USS Chafee LED Lighting
Friday, December 30, 2011
Thursday, December 29, 2011
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Thursday, December 22, 2011
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Friday, December 16, 2011
Thursday, December 15, 2011
DOD ARMED WITH SCIENCE Research Remote Control of Brain Activity Using Ultrasound
Every single aspect of human sensation, perception, emotion, and behavior is regulated by brain activity. Thus, having the ability to stimulate brain function is a powerful technology.
Recent advances in neurotechnology have shown that brain stimulation is capable of treating neurological diseases and brain injury, as well as serving platforms around which brain-computer interfaces can be built for various purposes. Several limitations however still pose significant challenges to implementing traditional brain stimulation methods for treating diseases and controlling information processing in brain circuits.
For example, deep-brain stimulating (DBS) electrodes used to treat movement disorders such as Parkinson’s disease require neurosurgery in order to implant electrodes and batteries into patients. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) used to treat drug-resistant depression and other disorders do not require surgery, but have a low spatial resolution of approximately one centimeter and cannot stimulate deep brain circuits where many diseased circuits reside.
These illustrations show the surgical invasiveness of deep-brain stimulating electrodes (left) and depict the low spatial resolutions conferred by transcranial magnetic stimulation (right). (Image: Tyler Lab)
To overcome the above limitations, my laboratory has engineered a novel technology which implements transcranial pulsed ultrasound to remotely and directly stimulate brain circuits without requiring surgery. Further, we have shown this ultrasonic neuromodulation approach confers a spatial resolution approximately five times greater than TMS and can exert its effects upon subcortical brain circuits deep within the brain.
A portion of our initial work has been supported by the U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command (RDECOM) Army Research Laboratory (ARL) where we have been working to develop methods for encoding sensory data onto the cortex using pulsed ultrasound.
Through a recent grant made by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Young Faculty Award Program, our research will begin undergoing the next phases of research and development aimed towards engineering future applications using this neurotechnology for our country’s warfighters. Here, we will continue exploring the influence of ultrasound on brain function and begin using transducer phased arrays to examine the influence of focused ultrasound on intact brain circuits. We will also be investigating the use of capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducers (CMUTs) for use in brain stimulation. Finally, to improve upon spatial resolution, we will examine the use of acoustic metamaterials and hyperlenses to study how subdiffraction limited ultrasound influences brain wave activity patterns.
How can this technology be used to provide our nation’s Warfighters with strategic advantages? We have developed working and conceptual prototypes in which ballistic helmets can be fitted with ultrasound transducers and microcontroller devices to illustrate potential applications as shown below. We look forward to developing a close working relationship with DARPA and other Department of Defense and U.S. Intelligence Communities to bring some of these applications to fruition over the coming years depending on the most pressing needs of our country’s defense industries.
Above illustrations show a ballistic helmet fitted with four ultrasound transducers (left) and another functional prototype for achieving human brain stimulation using a single element transducer (bottom-right), as well as a list of potential applications relevant to the defense industry. (Image: Tyler Lab)
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Friday, December 9, 2011
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
DOD As Delivered by Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta, Washington, DC, Tuesday, December 06, 2011
Seventy years ago on a December morning, our nation sustained a cruel and destructive attack at Pearl Harbor Our enemies thought that by this sudden and deliberate raid, they could weaken America Instead, they only strengthened it.That day truly awoke a sleeping giant.
As we join you in remembering the events of December 7, 1941, we honor you and your fallen comrades for your indomitable will and we remember the sacrifice and shared purpose of the American people, as well as the strength of our elected and military leaders during the war.
December 7, 1941 was indeed a day that will live in infamy. But in the memories of that day we continue to draw determination and conviction to protect our freedoms, to sacrifice for our fellow citizens, and to serve a purpose larger than self. You, the survivors of Pearl Harbor and of the war that followed, embody this conviction, this determination to raise high the torch of freedom and sacrifice. From your stories, posterity records for all subsequent generations the emotion, the heroism, and the tragedy of a harrowing attack and the titanic struggle that would later unfold.
As a young boy, I remember seeing troops move through Fort Ord during the war years in Monterey, California. My parents would invite soldiers into our home for Christmas dinner, and I remember seeing young men from all over the country about to go to war. And I remember thinking in that uncertain time: "This is going to be the last opportunity these young men have to enjoy the comforts of home for a long time."
You are the veterans of that greatest generation.You have lived full lives and witnessed years of great prosperity because of the freedom you helped to secure for America and her allies. I know you take great pride, as I do, that your legacy lives on in today's men and women in uniform, who have borne the burden of a decade of war, and who are truly this nation's next greatest generation. The 9/11 generation, like you, has stepped forward in your image of service and sacrifice, volunteering for military duty after another sudden and terrible attack on our shores.
We treasure you.You have brought everlasting credit to your fallen comrades.The men and women in today's military stand on the shoulders of your individual and combined sacrifice and service to our nation. Your example inspires those in uniform today, strengthens our nation's moral fiber, and proves that with united resolve our country can surmount any challenge. Thank you for your service, for your sacrifice, and for your endless zeal to see to it that our children and grandchildren can pass along a better life to the next generation. This has always been the American dream, a dream we can realize because of the determination of our citizens to defend it.....
Seventy years ago on a December morning, our nation sustained a cruel and destructive attack at Pearl Harbor Our enemies thought that by this sudden and deliberate raid, they could weaken America Instead, they only strengthened it.That day truly awoke a sleeping giant.
As we join you in remembering the events of December 7, 1941, we honor you and your fallen comrades for your indomitable will and we remember the sacrifice and shared purpose of the American people, as well as the strength of our elected and military leaders during the war.
December 7, 1941 was indeed a day that will live in infamy. But in the memories of that day we continue to draw determination and conviction to protect our freedoms, to sacrifice for our fellow citizens, and to serve a purpose larger than self. You, the survivors of Pearl Harbor and of the war that followed, embody this conviction, this determination to raise high the torch of freedom and sacrifice. From your stories, posterity records for all subsequent generations the emotion, the heroism, and the tragedy of a harrowing attack and the titanic struggle that would later unfold.
As a young boy, I remember seeing troops move through Fort Ord during the war years in Monterey, California. My parents would invite soldiers into our home for Christmas dinner, and I remember seeing young men from all over the country about to go to war. And I remember thinking in that uncertain time: "This is going to be the last opportunity these young men have to enjoy the comforts of home for a long time."
You are the veterans of that greatest generation.You have lived full lives and witnessed years of great prosperity because of the freedom you helped to secure for America and her allies. I know you take great pride, as I do, that your legacy lives on in today's men and women in uniform, who have borne the burden of a decade of war, and who are truly this nation's next greatest generation. The 9/11 generation, like you, has stepped forward in your image of service and sacrifice, volunteering for military duty after another sudden and terrible attack on our shores.
We treasure you.You have brought everlasting credit to your fallen comrades.The men and women in today's military stand on the shoulders of your individual and combined sacrifice and service to our nation. Your example inspires those in uniform today, strengthens our nation's moral fiber, and proves that with united resolve our country can surmount any challenge. Thank you for your service, for your sacrifice, and for your endless zeal to see to it that our children and grandchildren can pass along a better life to the next generation. This has always been the American dream, a dream we can realize because of the determination of our citizens to defend it.....
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