Bosch CO2 Reduction System Development

Development of a Bosch process CO2 reduction unit was continued, and, by means of hardware modifications, the performance was substantially improved. Benefits of the hardware upgrading were demonstrated by extensive unit operation and data acquisition in the laboratory. This work was accomplished on a cold seal configuration of the Bosch unit

A carbon dioxide reduction unit using Bosch reaction and expendable catalyst cartridges

Catalytic carbon dioxide reduction cartridge for oxygen recovery in life support systems of long term manned space flight

Factors influencing the effectiveness of serious gaming in the field of vocational orientation

This study investigates the effectiveness of the serious game like2be, which has been developed to support the individual career orientation process of adolescents by broadening their occupational horizon. In this paper, we present results from an intervention study with n = 809 adolescents in Swiss schools at the lower secondary education level. To analyze the extent to which cognitive, affective, and motivational factors are stimulated and what influence they have on expanding knowledge about occupations (measured learning outcome), we applied confirmatory factor analysis, multiple linear regression, and a structural equation model. The results indicate that the stimulation of cognitive processes through serious gaming has a statistically significant impact on learning outcome, although such factors as enjoyment, flow experience, or self-perceived benefits in playing like2be did not significantly impact gain in knowledge about occupations

The potential of Serious Games to foster learning among children and adolescents with disabilities: A systematic review

Serious Games for children and adolescents with disabilities can enhance their learning and respond to their needs in an inclusive educational setting. The aim of this systematic review is to analyze the potential of Serious Games for children and young people with disabilities, thereby providing an overview of effective Serious Games for schools and practitioners in the field of inclusive education. For this purpose, a systematic review of empirical literature found in the database Education Resources Information Centre (ERIC) was conducted, applying a qualitative content analysis. Findings from the 21 reviewed quantitative and qualitative studies indicate that Serious Games provide effective support for achieving learning objectives in certain school subjects and facilitate optimal conditions for learning. We found that Serious Games have strong potential and can make an important contribution to the inclusion of children and adolescents with disabilities in school

A magnetic lens for cold atoms controlled by a rf field

We report on a new type of magnetic lens that focuses atomic clouds using a static inhomogeneous magnetic field in combination with a radio-frequency field. The experimental study is performed with a cloud of cold cesium atoms. The rf field adiabatically deforms the magnetic potential of a coil and therefore changes its focusing properties. The focal length can be tuned precisely by changing the rf frequency value. Depending on the rf antenna position relative to the DC magnetic profile, the focal length of the atomic lens can be either decreased or increased by the rf field

Blue-light filtering spectacle lenses for visual performance, sleep, and macular health in adults

This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (Intervention). The objectives are as follows: To assess whether blue-light filtering spectacle lenses impart effects on visual function, provide protection to the macula, or both. We will also examine potential effects on the sleep-wake cycle

Stellar Associations and their Field East of LMC 4 in the Large Magellanic Cloud

We report about the stellar content and the luminosity and mass functions of three stellar associations and their field located on the north-east edge of the super-bubble LMC 4 in the Large Magellanic Cloud.Comment: To be appeared in the meeting Proceedings of ``Modes of Star Formation and the Origin of Field Populations'', Heidelberg, Germany, October 2000; to be published in the ASP Conference Series, edited by E. K. Grebel and W. Brandne

Career Choice With the Serious Game Like2be

Choosing a career is an important biographical event for adolescents. Toward the end of compulsory education, they must decide which career path they want to pursue. The serious game like2be was developed to support adolescents in this individual career choice process. In a quasi-experimental intervention study with 809 adolescents, like2be was evaluated for its effectiveness in career choice classes at the lower secondary level. In addition, a teaching concept for the application of the serious game which included additional teaching materials was analyzed. The data show that like2be is an effective medium for broadening personal career choice horizons, especially when it is pedagogically well-founded and integrated into career choice classes. Although the effectiveness of like2be in stimulating intensive reflection on one's own vocational aptitude or a gender-sensitive attitude towards occupations is limited, the present study shows that like2be has major potential for supporting the process of career choice among adolescents

Gemini/GMOS photometry of intermediate-age star clusters in the Large Magellanic Cloud

We present Gemini South GMOS g,i photometry of 14 intermediate-age Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) star clusters, namely: NGC 2155, 2161, 2162, 2173, 2203, 2209, 2213, 2231, 2249, Hodge 6, SL 244, 505, 674, and 769, as part of a continuing project to investigate the extended Main Sequence Turnoff (EMSTO) phenomenon. Extensive artificial star tests were made over the observed field of view. These tests reveal the observed behaviour of photometric errors with magnitude and crowding. The cluster stellar density radial profiles were traced from star counts over the extent of the observed field. We adopt clus- ter radii and build colour-magnitude diagrams (CMDs) with cluster features clearly identified. We used the cluster (g,g-i) CMDs to estimate ages from the matching of theoretical isochrones. The studied LMC clusters are confirmed to be intermediate-age clusters, which range in age 9.10 < log(t) < 9.60. NGC 2162 and NGC 2249 look like new EMSTO candidates, in addition to NGC 2209, on the basis of having dual red clumps.Comment: MNRAS, accepte

Stimulation of glucose transport in osteoblastic cells by parathyroid hormone and insulin-like growth factor I

Insulin and parathyroid hormone (PTH) regulate glucose metabolism in bone cells. In order to differentiate between the effects of these hormones and to compare the potency of insulin with that of insulin-like growth factor (IGF) I, we treated rat bone-derived osteoblastic (PyMS) cells for different time periods and at different concentrations with insulin, IGF I, or PTH, and measured [1-14C]-2-deoxy-d-glucose (2DG) uptake and incorporation of d-[U-14C] glucose into glycogen. 2DG uptake was Na-independent with an apparent affinity constant (K M) of ~2mmol/l. Expression of the high affinity glucose transporters (GLUT), GLUT1 and GLUT3 but not of GLUT4, was found by Northern and Western analysis. Similar to the findings with primary rat osteoblasts, but distinct from those in rat fibroblasts, 2DG uptake and glycogen synthesis were increased in this cell line after exposure to low concentrations (0.1nmol/l and above) of PTH. IGF I at low doses (0.3nmol/l and above) or insulin at higher doses (1nmol/l and above) stimulated 2DG uptake and [3H] thymidine incorporation into DNA. 2DG transport was enhanced already after 30min of IGF I treatment whereas the effect of PTH became significant after 6h. It is concluded that IGF I rather than insulin may be a physiological regulator of 2DG transport and glycogen synthesis in osteoblast