A Non-Hohmann Method for Orbital Element Database Pre-Processing

One major obstacle to successful orbital debris remediation is the determination of which pieces of debris are the most viable targets for capture and de-orbit. The viability of a target is determined by some combination of the debris’ risk factor (a combination of its size, composition, andthe orbit it occupies), the anticipated resource cost to find and capture the debris, and the underlying probability of successful intercept and capture of that target. The problem of selecting debris for capture by a multi-capture capable spacecraft is fundamentally a traveling salesman problem in which the traveler only has the resources to reach a very limited subset of the available destinations. Therefore, rapidly identifying the sets of destinations (i.e. pieces of debris) which are either too expensive to reach or insufficiently valuable to justify targeting will reduce the target destination set; this would significantly enhance the efficiency of the solution. This problem of intelligently reducing the space of possible solutions can be partially solved by performing a preliminary filtering and sorting of orbital debris database entries using known spacecraft orbital parameters and maneuvering ∆V-budget to reduce the number of possible destinations for an optimizer to those which are in fact accessible from the spacecraft’s initial orbit. The chosen algorithm for analyzing and filtering the data is a two-burn node-to-node non-Hohmann transfer, which was used to estimate the ∆V-cost for transfer from the capture spacecraft’s initial orbit to an orbit near the target piece of debris. Once the ∆V-cost was calculated for each transfer orbit, entries with excessive fuel costs were removed from consideration, and the fuel cost to access each remaining orbit was appended to its entry. This method was capable of reducing a 10,400-item list of debris to less than 100 accessible targets in under 3 seconds on an ordinary laptop computer. This reduction in database size brought the number of targets down to a practical size for processing by a more computationally expensive optimization algorithm suitable for selecting final targets for a multi-capture spacecraft

Seasonal effects on reconciliation in Macaca Fuscata Yakui

Dietary composition may have profound effects on the activity budgets, levelof food competition, and social behavior of a species. Similarly, in seasonally breeding species, the mating season is a period in which competition for mating partners increases, affecting amicable social interactions among group members. We analyzed the importance of the mating season and of seasonal variations in dietary composition and food competition on econciliation in wild female Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata yakui) on Yakushima Island, Japan. Yakushima macaques are appropriate subjects because they are seasonal breeders and their dietary composition significantly changes among the seasons. Though large differences occurred between the summer months and the winter and early spring months in activity budgets and the consumption of the main food sources, i.e., fruits, seeds, and leaves, the level of food competition and conciliatory tendency remained unaffected. Conversely,conciliatory tendency is significantly lower during the mating season than in the nonmating season. Moreover, conciliatory tendency is lower when 1 or both female opponents is in estrous than when they are not. Thus the mating season has profound effects on reconciliation, whereas seasonal changes in activity budgets and dietary composition do not. The detrimental effects of the mating season on female social relationships and reconciliation may be due to the importance of female competition for access to male partners in multimale, multifemale societies

The Future of Psychopharmacological Enhancements: Expectations and Policies

The hopes and fears expressed in the debate on human enhancement are not always based on a realistic assessment of the expected possibilities. Discussions about extreme scenarios may at times obscure the ethical and policy issues that are relevant today. This paper aims to contribute to an adequate and ethically sound societal response to actual current developments. After a brief outline of the ethical debate concerning neuro-enhancement, it describes the current state of the art in psychopharmacological science and current uses of psychopharmacological enhancement, as well as the prospects for the near future. It then identifies ethical issues regarding psychopharmacological enhancements that require attention from policymakers, both on the professional and on the governmental level. These concern enhancement research, the gradual expansion of medical categories, off-label prescription and responsibility of doctors, and accessibility of enhancers on the Internet. It is concluded that further discussion on the advantages and drawbacks of enhancers on a collective social level is still needed

Experimental observation and theoretical calculations of rydberg series in hollow lithium atomic states

Several extended Rydberg series have been experimentally identified in triply excited states of hollow lithium, by use of electron spectrometry and synchrotron radiation at the Advanced Light Source. Energies, partial cross sections, and quantum defects have also been calculated using the R-matrix approximation. Our results show that the two inner electrons stay in a core-excited state of given symmetry while the behavior of the third electron is mostly governed by the nuclear potential screened by the two inner electrons

Memory enhancing drugs and Alzheimer’s Disease: Enhancing the self or preventing the loss of it?

In this paper we analyse some ethical and philosophical questions related to the development of memory enhancing drugs (MEDs) and anti-dementia drugs. The world of memory enhancement is coloured by utopian thinking and by the desire for quicker, sharper, and more reliable memories. Dementia is characterized by decline, fragility, vulnerability, a loss of the most important cognitive functions and even a loss of self. While MEDs are being developed for self-improvement, in Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) the self is being lost. Despite this it is precisely those patients with AD and other forms of dementia that provide the subjects for scientific research on memory improvement. Biomedical research in the field of MEDs and anti-dementia drugs appears to provide a strong impetus for rethinking what we mean by ‘memory’, ‘enhancement’, ‘therapy’, and ‘self’. We conclude (1) that the enhancement of memory is still in its infancy, (2) that current MEDs and anti-dementia drugs are at best partially and minimally effective under specific conditions, (3) that ‘memory᾿and ‘enhancement᾿are ambiguous terms, (4) that there is no clear-cut distinction between enhancement and therapy, and (5) that the research into MEDs and anti-dementia drugs encourages a reductionistic view of the human mind and of the self

Photoelectron spectroscopy measurements and theoretical calculations of the lowest doubly hollow lithium state

We have measured, using electron spectroscopy, the lowest-energy doubly hollow lithium triply excited (3l3l′3l″) 2P state. Energies, widths, and partial cross sections have been measured and calculated using the saddle-point technique and the R-matrix approximation. Our results show good agreement between experimental and theoretical data for the energy and the width of the doubly hollow state

New life sciences innovation and distributive justice: rawlsian goods versus senian capabilities

The successful decoding of human genome and subsequent advances in new life sciences innovation create technological presuppositions of a new possibility of justice i.e. the just distribution of both social (income, wealth, etc.) and natural (rationality, intelligence, etc.) goods. Although Rawlsians attempt to expand their theory to include this new possibility, they fail to provide plausible metrics of social justice in the genomics and post-genomics era. By contrast, Senians seem to succeed to do so through their index of basic capabilities. This paper explores what might be regarded as a Senian perspective of distributive justice in new life sciences innovation. The argument is that, by comparing freedoms (different functionings) instead of primary goods, the capability theory allows not only for the identification of injustices linked to natural lottery but also for their elimination through the use of new genomic technologies, including gene-based diagnostics, gene therapy, somatic cell engineering (SCE) and germ-line engineering (GLE). These innovative technologies seem to have the potential to reduce variability in natural goods and therefore enable individuals to convert social goods into well-being or welfare