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NASA engineer who helped build Mars rovers chats about the next challenge

News

March 18th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – A Midwestern kid who loved “Star Trek” grew up to be a principal mechanical engineer for NASA who’s worked on every Mars mission since Pathfinder, which took the first rover to the Red Planet in 1996. Kobie Boykins will be in central Iowa this week to tell his personal story, and to discuss the next big project for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, in a lecture he’s calling: “Beyond Earth: The Quest for Life on an Icy Moon.”

Graphic provided by Des Moines Performing Arts

“A mission that we’re going to launch later this year called Europa Clipper, to Jupiter, and while we’re at Jupiter, we’re going to be exploring the icy moon of Jupiter called Europa,” Boykins says. “Mostly, we’re going to be talking about the engineering that went into building this vehicle, some of the decisions that went on, and talk about some of the problems and how we fixed them.” As a boy in Omaha, Boykins says he used to sit on his rooftop and gaze up at the stars. He adored “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” particularly the character Geordi La Forge, chief engineer on the starship, Enterprise. Boykins says he always wanted to be the person who was asked to fix things.

“I thought it was very interesting to figure out how things work and then be asked, ‘Hey, how does that work and what would you do? How would you make it better? How would you build that?'” Boykins says. “I think it was probably in fifth grade where I had a teacher that sort of connected with me in some way — magic, I don’t know — that put me on a path to say, ‘Hey, you could be whatever you want,’ and at that time, I wanted to be Geordi La Forge.” In addition to the Pathfinder mission, Kobie designed the solar arrays that powered the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity. He also helped build the seven-foot-tall rover Curiosity, which carried 10 different tools, 17 cameras and a laser. While placing robotic rovers on the Martian surface is a tremendous accomplishment, many others (including a few billionaires) are focused on landing -humans- on that dusty red planet, 140-million miles away. Does he see that happening anytime soon?

“We have the technology to send a human being to Mars today. The bigger problem is that the technology is not there to make sure that the human beings stay alive. That’s part of the struggle,” Boykins says. “Will it happen within the next decade or the next two? I think that’s approximately the scale that we’re talking about.” Boykins is chief engineer on NASA’s Europa Clipper mission, and he’s been awarded NASA’s Exceptional Service Medal, one of the highest honors given to NASA employees and contractors. Still, after all his successes with rovers on Mars, Boykins says his biggest thrill is when he learns he’s inspired someone else.

“That’s sort of the legacy for me,” Boykins says, “that I have people that were students or individuals that were looking for what their career might be, and they heard me give a talk about how much I love being able to do this work and this job and they decided, ‘Yeah, this is the path I want to be on,’ and they ended up in the same path, or in the same place that I am. Those are amazing stories to me.” Boykins will appear Thursday as part of the Explorer Series at the Des Moines Civic Center.

On the web at DMPA.org

DMU professor studying saw marks to help investigators

News

March 18th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – A professor at Des Moines University is doing a national research project that at first glance seems like a segment of This Old House. Anatomy professor, Heather Garvin, is studying the cutting characteristics of saws, but her focus is how the saws cut through human bones, not wood. “And the reason we’re looking at this is that we do get cases of dismemberment in the forensic anthropology, world,” she says. “And what we try to do for law enforcement and for investigators, is to give them as much information as we can about the tool that was used.” Garvin is the only board certified forensic anthropologist in the state of Iowa and one of only about 120 of us throughout the country. Garvin says the work focuses on identifying the type of saw used in a crime to help investigators.

“We can’t say that it is this one specific saw, the saw that was used, but we can say what type of saw and the characteristics of a saw,” Garvin says. “So for example, powered saws will leave lighter, wider cuts in the bone than hand saws.” Garvin says they can’t be like ballistic experts who can link a bullet to the specific gun it was fired from, but they hope to identify different marks left by the teeth of saw blades. “If anyone works in carpentry, they’ll realize there’s there’s a large variation of saws out there where you have different teeth per inch different size teeth, different materials, whether they’re cutting like a knife, or if they’re ripping through the material,” Garvin says. “And so we’re trying to figure out what characteristics those marks in the bone correlate with.” She says other individuals in the project will be collecting data blindly so they won’t know what saws made the cuts and they can do a statistical analyses to see if they can use the marks on the bone to identify the type of saw. Garvin says dismembering a corpse after a murder isn’t something that’s all that common in Iowa.

“But in other areas of the country where you have very urban areas and it’s harder to dispose of a body during a criminal act, you do get a higher number of dismemberment’s, because that makes it easier for them to hide and then dispose of human remains,” she says. Garvin won a grant from the National Institute of Justice to do the saw research. She says they use a microscope with a camera to study the cut marks, and may eventually use micro C-T scan that can put together x-rays in a sort of 3-D model.

“It’s a little harder with cut marks, because what we’re dealing with really doesn’t have much relief. You know, these are tiny scratches in the bone that we’re looking at,” Garvin says. “But I think as technology advances and it becomes more sensitive with that micro C-T, that might be an avenue as well.” It might seem kind of gruesome to do this research on human bones, but Garvin says she can block that out and see it as important scientific work.

“The thing is, someone has to do it and by doing it, you’re helping loved ones have a family member right? They may have a missing family member, they don’t know where they are, you’re able to identify those remains and bring some closure to that family,” Garvin says. She says it can also help with providing the evidence that brings justice for the person who was killed.

Skyscan Forecast for Atlantic & the Nishna Valley: Monday, March 18, 2024

Weather

March 18th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

Today: Sunny & windy, with a high near 41. N/NW winds 15-20 mph. Wind chill values as low as 5.
Tonight: Mostly clear & windy, with a low around 29. SW @ 10-25 mph.
Tuesday: Sunny & breezy, with a high near 61. NW @ 10-25 mph.
Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 44.
Thursday: Partly sunny w/a 30% chance of rain and snow before 1pm, then a chance of rain. High near 52.

