Accomplishments of the NASA Johnson Space Center portion of the soil moisture project in fiscal year 1981

The NASA/JSC ground scatterometer system was used in a row structure and row direction effects experiment to understand these effects on radar remote sensing of soil moisture. Also, a modification of the scatterometer system was begun and is continuing, to allow cross-polarization experiments to be conducted in fiscal years 1982 and 1983. Preprocessing of the 1978 agricultural soil moisture experiment (ASME) data was completed. Preparations for analysis of the ASME data is fiscal year 1982 were completed. A radar image simulation procedure developed by the University of Kansas is being improved. Profile soil moisture model outputs were compared quantitatively for the same soil and climate conditions. A new model was developed and tested to predict the soil moisture characteristic (water tension versus volumetric soil moisture content) from particle-size distribution and bulk density data. Relationships between surface-zone soil moisture, surface flux, and subsurface moisture conditions are being studied as well as the ways in which measured soil moisture (as obtained from remote sensing) can be used for agricultural applications

High Resolution Hybrid Pixel Sensors for the e+e- TESLA Linear Collider Vertex Tracker

In order to fully exploit the physics potential of a future high energy e+e- linear collider, a Vertex Tracker, providing high resolution track reconstruction, is required. Hybrid Silicon pixel sensors are an attractive option, for the sensor technology, due to their read-out speed and radiation hardness, favoured in the high rate environment of the TESLA e+e- linear collider design but have been so far limited by the achievable single point space resolution. In this paper, a conceptual design of the TESLA Vertex Tracker, based on a novel layout of hybrid pixel sensors with interleaved cells to improve their spatial resolution, is presented.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figures, to appear in the Proceedings of the Vertex99 Workshop, Texel (The Netherlands), June 199

Luminosity optimisation using beam-beam deflections at LEP

In maximizing the performance of the LEP electron-positron collider it is important to ensure that the beams collide head-on at the interaction points. The deflection of the beams due to the beam-beam interactions has been measured using orbit monitors located close to the interaction points. The dependence of the beam-beam deflection on the transverse distance between the beams has been used to optimise the overlap of the beams in the vertical plane and to measure the beam sizes at the interaction points

Determination of the Accuracy of Wire Position Sensors

An energy spectrometer has been installed in the LEP accelerator to determine the beam energy with a relative accuracy of 10-4. A precisely calibrated bending magnet is flanked by 6 beam position monitors (BPM). The beam energy is determined by measuring the deflection angle of the LEP beams and the integrated bending field. An accuracy of less than 10-6 m on the beam position is necessary to reach the desired accuracy on the LEP beam energy. Capacitive wire positioning sensors are used to determine the relative mounting stability of each BPM and to calibrate the beam position monitors. Two-dimensional sensors are attached to each side of every BPM support and provide a position measurement with respect to two stretched wires mounted on either side of the LEP beam pipe. The fixing points of each wire are monitored by additional reference sensors. The position information is digitised via a multiplexed high accuracy digital voltmeter and read out continuously during LEP operations. Wire position sensor accuracy was tested in the laboratory with a laser interferometer, while relative accuracy tests are performed in the LEP environment. Systematic effects of synchrotron radiation on the wire position sensor performance were studied

