What factors are associated with positive effects of dog ownership in families with children with autism spectrum disorder? The development of the Lincoln Autism Pet Dog Impact Scale

Scientific literature exploring the value of assistance dogs to children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is rapidly emerging. However, there is comparably less literature reporting the effects of pet (as opposed to assistance) dogs to these children. In particular, there are no known validated scales which assess how children may alter their behaviours in the presence of the dog, to evaluate the efficacy of pet dogs to these families. Additionally, given the highly individualised nature of ASD it is likely that some children and families gain more benefits from dog ownership than others, yet no research has reported the effect of individual differences. This pilot study reports the development of a 28-item scale based on the perceived impact of a pet dog on a child with autism by parents (Lincoln Autism Pet Dog Impact Scale, LAPDIS). The scale is comprised of three mathematically derived factors: Adaptability, Social Skills and Conflict Management. We assessed how individual differences (aspects) may be associated with scores on these three factors. Family Aspects and Dog Aspects were not significantly associated with ratings on the three factors, but Child Aspects (including: contact with horses, child age, disability level and language abilities) were related to impact of the dog on all factors. Training Aspects were related to scores on Social Skills (formal training with children with ASD and dogs and attendance at PAWS workshops run by Dogs for Good). These results suggest that individual differences associated with the child and the training approach may be important considerations for a positive impact from dog ownership on families with children with ASD. Differences in family features and the dog may not be so important, but may be worthy of further investigations given the early stage of development in this field

Mass Spectrometers for In-Situ Resource Utilisation

The Open University has a heritage in developing small mass spectrometers for planetary lander payloads. The first was a 6 cm radius magnetic sector instrument for light element isotopic analysis (H, C, N, and O), part of the Gas Analysis Package (GAP) on the Beagle 2 Mars lander. The second was the Ptolemy ion trap mass spectrometer (ITMS) on the Philae lander which successfully operated and returned results during the comet landing in November 2014. The Ptolemy ion trap unit fits within a 10 x 10 x 10 cm cube, including RF, detector and ion source electronics and is capable of a mass range from 10 to 150 amu at unit resolution. Development is continuing for purposes ranging from lander instruments (ProSPA and LUVMI), to rugged deployable probes (penetrators) and for process monitoring within ISRU plant. Many of the planned developments are aimed at the various stages of lunar ISRU, from resource prospecting to demonstration and optimisation of extraction processes

Hydrogen reduction of ilmenite: Towards an in situ resource utilization demonstration on the surface of the Moon

Water is one of the most vital resources required for future space exploration. By obtaining water from lunar regolith, humans are one step closer to being independent of Earth's resources enabling longer term exploration missions. Hydrogen reduction of ilmenite is often proposed as a technique for producing water on the Moon. ProSPA, a miniature analytical laboratory, will perform reduction of lunar soils as an In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) demonstration on the lunar surface. The technique used by ProSPA will be useful for prospecting payloads with limited mass and power resources. This work considers the development and optimization of an ilmenite (FeTiO3) reduction procedure for use with the ProSPA instrument. It is shown that the reaction can be performed in a static (non-flowing) system, by utilizing a cold finger to collect the water produced from the reaction. Among the investigated parameters an initial H2:FeTiO3 ratio of 1, in this case equating to a hydrogen pressure of 418 mbar, proved to be best for providing maximum yields over 4 h when operating at 1000 °C. Results indicate that a maximum yield of 3.40 ± 0.17 wt % O2 can be obtained at 1000 °C (with a maximum possible yield of 10.5 wt % O2). When operating at higher temperatures of 1100 °C the ilmenite grains undergo a subsolidus reaction resulting in the formation of ferropseudobrookite and higher yields of 4.42 ± 0.18 wt % O2 can be obtained

Feasibility studies for hydrogen reduction of ilmenite in a static system for use as an ISRU demonstration on the lunar surface

The ESA-ROSCOSMOS mission, Luna-27, scheduled for launch in 2023, includes a payload known as PROSPECT that is intended for sampling the polar lunar regolith through drilling, with subsequent analyses of the retrieved material. One of the aims of the analytical module, ProSPA, which is being developed at The Open University, is to identify and quantify the volatiles present in the extracted sample that are released by heating from ambient up to 1000 °C and analyzed by the mass spectrometers to assess their potential for in-situ resource utilization. The ProSPA design also includes a provision to test the extraction of water (and its associated oxygen) from lunar regolith by hydrogen reduction. Previous attempts at such extractions generally utilize a flow of hydrogen gas through the feedstock to efficiently extract water. However, in ProSPA, samples would be processed in a static mode, which leads to concerns that the reaction may be suppressed by inefficient removal of water vapor above the regolith. A first order theoretical assessment of the diffusion of gases in such a system was performed and suggested that water can diffuse through the system at an acceptable rate and be collected upon a cold finger thus enabling the reaction to proceed. Proof of concept experiments were successfully performed with a ProSPA breadboard using ilmenite samples up to ∼45 mg heated at 900 °C for 60 min. Subsequent heating of the cold finger, in vacuum, released 17 ± 1 μmol water from a 44.7 ± 0.5 mg sample, equating to a calculated yield of 0.6 ± 0.1 wt % oxygen, and a reduction extent of 5.8 ± 0.4%. A sample of mass 11.2 ± 0.5 mg had the greatest calculated yield of 1.4 ± 0.2 wt % oxygen, and this equates to a reduction extent of 12.9 ± 1.5%. SEM analyses of cross-sections of grains showed evidence of a reduction reaction inside the ilmenite grains with some showing greater reduction than others, indicating the reaction is limited by furnace dimensions, reaction kinetics and geometry. The results suggest that the ProSPA ISRU experiment should be capable of producing water, and therefore oxygen, by hydrogen reduction of ilmenite, ultimately this could be a viable technique for producing oxygen from ilmenite-containing lunar regolith with ProSPA

Behavioural and physiological correlates of impulsivity in the domestic dog (Canis familiaris)

Impulsivity is a trait related to inhibitory control which is expressed in a range of behaviours. Impulsive individuals show a decreased ability to tolerate delay of reinforcement, and more impulsive behaviour has been linked to decreased levels of serotonin and dopamine in a number of species. In domestic dogs, impulsivity is implicated in problem behaviours that result from a lack of self control, but currently there are no published studies that assess behavioural and physiological measures of impulsivity in relation to this trait. Impulsivity scores were calculated for 41 dogs using an owner-report assessment, the Dog Impulsivity Assessment Scale (DIAS). Twenty-three of these subjects completed an operant choice task based on a delayed reward paradigm, to assess their tolerance to delay of reinforcement. High Pressure Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) with Fluorometric Detection was used to detect levels of the metabolites of serotonin (5-HIAA) and dopamine (HVA) in the urine of 17 of the subjects. Higher impulsivity scores were found to be significantly correlated with more impulsive behaviour (reduced tolerance to delay of reinforcement) in the behaviour tests and lower levels of urinary 5-HIAA and 5-HIAA/HVA ratio. The results demonstrate convergent validity between impulsivity (as assessed by the DIAS) and behavioural and physiological parameters