The Elements of Housing

This paper describes the existing construction industry as a total system whose flow chart of operations moves from land accumulation through land development to actual construction and ultimate sale to the consumer. Based in part on the author's past experiences as a general building contractor, it focuses upon the historical evolution of the builder as the central figure in today's building processes and demonstrates by examples the complexity, strength, and weaknesses of present housing methods.     

Zener Diodes as Vehicular and Aircraft Transient Suppressors

The prime purpose of this paper is to describe the characteristics and application of high powered Zener diodes as transient suppressors for transients emanating in ground vehicle and aircraft power supplies. Information is presented on voltage transients as specified in MIL-STD-704 for aircraft and MIL-STD-1275(AT) for military ground vehicles and the ability of advanced high power Zener diodes in suppressing the levels of voltages specified therein. A complete transient suppressor capable of operating externally to the equipment intended for protection is also described.     

Vestibular function in the space environment

Adaptation to the weightless state and readaptation after space flight to the 1-G environment on the ground are accompanied by various transitory symptoms of vestibular instability, kinetosis, and illusory sensations. Aside from the problem of how to treat and if possible prevent such symptoms, they offer a clue to a better understanding of normal vestibular functions. Weightlessness is a powerful new "tool" of vestibular research. Graybiel reported as early as 1952 that human subjects observed the illusion that a real target and the visual afterimage seemed to raise in the visual field during centrifugation when the subjects were looking toward the axis of rotation (oculogravic illusion). In aircraft parabolic-flight weightlessness, human subjects observed that fixed real targets appeared to have moved downward while visual afterimages appeared to have moved upward (oculoagravic illusion). It can be shown by electronystagmography as well as by a method employing double afterimages that part of this illusion is caused by eye movements that are triggered by the changing input from the otolith system. Another part of the illusion is based on a change of the subjective horizontal and must be caused by convergence of vestibular and visual impulses "behind" the eyes. This part was measured independently of the first one by using a new method. Eye movements could be prevented during these experiments by optical fixation with the right eye on a target at the end of a 24-in. long tube which was rigidly attached parallel to the longitudinal axis of an aircraft. At the same time the subject tried to line up a shorter tube, which was pivoting around his left eye, with the subjective horizon.     

The Goddard Experiment Package?An Automated Space Telescope

The Goddard Experiment Package will measure the ultraviolet spectral emittance of stars and nebulae. It has a spectral resolution of 2 ? in the 1050-? to 4000-? band. The telescope has a 38-inch clear aperture and automatically reduces the spectral data to digital form. Guidance accuracy is 1 of second arc.     

Evaluation of Multipoint Interaction in the Design of a Thin Diffraction-Limited Active Mirror

Active control of a thin, deformable mirror is one approach to obtaining diffraction-limited performance from large orbiting telescopes. The control system design requires knowledge of the mirror reaction to the multiple forces used to maintain the desired mirror figure. A structural analysis program is used to obtain estimates of the static deflections of a point-loaded, thin, shallow, spherical primary mirror. The calculated deflections are compared to experimentally measured deflections for a specific configuration.     

Hydroelectrolytic and hormonal modifications related to prolonged bedrest in antiorthostatic position

The effects of prolonged bedrest in antiorthostatic position (-4 degrees head down) on electrolyte balance were studied in 4 young volunteers. An increase was noted in sodium excretion during the first 4 days. Plasma renin activity and plasma aldosterone varied in parallel manner during the same period. Potassium balance and creatinine clearance were not significantly modified. In light of these data we feel that prolonged bedrest in antiorthostatic position constitutes an effective way to simulate on earth metabolic and hormonal modifications occurring in man under weightlessness conditions.     

Soil and crop management experiments in the Laboratory Biosphere: an analogue system for the Mars on Earth(R) facility.

