Armed with Science

Air Force Welcomes First Female Chief Scientist

jtozer — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 11:11:12 +0000

The Air Force has appointed the service’s first female chief scientist to lead the way in the technology and science fields.

The Air Force appointed Dr. Mica Endsley as its first woman chief scientist to lead the way in the technology and science fields.(Photo provided by the U.S. Air Force)

Dr. Mica Endsley assumed her new duties and responsibilities as the Air Force’s 34th chief scientist June 3 in support of Air Force senior leaders and airmen across the service.

“Having served on the Air Force Scientific Advisory Board for many years, I’ve had the pleasure of working closely with the current and several former Air Force chief scientists,” Endsley said.

“I know this is a tremendous opportunity to help the Air Force excel in its goal of maintaining the critical technological edge that gives our airmen a strategic advantage.”

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III emphasized the important role Endsley will play in continuing the Air Force’s legacy of innovation.

“I’m pleased to have Dr. Endsley as a part of the Air Force team,” Welsh said. “She follows in the footsteps of many superb minds that have advanced our technological edge and provided much-needed capabilities to our airmen. Although she arrives at a very challenging time, I’m confident she’ll continue a proud legacy of chief scientists who use innovation and strong leadership to keep our Air Force the world’s finest.”

Successfully maintaining that technological edge Welsh mentioned is a key job, Endsley said, and she plans to use every available resource to effectively and cost efficiently get the job done in support of airmen.

“This involves working with the top scientists and engineers within the Air Force as well as in academia, industry and the other armed services,” she said, noting this will “ensure that the Air Force’s research and development efforts are being directed at the right problems.”

Endsley said she plans to ensure the Air Force continues to develop technologies and systems that will truly support airmen and their missions.

“I know that in many cases, we can dramatically improve our mission effectiveness by using the science of human performance to design technology.”

This, she added, will “better support the way people work.”

As Endsley takes the helm of an office that has made large strides over recent years, she’s motivated to push the envelope even further.

“My goal will be to continue with these efforts, making sure that we are implementing their recommendations and achieving the needed milestones in our science and technology portfolio,” she said. “To stay competitive in the future, we need to make sure that Air Force systems keep up with this rapid pace of change, particularly in computers, cyber and all across the information spectrum.”

Endsley feels that along with the growth of the organization, she has a duty as the first female chief scientist to reach out to the younger generation, speaking on the advantages of a career in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields.

“I want to share with the young women I speak to, the many advantages of a science, technology, engineering and math career,” she said, and that it will “make many more interested if they knew how very creative and team-oriented engineering work is and how satisfying it is to be able to solve real problems that affect people’s lives.”

Endsley said she is excited to begin looking across the Air Force, ensuring the needs of airmen are understood and met. At that point she can help bring technology to bear in the right ways to solve the problems they face.

“I deeply respect the challenges and sacrifices that all of our airmen, at every level, make daily in service to our nation,” she said. “To be asked to join them and do what I can to support them was simply an opportunity I could not pass up.”

By Senior Airman Carlin Leslie, from www.defense.gov
Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs

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Progress Through Military Prosthetics

jtozer — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 11:46:38 +0000

This is one of the prototype foot prosthetic devices at the Medical Center Prosthetics center. (Photo by Jessica L. Tozer)

Losing a leg is one of the scarier scenarios when it comes to military deployment.

Unfortunately, it’s also a possibility. I joined the Army in 2002, and at that time I remember rumblings about what would happen if and when we got deployed. Back then it was practically an inevitability. We discussed all manner of possibilities, from the best to the worst, all with the knowledge that anything and everything could happen to us downrange.

Losing a limb was one of those things.

Many of us weren’t sure how we would handle that situation. Some were genuinely fearful, worried that having one (or more) leg(s) less would cost them more than just their walking rights. At that time, prosthetic technology was slowly starting to progress, but you could see that some things were in the early stages of improving.

