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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 37 records · Page 2

Method of Stamping Surface-Enhance Raman Spectroscopy for Label-Free, Multiplexed, Molecular Sensing and Imaging

The present disclosure relates the use of a stamping surface enhanced Raman scattering (S-SERS) technique with nanoporous gold disk (NPGD) plasmonic substrates to produce a label-free, multiplexed molecular sensing and imaging technique. A NPGD SERS substrate is stamped onto a surface containing one or more target molecules, followed by SERS measurement of the target molecules located between the surface and SERS substrate. The target molecules may be deposited on the surface, which may be a carrier substrate such as polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS).

Shih, Wei-Chuan↗

Positions of galactic X-ray sources - Galactic longitude between 20 and 55 deg

Precise positions, determined with data from the SAS-3 X-ray observatory, are presented for eight galactic plane X-ray sources (Aql X-1, Ser X-1, 3U 1956+11, 3U 1822-00, 3U 1915-05, A 1845-02, A 1850-08, A 1905+00). Error radii for the positions range from 20 to 50 arc s. Previously proposed optical identifications of three of the sources (Ser X-1, 3U 1956+11, A 1850-08) are supported by these results. Three (Ser X-1, A 1905+00, 3U 1915-05) have been identified as X-ray burst sources.

Doxsey, R. E.↗

An index of the literature for bimolecular gas phase cation-molecule reaction kinetics

This is an index to the literature for gas phase bimolecular positive ionmolecule reactions. Over 2300 references are cited. Reaction rate coefficients and product distributions of the reactions are abstracted out of the original citations where available. This index is intended to cover the literature from 1936 to 2003. This is a continuation of several surveys: the original (Huntress Astrophys. J. Suppl. Ser., 33, 495 (1977)), an expansion (Anicich and Huntress, Astrophys. J. Suppl. Ser. 62, 553 (1986)), a supplement (Anicich, Astrophys. J. Suppl. Ser. 84, 215 (1993)), and an evaluation (Anicich, V. G. J. Phys. Chem. Ref. Data 22,1469 (1993b). The Table of reactions is listed by reactant ion.

reaction kinetics↗

Radio emission from nova shells

This paper presents data from multifrequency radio observations of the novae HR Del 1967 and FH Ser 1970 made from June 1970 to December 1978 and of V1500 Cyg 1975 made from September 1975 to December 1978. The data for FH Ser and V1500 Cyg constitute a complete history of the important phases of their radio 'light' curves, while all but the rising portion of the optically thick phase of an expanding nova shell is present for HR Del. A simple solution of the spherically symmetric equations of mass and momentum conservation for an isothermal gas, for which pressure gradients are effectively decoupled from the dynamics, is shown to fit the radio data for all three novae quite well. The main features of this model are strong density and velocity gradients that lead to long periods when the 'observable' shell evolves from an optically thick 'disk' to a completely optically thin shell.

Hjellming, R. M.↗

RW Tauri as a weak W Serpentis star

Observations of the short-period eclipsing binary RW Tau made with the LWR and SWP cameras of the IUE satellite and with the ITS scanner at the 3-m Shane telescope of the Lick Observatory in August and October, 1982, are reported and analyzed. At total eclipse, weak excess continuous radiation in the LWR range and emission lines at Si IV (1), C IV (1), Al III (1), Fe III (34), and Mg II (1) in the SWP range were detected. These findings are similar to those for W Ser-type binaries such as U Cep. The parameters of the system are estimated using a bilinearly interpolated atmospheric model of the type developed by Kurucz (1979): primary-star T(eff) = 11,750 K, log g = 4.2, cool-component spectral type = K0 III, E(B-V) color excess = 0.14 mag, system distance = 270 pc. The implications of these findings for proposed models of the W Ser binaries are discussed, and the observation of a possible distant optical companion star 45 arcsec from RW Tau is reported.

Plavec, M. J.↗

Carrier recovery methods for a dual-mode modem: A design approach

A dual mode model with selectable QPSK or 16-QASK modulation schemes is discussed. The theoretical reasoning as well as the practical trade-offs made during the development of a modem are presented, with attention given to the carrier recovery method used for coherent demodulation. Particular attention is given to carrier recovery methods that can provide little degradation due to phase error for both QPSK and 16-QASK, while being insensitive to the amplitude characteristic of a 16-QASK modulation scheme. A computer analysis of the degradation is symbol error rate (SER) for QPSK and 16-QASK due to phase error is prresented. Results find that an energy increase of roughly 4 dB is needed to maintain a SER of 1X10(-5) for QPSK with 20 deg of phase error and 16-QASK with 7 deg phase error.