During the years 2002 and 2003, three closed system experiments were carried out in the "Laboratory Biosphere" facility located in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The program involved experimentation of "Hoyt" Soy Beans, (experiment #1) USU Apogee Wheat (experiment #2) and TU-82-155 sweet potato (experiment #3) using a 5.37 m2 soil planting bed which was 30 cm deep. The soil texture, 40% clay, 31% sand and 28% silt (a clay loam), was collected from an organic farm in New Mexico to avoid chemical residues. Soil management practices involved minimal tillage, mulching, returning crop residues to the soil after each experiment and increasing soil biota by introducing worms, soil bacteria and mycorrhizae fungi. High soil pH of the original soil appeared to be a factor affecting the first two experiments. Hence, between experiments #2 and #3, the top 15 cm of the soil was amended using a mix of peat moss, green sand, humates and pumice to improve soil texture, lower soil pH and increase nutrient availability. This resulted in lowering the initial pH of 8.0-6.7 at the start of experiment #3. At the end of the experiment, the pH was 7.6. Soil nitrogen and phosphorus has been adequate, but some chlorosis was evident in the first two experiments. Aphid infestation was the only crop pest problem during the three experiments and was handled using an introduction of Hyppodamia convergens. Experimentation showed there were environmental differences even in this 1200 cubic foot ecological system facility, such as temperature and humidity gradients because of ventilation and airflow patterns which resulted in consequent variations in plant growth and yield. Additional humidifiers were added to counteract low humidity and helped optimize conditions for the sweet potato experiment. The experience and information gained from these experiments are being applied to the future design of the Mars On Earth(R) facility (Silverstone et al., Development and research program for a soil-based bioregenerative agriculture system to feed a four person crew at a Mars base, Advances in Space Research 31(1) (2003) 69-75; Allen and Alling, The design approach for Mars On Earth(R), a biospheric closed system testing facility for long-term space habitation, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Inc., IAC-02-IAA.8.2.02, 2002).     

Gravity and perceptual stability during translational head movement on earth and in microgravity

We measured the amount of visual movement judged consistent with translational head movement under normal and microgravity conditions. Subjects wore a virtual reality helmet in which the ratio of the movement of the world to the movement of the head (visual gain) was variable. Using the method of adjustment under normal gravity 10 subjects adjusted the visual gain until the visual world appeared stable during head movements that were either parallel or orthogonal to gravity. Using the method of constant stimuli under normal gravity, seven subjects moved their heads and judged whether the virtual world appeared to move “with” or “against” their movement for several visual gains. One subject repeated the constant stimuli judgements in microgravity during parabolic flight. The accuracy of judgements appeared unaffected by the direction or absence of gravity. Only the variability appeared affected by the absence of gravity. These results are discussed in relation to discomfort during head movements in microgravity.     

Recovery of lower limb function following 6 weeks of non-weight bearing

Skeletal muscle weakness and atrophy occur following an extended period of decreased use, including space flight and limb unloading. It is also likely that affected muscles will be susceptible to a re-loading injury when they begin return to earth or weight bearing. However, there is a paucity of literature evaluating the response of human unloaded muscle to exercise and return to activity.

The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate the soreness, function and strength response of muscle to re-loading in seven patients who were non-weight bearing for 6 weeks, compared to five healthy subjects.

Function improved significantly over time for the patients but was still less than the healthy subjects over 12 weeks of physiotherapy. Concentric quadriceps muscle strength increased significantly over time for the patients. There was considerable variability in the patients’ reports of muscle soreness but there were no significant changes over time or between groups.     

Vanguard--a European robotic astrobiology-focussed Mars sub-surface mission proposal

We present a new European Mars mission proposal to build on the UK-led Beagle2 Mars mission and continue its astrobiology-focussed investigation of Mars. The small surface element to be delivered to the Martian surface--Vanguard--is designed to be carried by a Mars Express-type spacecraft bus to Mars and adopts a similar entry, descent and landing system as Beagle2. The surface element comprises a triad of robotic devices--a lander, a micro-rover of the Sojourner class for surface mobility, and three ground-penetrating moles mounted onto the rover for sub-surface penetration to 5 m depth. The major onboard instruments on the rover include a Raman spectrometer/imager, a laser plasma spectrometer, an infrared spectrometer--these laser instruments provide the basis for in situ "remote" sensing of the sub-surface Martian environment within a powerful scientific package. The moles carry the instruments' sensor head array to the sub-surface. The moles are thus required to undergo a one-way trip down the boreholes without the need for recovery of moles or samples, eliminating much of the robotic complexity invoked by such operations.