The idea of losing a leg was more debilitating, in a sense. Amputees could end up walking with a painful limp, or confined to a wheelchair, the prospect of standing tall a less than likely scenario.

However, the advances in prosthetic development have gone leaps and bounds (and yes, I use that term deliberately) since 2002. Technological and mechanical advancements are working in tandem to give service members who gave their limbs for their country the chance at a normal, albeit bionic life.

Just a few of the different iterations of bionic joints at the Medical Center Prosthetics. (Photo by Jessica L. Tozer)

From excellent materials, to control mobility advancement, to even the chance at controlling manufactured limbs with the human mind, the prosthetics of the past are evolving into the assistance for an ambulate future.

But don’t just take my word for it…

Ian Fothergill is the Clinical Manager for Medical Center Prosthetics, in Linden Lane, Silver Spring. His facility serves the many men and women in need of a prosthetic leg (or two) at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

I spent some time with the jovial Scot, and he explained some of the more fantastic advances and advantages to military prosthetics.

The exciting thing about this, my dear readers, is that this field only continues to grow and expand. Advances in this field are being made every day, reaching ever-closer to turning the prosthetic leg into a a more perfectly formed extension of the human body. But, as Ian observed, it’s not so much the technology as it is finding the right fit.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s a bionic limb or a peg leg,” Ian says, “if it’s comfortable for the amputee that’s what matters.”

Jessica L. Tozer is a blogger for DoDLive and Armed With Science. She is an Army veteran and an avid science fiction fan, both of which contribute to her enthusiasm for technology in the military.

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Keyboard Courage (Part Two)

jtozer — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 11:36:00 +0000

This is the second in an Armed with Science two-part series about cyber bullying. Read the first part here.

(graphic illustration by Jessica L. Tozer)

The trolling cyber bully is sort of like an eternal, inescapable antagonizer.

Internet access is practically a swipe and a tap away these days. That is great and super convenient for a lot of things, but when that accessibility is being exploited, it can lead to disaster.

“This kind of bullying, it cuts to the core of a kid and decimates them.”Dr. Mark Fisher, Chief of Behavioral Pediatrics at the Military Mental Health Clinic, Fort Meade, MD

Here are a few things kids and parents can do to help deal with, or even prevent, cyber bullying

1. KNOW THIS STUFF. You cannot deal with a problem you do not understand.

Dr. Fisher says that if you don’t know where to go to learn, find someone who already uses this stuff: a kid down the street, a nephew or niece, someone who knows the ropes. Have them show you where to go and what to do. Learn about the environment your child is being bullied in.

“I don’t care if you have to make yourself a reference dictionary, do it. Know what BFF and LOL mean,” he says. “Know what you’re doing. Don’t feign ignorance.”

2. SAFETY FIRST. You know the phrase “Sticks and stones can break my bones but words will never hurt me”? Yeah. I hate that phrase. Mostly because it’s not true. Words are powerful. They can be forces for change, or weapons for destruction. Words should be treated carefully. People can be very negatively affected by words. The goal here is to intervene when you know things are taking a turn for the bad. Don’t wait until they turn for the worse.

“You have to be able to define the level of ‘bad’,” he says. “Don’t ignore the signs. Create a plan. Let them know that someone is listening and someone is going to help them.”

3. TALK ABOUT IT. Communication is the driving force here in this medium, so it isn’t surprising that it would be an important factor in dealing with this kind of threat. Talking about what people are talking about can help both you and your child to understand more about what is going on. You might have to involve the school, Dr. Fisher says, or doctors or professionals, but that line of communication needs to be open.

“Talk to your kids,” Dr. Fisher says. “Prepare them adequately for things. Don’t just say, ‘oh have a nice day’. Let them know that they aren’t alone. That you’re there for them. When something happens, be an advocate for your child. They’re got to know that you’ve got their back.”

4. STOP BYSTANDER APATHY. “No one stands up for the person being bullied,” he says. “Some of that is denial, some of that is self-preservation, some of that is social training, some of that is apathy. Don’t ignore it.”

