How Saving the Cookies for Santa Could Save Our Children

Environmental factors and high sugar lunches represent a few proposed causes of the childhood obesity epidemic. Consequences of this epidemic are not limited to physical illnesses in children, but also psychological ones. The solution to this issue is more complex than a low carbohydrate diet or increased physical activity. Children need to be raised in an environment which fosters healthy lifestyle habits year-round

Test, Control and Monitor System (TCMS) operations plan

The purpose is to provide a clear understanding of the Test, Control and Monitor System (TCMS) operating environment and to describe the method of operations for TCMS. TCMS is a complex and sophisticated checkout system focused on support of the Space Station Freedom Program (SSFP) and related activities. An understanding of the TCMS operating environment is provided and operational responsibilities are defined. NASA and the Payload Ground Operations Contractor (PGOC) will use it as a guide to manage the operation of the TCMS computer systems and associated networks and workstations. All TCMS operational functions are examined. Other plans and detailed operating procedures relating to an individual operational function are referenced within this plan. This plan augments existing Technical Support Management Directives (TSMD's), Standard Practices, and other management documentation which will be followed where applicable

Anisotropic constitutive relationships in energetic materials: PETN and HMX

This paper presents results of first-principles density functional calculations of the equation of state (EOS) of PETN-I and beta-HMX. The isotropic EOS for hydrostatic compression has been extended to include uniaxial compressions in the [100], [010], [001], [110], [101], [011], and [111] directions up to compression ratio V/V0 = 0.70. Equilibrium properties, including lattice parameters and elastic constants, as well as hydrostatic EOS are in good agreement with available experimental data. The shear stresses of uniaxially compressed PETN-I and beta-HMX have been evaluated and their behavior as a function of compression ratio has been used to make predictions of shock sensitivity of these EMs. A comparison of predicted sensitivities with available experimental data has also been performed

Porphyrin-magnetite nanoconjugates for biological imaging

<p>Background: The use of silica coated magnetic nanoparticles as contrast agents has resulted in the production of highly stable, non-toxic solutions that can be manipulated via an external magnetic field. As a result, the interaction of these nanocomposites with cells is of vital importance in understanding their behaviour and biocompatibility. Here we report the preparation, characterisation and potential application of new “two-in-one” magnetic fluorescent nanocomposites composed of silica-coated magnetite nanoparticles covalently linked to a porphyrin moiety.</p> <p>Method: The experiments were performed by administering porphyrin functionalised silica-coated magnetite nanoparticles to THP-1 cells, a human acute monocytic leukaemia cell line. Cells were cultured in RPMI 1640 medium with 25 mM HEPES supplemented with heat-inactivated foetal bovine serum (FBS).</p> <p>Results: We have synthesised, characterised and analysed in vitro, a new multimodal (magnetic and fluorescent) porphyrin magnetic nanoparticle composite (PMNC). Initial co-incubation experiments performed with THP-1 macrophage cells were promising; however the PMNC photobleached under confocal microscopy study. bmercaptoethanol (b-ME) was employed to counteract this problem and resulted not only in enhanced fluorescence emission, but also allowed for elongated imaging and increased exposure times of the PMNC in a cellular environment.</p> <p>Conclusion: Our experiments have demonstrated that b-ME visibly enhances the emission intensity. No deleterious effects to the cells were witnessed upon co-incubation with b-ME alone and no increases in background fluorescence were recorded. These results should present an interest for further development of in vitro biological imaging techniques.</p&gt

First-principles investigation of anisotropic constitutive relationships in pentaerythritol tetranitrate

