The Last Three Years of Solar Activity | Solar Dynamics Observatory | NASA SDO Full HD – Video

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The Last Three Years of Solar Activity | Solar Dynamics Observatory | NASA SDO Full HD
Visit my website at http://www.junglejoel.com - for the last three years, NASA #39;s SDO (Solar Dynamics Observatory) has had almost complete coverage of the Sun...

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The Last Three Years of Solar Activity | Solar Dynamics Observatory | NASA SDO Full HD - Video

NASA launches new nanosatellites: Android smartphones

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NASA has launched three smartphones into space in what scientists hope will be the lowest-cost satellites ever tested.

The smartphones, Google-HTC Nexus Ones running the Android operating system, launched aboard the maiden flight of Orbital Science Corp.'s Antares rocket from NASA's Wallops Island Flight Facility in Virginia on Sunday. The smartphones are encased in 4-inch metal cubes and are hooked up to external lithium-ion battery banks and more powerful radios for sending messages from space.

The goal of this mission is to see just how capable these tiny satellites, dubbed PhoneSats, are and whether they can one day serve as the brains of inexpensive, but powerful, satellites.

"It's always great to see a space technology mission make it to orbit -- the high frontier is the ultimate testing ground for new and innovative space technologies of the future," said Michael Gazarik, NASA's associate administrator for space technology. "Smartphones offer a wealth of potential capabilities for flying small, low-cost, powerful satellites for atmospheric or Earth science, communications, or other space-born applications. They also may open space to a whole new generation of commercial, academic and citizen-space users."

The nanosatellites are orbiting Earth about 150 miles up and will fall back toward Earth within the next week and a half, burning up in the atmosphere.

All three PhoneSats are transmitting images taken from space, as well as messages, which generally are about their functions and condition. The transmissions have been received at multiple ground stations on Earth, indicating they are operating normally, reported NASA. The PhoneSat team at the Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., will continue to monitor the satellites until they fall back toward Earth.

Amateur radio operators also are getting in on the project.

The PhoneSats are emitting packets on the amateur radio spectrum. And NASA reported that more than 200 amateur radio operators from around the world have reported receiving the transmissions since the smartphones went into space.

NASA's off-the-shelf nanosatellites already have many of the systems needed for a satellite, including fast processors, versatile operating systems, multiple miniature sensors, high-resolution cameras, GPS receivers and several radios, NASA noted.

Because the phones already have so many necessary components, NASA engineers kept the total cost of the parts for the three prototype satellites to between $3,500 and $7,000.

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NASA launches new nanosatellites: Android smartphones

NASA's Bolden Tussles with House Panel Over James Webb Space Telescope

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NASA Administrator Charles Bolden appeared before the space subcommittee of the House Science Committee and came under pointed grilling on a number of NASA projects, including the James Webb Space Telescope.

'News to me' that the James Webb Space Telescope is in trouble: Bolden

According to the Houston Chronicle, the hearing covered a variety of subjects, including NASA's plan to snag and then explore an asteroid, the commercial crew program, the Orion and Space Launch System, and NASA's education programs. When asked whether sequestration would impact any NASA programs, Bolden replied that he foresaw no missed deadlines due to the cuts imposed by it. Then subcommittee chairman Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, pounced with a recent General Accounting Office report on a number of NASA projects that cast doubt on the schedule and budget estimates for the troubled James Webb Space Telescope. Bolden replied that it was news to him. His information is that things are proceeding nominally.

GAO report on the James Webb Space Telescope

The GAO noted in its chapter on the JWST that two of its instruments are 11 months late. There are concerns that the JWST is above its allotted mass, causing NASA engineers to scramble to bring that mass down. While NASA has expressed 66 percent confidence that the space telescope will still make its allotted $8.7 billion budget and its scheduled launch date of 2018, the GAO does not share that confidence. NASA has not followed best practices in estimating the cost and schedule of the JWST, not identifying key factors of cost that include workforce size.

James Webb Space Telescope has had budget and schedule problems

According to the Washington Post, the JWST has been plagued by budget and schedule problems for years. It has ballooned from a $2.4 billion dollar project that would launch in 2014 to an $8.7 billion project that is scheduled to launch in 2018. The project sparked a fight between the Republican House and the Democratic Senate in 2011 with House Republicans attempting to cancel the JWST and Senate Democrats fighting to maintain funding. A compromise was finally reached that required NASA to cut funding in other areas to maintain the space telescope project.

