The role of intermediate data rate (IDR) carriers in the intelsat system and their impact upon operational planning

IDR carriers will provide a significant proportion of the services in the INTELSAT system within the next few years. A number of factors have been identified which must be considered when developing satellite operational plans, in order to ensure satisfactory operation of an integrated environment consisting of a number of different access techniques and modulation methods.     

Improved Visual Design for Graphics Display

The principles of good visual design used in advertising can help programmers design effective computer displays that will substantially improve the man-machine interface.     

Sound propagation,density, and viscosity in liquid3He

We have measured the temperature dependence of the velocity and the attenuation of sound in the range 60–700 mK. The maximum in the sound velocity observed by Abraham and Osborne is confirmed. The viscosity deduced from the attenuation measurements is in good agreement with that of Abel, Anderson, and Wheatley but differs from that of Betts, Keen, and Wilks. The sound velocity as a function of pressure at 150 mK was also measured and from this the low-temperature pressure dependence of the density was determined.Based on work performed under the auspices of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.     

Temperature dependence of the sound velocity in liquid4He

We have measured the temperature dependence of the sound velocity in liquid ⁴ He from 0.07 to 0.7 K for frequencies from 12 to 105 MHz. While the data show an approximateT ⁴ temperature dependence, the frequency ordering of the curves is observed to undergo an inversion at about 0.2 K. Above this temperature we confirm that the velocity shift decreases with frequency, while below this temperature we now find that the velocity shift increases with frequency as predicted by theory.Based on work performed under the auspices of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.     

Relationship between job attitudes and two forms of withdrawal from the work situation.

Correlated attitudes concerning the job in general and specific aspects of the work situation with termination decisions and recorded frequency of absences during the year following administration of job attitude questionnaire to 160 nonsupervisory female employees. Overall satisfaction and satisfaction with several intrinsic aspects of the work situation were significantly related to the termination criterion. None of the extrinsic variables were related. For the frequency of absence criterion, attitudes toward specific aspects of the work situation showed no consistent relationships when nonattitudinal variables were partialed out, but overall satisfaction was significantly related. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Inactivation of rabbit muscle glycogen synthase by glycogen synthase kinase-3. Dominant role of the phosphorylation of Ser-640 (site-3a)

Rabbit skeletal muscle glycogen synthase, a rate-limiting enzyme for glycogen biosynthesis, is regulated by multisite phosphorylation. The protein kinase glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK-3) phosphorylates 4 Ser residues (Ser-640, Ser-644, Ser-648, and Ser-652; also known as sites 3a, 3b, 3c, and 4, respectively) at the COOH terminus of the subunit. Phosphorylation of these sites by GSK-3 is sequential, from COOH- to NH2-terminal, and is wholly dependent on prior phosphorylation by casein kinase II at Ser-656 (site 5). Expression in Escherichia coli was used to generate mutant forms of glycogen synthase, S640A, S644A, and S648A, in which site 3a, site 3b, or site 3c was changed to Ala, respectively. The purified enzymes had -/+ glucose-6-P activity ratios in the range of 0.8-0.9. Phosphorylation by casein kinase II and GSK-3 gave results consistent with the model of obligate sequential action of GSK-3. Phosphorylation at site 5, sites 4 + 5, or sites 3c + 4 + 5 had no measurable effect on activity. When sites 3b + 3c + 4 + 5 were phosphorylated, modest inactivation resulted. Additional phosphorylation at site 3a, however, was potently inactivating, reducing the -/+ glucose-6-P activity ratio to 0.1 and increasing the glucose-6-P concentration needed for half-maximal activation by an order of magnitude. Introduction of each additional phosphate, in the order site 4, 3c, 3b, and 3a, caused an incremental reduction in the mobility of the subunit when analyzed by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate. The results of this study demonstrate that GSK-3 phosphorylation of site 3a (Ser-640), and to a lesser extent, site 3b, correlates with inactivation of glycogen synthase by GSK-3. Evidence is also presented for an allosteric mechanism of inactivation whereby modification of one subunit influences the activity state of adjacent subunits.     

Effects of spray drying conditions on the physicochemical and antioxidant properties of the Gac (Momordica cochinchinensis) fruit aril powder

Gac fruit aril has an attractive orange red colour and very high level of carotenoids, giving it exceptional antioxidant properties. However, spray drying of this material has not been successful and malto dextrin is considered as a suitable drying aid to preserve its colour and antioxidant properties. This paper reports the effects of inlet drying air temperature (120, 140, 160, 180 and 200 °C) and maltodextrin addition (10%, 20% and 30%) on the physicochemical and antioxidant properties of the Gac aril powder. Moisture content and bulk density, colour characteristics, total carotenoid content (TCC), encapsulation efficiency and total antioxidant activity (TAA) were significantly affected by maltodextrin concentration and the inlet air temperatures. However, pH, a_w and water solubility index were not significantly influenced by the spray drying conditions. Overall, a good quality Gac powder in terms of colour, TCC and TAA can be produced by spray-drying at inlet temperature of 120 °C and adding maltodextrin concentration at 10% w/v.     

