S&r 2016 by Arizona Daily Sun

SCIENCE RESEARCH 2016 Advertising Supplement brought to you by

A Private Non-Profit Research Institution Committed to Excellence in Research & Education steroids are traditionally viewed as the “vermin of the sky”, either because they occasionally can impact Earth, or because they get in the way of more serious astronomical objects like stars and galaxies. However, misguided perceptions can be changed. Ongoing research at Lowell Observatory is providing new and unprecedented insight into the importance of asteroids in understanding the origin and evolution of Earth and our Solar System. Asteroids are left-over fragments from the epoch of planet formation and have survived relatively unchanged over the four and a half billion years since that time. As such they remain our best window into the formation conditions and processes that produced Earth and other terrestrial planets. Asteroids also have a very tangible relevance to the present day. About once every century asteroids larger than about 50 feet across impact Earth. We witnessed this in February of 2013 when an impactor exploded about 20 miles up in the atmosphere above the city of Chelyabinsk, Russia. For every one large impactor like Chelyabinsk, there are many more small impactors. Fortunately most of these simply burn up in the atmosphere as they impact at typical speeds of several tens of thousands of miles per hour. Estimates suggest that about 100 tons of impactors reach Earth every day. These impactors, small and large, are a reality that motivate our need to discover and understand the properties of Earth’s nearest asteroidal neighbors.

of Flagstaff, are used to measure the physical properties of asteroids such as size, shape, rotation, brightness, and composition. One specific project dubbed MANOS (the Mission Accessible Near-Earth Object Survey) is focusing on measuring these properties for about 10% of the 100 near-Earth asteroids that are being discovered every month. The techniques of MANOS include imaging to refine the orbits, measuring brightness fluctuations to infer rotation rates, and obtaining spectroscopic data to constrain mineral compositions that can be linked to specific meteorites here on Earth that are studied in detail in laboratories. Another relevant project is called LO-CAMS (the Lowell Observatory Cameras for All-sky Meteor Surveillance) which captures video of the night sky to measure small marble-sized impactors that burn up in the atmosphere and are known

However, Earth’s proximity to asteroids also provides opportunity. Some asteroids are in fact easier to reach by spacecraft than the Moon and thus are highly attractive for a variety of planetary mission scenarios, ranging from manned exploration to robotic rendezvous, to in situ extraction of resources like water and oxygen. A variety of asteroid-related research is ongoing at Lowell Observatory to address these topics. Telescopes like Lowell’s Discovery Channel Telescope, located about an hour south www.lowell.edu • 1400 W Mars Hill Rd, Flagstaff, AZ • (928) 774-3358

as meteors or shooting stars. This video record of small impacting particles helps us to better understand the origin of meteor showers and the populations of larger bodies in the Solar System (e.g. comets and asteroids) that produce these particles. Ultimately programs like MANOS and LO-CAMS will help us to better understand the formation of asteroids, where they originated in the Solar System, what can happen when they impact Earth, and where human exploration may go in the future. We at Lowell will be sharing more about these projects and others starting on May 21 with the opening of a new all-ages exhibit called Space Guard Academy which will be focused on the study and science of asteroids. Hope to see you here this summer! — Dr. Nick Moskovitz, Lowell Observatory

Space Guard Academy is a new interactive exhibit where science fiction meets science fact. Mind-blowing digital interactives will put you on the frontline of asteroid detection, classification, and more!

Editor’s Notes H

ere in Flagstaff, we barely have time to catch our breath from one scientific leap to the next. The big one last year came with the New Horizons mission and its arrival at Pluto. When that happened last July, Flagstaff as the home of the Pluto discovery became a very special place on the map during this spectacular flyby. Even now, as we are almost a year away from that big event, scientists continue to discover new and exciting data from Pluto. It turned out to be a fascinating planet (we’re still going to call it that around here, no apologies) and the event became a special moment in Flagstaff’s history, scientific or otherwise. Along with the Pluto show, Flagstaff has continued to be at the center of great research and discovery. Of course, our mountain town has been blessed with some incredible institutions and companies — whether it’s Lowell Observatory, the U.S. Naval Observatory or the U.S. Geological

Survey — or whether it’s Northern Arizona University or Coconino Community College. Along with them, many companies, such as TGen, W.L. Gore and Machine Solutions are part of the strong science scene. And organizations such as the Economic Collaborative of Northern Arizona and the Northern Arizona Center for Emerging Technology are helping build bridges. Our cover story this time is an integrated update from last year of the work of the Accelerator (now onboarding clients) and NAU and its steady movement toward becoming an even stronger research campus and eyes to the concept of a research park. Across the board, the idea of creating connections between education, science, research and commerce are bound to make Flagstaff a vibrant and compelling place.