James Webb Space Telescope the successor to Hubble

The JWST is the most ambitious project of its kind, according to NASA, designed to observe the universe in the visual to infrared range. When launched it will deploy in an orbit about 1 million miles from Earth, using a mirror 21.3 feet in diameter and an sun shade the size of a tennis court. According to Space.com, one of the main selling points for the space telescope will be its ability to not only find alien planets but to examine their atmosphere, breaking down their molecular structure. This is crucial in determining which planets are most like Earth.

Mark R. Whittington is the author of Children of Apollo, The Last Moonwalker, and Dreams of Barry's Stepfather. He has written on space subjects for a variety of periodicals, including The Houston Chronicle, The Washington Post, USA Today, the L.A. Times, and The Weekly Standard.

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NASA's Bolden Tussles with House Panel Over James Webb Space Telescope

NASA's Kepler seeks to answer: Is anybody out there?

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(CBS News) The question "Is anybody out there?" grows more tantalizing with the discovery of each new far-off planet. Barry Petersen has been talking to scientists searching for clues . . .

Starry nights inspire wonder, and wondering: Is there life out there?

So how fitting that, in March 2009, NASA launched the planet-hunting telescope Kepler into the night sky.

Look up tonight at the constellation Cygnus -- also known as the Northern Cross -- and up in that one slice of sky is where Kepler has been scanning 150,000 stars every 30 minutes for the last four years.

Natalie Batalha is a Kepler Mission scientist, but she's really a stargazer with a passion. "We were born to be discoverers right? I think that's basically what drives us."

She and other Kepler Mission scientists look at measurements of the brightness of a star. "When the planet passes in front, it's going to block some of the light," Batalha explained.

That momentary dimming of light is how we infer the existence of a plane orbiting that star.

"There's not much more dramatic to discover than another world," said Petersen.

"Another world like ours," because it changes the way we look at the cosmos, right?" said Batalha.

An artist's impression of a world known as Kepler-62f, orbiting its parent sun at a distance that would allow water to exist as a liquid on its surface.

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NASA's Kepler seeks to answer: Is anybody out there?

Stunning NASA Video Shows 3 Years of the Sun in 3 Minutes

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A mesmerizing new video showcases the sun's life over three years, stitched together from gorgeous snapshots taken by a NASA spacecraft in orbit around our nearest star.

The video is made up of photos captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) two images a day for three years. The eye-catching images offer an unprecedented glimpse of the daily commotion waxing and waning on the surface of the sun.

SDO's Atmospheric Imaging Assembly records an image of the sun every 12 seconds in 10 different wavelengths, according to NASA officials. The images seen in the video are in the extreme ultraviolet range.

"In this wavelength it is easy to see the sun's 25-day rotation as well as how solar activity has increased over three years," agency officials said in a statement.

In the video, the size of the sun appears to subtly fluctuate. These changes are caused by the variation over time in the distance between SDO and the sun. Despite these tiny variations, the shots are fairly stable and consistent.

With SDO maintaining this steady and unbroken gaze, heliophysicists regularly observe the sun's active regions, and have been able to watch solar storms as they occur. By closely monitoring changes in the sun's activity, researchers can catch solar flares and other major spaceweather events in the act.

"SDO's glimpses into the violent dance on the sun help scientists understand what causes these giant explosions with the hopes of some day improving our ability to predict this space weather," NASA officials said.

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory was launched in February 2010 and is equipped with a suite of instruments to stare at the sun for 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This type of uninterrupted coverage allowed scientists to monitor the star as it ramps up toward a period of solar maximum this year in its regular 11-year cycle of activity.

Follow Denise Chow on Twitter@denisechow. Follow us@Spacedotcom,FacebookorGoogle+. Originally published on SPACE.com.

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Stunning NASA Video Shows 3 Years of the Sun in 3 Minutes

NASA Advisory Council Aeronautics Committee Unmanned Aircraft Systems Subcommittee Meeting 21 May 2013

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[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 82 (Monday, April 29, 2013)] [Notices] [Pages 25100-25101] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 2013-10001]

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

[Notice: (13-051)]

NASA Advisory Council; Aeronautics Committee; Unmanned Aircraft Systems Subcommittee; Meeting

AGENCY: National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

ACTION: Notice of meeting.

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92-463, as amended, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration announces a meeting of the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Subcommittee of the Aeronautics Committee of the NASA Advisory Council. The meeting will be held for the purpose of soliciting, from the aeronautics community and other persons, research and technical information relevant to program planning.

DATES: Tuesday, May 21, 2013, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Local Time.

ADDRESSES: National Aeronautics and Space Administration Headquarters,

Room 6E40, 300 E Street, SW., Washington, DC 20546.