Richards, C. W.↗

The electromagnetic ram action of the plasma focus as a paradigm for the generation of cosmic rays and the gigantic jets in active galaxies

Recent measurements of the energy spectrum of the plasma-focus-generated deuteron beam yield as spectrum of the form N(E)=(approx.) E to the -2.7 for 1MeV E 13 MeV. Other measurements show that the beta 1 electron beam which is generated simultaneously with the deuteron beam is interrupted into segments of spacing 25ps and duration approximately 4ps. A stuttering-electro-magnetic-ram (ser) model of the plasma focus in proposed which is similar to Raudorf's electronic ram which produces a similar spectrum for an electron beam for 1Mev E 10MeV. It is proposed that the cosmic ray spectrum and the giganic galactic jets are both generated by ser action near the centers of active galaxies.

Bostick, W. H.↗

A survey of IRAS data on 41 classical novae

The IRAS database has been searched for detections of 41 classical novae using coadditions of survey scans; 15 were detected. IRAS temporal observations of novae in outburst are discussed. The observed long-wavelength infrared distributions of DQ Her, and possibly HR Del, can be explained by emission from small (a of about 0.1 microns) dust grains heated by the central object. An alternative explanation for the energy distributions of DQ Her and HR Del is emission from fine-structure lines. FH Ser and LW Ser display energy distributions that have color temperatures much too hot to be due to heating of dust by the central source in any plausible scenario. Line emission is probably the best explanation of their observed energy distributions. The novae NQ Vul and LV Vul have energy distributions that may be contaminated by emission from galactic cirrus. The unusual object PL 1547.3-5612 exhibits an energy distribution that does not resemble those of planetary nebulae or other novae detected in this sample. An IRAS low-resolution spectrum of RR Tel shows the 10-micron silicate emission feature.

Harrison, T. E.↗

Conduct and results of the Interagency Nuclear Safety Review Panel's evaluation of the Ulysses space mission

After over a year of detailed independent review, a Safety Evaluation Report (SER) was prepared for the nuclear-powered Ulysses spacecraft mission. An overview is presently given of the Ulysses mission as well as the conduct and results of the evaluation process; in the final analysis, the SER was supportive of a positive launch decision. Eleven key accident scenarios were carried through to complete analysis, out of a total of 19 possible accidents involving a potential for fuel release to the spacecraft environment.

Sholtis, Joseph A., Jr.↗

New Human-Computer Interface Concepts for Mission Operations

The current climate of budget cuts has forced the space mission operations community to reconsider how it does business. Gone are the days of building one-of-kind control centers with teams of controllers working in shifts 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. Increasingly, automation is used to significantly reduce staffing needs. In some cases, missions are moving towards lights-out operations where the ground system is run semi-autonomously. On-call operators are brought in only to resolve anomalies. Some operations concepts also call for smaller operations teams to manage an entire family of spacecraft. In the not too distant future, a skeleton crew of full-time general knowledge operators will oversee the operations of large constellations of small spacecraft, while geographically distributed specialists will be assigned to emergency response teams based on their expertise. As the operations paradigms change, so too must the tools to support the mission operations team's tasks. Tools need to be built not only to automate routine tasks, but also to communicate varying types of information to the part-time, generalist, or on-call operators and specialists more effectively. Thus, the proper design of a system's user-system interface (USI) becomes even more importance than before. Also, because the users will be accessing these systems from various locations (e.g., control center, home, on the road) via different devices with varying display capabilities (e.g., workstations, home PCs, PDAS, pagers) over connections with various bandwidths (e.g., dial-up 56k, wireless 9.6k), the same software must have different USIs to support the different types of users, their equipment, and their environments. In other words, the software must now adapt to the needs of the users! This paper will focus on the needs and the challenges of designing USIs for mission operations. After providing a general discussion of these challenges, the paper will focus on the current efforts of creatin(y an effective USI for one specific suite of tools, SERS (The Spacecraft Emergency Response System), which has been built to enable lights-out operations. SERS is a Web-based collaborative environment that enables secure distributed fault management.

Fox, Jeffrey A.↗

Identification of amino acid sequences in the polyomavirus capsid proteins that serve as nuclear localization signals

The molecular mechanism participating in the transport of newly synthesized proteins from the cytoplasm to the nucleus in mammalian cells is poorly understood. Recently, the nuclear localization signal sequences (NLS) of many nuclear proteins have been identified, and most have been found to be composed of a highly basic amino acid stretch. A genetic "subtractive" and a biochemical "additive" approach were used in our studies to identify the NLS's of the polyomavirus structural capsid proteins. An NLS was identified at the N-terminus (Ala1-Pro-Lys-Arg-Lys-Ser-Gly-Val-Ser-Lys-Cys11) of the major capsid protein VP1 and at the C-terminus (Glu307 -Glu-Asp-Gly-Pro-Glu-Lys-Lys-Lys-Arg-Arg-Leu318) of the VP2/VP3 minor capsid proteins.