If bystanders do nothing to stop bullying, online especially, then essentially the bully gets away with it. Letting that happen is kind of like a form of acceptance, which only leads to more bullying.

It’s so easy to find a way to entertain yourself by insulting others online. That’s been going on since the chat forums of Prodigy and beyond. But that doesn’t make it right. It can feel good to tear people down. You might feel clever. It could give you a sense of confidence. It can even elevate your social stature. But at what cost? Seriously. Is making a bunch of mean people like you really worth ruining someone’s life? You’re not a monster. So don’t act like one.

The bully does what they do because they are insecure. Because they need to feel that power. But those are reasons, not excuses. “Zero tolerance is zero tolerance,” Dr. Fisher says. “I think cyber bullying is worse than regular bullying. It’s a contagion.”

One that, hopefully, we can work to combat.

The facts are unfortunately simple. If you’re going to get online you’re probably going to encounter a cyber bully. It might be one, it might be many. They might be strangers. They might be people you know. It doesn’t matter. The point is that you cannot let them troll up your life. Make you feel awful. Destroy your self worth, or confidence, or happiness. Well, I will tell you this right now: Do. Not. Let. Them. It is not worth it.

Because in truth, the bullies are like moths; they mindlessly bounce around from thing to thing, caring not for the annoying space they inhabit. There will always be other threads to flame. Other products to hate. Other games to disrupt. Other people to annoy. The danger is in seeing them as anything other than moths. Because once you a fear a moth, it makes it a lot harder to swat.

Defend yourself. Know consequences. Don’t ignore it. Work together. Talk about it. Get help.

Thanks to Dr. Mark Fisher for his contributions to this article.

Jessica L. Tozer is a blogger for DoDLive and Armed With Science. She is an Army veteran and an avid science fiction fan, both of which contribute to her enthusiasm for technology in the military.

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NRL Reveals Absence Of Greenhouse Gas Emissions

jtozer — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 11:06:27 +0000

Three dimensional seabed map of Chatham Rise displays two pockmark features, each approximately 10 kilometers in diameter, on the southern flank of the Chatham Rise seafloor. Water depth, in meters, is indicated in the legend on left.
(Courtesy Research Expedition SO226-2, 2013)

Geochemistry analysis conducted by the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory of fossil sediment injection structures off the New Zealand coast in February and March reveal no presence of modern day expulsions of methane gas, a potential contributor to global ‘greenhouse effect’ warming.

The main focus of this most recent expedition was to investigate the geological origin of seafloor anomalies discovered during a 2007 marine-life survey on the Chatham Rise.

During the 2007 survey scientists discovered several large seafloor craters, or pockmarks, including a giant 11 kilometers by 6 kilometers pockmark in water depths of about 1,000 meters, considered immense compared with pockmarks observed elsewhere in the world.

Scientists from Germany, New Zealand, and United States used the two-leg voyage aboard the German research vessel, R/V Sonne, to map and investigate giant seabed features and subsurface structures characteristic of large scale gas-rich fluid migration about 500 kilometers east of Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand.

While the gas and related sediment chemistry results demonstrate this system is no longer geochemically active, these very large pockmarks — 11 kilometers by 6 kilometers in diameter and 100 meters deep — are part of a much larger field of many thousands of smaller pockmarks that extends eastward along the Chatham Rise.

Covering approximately 20,000 kilometers of seafloor, these pockmarks suggest sporadic gas escape may be occurring, possibly only during glacial intervals that occur approximately every 20,000 years.

“Geochemical analyses of the seafloor craters taken during the second leg of the voyage displayed no indication of a vertical methane flux through the sediment as indicated by the first part of the voyage,” said Richard Coffin, chief scientist, NRL Chemistry Division.

“This result suggests that gas-charged fluid escape leading to the pockmark formation may have occurred in the past, but seafloor gas seeps are not currently active.”

