Sheep shearing technique

The shearer is an important link in the chain of operations that places our greatest export commodity—wool—before the world\u27s buyers for valuation and purchase. It is equally true that good shearing makes a significant contribution towards more profitable sheep and wool production

Shearing shed design

PLANNING the layout of a shearing shed requires a good deal of thought to ensure its maximum working efficiency. If the contemplated structure is to serve the dual purpose of storage-shearing shed, it is better to plan a shearing shed that can be used for storage, rather than a storage shed with a view to its utilisation as a shearing shed

Systems Technology Laboratory (STL) compendium of utilities

Multipurpose programs, routines and operating systems are described. Data conversion and character string comparison subroutine are included. Graphics packages, and file maintenance programs are also included

Characterization and Aerosol Dispersion Performance of Spray-Dried Chemotherapeutic PEGylated Phospholipid Particles for Dry Powder Inhalation Delivery in Lung Cancer

Pulmonary inhalation chemotherapeutic drug delivery offers many advantages for lung cancer patients in comparison to conventional systemic chemotherapy. Inhalable particles are advantageous in their ability to deliver drug deep in the lung by utilizing optimally sized particles and higher local drug dose delivery. In this work, spray-dried and co-spray dried inhalable lung surfactant-mimic PEGylated lipopolymers as microparticulate/nanoparticulate dry powders containing paclitaxel were rationally designed via organic solution advanced spray drying (no water) in closed-mode from dilute concentration feed solution. Dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) and dipalmitoylphosphatidylethanolamine poly(ethylene glycol) (DPPE-PEG) with varying PEG chain length were mixed with varying amounts of paclitaxel in methanol to produce co-spray dried microparticles and nanoparticles. Scanning electron microscopy showed the spherical particle morphology of the inhalable particles. Thermal analysis and X-ray powder diffraction confirmed the retention of the phospholipid bilayer structure in the solid-state following spray drying, the degree of solid-state molecular order, and solid-state phase transition behavior. The residual water content of the particles was very low as quantified analytically Karl Fisher titration. The amount of paclitaxel loaded into the particles was quantified which indicated high encapsulation efficiencies (43-99%). Dry powder aerosol dispersion performance was measure in vitro using the Next Generation Impactor™ (NGI™) coupled with the Handihaler® dry powder inhaler device and showed mass median aerodynamic diameters in the range of 3.4 – 7μm. These results demonstrate that this novel microparticulate/nanoparticulate chemotherapeutic PEGylated phospholipid inhalation aerosol platform has great potential in lung cancer drug delivery

Precision Lunar Laser Ranging For Lunar and Gravitational Science

Laser ranging to retroreflector arrays placed on the lunar surface by the Apollo astronauts and the Soviet Lunar missions over the past 39 years have dramatically increased our understanding of gravitational physics along with Earth and Moon geophysics, geodesy, and dynamics. Significant advances in these areas will require placing modern retroreflectors and/or active laser ranging systems at new locations on the lunar surface. Ranging to new locations will enable better measurements of the lunar librations, aiding in our understanding of the interior structure of the moon. More precise range measurements will allow us to study effects that are too small to be observed by the current capabilities as well as enabling more stringent tests of Einstein's theory of General Relativity. Setting up retroreflectors was a key part of the Apollo missions so it is natural to ask if future lunar missions should include them as well. The Apollo retroreflectors are still being used today, and nearly 40 years of ranging data has been invaluable for scientific as well as other studies such as orbital dynamics. However, the available retroreflectors all lie within 26 degrees latitude of the equator, and the most useful ones within 24 degrees longitude of the sub-earth meridian. This clustering weakens their geometrical strength

Development of three-dimensional lung multicellular spheroids in air- and liquid-interface culture for the evaluation of anticancer therapeutics

Three-dimensional (3D) lung multicellular spheroids (MCS) in liquid-covered culture (LCC) and air-interface culture (AIC) conditions have both been developed for the evaluation of aerosol anticancer therapeutics in solution and aerosols, respectively. The MCS were formed by seeding lung cancer cells on top of collagen where they formed spheroids due to the prevalence of cell-to-cell interactions. LCC MCS were exposed to paclitaxel (PTX) in media whereas AIC MCS were exposed to dry powder PEGylated phospholipid aerosol microparticles containing paclitaxel. The difference in viability for 2D versus 3D culture for both LCC and AIC was evaluated along with the effects of the particles on lung epithelium via transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) measurements. For LCC and AIC conditions, the 3D spheroids were more resistant to treatment with higher IC50 values for A549 and H358 cell lines. TEER results initially indicated a decrease in resistance upon drug or particle exposure, however, these values increased over the course of several days indicating the ability of the cells to recover. Overall, these studies offer a comprehensive in vitro evaluation of aerosol particles used in the treatment of lung cancer while introducing a new method for culturing lung cancer MCS in both LCC and AIC conditions

Station report on the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) 1.2 meter telescope facility

The 1.2 meter telescope system was built for the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) in 1973-74 by the Kollmorgen Corporation as a highly accurate tracking telescope. The telescope is an azimuth-elevation mounted six mirror Coude system. The facility has been used for a wide range of experimentation including helioseismology, two color refractometry, lunar laser ranging, satellite laser ranging, visual tracking of rocket launches, and most recently satellite and aircraft streak camera work. The telescope is a multi-user facility housed in a two story dome with the telescope located on the second floor above the experimenter's area. Up to six experiments can be accommodated at a given time, with actual use of the telescope being determined by the location of the final Coude mirror. The telescope facility is currently one of the primary test sites for the Crustal Dynamics Network's new UNIX based telescope controller software, and is also the site of the joint Crustal Dynamics Project / Photonics Branch two color research into atmospheric refraction