Refractive change following pseudophakic vitrectomy: a retrospective review

Background To assess the occurrence and magnitude of refractive change in pseudophakic eyes undergoing 20 gauge pars plana vitrectomy without scleral buckling and to investigate possible aetiological factors. Methods Retrospective case note review of 87 pseudophakic eyes undergoing 20 gauge pars plana vitrectomy for a variety of vitreo-retinal conditions over a three-year period. Anterior chamber depth (ACD) was measured before and after vitrectomy surgery in 32 eyes. Forty-three pseudophakic fellow eyes were used as controls. Results Eighty-seven eyes (84 patients) were included in the study. Mean spherical equivalent refraction prior to vitrectomy was -0.20 dioptres, which changed to a mean of -0.65 dioptres postoperatively (standard deviation of refractive change 0.59, range-2.13 to 0.75 dioptres) (p < 0.001). Sixty-one of the 87(70%) eyes experienced a myopic shift and 45(52%) eyes had a myopic shift of -0.5 dioptres or more. Mean fellow eye refraction was -0.19 dioptres preoperatively and -0.17 dioptres postoperatively (p = 0.14)(n = 37) Mean ACD preoperatively was 3.29 mm and postoperatively 3.27 mm (p = 0.53) (n = 32) and there was no significant change in ACD with tamponade use. Regression analysis revealed no statistically significant association between changes in anterior chamber depth, as well as a wide variety of other pre-, intra and postoperative factors examined, and the refractive change observed. Conclusion Significant refractive changes occur in some pseudophakic patients undergoing 20 g pars plana vitrectomy. The mean change observed was a small myopic shift but the range was large. The aetiology of the refractive change is uncertain

Swimming against the tide: a study of a neighbourhood trying to rediscover its ‘reason for being’– the case of South Bank, Redcar and Cleveland.

Many of the programmes and initiatives to regenerate deprived neighbourhoods appear to have had limited lasting impact. It has been argued that one reason for this is that we still have little real understanding of the nature and scale of the problems some communities face (Bernt, 2009). This article attempts to add to our knowledge through close study of an area with multiple problems and a history of failed regeneration attempts. An in-depth case study, undertaken to explore the current situation and future prospects of South Bank, a small neighbourhood in the North East of England, highlights transferable knowledge which may be applied to other regeneration areas. The analysis considers the nature and consequences of industrial decline; entrenched deprivation; the stigmatization of communities; the value of community consultation and the potential impact of retail-led regeneration. We question whether negative stigma attached to places can be changed and we ask what the future may hold for deprived communities now that public sector funding has largely dried up, and we consider an alternative approach: the potential impacts of private sector retail-led regeneration in the absence of public sector funding

Mouse cytomegalovirus-experienced ILC1s acquire a memory response dependent on the viral glycoprotein m12.

Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) are tissue-resident sentinels that are essential for early host protection from pathogens at initial sites of infection. However, whether pathogen-derived antigens directly modulate the responses of tissue-resident ILCs has remained unclear. In the present study, it was found that liver-resident type 1 ILCs (ILC1s) expanded locally and persisted after the resolution of infection with mouse cytomegalovirus (MCMV). ILC1s acquired stable transcriptional, epigenetic and phenotypic changes a month after the resolution of MCMV infection, and showed an enhanced protective effector response to secondary challenge with MCMV consistent with a memory lymphocyte response. Memory ILC1 responses were dependent on the MCMV-encoded glycoprotein m12, and were independent of bystander activation by proinflammatory cytokines after heterologous infection. Thus, liver ILC1s acquire adaptive features in an MCMV-specific manner

Preliminary Solar Sail Design and Fabrication Assessment: Spinning Sail Blade, Square Sail Sheet

Blade design aspects most affecting producibility and means of measurement and control of length, scallop, fullness and straightness requirements and tolerances were extensively considered. Alternate designs of the panel seams and edge reinforcing members are believed to offer advantages of seam integrity, producibility, reliability, cost and weight. Approaches to and requirements for highly specialized metalizing methods, processes and equipment were studied and identified. Alternate methods of sail blade fabrication and related special machinery, tooling, fixtures and trade offs were examined. A preferred and recommended approach is also described. Quality control plans, inspection procedures, flow charts and special test equipment associated with the preferred manufacturing method were analyzed and are discussed

HEP Software Foundation Community White Paper Working Group - Data and Software Preservation to Enable Reuse

In this chapter of the High Energy Physics Software Foundation Community Whitepaper, we discuss the current state of infrastructure, best practices, and ongoing developments in the area of data and software preservation in high energy physics. A re-framing of the motivation for preservation to enable re-use is presented. A series of research and development goals in software and other cyberinfrastructure that will aid in the enabling of reuse of particle physics analyses and production software are presented and discussed