The first leg of the survey was to map the seabed and undertake a high-resolution three-dimensional (3D) seismic survey over some of the pockmarks to image the sub-seafloor. During the second leg of the expedition, Coffin led geochemical investigations at four distinct Chatham Rise locations based on data from the seismic surveys.

Image displays seismic reflection data showing sediment injection lenses beneath a giant pockmark feature on the southern flank of the Chatham Rise.
(Courtesy Research Expedition SO226-2, 2013)

Piston and multi coring was conducted for geochemical evaluation of sediment and pore water to assess current and past day vertical fluid and gas fluxes.

“The apparent absence of methane in the shallow sediment and water column at the giant pockmark area was a surprise given the first leg results,” Coffin said. “Onboard analysis showed no current day flux of deep sediment thermogenic or biogenic methane to the shallow sediment.”

Scientists believe the latest results indicate the pockmarks are formed by gas escape that has come from rocks buried deep beneath the rise.

Methane may have escaped during vigorous ancient degassing from under the seafloor into the ocean with significant implications for climate change and ocean acidification.

Ongoing seismic interpretation and pore water chemistry studies, to be undertaken by the international team of investigators, is expected to clarify the history of the enigmatic giant pockmarks and underlying sedimentary structures.

Story and information provided by www.nrl.navy.mil

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Saturday Space Sight: Sun Over Earth’s Horizon

jtozer — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 11:14:09 +0000

Nothing like a great view of the sun first thing in the morning, right?

The sun is captured in a “starburst” mode over Earth’s horizon by one of the Expedition 36 crew members aboard the International Space Station, as the orbital outpost was above a point in southwestern Minnesota.

Image Credit: NASA

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Keyboard Courage (Part One)

jtozer — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 11:08:23 +0000

This is the first in an Armed with Science two-part series about cyber bullying

(graphic illustration by Jessica L. Tozer)

Cyber bullies are everywhere.

They’re antagonistic and insulting. Intentionally confrontational. In many cases even racist, homophobic, sexist, or just plain prejudice. And, just like any other social parasite, trolling cyber bullies grow with every negative response they get. They’re not always easily dismissed, either. You can’t just walk away from the stream of insulting comments they started on your Facebook wall, now can you?

I call this effect “keyboard courage”.

The keyboard is to the user what the bottle of alcohol is to the drinker. Like alcohol, the inhibitions and judgments that would normally be there are absent when the user (bully or victim) takes to the keyboard. This choice causes people to make damaging, embarrassing, or in some cases dangerous and even illegal mistakes. They can be uncharacteristically violent, or oppositional, or emotional.

And sometimes when you start letting the vitriol flow you have a hard time stopping. Or ignoring. Or turning the other cheek. It can even become an obsession. This keyboard courage is giving trolls an avenue to ply their terrible trade, and it’s causing more than just angst and mild irritation.

In many cases, this kind of behavior can result in physical or psychological damage to others.

Dr. Mark Fisher is the Chief of Behavioral Pediatrics at the Military Mental Health Clinic on Fort Meade, MD. He says there are several factors that come into play when we talk about cyber bullying and why, not the least of which being the fact that a lot of communication that happens these days is, in fact, on a more digital level.

“A lot of times I think kids, in this generation, that’s just the way they talk,” Dr. Fisher explains. “It’s Facebook. It’s texting. It is cyber.”

Which is true; a lot more is said these days online than in generations past. Kids are growing up being able to communicate to each other in this way, so it’s changing the game when it comes to what you should and shouldn’t say. Or type, as it were. Unfortunately, the Internet can also serve as a platform to attack, ridicule, criticize and harass.

The soapbox effect that the Internet has on the loud and the discontented is resonant.

The Internet (for all its awesomeness) is a way to impose on people where the physical threat, at least in the moment, comes off as minimal or nonexistent, Dr. Fisher explains. It presents the illusion of safety with the freedom of expression. And that can have some dangerous consequences. There are stories all over the news outlets about the harm that widespread digital attacks can have on people.