First-principles density functional theory (DFT) calculations have been used to obtain the constitutive relationships of pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN-I), a crystalline energetic material. The isotropic equation of state (EOS) for hydrostatic compression has been extended to include uniaxial compressions in the , , , , , , and crystallographic directions up to a compression ratio of V/V0=0.70. DFT predicts equilibrium properties such as lattice parameters and elastic constants, as well as the hydrostatic EOS, in agreement with available experimental data. Our results show a substantial anisotropy of various properties of PETN-I upon uniaxial compression. To characterize the anisotropic traits of PETN, different physical properties of the uniaxially compressed crystal such as the energy per atom, band gap, and stress tensor have been evaluated as a function of compression ratio. The maximum shear stresses were calculated and examined for a correlation with the anisotropy in shock-initiation sensitivity

Shape and deformation measurement using heterodyne range imaging technology

Range imaging is emerging as a promising alternative technology for applications that require non-contact visual inspection of object deformation and shape. Previously, we presented a solid-state full-field heterodyne range imaging device capable of capturing three-dimensional images with sub-millimetre range resolution. Using a heterodyne indirect time-of-flight configuration, this system simultaneously measures distance (and intensity), for each pixel in a cameras field of view. In this paper we briefly describe our range imaging system, and its principle of operation. By performing measurements on several metal objects, we demonstrate the potential capabilities of this technology for surface profiling and deformation measurement. In addition to verifying system performance, the reported examples highlight some important system limitations. With these in mind we subsequently discuss the further developments required to enable the use of this device as a robust and practical tool in non-destructive testing and measurement applications

Spatiotemporal variability in the O-18-salinity relationship of seawater across the tropical Pacific Ocean

The relationship between salinity and the stable oxygen isotope ratio of seawater (δ18Osw) is of utmost importance to the quantitative reconstruction of past changes in salinity from δ18O values of marine carbonates. This relationship is often considered to be uniform across water masses, but the constancy of the δ18Osw-salinity relationship across space and time remains uncertain, as δ18Osw responds to varying atmospheric vapor sources and pathways, while salinity does not. Here we present new δ18Osw-salinity data from sites spanning the tropical Pacific Ocean. New data from Palau, Papua New Guinea, Kiritimati, and Galápagos show slopes ranging from 0.09 ‰/psu in the Galápagos to 0.32‰/psu in Palau. The slope of the δ18Osw-salinity relationship is higher in the western tropical Pacific versus the eastern tropical Pacific in observations and in two isotope-enabled climate model simulations. A comparison of δ18Osw-salinity relationships derived from short-term spatial surveys and multiyear time series at Papua New Guinea and Galápagos suggests spatial relationships can be substituted for temporal relationships at these sites, at least within the time period of the investigation. However, the δ18Osw-salinity relationship varied temporally at Palau, likely in response to water mass changes associated with interannual El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) variability, suggesting nonstationarity in this local δ18Osw-salinity relationship. Applying local δ18Osw-salinity relationships in a coral δ18O forward model shows that using a constant, basinwide δ18Osw-salinity slope can both overestimate and underestimate the contribution of δ18Osw to carbonate δ18O variance at individual sites in the western tropical Pacific.We are grateful for the dedicated water samplers who enabled this research: Lori J. Bell and Gerda Ucharm of the Coral Reef Research Foundation, Palau; Rosa Maritza Motoche Gonzalez and the Fuerza Aerea Ecuatoriana, Santa Cruz, Galapagos, Ecuador; Taonateiti Kabiri and the students of Tennessee Primary School, London, Kiritimati; and the Manus Weather Observers, U.S. Department of Energy ARM Climate Research Facility, Manus, Papua New Guinea. We would like to thank the Galapagos National Park, the Kiritimati Ministry of Environment Lands and Agricultural Development for sample permits, and the Charles Darwin Research Station for logistical support. Funding sources for this work includes NSF-AGS-PF 1049664 to J.L.C., NSF P2C2-1203785 to K.M.C., J.L.C., and D.N. This research was also supported by the Office of Biological and Environment Research of the U.S. Department of Energy as part of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Climate Research Facility. Isotope data are available as supporting information associated with the manuscript. (1049664 - NSF-AGS-PF; P2C2-1203785 - NSF; Office of Biological and Environment Research of the U.S. Department of Energy as part of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Climate Research Facility