Seth Muller Special Sections Editor

Note: This special section is made possible through the generous underwriting support of the sponsors listed on the cover, who also contributed the editorial content for their respective enterprises. The space allotted to each of these enterprises is consistent with their sponsorship levels. The Cover Story and Special Feature are editorial stories written by the staff.

Building the bridges Elevating science and technology through cooperative growth and forward thinking By Seth Muller

SCIENCE & RESEARCH 2016

One of the labs of the Accelerator on Innovation Mesa. Inset: Mayor Jerry Nabours at the grand opening of the Acclerator last year.

hen last July brought the grand opening of the Flagstaff Business Accelerator — an innovative way to help businesses scale up and stabilize, it became one more piece of the puzzle local economic supporters have long championed for. It turned into another way to build a bridge for companies to succeed and, hopefully, continue to call this mountain town home. The $7.7 million facility offers multiple ventures the chance to use office and lab space as they work to expand operations. The Accelerator joins the already successful Incubator, an office complex for budding companies, both overseen by the Northern Arizona Center for Emerging Technology, known by its initials NACET. Already, the Accelerator is housing War2In, a firm that is working to provide returning veterans a chance to learn how to transition to strong careers in

various inspection industries. The name of the business is shorthand for “Warrior to Inspector.” Along with that company, Symple Surgical, an upstart that looks to use cuttingedge microwave ablation to help people with high blood pressure, is currently in the Incubator and stands as a likely candidate to transition to the Accelerator. The rise of the Accelerator and the work it’s doing to bring those businesses online represents one aspect of what local economic supporters hope

to achieve in the coming years: to take an intentional approach in improving the bridges of private/ public partnerships, strengthen connections between the university and private companies and help improve what’s known as “tech transfer” — to move developments of research and technology into the public market or commercial sphere.

Along with the work of the city of Flagstaff to provide the facilities on what it calls “Innovation Mesa,” where the Accelerator and Incubator are housed, Northern Arizona University itself is looking at a possible facility that will lead to growth and cross-pollination through a possible research park. Research parks are

SCIENCE & RESEARCH 2016

places where companies and corporations large and small take residence in direct connection with a research university. They have been around the better part of a century, but they have become more common and more robust during the last 20 years. Since 2008, the country has added 14 new research parks and 80 percent of the existing parks have expanded during that time, according to the development firm SmithGroupJJR. The granddaddy of research parks is the Research Triangle in North Carolina. It’s centered among University of North Carolina, North Carolina State and Duke University and takes up 7,000 acres. But other

SCIENCE & RESEARCH 2016

communities have adopted smaller-scale research parks that have become strong economic generators in their own right. And it’s possible that NAU and Flagstaff could become home to one of these. “We’re starting to get more specifics to (the research park),” noted Rich Bowen, who is the outgoing President and CEO of Economic Collaborative of Northern Arizona, or ECoNA. The economic development entity has worked in recent years to help grow partnerships, improve the business climate and assess need in Flagstaff. “We have a development group that works with universities to put together research parks. They

help recruit companies and so we moved from just conceptualizing to trying to put feet to it. We’re just in the first steps of that.” He further explained, “We have a company that does this nationally and internationally, and they’re in negotiations with ASU right now. All we’ve done is have a series of meetings. But if the ASU deal goes well, it likely gives us a template of how we do that here. We’ve identified sites adjacent to and on the campus, so that’s a step forward. And I’m spending time reaching out to research institutes and companies I think might have an interest in Flag and an interest in the university.” The concept of a research

park plays into NAU’s strong and notable push to become a vibrant research-intensive university. The school is no stranger to research, and it has significant history in such areas as biosciences, forestry, and chemistry that is has become known for. “NAU Innovations” is an initiative at the university to create opportunity for research and discovery on campus to go farther. Examples Bowen shared of major research initiatives at NAU include the work of Dr. Paul Keim in the Department of Biological Sciences. He also has a relationship with TGen North, which works within the study and application of

Accelerator Grand Opening

“Pathogen Genomics” and a sign of movement from research to application. Another example is the work of Kiisa C. Nishikawa, who studies “biomechanics and neural control of ballistic movement.” The Nishikawa Biomechanics Laboratory has conducted experiments with prosthetic robotics. “As NAU starts to develop and get more focused on research, that has a positive impact on the community,” said John Stigmon, the incoming

president of ECoNA. “That will lead to more tech transfer and more economic growth.” Bowen added, “If nothing else, expanding research is like bringing in a company. If I have a researcher who has $5 million in research dollars, that’s like bringing a $5 million company to town. Their product is research and their client is usually something like a government agency. It also raises Flagstaff’s profile. At NAU, we’re bringing in world-

John Stigmon

class researchers. These people have national and international reputations in their field.” As the research grows and the bridges are built, the chance

Rich Bowen

for Flagstaff to become an even greater hub for biological sciences, innovation and technology becomes even greater for robust and exciting growth.