Do not feed the trolls. (Graphic illustration by Jessica L. Tozer)

When you confront people online, he says, there is no face. There is the potential for complete anonymity. A lot more is said when the potential for immediate physical harm is lowered. Dr. Fisher also mentions that a lot is lost in translation when it comes to texting and communicating online.

The non-verbal subtleties that we naturally pick up on when speaking in person are absent in that communication avenue.

This presents the opportunity for miscommunication. Things could be taken out of context, or easily misinterpreted. Especially for kids. Kids are often victims of cyber bully attacks. Adolescents can also take things personally (even if they’re not likely to admit it), and that means they’re more at risk of being attacked or affected by cyber bullying.

Service members and military families are in no way exempt from this rule. Especially the military children.

“On the one hand it has the same impact,” Dr. Fisher explains. “Kids are kids, whether you’re military or not, are being bullied. What is different with the military kids is they may, at times, be more susceptible [to bullying].”

Military children already have a lot of things to contend with in their life. They often have to deal with frequent moves, with deployed parents, with making new friends in new places, and even with serious things like death and loss.

That’s a lot of stuff for kids to have to deal with, and that’s not even including the normal kid stresses, like tests and school and friends and dating and all that. Add the threat of internet destructo-commenters and it can often be too much.

This can also happen by bullying proxy. Sometimes they feel they have to defend their parents in the eyes of their peers. Sometimes, sadly, they are even mocked and taunted for having lost parents. Something that happened even to kids I knew growing up.

“It’s another vulnerability,” Dr. Fisher says. A vulnerability that can be exploited online, where many military kids might spend their time. Social media and online interaction might be the only way they have to connect to friends and family since they move around so much. But if all of this is happening on screen, how do you know how and if it’s affecting them IRL?

Good question.

Here are a few of the warning signs that a cyber bully could be a threat in your friend or child’s life:

- Check for changes of personality and/or behavior. If your kid spends time online all the time and suddenly they seem less interested, or they lose interest in the things they once liked doing, that’s a sign that things are not shipshape.

- Avoidance of usual things. They don’t want to go to school. They don’t want to go near places where they could run into their peers. They don’t want to change for PE.

- Extreme onset apathy. Their grades drop when once they were a good student. They become introverted, anxious or disassociated. They always seem worried or uncomfortable.

- Regressive behavior. Younger kids under duress experience this, Dr. Fisher explains. They might wet the bed, or suck their thumb, or act uncharacteristically childish.

- Suicide attempts. This is the most severe and dangerous sign that something is wrong. If your child attempts suicide, immediately get them help.

Now, many could argue that these are just the growing pains of being a teenager, but there’s more to it. These are signs of depression and anxiety, and for as much as it might be a gray area between teenage angst and depression, it’s not good to ignore the signs, no matter how common they may be.

Part Two of Keyboard Courage will post on Monday, 17 June 2013

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Thanks to Dr. Mark Fisher for his contributions to these articles

Jessica L. Tozer is a blogger for DoDLive and Armed With Science. She is an Army veteran and an avid science fiction fan, both of which contribute to her enthusiasm for technology in the military.

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Between A ‘Rock Or Something’ & An MRE

jtozer — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 11:32:20 +0000

If you’re familiar with the phrase “rock or something,” then you’ve probably used a Flameless Ration Heater to warm up a Meal, Ready-to-Eat.

Lauren Oleksyk of the Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center’s Department of Defense Combat Feeding Directorate, holds a Flameless Ration Heater and a Meal, Ready-to-Eat. This is the 20th anniversary of the heater’s introduction. (Photo by David Kamm, NSRDEC Photographer)

To this day, the phrase remains part of a pictogram on the package of the heater, known as the FRH, which was developed at Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center‘s Department of Defense Combat Feeding Directorate and is celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2013.

It refers to directions that advise warfighters to place the FRH at an angle when heating up a Meal, Ready-to-Eat, commonly known as an MRE.

“The term ‘rock or something’ has now reached cult status,” said Lauren Oleksyk, team leader of the Food Processing, Engineering and Technology Team at Combat Feeding. “It’s just taken on a life of its own.”

