Improved calorimeter provides accurate thermal measurements of space batteries

Isothermal continuous flow calorimeter measures the thermal characteristics of space batteries undergoing typical orbital cycling. This is 28 times as sensitive as calorimeters previously used

Research into fundamental phenomena associated with spacecraft electrochemical devices - calorimetry of nickel-cadmium cells Progress report, 1 Oct. 1966 - 31 Dec. 1966

Cycling, charge efficiency, and transducer studies with nickel-cadmium cell for spacecraft power supply system

Applications of satellite data relay to problems of field seismology

A seismic signal processor was developed and tested for use with the NOAA-GOES satellite data collection system. Performance tests on recorded, as well as real time, short period signals indicate that the event recognition technique used is nearly perfect in its rejection of cultural signals and that data can be acquired in many swarm situations with the use of solid state buffer memories. Detailed circuit diagrams are provided. The design of a complete field data collection platform is discussed and the employment of data collection platforms in seismic network is reviewed

Portraits of people with dementia : three case studies of creating portraits

Peer reviewedPreprin

Population Genetic Structuring in Opisthorchis viverrini over Various Spatial Scales in Thailand and Lao PDR

Khon Kaen Province in northeast Thailand is known as a hot spot for opisthorchiasis in Southeast Asia. Preliminary allozyme and mitochondrial DNA haplotype data from within one endemic district in this Province (Ban Phai), indicated substantial genetic variability within Opisthorchis viverrini. Here, we used microsatellite DNA analyses to examine the genetic diversity and population structure of O. viverrini from four geographically close localities in Khon Kaen Province. Genotyping based on 12 microsatellite loci yielded a mean number of alleles per locus that ranged from 2.83 to 3.7 with an expected heterozygosity in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium of 0.44-0.56. Assessment of population structure by pairwise F(ST) analysis showed inter-population differentiation (P<0.05) which indicates population substructuring between these localities. Unique alleles were found in three of four localities with the highest number observed per locality being three. Our results highlight the existence of genetic diversity and population substructuring in O. viverrini over a small spatial scale which is similar to that found at a larger scale. This provides the basis for the investigation of the role of parasite genetic diversity and differentiation in transmission dynamics and control of O. viverrini

The Optical Emission from Gamma-ray Quasars

We present photometric observations of six radio-loud quasars that were detected by the COMPTEL gamma-ray telescope. The data encompasses seven wavebands in the optical and near-infrared. After correction for Galactic extinction, we find a wide range in optical slopes. Two sources are as blue as optically-selected quasars, and are likely to be dominated by the accretion disc emission, while three others show colours consistent with a red synchrotron component. We discuss the properties of the COMPTEL sample of quasars, as well as the implications our observations have for multi-wavelength modelling of gamma-ray quasars.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in P.A.S.A; minor typos correcte

Compartmental Bone Morphometry in the Mouse Femur: Reproducibility and Resolution Dependence of Microtomographic Measurements

Microcomputed tomography (μCT) is widely used for nondestructive bone phenotyping in small animals, especially in the mouse. Here, we investigated the reproducibility and resolution dependence of μCT analysis of microstructural parameters in three different compartments in the mouse femur. Reproducibility was assessed with respect to precision error (PE%CV) and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). We examined 14 left femurs isolated postmortem from two strains of mice (seven per group). Measurements and analyses were repeated five times on different days. In a second step, analysis was repeated again five times for a single measurement. Resolution dependence was assessed by high-resolution measurements (10μm) in one strain and subsequent image degrading. Reproducibility was better in full bone compartment and in cortical bone compartment in the diaphysis (PE%CV = 0.06-2.16%) than in trabecular compartment in the distal metaphysis (PE%CV = 0.59-5.24%). Nevertheless, ICC (0.92-1.00) showed a very high reliability of the assessed parameters in all regions, indicating very small variances within repeated measurements compared to the population variances. Morphometric indices computed from lower- and higher-resolution images displayed in general only weak dependence and were highly correlated with each other (R2 = 0.91-0.99). The results show that parameters in the full and cortical compartments were very reproducible, whereas precision in the trabecular compartment was somewhat lower. Nevertheless, all compartmental analysis methods were very robust, as shown by the high ICC values, demonstrating high suitability for application in inbred strains, where highest precision is needed due to small population variance

Width dependence of inherent TM-mode lateral leakage loss in silicon-on-insulator ridge waveguides

We report the first experimental observation in the optical domain of a dramatic width-dependent lateral leakage loss behavior for the TM-like mode of tight vertical confinement ridge waveguides formed in silicon-on-insulator. The lateral leakage loss displays a series of sharp cyclic minima at precise waveguide widths, and appears to be inherent to waveguide geometries of central importance to a wide variety of active devices in silicon photonics requiring lateral electrical access. This behavior is not predicted by the often-used effective-index-based methods, but is understood phenomenologically and also compared to prior numerical analysis and predictions of leaky mode behavior. It is shown that TM-like mode operation, critical to the operation of some active component designs, will require precision control of waveguide dimensions to achieve high performance

A warming climate will make Australian soil a net emitter of atmospheric CO2

Understanding the change in soil organic carbon (C) stock in a warmer climate and the effect of current land management on that stock is critical for soil and environmental conservation and climate policy. By simulation modeling, we predicted changes in Australia’s soil organic C stock from 2010 to 2100. These vary from losses of 0.014–0.077 t C ha−1 year−1 between 2020 and 2045 and 0.013–0.047 t C ha−1 year−1 between 2070 and 2100, under increasing emissions of greenhouse gases and temperature. Thus, Australian soil will be a net emitter of CO2. Depending on the future socio-economic conditions, we predict that croplands will accrue as much as 0.19 t C ha−1 year−1 between 2020 and 2045 due to their management, but accrual will decrease with warming and increased emissions by 2070–2100. The gains will be too small to counteract the losses of C from the larger areas of rangelands and coastal regions that are more sensitive to a warmer climate. In principle, prudent management of the rangelands, for example, improving grazing management and regenerating biodiverse, endemic native plant communities, could sequester more C and mitigate the loss; in practice, it may be more difficult, requiring innovation, interdisciplinary science, cultural awareness and effective policie