Hypergravity Facilities in the ESA Ground-Based Facility Program – Current Research Activities and Future Tasks

Research on Artificial Gravity (AG) created by linear acceleration or centrifugation has a long history and could significantly contribute to realize long-term human spaceflight in the future. Employing centrifuges plays a prominent role in human physiology and gravitational biology. This article gives a short review about the background of Artificial Gravity with respect to hypergravity (including partial gravity) and provides information about actual ESA ground-based facilities for research on a variety of biosystems such as cells, plants, animals or, particularly, humans.     

Knowledge and interpretation in environmental conflict: Fish farming and eutrophication in the Archipelago Sea, SW Finland

The article deals with the role of knowledge in discursive interpretations of an environmental conflict. The research is embellished through a special case study of the debate on the water eutrophication problem and the fish farming industry in the Finnish Archipelago Sea in southwest (SW) Finland. The main question addressed in the article concerns the competing definitions of the eutrophication problem and its spatial dimensions, and the possible implications these definitions have on the political efforts to solve the problem. My focus lies on the role of knowledge as a resource in the struggle over the definition. Accordingly, I will ask how the actors’ frames and knowledge are connected with their position within the power hierarchy, and their relation with the study area.The results illustrate the dependence of the environmental debate on scientific research, but they also show the lay people’s ambivalent attitude to science. The several gaps, uncertainties and controversies in the knowledge base allow interest groups to select the research results that support their view and challenge other scientific interpretations or to oppose environmental restrictions by referring to uncertainties of knowledge.Tensions are revealed between local and translocal views and several forms of knowledge. Disagreements do not arise, however, between pure, separate forms of knowledge. Particularly the fish farmers’ discursive repertoire holds ingredients provided by traditional knowledge, knowledge based on their own experiences, knowledge produced in co-operation with researchers and popularised science.The results show how the lay persons’ mistrust in scientific knowledge is linked with their critical attitudes towards the motives, interests and values of outside actors. The mistrust implies a strong spatial element, an experienced outside threat to local identity, way of life and traditional user rights of natural resources. Producers and users of scientific research are seen as part of the complex of social and cultural power representing urban recreation interests, ecological fundamentalism and an alienated connection with nature.     

Estimation of tree stand characteristics through computer visualisation

Computer visualisation is increasingly used to demonstrate the consequences of forest management alternatives to laymen and forest owners. However, how accurate and truthful the information conveyed by the visualisation is, has not been investigated. This study analysed the precision and accuracy of stand characteristic assessment by computer visualisation. A total of 20 forestry specialists assessed quantitative stand characteristics from the output of two software packages, Monsu and SmartForest, representing 40 stands of varying stand age, density and species composition. The selected software packages are available for practical use in Finland. They represent different techniques of producing forest visualisation, one using line graphics and the other scanned photographs of trees. The stand basal area and number of trees per hectare were not assessed accurately from computer visualisations. The mean tree height and diameter were estimated reasonably well. The visualisations produced an averaging effect, characteristics being often overestimated for young and small-sized strata and underestimated for strata of old and large trees.     

The carbon performance of the 100 largest US electricity producers

Efforts towards decarbonizing the energy system have to focus on individual actors within the system. Their current and potential future stake in energy consumption and contribution to climate change has to be analyzed when formulating energy policies targeting system-wide reduction efforts. Focusing on firms, this paper develops a framework for the assessment of corporate carbon performance. We use this framework for an empirical assessment of the 100 largest US electricity producers within three different carbon scenarios. Our results show that in a scenario without changes in the US institutional environment electricity producers will not face a severe increase of their carbon exposure and only a small improvement regarding the carbon intensity of the electricity mix is achieved. In a scenario with more carbon-constrained US energy market conditions some companies face a financial risk from using and emitting carbon that more than triples compared to today. However, in a scenario with strong investments in renewable energy technologies the carbon dependency of electricity production can be significantly reduced. We discuss these findings from a climate policy and financial markets perspective.     

An Electronic Version of Pavlov's Dog

Neuromorphic plasticity is the basic platform for learning in biological systems and is considered as the unique concept in the brains of vertebrates, which outperform today's most powerful digital computers when it comes to cognitive and recognition tasks. An emerging task in the field of neuromorphic engineering is to mimic neural pathways via elegant technological approaches to close the gap between biological and digital computing. In this respect, functional, memristive devices are considered promising candidates with yet unknown benefit for neuromorphic circuits. It is demonstrated that a single Pt/Ge_0.3Se_0.7/SiO₂/Cu memristive device implemented in an analogue circuitry mimics non‐associative and associative types of learning. For Pavlovian conditioning, different threshold voltages for the memristive device and the comparator are essential. Similarities to neurobiological correlates of learning are discussed in the framework of hebbian learning rule, plasticity, and long‐term potentiation.