Earth observation photography: Looking back 20 years after Skylab

A committee of trained classroom teachers, backed by a volunteer team of technical experts and academic advisors has developed a program for earth science based on photographs obtained from low earth orbit. In selecting targeting objectives, immediate note was made of the fact nearly one generation (20 years) has passed since the United States' ambitious SKYLAB program was conducted. A critical part of those missions was the acquisition of earth photography using a six camera, multi-spectral camera system. This objective was systematically furthered through the term of three separate crew visits to the Space Station. Not merely an exercise in randomly photographing the Earth below, the purpose of the Earth Resource Experiment Package (EREP) was to determine what kind, and how much, photographic data could be acquired of the broad variety of Earth features witnessed on the mission's ground track. The collection of 35,000 photos produced by EREP represents the most complete coverage of Earth. However, it remains under used. GAS 324 intends to revisit, and to add a tier of relevancy to this inventory. The photography of GAS 324 should allow a direct examination and comparison of the changes in the globe in the last 20 years. format in both coverage and quality. The photogra phy acquired by CAN DO should allow a direct examination and comparison of the changes that have occured to the Globe in the last twenty years

To catch a child's imagination 2: Educational update on CAN-DO

At the G.A.S. Symposium last year, the Charleston County Public School CAN DO Project outlined an ambitious educational program revolving around the photography of Comet Halley from the Shuttle using a GAS canister. The target flight was STS 61-E scheduled for a March, 1986, launch. Such strict time constraints and highly specific mission requirements made the CAN DO program even more risky than normal. In spite of this, almost all of the planned educational goals were achieved, even after the postponement of all Shuttle activities in January of 1986. This follow-up paper summarizes the effects of events on the program as proposed and the attempts to carry out as many of the activities as possible. It is hoped that this paper will suggest constructive ways in which to cope with the delays and mishaps that are the invariable lot of pioneers who break new ground and attempt the new and untried

Planet X probe: A fresh new look at an old familiar place

Planet X Probe utilizes a Get Away Special (GAS) payload to provide a large student population with a remote Earth sensing experimental package. To provide a cooperative as well as a competitive environment, the effort is targeted at all grade levels and at schools in different geographical regions. LANDSAT capability allows students to investigate the Earth, its physical makeup, its resources, and the impact of man. This project also serves as an educational device to get students to stand back and take a fresh look at their home planet. The key element is to treat the familiar Earth as an unknown planet with knowledge based only on what is observable and provable from the images obtained. Through participation, a whole range of experiences will include: (1) mission planning; (2) research and pilot projects to train teams; (3) identification and recruitment of scientific mentors and dialogue; (4) selection of a student advisory team to be available during the mission; (5) analysis of data and compilation of findings; (6) report preparation, constucted along sound scientific principles; and (7) presentation and defense of findings before a meeting of competitive student groups and scientist in the field

Preliminary OARE absolute acceleration measurements on STS-50

On-orbit Orbital Acceleration Research Experiment (OARE) data on STS-50 was examined in detail during a 2-day time period. Absolute acceleration levels were derived at the OARE location, the orbiter center-of-gravity, and at the STS-50 spacelab Crystal Growth Facility. The tri-axial OARE raw acceleration measurements (i.e., telemetered data) during the interval were filtered using a sliding trimmed mean filter in order to remove large acceleration spikes (e.g., thrusters) and reduce the noise. Twelve OARE measured biases in each acceleration channel during the 2-day interval were analyzed and applied to the filtered data. Similarly, the in situ measured x-axis scale factors in the sensor's most sensitive range were also analyzed and applied to the data. Due to equipment problem(s) on this flight, both y- and z- axis sensitive range scale factors were determined in a separate process (using the OARE maneuver data) and subsequently applied to the data. All known significant low-frequency corrections at the OARE location (i.e., both vertical and horizontal gravity-gradient, and rotational effects) were removed from the filtered data in order to produce the acceleration components at the orbiter's center-of-gravity, which are the aerodynamic signals along each body axes. Results indicate that there is a force of unknown origin being applied to the Orbiter in addition to the aerodynamic forces. The OARE instrument and all known gravitational and electromagnetic forces were reexamined, but none produce the observed effect. Thus, it is tentatively concluded that the Orbiter is creating the environment observed

Nanoenhanced additive manufacturing: Additive introduction onto halloysite nanotubes and into 3D printing filament for tailored material characteristics

