical gyro and a directional gyro with respect to the aircraft platform which is being angularly displaced about an axis substantially parallel to the outer roll gyro axis. A means is also provided for producing a signal indicative of the magnitude of such displacement as an indication of aircraft heading. Additional means are provided to cause stabilization of the outer roll gimbal whenever the pitch angle of the aircraft passes through a threshold prior to entering vertical flight and destabilization of the outer roll gimbal upon passing through the threshold when departing vertical flight

One's sex, sleep, and posttraumatic stress disorder

Women are approximately twice as likely as men to develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after trauma exposure. Mechanisms underlying this difference are not well understood. Although sleep is recognized to have a critical role in PTSD and physical and psychological health more generally, research into the role of sleep in PTSD sex differences has been only recent. In this article, we review both animal and human studies relevant to sex differences in sleep and PTSD with an emphasis on the roles of sex hormones. Sleep impairment including insomnia, trauma-related nightmares, and rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep fragmentation has been observed in individuals with chronic and developing PTSD, suggesting that sleep impairment is a characteristic of PTSD and a risk factor for its development. Preliminary findings suggested sex specific patterns of sleep alterations in developing and established PTSD. Sleep maintenance impairment in the aftermath of trauma was observed in women who subsequently developed PTSD, and greater REM sleep fragmentation soon after trauma was associated with developing PTSD in both sexes. In chronic PTSD, reduced deep sleep has been found only in men, and impaired sleep initiation and maintenance with PTSD have been found in both sexes. A limited number of studies with small samples have shown that sex hormones and their fluctuations over the menstrual cycle influenced sleep as well as fear extinction, a process hypothesized to be critical to the pathogenesis of PTSD. To further elucidate the possible relationship between the sex specific patterns of PTSD-related sleep alterations and the sexually dimorphic risk for PTSD, future studies with larger samples should comprehensively examine effects of sex hormones and the menstrual cycle on sleep responses to trauma and the risk/resilience for PTSD utilizing various methodologies including fear conditioning and extinction paradigms and animal models

New portable tool to screen vestibular and visual function—National Institutes of Health Toolbox initiative

As part of the National Institutes of Health Toolbox initiative, we developed a low-cost, easy-to-administer, and time-efficient test of vestibular and visual function. A computerized test of dynamic visual acuity (cDVA) was used to measure the difference in visual acuity between head still and moving in yaw. Participants included 318 individuals, aged 3 to 85 years (301 without and 17 with vestibular pathology). Adults used Early Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) optotypes; children used ETDRS, Lea, and HOTV optotypes. Bithermal calorics, rotational chair, and light box testing were used to validate the cDVA. Analysis revealed that the cDVA test is reliable for static (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC] \u3e/= 0.64) and dynamic (ICC \u3e/= 0.43–0.75) visual acuity. Children younger than 6 years old were more likely to complete cDVA with Lea optotypes, but reliability and correlation with ETDRS was better using HOTV optotypes. The high correlation between static acuity and light box test scores (r = 0.795), significant difference of cDVA scores between those with and without pathology (

Embracing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Scientific Community-Viewpoints of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee of the North American Vascular Biology Organization

Recent increased visibility on racial issues in the United States elicited public outcry and a collective call for action. The social justice movement has facilitated energetic discussions about race, sexual orientation, and various issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion. This article discusses issues faced by people of color that we as scientists can address, as well as challenges faced by women and internationally trained scientists in the scientific community that need immediate attention. Moreover, we highlight various ways to resolve such issues at both institutional and individual levels. Silence and incremental solutions are no longer acceptable to achieving lasting social justice and ensure prosperous societies that work for all