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2225 N. Gemini Dr. • Flagstaff, AZ 86001 • 928.213.9234 SCIENCE & RESEARCH 2016

Arizona Daily Sun provides many special edition publications throughout the year to provide vital and exciting stories from various aspects of the community. Progress: An annual

Best of Flag: Our

magazine that reports on the economic growth and vibrancy in the community. The magazine looks at various sectors, from commerce to education to tourism and construction. Appears in April.

long-standing Best of Flag contest now has a magazine component with indepth stories and various features on the winning contests. Appears in November.

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A comprehensive guide to all the great attractions, trails, locales and activities Northern Arizona has to offer. It makes one the most encompassing collections of the things to do in our

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Science & Research:

A biannual publication that shares the best and brightest stories and ideas coming out of the science and technology sectors of northern Arizona.

Case Study: Researchers at NAU make big leaps in understanding muscles By Austin Shannon

Samrat Dutta

iisa Nishikawa is a researcher at NAU who has worked for years on her theory regarding muscle contraction. Her “winding-filament” theory has the potential to change textbooks and may ultimately provide insights that could improve prosthetic limbs, robotics and brain-controlled devices. Utilizing an advanced technological approach, Nishikawa plans to uncover the intricate interaction of two proteins vital to muscle contraction: actin and titin. “I was very careful in developing the idea because I didn’t want other scientists to reject it due to small mistakes in fact or logic,” she said. NAU’s new Science and Health building is housing what is known as an Atomic Force

Microscope (AFM), which plays a role in the research. Unlike the conventional light microscope that can achieve a maximum magnification of around 400 times normal, the AFM can magnify up to 100 million times normal, detecting down to the atomic level. The microscope relies upon a very small arm with a silicon tip 10-120 nanometers in size that runs over a flat surface, scanning back and forth until it

has detected the entire surface. The image that comes out is a topographical, 3D map, where one can distinguish the hills and valleys of the surface, measure the distance between features, and determine the accurate size of very small molecules such as proteins. Samrat Dutta is the researcher hired to operate the machine. Whereas a conventional microscope relies on the reflection of light, only using lenses to magnify the image, the AFM creates a “representation of the image.” Dutta explained AFM with the analogy of a blind man with a cane trying to find his way. The

cane moves from side to side just as the silicon tip of the AFM does, rising and falling according to the height of the objects they come in contact with and providing a representation of the obstacles in that area. Dutta is using the AFM to test the muscle contraction theory postulated and supported by the research of Nishikawa. Approximately 15 years ago, it occurred to Nishikawa that there might be a better way to explain muscle contraction than the “sliding filament” theory that is currently presented in anatomy and physiology textbooks. Nishikawa was funded to do exploratory research on her

SCIENCE & RESEARCH 2016

winding filament hypothesis, and had the first paper published in 2012. Nishikawa’s theory involves the interaction between two muscle proteins known as actin and titin. The AFM is ideal for measuring this interaction for several reasons. AFM allows Dutta and Nishikawa to visualize the actual protein molecules individually and to see how they look when they interact with each other. The AFM apparatus should also allow them to attach a single molecule of titin to the silicon tip, move it up to actin molecules, and measure the force of the interaction that takes place. Dutta’s work with the AFM involves determining the chemistry involved in binding actin to the flat, detection surface of the AFM and binding titin to the silicon tip. Once this is figured out, he will run various tests with these proteins, taking images, and measuring the interactions between them. Unlike other nonconventional microscopy techniques, AFM can operate with the sample it is trying to detect in solution. This will allow Nishikawa’s team to measure the interactions 12

SCIENCE & RESEARCH 2016

between these proteins in an environment similar to that found in muscle cells. Even if Nishikawa and her team are successful in demonstrating that the winding filament theory is more representative of muscle contraction than the sliding filament theory, it may still be a while before the scientific consensus sways in her direction. If that does happen, however, Nishikawa sees more than just textbooks changing

from the discovery. “We are currently working on algorithms based on the hypothesis for muscle-like control of prosthetic and orthotic assistive devices to replace a limb or assist those with muscle weakness due to aging, trauma, or musculoskeletal disease,” she said. Nishikawa and her team have also recently secured a U.S. patent for “muscle-like actuators” for robotics. But, more importantly, Nishikawa

says, “…we believe that the unique insights that the winding filament hypothesis provides into the process of muscle contraction could help to “decode” motor activity from the brain, for use in ‘brain-controlled’ devices.” This article is a version of a previous one written by Austin Shannon, this year’s NAUNASA Space Grant science writing intern at the Arizona Daily Sun.

