IEEE Magazine Spotlights ISS Research
Linenger floats in Mir’s Priroda module. He and his two cosmonaut crewmates mainly conducted remote-sensing experiments in this module. In all, Mir spent 15 years in orbit (1986–2001) and served as the laboratory for some 23,000 scientific and medical experiments.
Media Credit: NASA
The research being conducted on the International Space Station U.S. National Laboratory has provided and continues to provide incredible value to human understanding and scientific knowledge. Too often, current research being conducted in space is not widely conveyed to the broader research community and the public. As manager of the ISSInternational Space Station National Lab, the ISS National Lab strives not only to broker and manage innovative research on station but also to articulate the benefits of ISS research to various audiences. Recently, the the ISS National Lab team worked with IEEE Pulse magazine to dedicate an entire issue to the ISS and the research onboard that benefits life on Earth!
The current issue of IEEE Pulse magazine focuses entirely on ISS research. the ISS National Lab staff, consultants, and several the ISS National Lab principal investigators collaborated with IEEE Pulse staff on this project. The issue covers a range of topics including the significance of space research, challenges associated with space research, and various scientific disciplines being studied in space and the corresponding Earth applications—as well as the involvement of space agencies in enhancing STEM education in the U.S.
The the ISS National Lab team is very proud to have contributed to this issue of IEEE Pulse magazine. IEEE Pulse is a publication managed by the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology society. IEEE (the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) is the worlds’ largest professional association for the advancement of technology. This issue provides another communication channel to articulate the importance of ISS research, new opportunities for additional space research, and the potential applications of research in microgravityThe condition of perceived weightlessness created when an object is in free fall, for example when an object is in orbital motion. Microgravity alters many observable phenomena within the physical and life sciences, allowing scientists to study things in ways not possible on Earth. The International Space Station provides access to a persistent microgravity environment..
Read the highlights of July/August 2014 issue of IEEE Pulse below.
Full July/August 2014 issue of IEEE Pulse is available here: http://pulse.embs.org/issue/july-2014/
THE GRAVITY OF IT ALL
FROM OSTEOPOROSIS TO IMMUNOSUPPRESSION, EXPLORING DISEASE IN A MICROGRAVITY ENVIRONMENT HOLDS PROMISE FOR BETTER TREATMENTS ON EARTH.
Today, exploration into the universe beyond our planet takes many forms and has led to fascinating discoveries in the life and physical sciences, many of which inform our understanding of health and medicine here on Earth. Read more
HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM
MATH AND SCIENCE EDUCATION LAGS IN THE UNITED STATES, BUT the ISS National Lab IS WORKING TO REVERSE THE TREND.
As the global economic landscape evolves, the need for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers will increase substantially over the next decade, yet the disappointing reality of the U.S. education system casts a bleak shadow over this promising forecast.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, only 16% of U.S. high school seniors are sufficiently proficient and interested in mathematics and science to pursue STEM careers. Essentially, the United States is facing a potential educational crisis. Read more
OF MICE AND MEN
RODENT HABITATS IN SPACE HAVE BECOME ESSENTIAL TO UNDERSTANDING HUMAN DISEASES ON EARTH.
Long-duration spaceflight has deleterious effects on organisms adapted to life in Earth’s gravity. For humans, some of these effects are relatively minor, rapidly resolved, and well understood. For example, going from Earth gravity to weightlessness can cause disorientation and nausea (space sickness), whereas returning to Earth after getting used to microgravity can cause orthostatic intolerance (various symptoms that manifest when standing but abate when sitting back down). Read more
CRYSTAL CLEAR
THE ABILITY TO CRYSTALLIZE PROTEINS IN SPACE IS ACCELERATING DRUG DEVELOPMENT ON EARTH.
Structure-based drug design is on the front line of promising advancements in disease treatment and personalized medicine. However, the difficulties of characterizing protein structures hamper these drug development efforts. To visualize the topography of a protein, one must crystallize the protein in a solution, outside its natural environment of the human body.
Finding the ideal solution in which to grow protein crystals for three-dimensional (3-D) structural analysis is an arduous process; most proteins have distinct optimal requirements for crystallization, so no standard experimental conditions are available that will work for all proteins in the human body. Read more
THE VIEW FROM SPACE
TWO ASTRONAUTS PROVIDE AN INSIDE LOOK INTO THE REWARDS AND CHALLENGES OF SPACE RESEARCH.
Want the real scoop on doing research in space? Ask someone who’s been there. Two astronauts—Joe Kerwin, M.D., who was on the first manned mission to the U.S. Skylab space station, and Jerry Linenger, M.D., Ph.D., who spent nearly five months on the USSR’s space station Mir—recently spent time with IEEE Pulse to provide a unique and candid look at space-based biomedical research over the years, and they shared their perspectives on why such research is vital to future manned missions as well as improved health on Earth. Read more