Design considerations for a space-borne ocean surface laser altimeter

Design procedures for using laser ranging systems in spacecraft to reflect ocean surface pulses vertically and measure spacecraft altitude with high precision are examined. Operating principles and performance experience of a prototype system are given

Optical technology for experiments and applications in cislunar space

Airborne lasers and telescopes for satellite studies on atmospheric properties and optical space communication

Technology transfer within the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Viewgraphs on technology transfer within the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center presented to Civil Space Technology Development workshop on technology transfer and effectiveness are provided. Topics covered include: obstacles to technology transfer; technology transfer improvement program at GSFC: communication between technology developers and users; and user feedback to technologists

Magnet Laboratory Research

Contains reports on three research projects

Updated diagnostic criteria and nomenclature for neurofibromatosis type 2 and schwannomatosis: An international consensus recommendation

PURPOSE: Neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2) and schwannomatosis (SWN) are genetically distinct tumor predisposition syndromes with overlapping phenotypes. We sought to update the diagnostic criteria for NF2 and SWN by incorporating recent advances in genetics, ophthalmology, neuropathology, and neuroimaging. METHODS: We used a multistep process, beginning with a Delphi method involving global disease experts and subsequently involving non-neurofibromatosis clinical experts, patients, and foundations/patient advocacy groups. RESULTS: We reached consensus on the minimal clinical and genetic criteria for diagnosing NF2 and SWN. These criteria incorporate mosaic forms of these conditions. In addition, we recommend updated nomenclature for these disorders to emphasize their phenotypic overlap and to minimize misdiagnosis with neurofibromatosis type 1. CONCLUSION: The updated criteria for NF2 and SWN incorporate clinical features and genetic testing, with a focus on using molecular data to differentiate the 2 conditions. It is likely that continued refinement of these new criteria will be necessary as investigators study the diagnostic properties of the revised criteria and identify new genes associated with SWN. In the revised nomenclature, the term neurofibromatosis 2 has been retired to improve diagnostic specificity

Introducing a Calculus of Effects and Handlers for Natural Language Semantics

In compositional model-theoretic semantics, researchers assemble truth-conditions or other kinds of denotations using the lambda calculus. It was previously observed that the lambda terms and/or the denotations studied tend to follow the same pattern: they are instances of a monad. In this paper, we present an extension of the simply-typed lambda calculus that exploits this uniformity using the recently discovered technique of effect handlers. We prove that our calculus exhibits some of the key formal properties of the lambda calculus and we use it to construct a modular semantics for a small fragment that involves multiple distinct semantic phenomena

Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions From U.S. Transportation

Outlines the need to cut transportation emissions to limit climate change effects, mitigation options and technologies, policies to promote mitigation, and various scenarios for public attitudes, public policy, technological progress, and energy prices

Magnet Laboratory Research

Contains reports on three research projects

Cataclysmic Variables and Other Compact Binaries in the Globular Cluster NGC 362: Candidates from Chandra and HST

Highly sensitive and precise X-ray imaging from Chandra, combined with the superb spatial resolution of HST optical images, dramatically enhances our empirical understanding of compact binaries such as cataclysmic variables and low mass X-ray binaries, their progeny, and other stellar X-ray source populations deep into the cores of globular clusters. Our Chandra X-ray images of the globular cluster NGC 362 reveal 100 X-ray sources, the bulk of which are likely cluster members. Using HST color-magnitude and color-color diagrams, we quantitatively consider the optical content of the NGC 362 Chandra X-ray error circles, especially to assess and identify the compact binary population in this condensed-core globular cluster. Despite residual significant crowding in both X-rays and optical, we identify an excess population of H{\alpha}-emitting objects that is statistically associated with the Chandra X-ray sources. The X-ray and optical characteristics suggest that these are mainly cataclysmic variables, but we also identify a candidate quiescent low mass X-ray binary. A potentially interesting and largely unanticipated use of observations such as these may be to help constrain the macroscopic dynamic state of globular clusters.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figures, to appear in the proceedings of the conference "Binary Star Evolution: Mass Loss, Accretion, and Mergers," Mykonos, Greece, June 22-25, 201