Data management in NOAA

NOAA has 11 terabytes of digital data stored on 240,000 computer tapes. There are an additional 100 terabytes (TB) of geostationary satellite data stored in digital form on specially configured SONY U-Matic video tapes at the University of Wisconsin. There are over 90,000,000 non-digital form records in manuscript, film, printed, and chart form which are not easily accessible. The three NOAA Data Centers service 6,000 requests per year and publish 5,000 bulletins which are distributed to 40,000 subscribers. Seventeen CD-ROM's have been produced. Thirty thousand computer tapes containing polar satellite data are being copied to 12 inch WORM optical disks for research applications. The present annual data accumulation rate of 10 TB will grow to 30 TB in 1994 and to 100 TB by the year 2000. The present storage and distribution technologies with their attendant support systems will be overwhelmed by these increases if not improved. Increased user sophistication coupled with more precise measurement technologies will demand better quality control mechanisms, especially for those data maintained in an indefinite archive. There is optimism that the future will offer improved media technologies to accommodate the volumes of data. With the advanced technologies, storage and performance monitoring tools will be pivotal to the successful long-term management of data and information

An investigation into aripiprazole's partial D(2) agonist effects within the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex during working memory in healthy volunteers

Rationale: Working memory impairments in schizophrenia have been attributed to dysfunction of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) which in turn may be due to low DLPFC dopamine innervation. Conventional antipsychotic drugs block DLPFC D2 receptors, and this may lead to further dysfunction and working memory impairments. Aripiprazole is a D2 receptor partial agonist hypothesised to enhance PFC dopamine functioning, possibly improving working memory. Objectives: We probed the implications of the partial D2 receptor agonist actions of aripiprazole within the DLPFC during working memory. Investigations were carried out in healthy volunteers to eliminate confounds of illness or medication status. Aripiprazole’s prefrontal actions were compared with the D2/5-HT2A blocker risperidone to separate aripiprazole’s unique prefrontal D2 agonist actions from its serotinergic and striatal D2 actions that it shares with risperidone. Method: A double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel design was implemented. Participants received a single dose of either 5 mg aripiprazole, 1 mg risperidone or placebo before performing the n-back task whilst undergoing fMRI scanning. Results: Compared with placebo, the aripiprazole group demonstrated enhanced DLPFC activation associated with a trend for improved discriminability (d’) and speeded reaction times. In contrast to aripiprazole’s neural effects, the risperidone group demonstrated a trend for reduced DLPFC recruitment. Unexpectedly, the risperidone group demonstrated similar effects to aripiprazole on d’ and additionally had reduced errors of commission compared with placebo. Conclusion: Aripiprazole has unique DLPFC actions attributed to its prefrontal D2 agonist action. Risperidone’s serotinergic action that results in prefrontal dopamine release may have protected against any impairing effects of its prefrontal D2 blockade

Introduction: Silent Spring, Raucous Summer, and the Looming Winter of Our Discontent

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