Characterization of Bacilli isolated from the confined environments of the Antarctic Concordia station and the International Space Station

Bacillus and related genera comprise opportunist and pathogen species that can threaten the health of a crew in confined stations required for long-term missions. In this study, 43 Bacilli from confined environments, that is, the Antarctic Concordia station and the International Space Station, were characterized in terms of virulence and plasmid exchange potentials. No specific virulence feature, such as the production of toxins or unusual antibiotic resistance, was detected. Most of the strains exhibited small or large plasmids, or both, some of which were related to the replicons of the Bacillus anthracis pXO1 and pXO2 virulence elements. One conjugative element, the capacity to mobilize and retromobilize small plasmids, was detected in a Bacillus cereus sensu lato isolate. Six out of 25 tested strains acquired foreign DNA by conjugation. Extremophilic bacteria were identified and exhibited the ability to grow at high pH and salt concentrations or at low temperatures. Finally, the clonal dispersion of an opportunist isolate was demonstrated in the Concordia station. Taken together, these results suggest that the virulence potential of the Bacillus isolates in confined environments tends to be low but genetic transfers could contribute to its capacity to spread.     

Following the kinetics: iron-oxidizing microbial mats in cold icelandic volcanic habitats and their rock-associated carbonaceous signature

Icelandic streams with mean annual temperatures of less than 5 °C, which receive the cationic products of basaltic rock weathering, were found to host mats of iron-cycling microorganisms. We investigated two representative sites. Iron-oxidizing Gallionella and iron-reducing Geobacter species were present. The mats host a high bacterial diversity as determined by culture-independent methods. β-Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, α-Proteobacteria, and Bacteroidetes were abundant microbial taxa. The mat contained a high number of phototroph sequences. The carbon compounds in the mat displayed broad G and D bands with Raman spectroscopy. This signature becomes incorporated into the weathered oxidized surface layer of the basaltic rocks and was observed on rocks that no longer host mats. The presence of iron-oxidizing taxa in the stream microbial mats, and the lack of them in previously studied volcanic rocks in Iceland that have intermittently been exposed to surface water flows, can be explained by the kinetic limitations to the extraction of reduced iron from rocks. This type of ecosystem illustrates key factors that control the distribution of chemolithotrophs in cold volcanic environments. The data show that one promising sample type for which the hypothesis of the existence of past life on Mars can be tested is the surface of volcanic rocks that, previously, were situated within channels carved by flowing water. Our results also show that the carbonaceous signatures of life, if life had occurred, could be found in or on these rocks.     

用运放制作的积分器的快速瞬态噪声响应

本文描述用运放制作的积分器在减少直流电源的高频噪声方面并不很有效,当受到高频噪声影响时,它似乎起着微分器的作用。这种现象是由于输入线和直流电源的快速瞬态噪声对运放作用的结果。     

在SA条件下利用GPS的轨道确定和点定位

GPS精度控制(SA)措施降低了GPS标准定位业务(SPS)非差分用户的定位精度。常说的SPS可达精度在正常条件下为100米(2DRMS)。在缺乏更多具体条件下,许多未来的SPS用户在他们的规划中采用了100米这一精度值,但多数情况下,是夸大了实际定位误差。在本文中,我们针对轨道用户星的点定位和动力学轨道确定来研究SA带来的误差。要使SA带来的误差减至最小,非差分用户有几种选择:扩大接收视场;观测尽可能多的GPS卫星;在时间上平滑误差;选用独立计算的GPS精密轨道星历(如NASA和美国测绘局计算的),而不采用广播星历。仿真计算表明,3维点位误差可保持在30米,并且在几小时内能平滑到3米。     

用氮化铝基片制成的高功率小型开关

固态ＰＩＮ二极管开关比等效机电式或铁氧体式开关更快、更小，可靠性也更高。因此，在低功率和高功率运用中，它们被广泛用作控制元件。     

齿轮强化技术的动向

高强度齿轮对于现代汽车用小型发动机和变速器来说是必不可少的，本文论述了提高齿轮疲劳强度的发展动向，就渗碳齿轮而论，与常规渗碳相比，强力喷丸强化可获得高的残余压力和高得多的疲劳强度，而对氮化齿轮来说，新的高强度氮化钢的应用增加了氮化后渗层深度，提高了芯部硬度，且使残余压力力增大，其疲劳强度亦可与常规渗碳的相媲美。     

用于视景增强的新型区域成像雷达

近年来要求为现有机载雷达增加前视能力和呼声愈来愈高，而现有的雷达系统不能满足这种需求。本文提出了一种旨在覆盖飞行路线正前方扇形区域的新方法。这种新型的雷达系统被命名为SIREV（用于视景增强的区域成像雷达），目前正由DLR研制。由于系统具有全天候能力，并且在俯视（测绘模式）与前视条件下均可得到高质量的雷达图像，特别是适用于导航，自主进近着陆与地面滑行引导。本文着重研究这种新型系统的全方位分辨特性，还将计算方位带宽与分辨率，并讨论它们与照射扇区的关系。最后以上述研究为基础确定了系统参数，对这种新型雷达系统做出了概括描述。