Enabling lunar and space missions by laser power transmission

Applications are proposed for laser power transmission on the Moon. A solar-pumped laser in lunar orbit would beam power to the lunar surface for conversion into either electricity or propulsion needs. For example, lunar rovers could be much more flexible and lighter than rovers using other primary power sources. Also, laser power could be absorbed by lunar soil to create a hard glassy surface for dust-free roadways and launch pads. Laser power could also be used to power small lunar rockets or orbital transfer vehicles, and finally, photovoltaic laser converters could power remote excavation vehicles and human habitats. Laser power transmission is shown to be a highly flexible, enabling primary power source for lunar missions

Do ‘auditory processing’ tests measure auditory processing in the elderly

Objective: To examine the associations between measures of auditory processing and measures of auditory or cognitive function in elderly listeners with impaired hearing. Design: Multiple measures of auditory processing, auditory function, and cognitive function were obtained and linear, multiple-regression analyses were conducted to examine the relations between these sets of variables. In particular, four measures of auditory processing were obtained from each of 213 elderly participants. Measures of auditory processing included duration discrimination for a 1000-Hz pure tone, temporal-order discrimination for mid-frequency pure tones, dichotic syllable identification, and recognition of 45% time-compressed monosyllables. Each participant also completed additional measures of auditory function, including pure-tone thresholds, auditory brain stem responses for each ear and at two presentation rates (11.1 and 71.1 clicks per second), and performance-intensity functions for monosyllabic words (PI-PB rollover). Finally, three measures of cognitive function, all from the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised, were obtained from the 213 participants. Results: For three of the four measures of auditory processing examined in this study (duration discrimination, temporal-order discrimination, and dichotic CV identification), a measure of cognitive function (IQ) and age were the two primary predictors of individual differences in performance. For these three measures of auditory processing, 11 to 14% of the total variance could be accounted for by the predictor variables. For the remaining measure of auditory processing (recognition of time-compressed monosyllables), 56% of the total variance could be accounted for by a set of four predictor variables, but most of this variance (54% of the total variance) was associated with individual differences in hearing loss. When hearing loss was removed as a predictor for this measure of auditory processing, 14% of the total variance was explained by four variables: age, IQ, and two measures derived from auditory brain stem response wave-V latency. Conclusions: Performance on the battery of auditory processing measures by elderly hearing-impaired listeners was systematically related to individual differences in cognitive function rather than auditory function, especially for stimuli not affected by peripheral hearing loss. However, much of the variance in auditory processing performance remained unaccounted for by any of the predictor variables examined in this study

Method and apparatus for determining time, direction, and composition of impacting space particles

A space particle collector for recording the time specific particles are captured, and its direction at the time of capture, utilizes an array of targets, each comprised of an MOS capacitor on a chip charged from an external source and discharged upon impact by a particle through a tab on the chip that serves as a fuse. Any impacting particle creates a crater, but only the first will cause a discharge of the capacitor. A substantial part of the metal film around the first crater is burned off by the discharge current. The time of the impulse which burns the tab, and the identification of the target, is recorded together with data from flight instruments. The metal film is partitioned into pie sections to provide a plurality of targets on each of an array of silicon wafers, thus increasing the total number of identified particles that can be collected. It is thus certain which particles were captured at what specific times

Dimensions of hearing aid outcome

Abstract Dimensions of hearing aid outcome are explored in this paper. First, a variety of hearing aid outcome measures is defined including objective and subjective performance, objective and subjective benefit, satisfaction, and use. Following the definition of these terms, factor analysis is described as a statistical tool that can be of assistance in establishing the number and nature of the relevant dimensions of hearing aid outcome. Next, the results from three recent studies that included a variety of measures of hearing aid outcome are examined and factor analysis is applied to the data from each study. This examination leads to the conclusion that hearing aid outcome is a multidimensional construct, rather than unidimensional . The most complete description of hearing aid outcome will be obtained when including at least one measure of aided speech recognition performance, one or more measures of objective benefit in speech recognition, one or two subjective measures of sound quality or listening effort, and one measure of either subjective benefit, satisfaction, or use

Development of the SWB-HL: A Scale of the Subjective Well-Being of Older Adults With Hearing Loss

The objective of this research was to develop and evaluate a self-report measure of subjective well-being (SWB) for use with older adults with hearing loss (HL). A convenience sample of 173 local volunteers between the ages of 60 and 88 years (M = 74.4; SD = 7.2 years) participated in this study. The initial 18-item version of the scale was constructed, response characteristics examined, and then subjected to factor analysis, as well as evaluation of the scales' reliability and validity. The analysis of response characteristics and subsequent factor analysis resulted in the elimination of eight of the 18 test items. The SWB-HL Total score was derived from the 10 remaining items. It was shown that the SWB-HL tapped three underlying domains interpreted as: Life Satisfaction (three items); Acceptance of Hearing Loss (Accept HL; four items); and Social Support (three items). Psychometric analysis showed very good reliability and good criterion validity was established for the 10-item SWB-HL Total score. In addition, significant differences were observed between aided and unaided SWB-HL Total scores following 4–6 weeks of hearing aid use. The SWB-HL is a 10-item self-report measure of SWB that shows good reliability and validity when used by older adults with hearing loss and reveals improved SWB following the use of hearing aids