NASA Discipline Number 93-10↗

A calcium-dependent protein kinase can inhibit a calmodulin-stimulated Ca2+ pump (ACA2) located in the endoplasmic reticulum of Arabidopsis

The magnitude and duration of a cytosolic Ca(2+) release can potentially be altered by changing the rate of Ca(2+) efflux. In plant cells, Ca(2+) efflux from the cytoplasm is mediated by H(+)/Ca(2+)-antiporters and two types of Ca(2+)-ATPases. ACA2 was recently identified as a calmodulin-regulated Ca(2+)-pump located in the endoplasmic reticulum. Here, we show that phosphorylation of its N-terminal regulatory domain by a Ca(2+)-dependent protein kinase (CDPK isoform CPK1), inhibits both basal activity ( approximately 10%) and calmodulin stimulation ( approximately 75%), as shown by Ca(2+)-transport assays with recombinant enzyme expressed in yeast. A CDPK phosphorylation site was mapped to Ser(45) near a calmodulin binding site, using a fusion protein containing the N-terminal domain as an in vitro substrate for a recombinant CPK1. In a full-length enzyme, an Ala substitution for Ser(45) (S45/A) completely blocked the observed CDPK inhibition of both basal and calmodulin-stimulated activities. An Asp substitution (S45/D) mimicked phosphoinhibition, indicating that a negative charge at this position is sufficient to account for phosphoinhibition. Interestingly, prior binding of calmodulin blocked phosphorylation. This suggests that, once ACA2 binds calmodulin, its activation state becomes resistant to phosphoinhibition. These results support the hypothesis that ACA2 activity is regulated as the balance between the initial kinetics of calmodulin stimulation and CDPK inhibition, providing an example in plants for a potential point of crosstalk between two different Ca(2+)-signaling pathways.

NASA Discipline Plant Biology↗

Site-specific regulatory interaction between spinach leaf sucrose-phosphate synthase and 14-3-3 proteins

We report an Mg2+-dependent interaction between spinach leaf sucrose-phosphate synthase (SPS) and endogenous 14-3-3 proteins, as evidenced by co-elution during gel filtration and co-immunoprecipitation. The content of 14-3-3s associated with an SPS immunoprecipitate was inversely related to activity, and was specifically reduced when tissue was pretreated with 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide riboside, suggesting metabolite control in vivo. A synthetic phosphopeptide based on Ser-229 was shown by surface plasmon resonance to bind a recombinant plant 14-3-3, and addition of the phosphorylated SPS-229 peptide was found to stimulate the SPS activity of an SPS:14-3-3 complex. Taken together, the results suggest a regulatory interaction of 14-3-3 proteins with Ser-229 of SPS.

Non-NASA Center↗

EDTA-insoluble, calcium-binding proteoglycan in bovine bone

A calcium ion precipitable, trypsin-generated proteoglycan fragment has been isolated from the demineralized, EDTA-insoluble matrices of bone. The demineralized matrix was completely digested with trypsin, increasing concentrations of CaCl2 were added to the supernatant, and the resulting precipitates were analyzed. The amount of precipitate gradually increased with higher concentrations of calcium and was reversibly solubilized by EDTA. After molecular sieve and anion exchange chromatography, a proteoglycan-containing peak was obtained. Immunochemical analysis showed that this peak contained chondroitin 4-sulfate and possibly keratan sulfate. Amino acid analysis showed that this proteoglycan contained high amounts of aspartic acid/asparagine (Asx), serine (Ser), glutamic acid/glutamine (Glx), proline (Pro), and glycine (Gly); however, it contained little leucine (Leu) which suggests that it is not a member of the leucine-rich small proteoglycan family. In addition, significant amounts of phosphoserine (P-Ser) and hydroxyproline (Hyp) were identified in hydrolysates of this fraction. A single band (M(r) 59 kDa) was obtained on SDS-PAGE that stained with Stains-all but not with Coomassie Brilliant Blue R-250. If bone powder was trypsinized prior to demineralization, this proteoglycan-containing fraction was not liberated. Collectively, these results indicate that a proteoglycan occurs in the demineralized matrix that is precipitated with CaCl2 and is closely associated with both mineral and collagen matrices. Such a molecule might facilitate the structural network for the induction of mineralization in bone.

