Analysis of Volatile Organic Compounds in the Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis (ANGSA) 73002 Core Sample

Understanding the organic content of lunar regolith was an early priority upon the return of Apollo samples, with amino acids being of special interest because of their importance to life on Earth and their astrobiological relevance. Many initial studies focused on the detection of amino acids in these samples and attempts to determine the origin of those compounds. Although no consensus on the origin of the amino acids was reached in those early studies, more recent work determined that the detected amino acids originated from both terrestrial contamination and meteoritic or cometary in fall to the lunar surface. A majority of the amino acids in the Apollo samples studied originated from precursor molecules, either indigenous to the lunar samples or contaminants, that reacted during the water extraction and acid hydrolysis process for analysis in the laboratory, but the identities of the amino acid precursors still remain poorly understood. Such precursors could include hydrogen cyanide (HCN) and other volatile organic compounds such as amines, carboxylic acids, or aldehydes and ketones. The identities of these compounds, as well as the effects of years of curation on their abundances in lunar regolith samples stored at ambient temperature under nitrogen gas purge, are not clear. The specially curated samples available through the Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis (ANGSA) program provide a unique opportunity to use state-of- the-art analytical techniques to examine previously unstudied lunar materials. The ANGSA samples include three types of samples: 1) samples stored frozen since <1 month after Earth arrival; 2) samples stored under helium; and 3) a double drive tube collected by Apollo 17 astronauts, with the bottom portion of the drive tube sealed under vacuum on the Moon and never opened. In contrast to the typically curated Apollo samples that have been kept for decades at room temperature under flowing nitrogen purge that may have significantly reduced the abundance of volatiles, the vacuum-sealed and frozen samples may have enhanced preservation of these volatiles. Our initial investigation examines amino acids and their potential volatile precursors, including hydrogen cyanide (HCN), aldehydes, ketones, amines, and mono-carboxylic acids, in a sample from the top portion of the Apollo 17 double drive tube. These results will aid in understanding the lunar abundances of these molecules and will also be compared to future analyses of other drive tube and frozen ANGSA samples

Thermochemolysis: A New Sample Preparation Approach for the Detection of Organic Components of Complex Macromolecules in Mars Rocks via Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry in SAM on MSL

Organic chemicals, when present in extraterrestrial samples, afford precious insight into past and modern conditions elsewhere in the Solar System . No single technology identifies all molecular components because naturally occurring molecules have different chemistries (e.g., polar vs. non-polar, low to high molecular weight) and interface with the ambient sample chemistry in a variety of modes (i.e., organics may be bonded, absorbed or trapped by minerals, liquids, gases, or other organics). More than 90% of organic matter in most natural samples on Earth and in meteorites is composed of complex macromolecules (e.g. biopolymers, complex biomolecules, humic substances, kerogen) because the processes that tend to break down organic molecules also tend towards complexation of the more recalcitrant components. Thus, methodologies that tap the molecular information contained within macromolecules may be critical to detecting extraterrestrial organic matter and assessing the sources and processes influencing its nature

In defence of global egalitarianism

This essay argues that David Miller's criticisms of global egalitarianism do not undermine the view where it is stated in one of its stronger, luck egalitarian forms. The claim that global egalitarianism cannot specify a metric of justice which is broad enough to exclude spurious claims for redistribution, but precise enough to appropriately value different kinds of advantage, implicitly assumes that cultural understandings are the only legitimate way of identifying what counts as advantage. But that is an assumption always or almost always rejected by global egalitarianism. The claim that global egalitarianism demands either too little redistribution, leaving the unborn and dissenters burdened with their societies' imprudent choices, or too much redistribution, creating perverse incentives by punishing prudent decisions, only presents a problem for global luck egalitarianism on the assumption that nations can legitimately inherit assets from earlier generations – again, an assumption very much at odds with global egalitarian assumptions

Taking reasonable pluralism seriously: an internal critique of political liberalism

The later Rawls attempts to offer a non-comprehensive, but nonetheless moral justification in political philosophy. Many critics of political liberalism doubt that this is successful, but Rawlsians often complain that such criticisms rely on the unwarranted assumption that one cannot offer a moral justification other than by taking a philosophically comprehensive route. In this article, I internally criticize the justification strategy employed by the later Rawls. I show that he cannot offer us good grounds for the rational hope that citizens will assign political values priority over non-political values in cases of conflict about political matters. I also suggest an alternative approach to justification in political philosophy (that is, a weak realist, Williams-inspired account) that better respects the later Rawls’s concern with non-comprehensiveness and pluralism than either his own view or more comprehensive approaches. Thus, if we take reasonable pluralism seriously, then we should adopt what Shklar aptly called ‘liberalism of fear’. </jats:p