Inorganic ligand-modified, colloid-enhanced ultrafiltration: A novel method for removing uranium from aqueous solution

Inorganic ligand-modified, colloid-enhanced ultrafiltration (ILM-CEUF) is as a novel membrane-based separation method for selectively removing target ions from aqueous solution. Traditional colloid-enhanced ultrafiltration (CEUF) is a well-established membrane-based separation technique that can be used to separate metal ions from other aqueous solution components. Ligand-modified, colloid-enhanced ultrafiltration (LM-CEUF) uses organic ligands that selectively complex target ions and also associate with a water-soluble colloid, such as a surfactant micelle or polyelectrolyte. The colloid, associated -ligand, and target ion are then concentrated using an ultrafilter, producing a filtrate with a low concentration of the target ion. While traditional LM-CEUF techniques are able to provide quantitative separations of a variety of ionic pollutants, the high costs of the chelating agents make such techniques nonviable in most remediation schemes. This study investigated the replacement of organic ligands with carbonate for the selective removal of U(VI) from aqueous solution.In slightly to moderately basic solutions containing carbonate, UO₂(CO₃)₃⁴⁻ can be made to dominate the U(VI) speciation. Using poly(diallyldimethylammonium) chloride, the effectiveness and efficiency of ILM-CEUF for removing U(VI) from other aqueous solution components was investigated as a function of carbonate concentration, pH, and ionic strength. Uranium separations of greater than 99.6% were achieved; even in the presence of large excesses of competing ions. The specific separation of U(VI) from Sr²⁺ was also examined.     

Analysis of naturally produced technetium and plutonium in geologic materials

In uncontaminated natural materials, plutonium and technetium exist exclusively as products (daughters) of nuclear reactions in which uranium is the principal reactant (parent). Under conditions of chemical stability over geologic periods of time, the relative abundances of daughter and parent elements are fixed by the rates of nuclear reactions and the decay of the daughter radionuclide. The state of this nuclear secular equilibrium condition is the primary basis of the geochemical study of these elements in nature. Thus, it is critical that nuclear parent and daughter abundances are measured in the same sample. We have developed a quantitative procedure for measuring subpicogram quantities of plutonium and technetium in gram quantities of geologic matrices such as uranium ores. The procedure takes advantage of the aggressive properties of sodium peroxide/hydroxide fusion to ensure complete dissolution and homogenization of complex materials, the precision provided by isotope dilution techniques, and the extreme sensitivity offered by thermal ionization mass spectrometry. Using this technique, a quantitative aliquot can be removed for uranium analysis by isotope dilution thermal ionization mass spectrometry or α spectrometry. Although the application of the procedure is unique, the analytical concepts may find more general application in studies of environmental contamination by nuclear materials. To assess the precision and accuracy of the analytical results, blanks and standards were analyzed routinely for a 1-year period to ensure quality control of our sample analyses. The average technetium blank is 5 ± 4 fg (n = 8), and that for plutonium is 0.17 ± 0.15 pg (n = 7). Thus, the detection limit for technetium (defined as 3 times the standard deviation of the average blank) is 11 fg, and that for plutonium is 0.44 pg. To assess the procedural precision, Canadian Reference Material BL-5 was analyzed routinely with samples. The results of seven replicate analyses for technetium in this standard reference material yield a technetium concentration of 59.0 fg/g, with a remarkably small standard deviation of 0.6 fg, 1.0% of the average value. The results of six replicate analyses for the concentration of plutonium in BL-5 give 1.012 pg/g, with an equally small standard deviation of 0.016, 1.6% of the average value. No direct measure of accuracy can be done on the technetium or plutonium analyses, because no standard reference material exists for these elements. To help constrain the accuracy of our measurements, equilibrium technetium/uranium and plutonium/uranium abundances were calculated using the nuclear reaction code MCNP. For technetium, such calculations are relatively insensitive to variations in model parameters, and measurements fall within a 21% high/low bias. For plutonium, the calculations are very sensitive to model parameters and hence inherently less precise. Indirectly, spike and isotope mix calibrations made from weighted quantities of certified isotopes (both technetium and plutonium) can be used to determine the bias of the measurement system for these elements. These calibrations show that the measurement system is biased by no more than ±1.5%.