NASA Program Space Physiology and Countermeasures↗

The use of additive and subtractive approaches to examine the nuclear localization sequence of the polyomavirus major capsid protein VP1

A nuclear localization signal (NLS) has been identified in the N-terminal (Ala1-Pro-Lys-Arg-Lys-Ser-Gly-Val-Ser-Lys-Cys11) amino acid sequence of the polyomavirus major capsid protein VP1. The importance of this amino acid sequence for nuclear transport of VP1 protein was demonstrated by a genetic "subtractive" study using the constructs pSG5VP1 (full-length VP1) and pSG5 delta 5'VP1 (truncated VP1, lacking amino acids Ala1-Cys11). These constructs were used to transfect COS-7 cells, and expression and intracellular localization of the VP1 protein was visualized by indirect immunofluorescence. These studies revealed that the full-length VP1 was expressed and localized in the nucleus, while the truncated VP1 protein was localized in the cytoplasm and not transported to the nucleus. These findings were substantiated by an "additive" approach using FITC-labeled conjugates of synthetic peptides homologous to the NLS of VP1 cross-linked to bovine serum albumin or immunoglobulin G. Both conjugates localized in the nucleus after microinjection into the cytoplasm of 3T6 cells. The importance of individual amino acids found in the basic sequence (Lys3-Arg-Lys5) of the NLS was also investigated. This was accomplished by synthesizing three additional peptides in which lysine-3 was substituted with threonine, arginine-4 was substituted with threonine, or lysine-5 was substituted with threonine. It was found that lysine-3 was crucial for nuclear transport, since substitution of this amino acid with threonine prevented nuclear localization of the microinjected, FITC-labeled conjugate.

Non-NASA Center↗

Local Intensity Enhancements in Spherical Microcavities: Implications for Photonic Chemical and Biological Sensors

In this report, we summarize recent findings regarding the use spherical microcavities in the amplification of light that is inelastically scattered by either fluorescent or Raman-active molecules. This discussion will focus on Raman scattering, with the understanding that analogous processes apply to fluorescence. Raman spectra can be generated through the use of a very strong light source that stimulates inelastic light scattering by molecules, with the scattering occurring at wavelengths shifted from that of the source and being most prominent at shifts associated with the molecules natural vibrational frequencies. The Raman signal can be greatly enhanced by exposing a molecule to the intense electric fields that arise near surfaces (typically of gold or silver) exhibiting nanoscale roughness. This is known as surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). SERS typically produces gain factors of 103 - 106, but under special conditions, factors of 1010 - 1014 have been achieved.

Fuller, Kirk A.↗

Comparison of Grammar-Based and Statistical Language Models Trained on the Same Data

This paper presents a methodologically sound comparison of the performance of grammar-based (GLM) and statistical-based (SLM) recognizer architectures using data from the Clarissa procedure navigator domain. The Regulus open source packages make this possible with a method for constructing a grammar-based language model by training on a corpus. We construct grammar-based and statistical language models from the same corpus for comparison, and find that the grammar-based language models provide better performance in this domain. The best SLM version has a semantic error rate of 9.6%, while the best GLM version has an error rate of 6.0%. Part of this advantage is accounted for by the superior WER and Sentence Error Rate (SER) of the GLM (WER 7.42% versus 6.27%, and SER 12.41% versus 9.79%). The rest is most likely accounted for by the fact that the GLM architecture is able to use logical-form-based features, which permit tighter integration of recognition and semantic interpretation.

Hockey, Beth Ann↗

Near-Field Spectroscopy with Nanoparticles Deposited by AFM

An alternative approach to apertureless near-field optical spectroscopy involving an atomic-force microscope (AFM) entails less complexity of equipment than does a prior approach. The alternative approach has been demonstrated to be applicable to apertureless near-field optical spectroscopy of the type using an AFM and surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), and is expected to be equally applicable in cases in which infrared or fluorescence spectroscopy is used. Apertureless near-field optical spectroscopy is a means of performing spatially resolved analyses of chemical compositions of surface regions of nanostructured materials. In apertureless near-field spectroscopy, it is common practice to utilize nanostructured probe tips or nanoparticles (usually of gold) having shapes and dimensions chosen to exploit plasmon resonances so as to increase spectroscopic-signal strengths. To implement the particular prior approach to which the present approach is an alternative, it is necessary to integrate a Raman spectrometer with an AFM and to utilize a special SERS-active probe tip. The resulting instrumentation system is complex, and the tasks of designing and constructing the system and using the system to acquire spectro-chemical information from nanometer-scale regions on a surface are correspondingly demanding.

Anderson, Mark S.↗