Oleksyk was there at the beginning with colleagues Bob Trottier and now-retired Don Pickard when the FRH and that memorable phrase were born in 1993.

“We were designing the FRH directions and wanted to show an object to rest the heater on,” Oleksyk recalled. “(Don) said, ‘I don’t know. Let’s make it a rock or something. So we wrote ‘rock or something’ on the object, kind of as a joke.”

The joke has legs. As Oleksyk pointed out, there now are T-shirts and other items for sale that bear those words. “Rock or something” even has its own Facebook page.

Introduced to the heater years ago, famed chef Julia Child insisted on following the package directions and activating it by herself. With no rock handy, she decided to employ a wine glass stem.

“Which is so classic Julia,” Oleksyk said, laughing. “So there have been many things other than the rock or something that have been used. There are many, many soldiers over the years that have their own personal joke about what they might use in place of a rock.”

The FRH is no joke, however. Adding an ounce and a half of water to the magnesium-iron alloy and sodium in the heater will raise the temperature of an eight-ounce MRE entrée by 100 degrees in about 10 minutes.

“Some of the challenges were keeping it lightweight and low volume, and not requiring a lot to activate it,” Oleksyk said.

The heater’s arrival gave warfighters the option of a hot meal wherever they went and whenever they wanted.

“I’ve heard more feedback on this item than any other item I’ve ever worked on in my career here,” said Oleksyk, who has been at Natick nearly 30 years. “They’re so grateful to have this heater in the MRE. It’s almost always used whenever they have 10 minutes to sit down for lunch.”

Prior to the FRH, warfighters used Trioxane fuel bars with canteen cups and cup stands to heat their MRE entrees. As Oleksyk pointed out, the fuel bars couldn’t be packed alongside food in the MRE package.

“So if the fuel bar and the MRE didn’t marry up in the field,” said Oleksyk, “they really had no way to have a hot meal.”

The FRH has remained essentially the same over the past two decades because, as Oleksyk put it, “it’s tough to find a better chemistry that’s lighter in weight, lower in volume and that heats as well.” A larger version has been developed, however.

“We’ve expanded it to a group ration,” Oleksyk said. “So now we have a larger heater that is used to heat the Unitized Group Ration-Express. We call that ration a ‘kitchen in a carton.’ It serves 18 soldiers.”

The next-generation MRE heater is being tested now, and it will eliminate the need to use one of the most precious commodities in the field.

“The next version of this is a waterless version,” Oleksyk said. “It’s an air-activated heater, so you wouldn’t have to add any water to activate it at all, but that’s still in development and will have to perform better than the FRH overall if it’s ever to replace it.”

Oleksyk remembered sitting on a mountain summit one time during a weekend hike with friends. Suddenly, she heard laughter behind her.

“I hear a guy — sure enough, he says, ‘Yeah, I need a rock or something,’” said Oleksyk, who turned to see him wearing fatigues, holding a Flameless Ration Heater, and telling his buddies how great it was.

“So it’s far reaching,” Oleksyk said. “It really had an impact on the warfighter.”

By Bob Reinert, USAG-Natick Public Affairs
From www.army.mil

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DARPA’s Bionic Limb Interfaces

jtozer — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 11:48:28 +0000

Since 2000, more than 2,000 servicemembers have suffered amputated limbs.

Artist’s concept of Leaded Implantable Myoelectric Sensors (LIMES) to be used as a novel peripheral-interface technology with targeted muscle re-innervation (TMR). (Graphic illustration provided by DARPA)

DARPA’s breakthrough research with advanced prosthetic limbs controlled by brain interfaces is well documented, but such research is currently limited to quadriplegics; practical applications of brain interfaces for amputees are still in the future.

In contrast, nerve and muscle interfaces allow amputees to control advanced prosthetics in the near term. Recent demonstrations may give Wounded Warriors hope that they can soon take advantage of these breakthroughs.

