Social research for a multiethnic population: do the research ethics and standards guidelines of UK Learned Societies address this challenge?

There is increasing recognition in the UK that social science research should generate an evidence base that reflects the ethnic diversity of the population and informs positive developments in public policy and programmes for all. However, describing and understanding ethnic diversity, and associated disadvantage, is far from straightforward. In practice, the ethical and scientific arguments around whether and how to incorporate ethnicity into policy-relevant social research are complex and contentious. In particular, untheorised or insensitive inclusion of data on ethnic 'groups' can have negative consequences. The present investigation begins to explore the extent to which social scientists have access to advice and guidance in this area of research. Specifically, the paper examines how ethnic diversity is explicitly or implicitly considered within the research ethics and scientific standard guidance provided by UK social science Learned Societies to their members. The review found little in the way of explicit attention to ethnic diversity in the guidance documents, but nevertheless identified a number of pertinent themes. The paper compiles and extrapolates these themes to present a tentative set of principles for social scientists to debate and further develop

The Measurement of Fuel-Air Ratio by Analysis for the Oxidized Exhaust Gas

An investigation was made to determine a method of measuring fuel-air ratio that could be used for test purposes in flight and for checking conventional equipment in the laboratory. Two single-cylinder test engines equipped with typical commercial engine cylinders were used. The fuel-air ratio of the mixture delivered to the engines was determined by direct measurement of the quantity of air and of fuel supplied and also by analysis of the oxidized exhaust gas and of the normal exhaust gas. Five fuels were used: gasoline that complied with Army-Navy fuel Specification No. AN-VV-F-781 and four mixtures of this gasoline with toluene, benzene, and xylene. The method of determining the fuel-air ratio described in this report involves the measurement of the carbon-dioxide content of the oxidized exhaust gas and the use of graphs for the presented equation. This method is considered useful in aircraft, in the field, or in the laboratory for a range of fuel-air ratios from 0.047 to 0.124

Luminescent Syllid (Odontosyllis sp.) Courtship Display Densities Vary Across Marine Habitats around South Water Caye, Belize

Bright—green luminescent clouds frequently occur at the surface of shallow waters of the Caribbean Sea. These clouds are produced by syllid polychaetes during courtship. Although temporal variation in the occurrence of these courtship displays has been documented throughout the diurnal and lunar cycle, other factors such as habitat type have not been well studied. In this study, we investigated how syllid courtship—display densities varied across 3 substrate types (grassbed, rubble and coral) over a 3 day period. In line with previous studies, we found that syllid courtship displays occurred over seagrass and rubble substrates; however, we also found that display densities were significantly higher over shallow coral substrates than over either seagrass or rubble habitats. These findings reflect published observations and newly collected observational data from other locations throughout the Caribbean. Future work across species, time and regions is required in order to better understand the factors underlying syllid display densities

Nuclear Cryogenic Propulsion Stage Affordable Development Strategy

The development of nuclear power for space use in nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP) systems will involve significant expenditures of funds and require major technology development efforts. The development effort must be economically viable yet sufficient to validate the systems designed. Efforts are underway within the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Nuclear Cryogenic Propulsion Stage Project (NCPS) to study what a viable program would entail. The study will produce an integrated schedule, cost estimate and technology development plan. This will include the evaluation of various options for test facilities, types of testing and use of the engine, components, and technology developed. A "Human Rating" approach will also be developed and factored into the schedule, budget and technology development approach

Observing the disintegration of the A68A iceberg from space

Icebergs impact the physical and biological properties of the ocean where they drift, depending on the degree of melting. We use satellite imagery and altimetry to quantify the area, thickness, and volume change of the massive A68A iceberg from its calving off the Larsen-C Ice Shelf in July 2017 until January 2021, when it disintegrated. A68A thinned from 235 ± 9 to 168 ± 10 m, on average, and lost 802 ± 34 Gt of ice in 3.5 years, 254 ± 17 Gt of which was through basal melting (a lower bound for the immediate fresh water input into the ocean). Basal melting peaked at 7.2 ± 2.3 m/month in the Northern Scotia Sea and an estimated 152 ± 61 Gt of freshwater was released off South Georgia, potentially altering the local ocean properties, plankton occurrence and conditions for predators

