The Texan Koenenia

Integrative Biolog

Ablative shielding for hypervelocity projectiles

A hypervelocity projectile shield which includes a hollow semi-flexible housing fabricated from a plastic like, or otherwise transparent membrane which is filled with a fluid (gas or liquid) is presented. The housing has a inlet valve, similar to that on a tire or basketball, to introduce an ablating fluid into the housing. The housing is attached by a Velcro mount or double-sided adhesive tape to the outside surface of a structure to be protected. The housings are arrayed in a side-by-side relationship for complete coverage of the surface to be protected. In use, when a hypervelocity projectile penetrates the outer wall of a housing it is broken up and then the projectile is ablated as it travels through the fluid, much like a meteorite 'burns up' as it enters the earth's atmosphere, and the housing is deflated. The deflated housing can be easily spotted for replacement, even from a distance. Replacement is then accomplished by simply pulling a deflated housing off the structure and installing a new housing

Circumventing Authority: Loopholes in the DMCA’s Access Controls

In a world where digital pirates freely roam the internet, seemingly plundering at will, the providers of digital content must find a way to protect their valuable assets. Digital fences afford that protection--but not very well. Fortunately (for content owners), 17 U.S.C. §1201, passed as part of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998, was designed to fill the numerous gaps in those fences by forbidding activities designed to circumvent them. In its present state, however, §1201 does not adequately serve that purpose. Substantial flaws in the language of the statute render it virtually powerless to thwart piracy. If §1201 is to fulfill its intended role (without the need for creative judicial interpretation), it must be amended to rectify the discrepancies between Congress’ supposed intent and the language it chose

Vibration Responses of Simple Curved Panels to High-intensity Random and Discrete Frequency Noise

Vibration effects of simple curved panels to high intensity random and discrete frequency nois

High-pressure promoted combustion chamber

In the preferred embodiment of the promoted combusiton chamber disclosed herein, a thick-walled tubular body that is capable of withstanding extreme pressures is arranged with removable upper and lower end closures to provide access to the chamber for dependently supporting a test sample of a material being evaluated in the chamber. To facilitate the real-time analysis of a test sample, several pressure-tight viewing ports capable of withstanding the simulated environmental conditions are arranged in the walls of the tubular body for observing the test sample during the course of the test. A replaceable heat-resistant tubular member and replaceable flame-resistant internal liners are arranged to be fitted inside of the chamber for protecting the interior wall surfaces of the combustion chamber during the evaluation tests. Inlet and outlet ports are provided for admitting high-pressure gases into the chamber as needed for performing dynamic analyses of the test sample during the course of an evaluation test

Is There an Association Between Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Participation and Elevated Body Mass Index in Women?

Background: The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp Program, is the largest nutrition assistance program in the United States. Its objective is to alleviate food insecurity and hunger. Women represent 28% of participants. Low-income individuals and women have the highest rates of obesity. Objective: Determine if there is an association between participation in SNAP and elevated body mass index (BMI) in low-income women. Design: A cross-sectional analysis was performed with National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) 2009-2010 dataset. The study population comprised 788 women between the ages of 18 and 65, who were not pregnant, with household incomes ≤ 130% of the federal poverty level. More than half (57%) of the study population were SNAP participants. Univariate and Multivariate logistic regression models were used to examine the associations between SNAP participation and BMI, as well as selected sociodemographic variables; race, country of birth, education level, marital status, total number in household, insurance coverage, physical activity, and food security. Results: SNAP participants were more likely to be overweight or obese than non-SNAP participants. There were no statistically significant associations found between SNAP participation and elevated BMI. Having health insurance was associated with elevated BMI in both univariate (OR: 1.339; 95% CI: 1.006, 1.781; P≤ 0.05) and multivariate analyses (OR: 1.479; 95% CI: 1.079, 2.2028; P≤ 0.05). Conclusion: Though there was no statistically significant association between SNAP participation and elevated BMI due to limitations of the dataset, some relationship does seem to exist. Health insurance was the only variable positively associated with elevated BMI. Further investigation of obesity in low-income women and other populations is necessary to better align SNAP with dietary guidelines

The relationship between Saturn kilometric radiation and the solar wind

Voyager spacecraft radio, interplanetary plasma, and interplanetary magnetic field data are used to show that large amplitude fluctuations in the power generated by the Saturn kilometric radio emission are best correlated with solar wind ram pressure variation. In all, thirteen solar wind quantities previously found important in driving terrestrial magnetospheric substorms and other auroral processes were examined for evidence of correlations with the Saturn radio emission. The results are consistent with hydromagnetic wave or eddy diffusion processes driven by large scale solar wind pressure changes at Saturn's dayside magnetopause

Response-to-noise studies of some aircraft and spacecraft structures

Fatigue and response to noise of aircraft and spacecraft viscoelastic panels, shell structure, and payload