With the rapid advancement of additive manufacturing technologies in recent years on both the microscale and the macroscale, research must be done to test the limits of currently available technologies. On the microscale, halloysite nanotubes have proven to be a viable platform for reinforcement of polymers and time release of loaded chemicals, as well as a substrate material for the deposition of nanoparticles. The range of materials are limited due to polarity conflicts, and often lead to wet chemical processes that use more toxic alternatives. Three-dimensional (3D) printing and macroscale additive manufacturing techniques can be used to generate custom structures, however introduction of additives is a difficult proposition without access to industrial scale equipment. Dopants in the form of nanoparticles show great promise for achieving desired properties. Combinations of the technologies can be used in such applications as targeted treatments in medical research, complex geometrical radiation shielding, and printing and casting of conductive structures for a wide array of use. In this work, halloysite nanotubes were investigated as a platform for the dry deposition of metallic nanoparticles through sintering of metal acetylacetonate and metal acetate compounds. These coatings were solely or in combinations achieved for iron, nickel, copper, barium, lithium, and gold. Targeted characterization was performed on the iron, barium, gold, and iron/gold dual coated halloysite to quantify exhibited characteristics of the achieved coatings: magnetic susceptibility of the iron coating, X-ray contrast of the barium coating, and laser resonance with 532 nm and 808 nm wavelengths for the iron, gold, and iron/gold coatings. A process for fabricating metal doped 3D printing filaments was invented using commercially available equipment and designed to allow for the shielding of low level radiation printed to a user designed specification. Metals used include iron oxide and barium sulfate. Printed films utilizing the iron oxide doped filament were shown to have a dopant threshold through the discovered method of 25wt% and showed an increase in beta radiation shielding of twice that of undoped PLA. Barium sulfate was likewise found to have a 25wt% doping threshold and showed successive increases in opacity when tested against clinical medical X-ray machines. Conductive 3D printing filaments were also manufactured without modification of equipment, and the electrical characteristics of printed structures were measured in an attempt to classify the use of such a fabrication method for the manufacture of a hybrid conductive/nonconductive structure with attributes defined by the user. It was found that through the method used, conductive filaments using 15-20wt% graphene could be fabricated. Below this threshold, the material proved insulating; above this threshold, filament extrusion was inhibited. Resistances were found to be 1.5±0.4 MΩ and 60±7 kΩ for the 15 and 20 wt% filaments, respectively. Further, notable junction capacitances on the order of 20 pF were found for the 20wt% due to the charge accumulation around air voids inherent in the printing process. No notable junction capacitances were found for the 15wt%. Conductive bone cements were also manufactured to test the impact of the addition of graphene to the manufacturing process. Body resistance testing showed uneven dispersion through normal manufacturing means, and flexural testing showed varied electrical characteristics depending upon the doping percentage. Mechanical properties were also found to be inhibited at doping percentages greater than 10wt%, however these could be overcome through the use of greater MMA monomer in the manufacturing process. The first ever ability to coat halloysite nanotubes through a dry sintering process was developed as a proof of principle for multi-functional and real time customizable nanoparticle platforms. Likewise, a method to create and use metal doped and conductive 3D printing filaments on the tabletop scale was realized. Conductive bone cements were also manufactured to test their applicability as a sensor platform. Nanoparticles as additives showed ways to modify these nanotubes or 3D printing filaments with enhanced features and properties easily tailored to desired specifications

A study of the Haeffner effect in mercury

In 1953, E, Haeffner reported that when he passed a direct electric current through a capillary tube filled with mercury, he obtained a separation in the isotopes of mercury with the heavier isotopes being enriched at the negative terminal and the lighter isotopes at the positive terminal. This effect has since been referred to as the Haeffner Effect, Since the original experiment with mercury, other investigators have observed this effect in many other liquid metal systems. This investigation of the Haeffner Effect in mercury involves the use of a radioactive isotope of mercury (Hg 203) as a tracer to follow the separation of the isotopes as it occurs in a capillary system. The capillary system used in this investigation was constructed so that no reservoir was attached to the system thereby allowing an observation as to whether equilibrium conditions existed in a relatively short time compared to other investigations of the Haeffner Fffect --Abstract, page ii

Mechanism of Organic Translocation in Straight-Neck Squash

The mechanism of organic translocation in Cucurbita pepo L. variety melopepo torticollis was investigated. Two-centimeter petiole sections from nodes 2 and 3 of 22-day squash were analyzed colormetrically for the concentration of stachyose and sucrose. Stachyose is an important transport molecule and, in contrast to sucrose, may be localized in the phloem. This investigation attempted to determine the possibility of stachyose being further localized in a particulate cell fraction. The volume of the phloem was determined to be 20 mm3 per petiole. The concentration of stachyose per petiole, assuming that all of the stachyose was in the phloem and that the stachyose was evenly distributed in the phloem, was calculated to be between 0.3 and 0.4 molar. The molar concentration of sucrose in the phloem was calculated to be between 0.25 and 0.35. A fructose density-gradient with minimum and maximum amounts of fructose being 100 and 350 mg/ml, respectively, was used to isolate a fraction rich in stachyose. It was determined that 50 percent of the stachyose was localized in a 3 ml portion of the 14 ml gradient. These data provide additional evidence to support the theory that phloem transport occurs by means of particulates which move in or on transcellular strands

Influencing Motivation In The Foreign Language Classroom

Motivation is one of the main determining factors ofsuccess in developing a second or foreign language.  However, motivation is a complex phenomenonand the more its constructs are understood the better we are able to understandthe extent to which we can influence it.  Teachers can cultivate student motivation tovarying degrees and play a central role in activating and sustaining it.  This paper identifies the components thatinfluence student motivation in language learning and proposes ways in whichteachers can improve levels of motivation in the classroom and the extent towhich these measures are effective

Risk adjustment in maternity care: the use of indirect standardization

James M NicholsonDepartment of Family Practice and Community Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Health System, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USAPurpose: Annual US national rates of family physicians providing maternity care are ­decreasing and rates of cesarean delivery are increasing. Family physicians tend to have lower cesarean delivery rates than obstetrician specialists, but this association is usually explained by an assumed lower pre-delivery risk for cesarean delivery. This study was developed to compare the estimated risk of cesarean delivery in patients of the two specialties.Methods: A retrospective cohort study within an urban teaching hospital compared 100 ­family-physician treated subjects to 300 subjects treated by obstetrician-specialists. Risk factors for cesarean delivery were identified, and an indirect standardization procedure was used to compare the pre-38 week of gestation risk of cesarean delivery in the two groups.Results: The patients treated by family physicians had a projected pre-38 week of gestation risk of cesarean delivery (17.4%) that was similar to the actual rate of cesarean delivery in the obstetrician-specialist group (16.7%). The Standardized Cesarean Delivery Ratio was 1.04.Conclusion: Lower cesarean delivery rates provided by family physicians may not be simply due to case-mix issues. Additional studies comparing the pre-delivery estimation of cesarean delivery risk would be helpful in measuring the relative levels of obstetric risk of patients treated by different maternity-care provider types.Keywords: family medicine obstetrics, cesarean deliver