Review of Nuclear Thermal Propulsion Ground Test Options

High efficiency rocket propulsion systems are essential for humanity to venture beyond the moon. Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) is a promising alternative to conventional chemical rockets with relatively high thrust and twice the efficiency of highest performing chemical propellant engines. NTP utilizes the coolant of a nuclear reactor to produce propulsive thrust. An NTP engine produces thrust by flowing hydrogen through a nuclear reactor to cool the reactor, heating the hydrogen and expelling it through a rocket nozzle. The hot gaseous hydrogen is nominally expected to be free of radioactive byproducts from the nuclear reactor; however, it has the potential to be contaminated due to off-nominal engine reactor performance. NTP ground testing is more difficult than chemical engine testing since current environmental regulations do not allow/permit open air testing of NTP as was done in the 1960's and 1970's for the Rover/NERVA program. A new and innovative approach to rocket engine ground test is required to mitigate the unique health and safety risks associated with the potential entrainment of radioactive waste from the NTP engine reactor core into the engine exhaust. Several studies have been conducted since the ROVER/NERVA program in the 1970's investigating NTP engine ground test options to understand the technical feasibility, identify technical challenges and associated risks and provide rough order of magnitude cost estimates for facility development and test operations. The options can be divided into two distinct schemes; (1) real-time filtering of the engine exhaust and its release to the environment or (2) capture and storage of engine exhaust for subsequent processing

Visual pattern recognition as a means to optimising building performance?

Visual pattern recognition as a means to optimising building performance

The NACA mixture analyzer and its application to mixture-distribution measurement in flight

The NACA mixture analyzer was developed as a research instrument for the continuous indication of fuel-air ratios of aircraft engine installations throughout the range of engine operation. It has been evaluated by using it to measure the mixture distribution of a nine-cylinder radial aircraft engine in flight. The mixture distribution among the cylinders in flight was obtained at normal operating conditions for the engine at an altitude of 5000 feet. Some limited data was also obtained at an altitude of 20,000 feet. Results of these flight tests showed that the NACA mixture analyzer is a satisfactory and dependable instrument for continuous indication of the mixture in flight at all engine conditions regardless of altitude and temperature

Identification of Genes Implicated in Methapyrilene-Induced Hepatotoxicity by Comparing Differential Gene Expression in Target and Nontarget Tissue

BACKGROUND: Toxicogenomics experiments often reveal thousands of transcript alterations that are related to multiple processes, making it difficult to identify key gene changes that are related to the toxicity of interest. OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to compare gene expression changes in a nontarget tissue to the target tissue for toxicity to help identify toxicity-related genes. METHODS: Male rats were given the hepatotoxicant methapyrilene at two dose levels, with livers and kidneys removed 24 hr after one, three, and seven doses for gene expression analysis. To identify gene changes likely to be related to toxicity, we analyzed genes on the basis of their temporal pattern of change using a program developed at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, termed “EPIG” (extracting gene expression patterns and identifying co-expressed genes). RESULTS: High-dose methapyrilene elicited hepatic damage that increased in severity with the number of doses, whereas no treatment-related lesions were observed in the kidney. High-dose methapyrilene elicited thousands of gene changes in the liver at each time point, whereas many fewer gene changes were observed in the kidney. EPIG analysis identified patterns of gene expression correlated to the observed toxicity, including genes associated with endoplasmic reticulum stress and the unfolded protein response. CONCLUSIONS: By factoring in dose level, number of doses, and tissue into the analysis of gene expression elicited by methapyrilene, we were able to identify genes likely to not be implicated in toxicity, thereby allowing us to focus on a subset of genes to identify toxicity-related processes