DARPA’s Reliable Neural-Interface Technology (RE-NET) program researched the long-term viability of brain interfaces and continues research to develop high-performance, reliable peripheral interfaces. These new peripheral interfaces use signals from nerves or muscles to both control prosthetics and to provide direct sensory feedback.

Basically, they’re working on a bionic limb interface that will allow amputees to control their bionic limbs with their brains.

Ongoing clinical trials present compelling examples of both interface types.

“Although the current generation of brain, or cortical, interfaces have been used to control many degrees of freedom in an advanced prosthesis, researchers are still working on improving their long-term viability and performance,” said Jack Judy, DARPA program manager.

“The novel peripheral interfaces developed under RE-NET are approaching the level of control demonstrated by cortical interfaces and have better biotic and abiotic performance and reliability. Because implanting them is a lower risk and less invasive procedure, peripheral interfaces offer greater potential than penetrating cortical electrodes for near-term treatment of amputees. RE-NET program advances are already being made available to injured warfighters in clinical settings.”

A team of researchers at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago (RIC) demonstrated a type of peripheral interface called targeted muscle re-innervation (TMR). By rewiring nerves from amputated limbs, new interfaces allow for prosthetic control with existing muscles. Former Army Staff Sgt. Glen Lehman, injured in Iraq, recently demonstrated improved TMR technology.

In the following video, Lehman demonstrates simultaneous joint control of a prosthetic arm made possible by support from the RE-NET program.

Artist’s concept of a flat interface nerve electrode (FINE). (Graphic illustration provided by DARPA)

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University used a flat interface nerve electrode (FINE) to demonstrate direct sensory feedback.

By interfacing with residual nerves in the patient’s partial limb, some sense of touch by the fingers is restored. Other existing prosthetic limb control systems rely solely on visual feedback.

Unlike visual feedback, direct sensory feedback allows patients to move a hand without keeping their eyes on it — enabling simple tasks, like rummaging through a bag for small items, not possible with today’s prosthetics.

The Case Western Reserve University video shows how direct sensory feedback makes some tasks easier. The FINE is one of many different types of nerve interfaces developed under the RE-NET program.

“With the RE-NET program, DARPA took on the mission of giving our wounded vets increased control of advanced prosthetics,” added Judy.

“TMR is already being used by numerous amputees at military hospitals. As the RE-NET program continues, we expect that the limb-control and sensory-feedback capabilities of peripheral-interface technologies will increase and that they will become even more widely available in the future.”

DARPA’s current efforts with peripheral interfaces are scheduled to continue up to 2016.

Story and videos provided by DARPA
From www.darpa.mil

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The Forecast Is: Better Weather Predictions for the Navy

jtozer — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 11:14:36 +0000

The Navy has adopted a new global weather forecasting model with the support of the Office of Naval Research (ONR) to the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL).

(Graphic illustration by Jessica L. Tozer)

The Naval Global Environmental Model (NAVGEM) became fully operational this spring, and today serves as a cutting-edge prediction system for Navy planners who depend on reliable weather forecasts.

“When a global weather model for the Navy gets replaced, that is huge news,” said Dr. Ronald Ferek, ONR program officer. “The previous forecasting model had been in use for over 20 years.”

The Navy’s Fleet Numerical and Meteorology and Oceanography Center, which provides meteorological data to U.S. forces, switched over to NAVGEM in March. It is being used to provide detailed, accurate global forecasts up to10 days out.

The system could inform Navy operations for years to come. It is particularly important as U.S. fleet presence increases throughout the Asia-Pacific region, known for intense weather events like typhoons.

Accurate forecasts are critical for naval commanders who need all-weather capability to avoid damaging high winds and seas. This includes to plan and conduct military operations, execute timely evacuations of vulnerable assets, and plan humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, which the Navy has supported over the years.

NAVGEM is one of the most sophisticated computer models in the world. It will give Navy leaders, quite literally, a clearer picture of what the weather is going to be like across the globe as they deploy the fleet.