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NASA Advisory Council Aeronautics Committee Unmanned Aircraft Systems Subcommittee Meeting 21 May 2013

Dead Island Riptide Walkthrough – Part 16 Alternative Medicine Gameplay Commentary – Video

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Dead Island Riptide Walkthrough - Part 16 Alternative Medicine Gameplay Commentary
Dead Island Riptide Gameplay Walkthrough - Part 1 Prologue Sea of Fog Gameplay Commentary http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmXjmVUkur0 Dead Island Riptide walk...

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Dead Island Riptide Walkthrough - Part 16 Alternative Medicine Gameplay Commentary - Video

Billings Clinic starting Internal Medicine Residency Program

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With primary carephysicians so hard to come by, Billings Clinic has come up with an innovative solution.

It plans to grow its own.

The Clinic is developing an internal-medicineresidencyprogram that at full capacity could be producing as many as six new doctors a year.

The hope is that those new doctors will choose to practice in Montana where most counties have a shortage of primary carephysiciansand 10 counties have no physician at all.

Thestartupinvestment of "several million dollars" will be underwritten by Billings Clinic, Billings Clinic Foundation and grants.

Jim Duncan, president and CEO of the Billings Clinic Foundation, said the proposed program is one of the most transformational initiatives the Clinic has undertaken in nearly two decades.

Billings Clinic last fall applied for accreditation from the Chicago-based Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education and completed the site evaluation process in February. A decision is expected in early June.

I feel very positive about that result but you never know until you actually get the letter, said Dr. Roger Bush, the program's director.

If approved, the program would open to the first class of students in July 2014. The program will feature six positions each year in the three-year curriculum, a total of 18 slots when full.

It would be the first program of its kind in Montana, Wyoming and North Dakota. There is one program in South Dakota, two in Iowa and three in Minnesota.

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Billings Clinic starting Internal Medicine Residency Program

Internal Medicine and Family Practice

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Internal Medicine and Family Practice Physicians Veterans Affairs Community-Based Outpatient Clinic, Greenville, NC

The VA Community-Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) in Greenville, NC, is seeking full-time primary care physicians trained in Internal Medicine or Family Practice to join the Greenville Clinic. The provider practice will be general medicine with a focus on community based outpatient clinical care. Clinic physicians work closely in teams with nurses, clinical pharmacists, physical therapists and mental health providers. The clinic also serves as a training site for students and residents from Brody Medical School and most Allied Health disciplines at East Carolina University. The practice will be moving into a new multispecialty Greenville VA Health Care Center in 2014. The VA CBOC does not provide inpatient services and there is no after hours call. Key Qualifications: o Board certified or board eligible in Internal Medicine or Family Practice o U.S. Citizenship o Full unrestricted Licensure, Certification, or Registration o Demonstrated ability to use computer systems in support of patient care delivery. o Demonstrated excellence in written/verbal communication Full announcement for these positions can be viewed at the websites listed below: https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/PrintPreview/340303000

SALARY RANGE: $97,987.00 to $195,000.00 / Per Year To Apply by fax, e-mail or mail, please submit the following forms 10-2850, SF 306, 10-0459 (found on web-site listed above) and a copy of your CV and mail or e-mail to information listed below.

Mail to: Greenville CBOC Attn: Monica Parker 800 Moye Blvd Greenville, North Carolina 27834 Fax to: 252-830-1934 Attn: Monica Parker Email to: monica.parker@va.gov

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Internal Medicine and Family Practice

Director of Internal Medicine Residency Program is 'perfect person' to lead effort

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Dr. Robert Bush, a Montana native, has been hired to direct the Internal Medicine Residency Program at Billings Clinic and is said to be the idealperson to lead the new effort.

Dr. Steven Gerstner, who has been an internist with Billings Clinic since 1989, will serve as associate director of the program.

Its a big deal to start this type of residency training program in Billings, said Dr. Steven Weinberger, executive vice president and CEO of the Philadelphia-based American College of Physicians. Its an even bigger deal to have someone of Dr. Bushs quality directing the new program. Hes really a perfect person to do this.

Weinberger said he was pleased when he learned Bush has been tapped to fill the coveted position, adding that its significantto secure someone as experienced and respected nationally as Bush to start a new training program.

Bush, 58, has an extensive background in medical education, including serving as program director and associate program director of the Internal Medicine Residency at Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle.

He attended medical school at the University of California San Francisco and completed his residency in internal medicine at Virginia Mason Hospital. He has served on the American Board of Internal Medicine, Residency Review Committee for Internal Medicine, the Education Committee of the American College of Physicians, and currently serves on the Joint Commission Board of Commissioners, a national organization responsible for accrediting hospitals around the country.

Bush was recently made a Master of the American College of Physicians, the highestlevel of accomplishment for the national organization of internal medicine.Only 47 were named this year across the nation.