Clark dark The

IN THE

Flagstaff’s astronomical legacy celebrated with historic telescope

By Emery Cowan

he telescope, housed in the impossible-to-miss white dome atop Mars Hill, was commissioned by observatory founder Percival Lowell in 1896. In subsequent decades, it played a starring role in astronomical research, including Lowell’s studies of “peculiar markings” on Mars, the first detection of the expanding nature of the universe and moon mapping for the Apollo program. It should come as no surprise, then, that exploring the Clark’s history brings up a rich collection of historic photographs, long-buried documents and hand drawn maps, notes and diagrams. For much of the past year, Lowell Historian Kevin Schindler took on the task of finding and compiling those artifacts. Well over half of the historic images

had never been published until earlier this month when Schindler’s “The Far End of the Journey: Lowell Observatory’s 24-inch Clark Telescope”

was published. The 134-page coffee table book showcases an array of diverse visuals in its detailed documentation of the telescope’s century-long story, from a device crafted to search for life on Mars to the 21 monthlong restoration of the telescope that wrapped up in October. “The Clark is more than just Lowell, it’s Flagstaff. It has been an icon in the skyline for 120 years,” Schindler said. The Clark’s story represents “a history of Flagstaff, a history of

science, a history of technology,” he said. Many of the pictures and papers featured in the book have long been stowed away in Lowell’s own archives. An effort by observatory archivists to move everything into the campus’ brand new Putnam Collections Center in 2013 helped unearth new findings, Schindler said. He tracked down other images on a chance trip to Johnson Space Center in Houston. There, he found SCIENCE & RESEARCH 2016

photographs of astronauts who visited Lowell in the 1960s to learn moon mapping techniques and peer through local telescopes, including the Clark. “That was golden,” Schindler said. “For years I had been looking and I hadn’t found

anything here.” The University of Arizona proved to be another treasure trove of photographs documenting the time when the Clark was moved to Mexico for several months in 1896 and 1897. The collection of pictures

Glen Hill paints the telescope pier of the Clark during restoration. Photo by and courtesy of Ralph Nye.

show Mexican workers in widebrimmed hats unloading the telescope parts from train cars and assembling the dome and structure in the small community of Tacubaya near Mexico City. Those images helped answer questions that Lowell’s Clark

Telescope restoration team had been scratching their heads over as they undertook restoration of the telescope, Schindler said. One of the last chapters of the book describes how the telescope has been used for outreach in recent years and documents visits by famous figures, from Hillary Clinton to Bill Nye. The book ends with a behind-thescenes account of the nearly two-year process of restoring the historic telescope. Photos show cranes reaching into the Clark’s dome to extract the telescope, workers using intricate pulley and strap systems to stabilize heavy components and delicate brass pieces that had been meticulously cleaned and shined. An image-rich book seemed the most appropriate way to document the telescope’s story, Lowell Director Jeff Hall said. “The Clark is so visually impressive that a pictorial history seemed like something that would be used more than 300 pages of text,” Hall said. “We felt it was critical to document what was done to preserve this part of the observatory’s history.” Note: The book is available at the Lowell Observatory gift shop and www.amazon.com.

SCIENCE & RESEARCH 2016

Meet The Latest Ally in the Fight Against Valley Fever Nearly 65 percent of all valley fever cases occur in Arizona. But that statistic only considers the human population. Did you know the disease can also affects dogs? At TGen North, our scientists have received information on more than 500 of our fourlegged friends — with and without Valley Fever — from their owners as part of a study called Valley Fevers PAWS. Both pet and pet parent are not only helping identify which dogs are most at risk, and why, but providing the genetic clues to help treat the disease in all populations… human’s included. It’s just one of the amazing stories unfolding at TGen North in Flagstaff, the Pathogen Genomics Division of the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), where great science happens with an eye toward life. To learn more about how you and your dog can help, visit tgen.org/vfpaws

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