“The new system runs at a higher resolution than the previous global model,” said Ferek. “With NAVGEM, the Navy can get better, more detailed forecasts. More ‘skill’ than in the past.”

“The particular algorithm developed with ONR funding allows very efficient computation,” said Dr. Simon Chang, NRL Marine Meteorology Division superintendent, “making it feasible for NAVGEM to run at much higher resolution, on smaller operational computers.”

The path to better forecasts is not easy, and requires years of research, testing and development.

“It was tough to make weather computations significantly more efficient,” said Ferek. “But the principal investigators at NRL said ‘We need to do this,’ and I could see it was going to be really useful.”

NAVGEM was supported by PEO C4I-Program Executive Office Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence for advanced development, and ultimately deployment. The development team was honored recently with the Navy’s prestigious 2012 Acquisition Excellence Award (Technology Transition Award) for its NAVGEM work.

More remains to be done, however.

While NAVGEM gives military leaders better global data, the Navy also needs forecast models that can provide localized high-res weather analysis. With ONR support, NRL and academic partners have developed the Coupled Ocean/Atmosphere Mesoscale Prediction System-Tropical Cyclone (COAMPS-TC), which looks at the detailed meteorological process of dangerous tropical storms, and gives accurate predictions of a storm’s intensity one-to-five days out.

The COAMPS-TC effort will work in conjunction with NAVGEM to provide accurate long-term and short-term forecasts for Navy leaders.

“Think of it as your weather news on television,” said Ferek. “The long-term forecasts use the equivalent of the global model. The next-day forecasts rely on more detailed, or mesoscale, models like COAMPS-TC.”

ONR provides the science and technology necessary to maintain the Navy and Marine Corps‘ technological advantage. Through its affiliates, ONR is a leader in science and technology with engagement in 50 states, 70 countries, 1,035 institutions of higher learning and 914 industry partners. ONR employs approximately 1,400 people, comprising uniformed, civilian and contract personnel, with additional employees at the Naval Research Lab in Washington, D.C.

By David Smalley, Office of Naval Research
From www.navy.mil

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DARPA’s UGS (Unattended Ground Sensor)

jtozer — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 11:12:55 +0000

Commercial smartphone processes to aid development of air, sea and undersea unmanned military sensors as well. (Photo courtesy of DARPA)

DARPA’s Adaptable Sensor System (ADAPT) program aims to transform how unattended sensors are developed for the military by using an original design manufacturer (ODM) process similar to that of the commercial smartphone industry.

The goal is to develop low-cost, rapidly updatable intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) sensors in less than a year, a marked improvement to the current three-to-eight year development process.

The program has developed the core ADAPT hardware and software package using a customized Android Operating System (OS) to provide capabilities common to all ISR sensors.

The program recently completed its first reference design and developed application-specific software for an unattended ground sensor (UGS) that uses the ADAPT core.

This new UGS could provide users with a cost-effective ground sensing capability.

The UGS design is a very small cylinder. It features applications to remotely sense ground activity for a number of potential military applications. The sensor is self-powered and can wirelessly network with other sensors or user interfaces, such as a video monitor at an operations center.

“We’re excited to have the first reference design for a small, adaptable ground sensor and look forward to testing a significant number of these new sensors in field scenarios starting this summer,” said Mark Rich, DARPA program manager.

“We believe that the ADAPT building block approach — where you take the ADAPT core and easily plug it into any number of ISR sensor reference designs — will transform how the military Services and the defense industry approach ISR sensor research and development. This method has the promise of being much more cost-effective, faster to the warfighter, and easier to refresh with technology upgrades.”

DARPA may develop additional reference designs that integrate the ADAPT core and sensor-specific apps into airborne, sea and undersea sensor designs.

Researchers recently removed the control interface of a small quad-copter unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and replaced it with the ADAPT core. This successfully provided flight control input to the UAV and marked an initial step in applying the ADAPT core to other sensor reference designs.

Story and information provided by DARPA

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