Spreadsheets for Analyzing and Optimizing Space Missions

XCALIBR (XML Capability Analysis LIBRary) is a set of Extensible Markup Language (XML) database and spreadsheet- based analysis software tools designed to assist in technology-return-on-investment analysis and optimization of technology portfolios pertaining to outer-space missions. XCALIBR is also being examined for use in planning, tracking, and documentation of projects. An XCALIBR database contains information on mission requirements and technological capabilities, which are related by use of an XML taxonomy. XCALIBR incorporates a standardized interface for exporting data and analysis templates to an Excel spreadsheet. Unique features of XCALIBR include the following: It is inherently hierarchical by virtue of its XML basis. The XML taxonomy codifies a comprehensive data structure and data dictionary that includes performance metrics for spacecraft, sensors, and spacecraft systems other than sensors. The taxonomy contains >700 nodes representing all levels, from system through subsystem to individual parts. All entries are searchable and machine readable. There is an intuitive Web-based user interface. The software automatically matches technologies to mission requirements. The software automatically generates, and makes the required entries in, an Excel return-on-investment analysis software tool. The results of an analysis are presented in both tabular and graphical displays

Living Mercy: Reflecting on the Vocation and Values of Salve Regina University

With this collection of essays, we honor the vocation and spirit of mercy that has enlivened and guided Salve Regina University for the last 75 years. Inspired by the accomplishments of the past and looking forward to the call of the future, these essays provide a starting point for University-wide conversations to support Salve Regina in discerning how it will move into the increasingly complex challenges of the future. Salve\u27s tradition of mercy is rooted in the example of Catherine McAuley, who founded the Sisters of Mercy in 19th-century Dublin, Ireland. It is a model of faith expressed through action and maintains that each person is called to and capable of contributing to the common good by responding to the needs of the day, to respond to the suffering and injustice of each era.Attending to this spirit of mercy that continues to guide our University, this project considers how the six core values of Salve’s Strategic Compass – purpose-driven education, respect and dignity for all, mercy community, integrity, faith and spirituality, and compassionate service and solidarity – relate to our shared mercy, Catholic heritage, and the mercy vocational paradigm. Exploring how to re-root and re-frame these values, we approached the project as a vocationally oriented narrative. This type of narrative focuses on the call and vocation, as well as the patterns of meaning that shape the unique identity of an institution in its founding and how the institution has evolved and changed in response to the claims and context of social and historic dynamics. Thus, these six essays are harmonized by a three-fold critical-creative structure that attends to the dynamic experience of the call and spirit of mercy modeled in the founding of the University, how we presently live this call, and envision the challenges and possibilities that lie on the horizon. We employed the perspectives of Foundations, Living Presence, and Horizons to frame an analogical exploration of the unique character, actions and ideals that have inspired and sustained the vocation and mission of Salve Regina University, and may be creatively transferred to shaping the horizon for future generations of students.Celebrating the 75th anniversary of the founding of Salve Regina University, we invite readers to reflect on this collection of essays and then to join the conversations that are to follow as we continue to discern the path forward as Salve takes its next steps into the future.https://digitalcommons.salve.edu/fac_staff_ebooks/1006/thumbnail.jp

IGF1 genotype, mean plasma level and breast cancer risk in the Hawaii/Los Angeles multiethnic cohort

The insulin-like growth factor 1 gene (IGF1) is a strong candidate gene for a breast cancer susceptibility model. We investigated a dinucleotide repeat 969 bp upstream from the transcription start site of the IGF1 gene for possible associations with plasma IGF1 levels and breast cancer risk in a multiethnic group of postmenopausal women. Furthermore, we investigated the relation between race/ethnicity, mean plasma IGF1 levels and breast cancer rates in the Hawaii/Los Angeles Multiethnic Cohort. The mean age-adjusted IGF1 level among Latino-American women, 116 ng ml(-1), was statistically significantly lower than the mean age-adjusted IGF1 levels for each of the three other racial/ethnic groups, African-American, Japanese-American and Non-Latino White women (146, 144 and 145 ng ml(-1), respectively) (P<0.0001). Latino-American women have the lowest breast cancer rates of any racial/ethnic group in the cohort. These results support the investigation of an expansion of the hypothesis for an important role of IGF1 in breast cancer tumorigenesis to different racial/ethnic groups and to postmenopausal women. It is unlikely that any involvement of IGF1 in breast cancer aetiology is mediated by the IGF1 dinucleotide repeat polymorphism, which was not significantly associated with circulating IGF1 levels nor breast cancer risk in this study. Research into relevant determinants of IGF1 levels in the blood must continue