Bush has also been a leader of internal-medicine training at the national level, having served on the national Residency Review Committee for Internal Medicine, where he also led the Committees efforts to develop innovative programs in medical education. He has served as the chair of the Clinical Skills Committee at the American College of Physicians, which is responsible for developing programs to teach clinical skills to medical students, residents and practicing clinicians.

Having his skill set come into Billings to lead this new residency program is incredibly important, said Dr. Bill Iobst, vice president of academic affairs for the American Board of Internal Medicine. Hes a critical part of the excitement about that program.

Gerstner said the clinic is fortunate to get Bush. Hes well-known in academic circles. Hes a star.

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Director of Internal Medicine Residency Program is 'perfect person' to lead effort

Why the Anatomy Lab Remains a Fixture of Medicine

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NEW YORK For hundreds of years, physicians have been dissecting the dead to learn about the inner workings of the human body.

While the subject matter itself hasn't changed much, the study of anatomy has been steadily advancing both in terms of the tools available to clinicians and the ways in which educators and students approach the material. Yet amidst these changes, there's no replacement for the hands-on experience of the anatomy lab, physicians say.

Many people think the purpose of the anatomy lab is for students to simply learn the nomenclature for the parts of the body, said Todd Olson, an anatomist at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. This is certainly part of the purpose "anatomy is the foundation for the language of medicine: the language health-care professionals use for communicating about patients," Olson said. But it's not the only reason. [Image Gallery: The Oddities of Human Anatomy]

One of the most valuable aspects of the anatomy lab experience is gaining an appreciation of human variability, Olson said. "I've been teaching and studying anatomy for over 40 years, and I've never seen a live or dead person that looks like an anatomy book, because every picture in an anatomy book identifies the 'average' condition," he said. "But none of us are 100 percent average." These differences include those between the old and young, between men and women, and from person to person.

Whereas the anatomy lab remains a cornerstone of medical education, other parts of medical teaching have changed in recent years. As the amount of medical knowledge grows for instance, with vast advances in medical imaging medical curriculums must grow to keep pace, which ultimately means less time for each concept. Many medical schools have reduced the amount of time spent in the anatomy lab, and some even provide predissected cadavers (called prosections) so students don't have to spend time doing it themselves.

Technology plays an increasing role in the lab these days, too. At NYU School of Medicine, for example, students use a digital 3D software program called the BioDigital Human as a complement to their manual dissections. Technology can be helpful in anatomy education, Olson said, but its not going to replace dissection. "Dissection is something that is very real. It is happening to the remains of a once-human being, it is not something that is easily replicated on a computer screen." [Ready for Med School? Test Your Body Smarts]

Also in recent years, anatomy educators have pushed to focus on only the most clinically relevant aspects of anatomy what doctors will use in the real world. Rather than having medical students learn every structure in the human body, it's more important they learn about how different parts relate to medical conditions, Olson said. The American Association of Clinical Anatomists, of which Olson was the past president, was founded in order "to bring together anatomy educators around the country who are part of this revolution in how anatomy is presented to health-care professionals," he said.

Hands-on clinical experience

At most medical schools, students take an introductory gross anatomy course in their first year. But at Einstein College of Medicine, some students return to the lab several years later, during their medical residency. Einstein runs an anatomy lab for residents in the physical rehabilitation program of nearby Montefiore Hospital a kind of refresher course, as well as a chance for residents to augment their clinical experience.

"I think more and more schools and hospitals are realizing that they want to add this kind of additional education for residents," course director Sherry Downie, a professor of clinical anatomy and structural biology at Einstein, told LiveScience.

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Why the Anatomy Lab Remains a Fixture of Medicine

Fees at NTU medical school $7,000 more than NUS

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Published on Apr 29, 2013 8:13 AM

Shortlisted candidates queueing to start their interviews. Over 800 A-level and diploma holders have applied for the 50 places on offer this year. -- PHOTO: NTU

By Sandra Davie Senior Education Correspondent

Singapore's newest medical school at Nanyang Technological University has set the fees at $30,000 a year - $7,000 more than the National University of Singapore.

But despite the higher fees, more than 800 A-level and diploma holders applied for the 50 places that the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine is offering this year.

The school is being set up by NTU and Imperial College London, which ranks highly for its medical and engineering degrees.

NTU Associate Provost in charge of undergraduate education Kam Chan Hin stressed that no deserving student will be denied an education because of financial constraints.He said students can apply for student and travel bursaries, and emergency grants, along with interest-free loans to pay the fees.

Annual fees

Nanyang Technological University's Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine

$30,000

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Fees at NTU medical school $7,000 more than NUS