Cometary Glycine Detected in Stardust-Returned Samples

In January 2006, NASA's Stardust spacecraft returned samples from comet 81P/Wild 2 to Earth. The Stardust cometary collector consisted of aerogel cells lined with aluminum foils designed to capture impacting particles and facilitate removal of the aerogel. Preliminary examinations of these comet-exposed materials revealed a suite of organic compounds, including several amines and amino acids which were later examined in more detail. Methylamine (NH2CH3) and ethylamine (NH2C2H5) were detected in the exposed aerogel at concentrations greatly exceeding those found in control samples, while the amino acid glycine (NH2CH2COOH) was detected in several foil samples as well as in the comet-exposed aerogel. None of these three compounds had been previously detected in comets, although methylamine had been observed in the interstellar medium. Although comparison with control samples suggested that the detected glycine was cometary. the previous work was not able to conclusively identify its origin. Here, we present the results of compound-specific carbon isotopic analysis of glycine in Stardust cometary collector foils. Several foils from the interstellar side of the Stardust collector were also analyzed for amino acid abundance, but concentrations were too low to perform isotopic ana!ysis

Tradition and Prudence in Locke's Exceptions to Toleration

Why did Locke exclude Catholics and atheists from toleration? Not, I contend, because he was trapped by his context, but because his prudential approach and practica ljudgments led him to traditiona ltexts. I make this argumentfirst by outlining the connections among prudential exceptionality, practical judgments, and traditional texts. I then describe important continuities betweenc onventional English understandings of the relationship between state and religion and Locke's writings on toleration, discuss Locke's conception of rights, and illustrate his use of prudential exceptions and distinctions. I conclude by arguing that Locke's problems are relevant to assessingc ontemporary liberal discussions of tolerationa nd the separation of state and religion that lean heavily on practical justification

Parent Body Influences on Amino Acids in the Tagish Lake Meteorite

The Tagish Lake meteorite is a primitive C2 carbonaceous chondrite with a mineralogy, oxygen isotope, and bulk chemical. However, in contrast to many CI and CM carbonaceous chondrites, the Tagish Lake meteorite was reported to have only trace levels of indigenous amino acids, with evidence for terrestrial L-amino acid contamination from the Tagish Lake meltwater. The lack of indigenous amino acids in Tagish Lake suggested that they were either destroyed during parent body alteration processes and/or the Tagish Lake meteorite originated on a chemically distinct parent body from CI and CM meteorites where formation of amino acids was less favorable. We recently measured the amino acid composition of three different lithologies (11h, 5b, and 11i) of pristine Tagish Lake meteorite fragments that represent a range of progressive aqueous alteration in order 11h < 5b < 11i as inferred from the mineralogy, petrology, bulk isotopes, and insoluble organic matter structure. The distribution and enantiomeric abundances of the one- to six-carbon aliphatic amino acids found in hot-water extracts of the Tagish Lake fragments were determined by ultra performance liquid chromatography fluorescence detection and time of flight mass spectrometry coupled with OPA/NAC derivatization. Stable carbon isotope analyses of the most abundant amino acids in 11h were measured with gas chromatography coupled with quadrupole mass spectrometry and isotope ratio mass spectrometry

Capturing naturally occurring emotional suppression as it unfolds in couple interactions

Most research examining the consequences of suppressing emotional expression has focused on either experimentally manipulated and conscious suppression, or self-reported suppression behavior. This study examined suppression as it naturally occurred in couple (n= 105) discussions regarding a challenging topic. A Suppression Index (SI) was created by calculating the difference between continuous self-reports of emotional experience, obtained using cued video recall, and coders’ continuous ratings of expressed emotion. Suppression was common for both men and women, though there was also substantial individual variation. Autocorrelations of the SIwere used to tap Suppressive Rigidity (Srig), or the tendency to inflexibly use suppression throughout the discussions. Srigscores were consistent within individuals across repeated conversations and varied across individuals, suggesting that Srigcaptures stable individual differences. Women’s greater suppression of negative emotions combined with more rigid use of suppression was associated with their own lower relationship satisfaction but not their partners’. These findings indicate that suppressive behavior may be linked to relationship quality, and that it is not just the use of suppression that may matter but how rigidly one applies this regulatory approach

Indigenous Amino Acids in Iron Meteorites

Understanding the organic content of meteorites and the potential delivery of molecules relevant to the origin of life on Earth is an important area of study in astrobiology. There have been many studies of meteoritic organics, with much focus on amino acids as monomers of proteins and enzymes essential to terrestrial life. The majority of these studies have involved analysis of carbonaceous chondrites, primitive meteorites containing approx. 3-5 wt% carbon. Amino acids have been observed in varying abundances and distributions in representatives of all eight carbonaceous chondrite groups, as well as in ungrouped carbonaceous chondrites, ordinary and R chondrites, ureilites, and planetary achondrites [1 and references therein]