Short Takes – 2-27-23

Last-minute problem keeps SpaceX rocket, astronauts grounded. TheHill.com article. Pull quote: “Officials said the problem involved ground equipment used for loading the engine ignition fluid. The launch team could not be sure there was a full load. A SpaceX engineer likened this critical system to spark plugs for a car.”

Periodic Graphics: Mucus, tears, and saliva. CEN.ACS.org article. A look at natural chemistry.

'Brain-eating' amoeba case in Florida potentially tied to unfiltered water in sinus rinse. LiveScience.com article. Pull quote: “The organism, an amoeba called Naegleria fowleri, typically lives in soil and warm fresh water and can sometimes grow in water tanks, heaters and pipes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(opens in new tab) (CDC). In rare instances, it can infiltrate the human body and cause a disease of the brain and spinal cord called primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), the CDC(opens in new tab) says. People can't develop PAM by swallowing N. fowleri or by interacting with an already-infected person; rather, the amoeba enters the brain through the nose, by traveling through the nerve that relays information about smells from the nose to the brain.”

Digital Twin-Based Cyber-Attack Detection Framework for Cyber-Physical Manufacturing Systems. IEEEExplore.IEEE.org paper. Abstract pull quote: “Digital twin (DT) technology emerges as a promising solution for providing additional insights into the physical process (twin) by leveraging run-time data, models, and analytics. In this work, we propose a DT framework for detecting cyber-attacks in CPMS during controlled transient behavior as well as expected anomalies of the physical process. We present a DT framework and provide details on structuring the architecture to support cyber-attack detection. Additionally, we present an experimental case study on off-the-shelf 3D printers to detect cyber-attacks utilizing the proposed DT framework to illustrate the effectiveness of our proposed approach.” Paywall protected.

Can You Tell Whether a “Bomb Train” Is Coming to Your Town? It’s Complicated. Pull quote: “The troika of hazard communications, according to the agency [PHMSA], contains the following: There is a listing of all cars with hazardous material on each train; signage detailing which car is carrying what material; and the use of AskRail, an electronic application used by first responders that gives up-to-the-minute details on a train’s location and contents.”