Sunday’s High in Atlantic was 38. The Low was 14. Last year on this date, the High in Atlantic was 26 and the Low was 8. The Record High for March 18th in Atlantic, was 81 in 2012. The Record Low was -1 in 1893. Sunrise: 7:27. Sunset: 7:30-p.m.

Senate GOP plan for AEA’s ‘vastly different’ from others

News

March 18th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – A key lawmaker says the Senate may soon debate what has turned out to be the central issue of the 2024 legislative session. Three weeks ago, the Iowa House passed a bill to maintain Area Education Agency special education services for students with disabilities, but make changes in other A-E-A functions. The governor has called for giving schools the option of keeping A-E-A services for students with disabilities or, instead, hiring private companies or local staff to do it. Senate Majority Leader Jack Whitver says Senate Republicans are close to unveiling their own plan.

The plan House Republicans passed calls for a study of the A-E-As. That’s not part of the plan Senate Republicans are developing.

Whitver says Senate Republicans will draft a bill about A-E-A changes that includes an increase in the minimum salary for first year teachers. That was the governor’s approach. Last month, a House bill raising teacher salaries and pay for other school staff passed 93-to-one.

Senate Majority Leader Jack Whitver (Iowa PBS photo)

House Speaker Pat Grassley says because of budget implications, the decisions on teacher pay and the general level of state spending on public and private schools as well as the future of A-E-As are all related.

A recent Des Moines Register/Mediacom “Iowa Poll” found 56 percent of Iowans have a favorable view of Area Education Agencies. That rating goes a bit higher — to 59 percent — among Iowa parents with school-aged children.

Iowa’s Lisa Bluder on Hawkeyes’ NCAA Tournament draw

Sports

March 18th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

The Iowa Hawkeye women are the top seed in the Albany two region and opens Saturday at home against the winner of the first four game between Holy Cross and UT Martin.

That’s Iowa coach Lisa Bluder. The other game in Iowa City on Saturday will match West Virginia against Princeton.

Drake women edge Missouri State at the buzzer to win MVC Tournament

Sports

March 18th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

Anna Miller’s lunging shot in the lane beat the buzzer as the Drake women edged Missouri State 76-75 to win a second straight Missouri Valley Conference Tournament title. Miller’s game winner came after the Bulldogs squandered a 14-point fourth quarter lead.

Drake set up the winning play after Lacy Stokes gave Missouri State a one point lead with two-point-six seconds remaining.

The Drake coach Allison Pohlman. The Bulldogs will play Colorado in Manhattan, Kansas in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.

Big 12 Record Eight Teams Selected to NCAA Championship

Sports

March 17th, 2024 by Asa Lucas

A Big 12 record and nation-high tying eight teams were selected for the 2024 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship. Regular season titleholder Houston earned a No. 1 seed in its first year in the Conference while Iowa State, winner of the 2024 Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship, was awarded a No. 2 seed. Other participants and seeds are No. 3. Baylor, No. 4. Kansas, No. 6. BYU, No. 6. Texas Tech, No. 7. Texas and No. 9. TCU.

The Big 12 has a No. 1 seed for the fourth consecutive year and 16th season out of 27. Two teams are in the top two seed lines for the ninth occasion, including the third straight year.

Heading into postseason play, the Big 12 holds the nation’s best NET average (46.2) and strength of schedule (39.6). The Big 12 is the only league with 10 teams in the top 46 of the NET.

At least seven Big 12 teams will play in the Big Dance for the eighth season since 2010, including seven of the last 10 tournaments conducted. The Big 12 has had six or more NCAA Championship teams in 10 of 27 years, including 11 seasons since 2012. From 2014-24, the Big 12 has 68 selections, the third-best total of any conference.

The Big 12 has captured two national championships in the previous three years with Baylor winning the 2021 title and Kansas bringing home the 2022 trophy. Conference teams have played in four of the past five Final Fours, including three national championship game appearances.

Following are the Big 12’s first round matchups. Times and television networks will be added when available at Big12Sports.com.

Big 12 NCAA Championship First Round Schedule
Thursday, March 21
No. 2 Iowa State vs. No. 15 South Dakota State (Omaha, Neb.)
No. 4 Kansas vs. No. 13 Samford (Salt Lake City, Utah)
No. 6 BYU vs. No. 11 Duquesne (Omaha, Neb.)
No. 6 Texas Tech vs. No. 11 NC State (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
No. 7 Texas vs. No. 10 Virginia/Colorado State (Charlotte, N.C.)

Friday, March 22
No. 1 Houston vs. No. 16 Longwood (Memphis, Tenn.)
No. 3 Baylor vs. No. 14 Colgate (Memphis, Tenn.)
No. 9 TCU vs. No. 8 Utah State (Indianapolis, Ind.)

Lane closures on U.S. 20 east of Sioux City in Woodbury County begin on Monday, March 18

News

March 17th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

SIOUX CITY, Iowa  – Drivers on U.S. 20 east of Sioux City in Woodbury County need to be aware of lane closures that may impact their trip beginning at 7 a.m. on Monday, March 18, until Nov. 22, weather permitting.

On Monday, March 18, weather permitting, crews will shift westbound U.S. 20 traffic onto the eastbound U.S. 20 lanes in a head-to head traffic pattern so work can be done of Stage 2 of reconstruction of the westbound lanes of U.S. 20. Until the project is complete, you won’t be able to make left turns while traveling in the work zone.

Help keep everyone on the road safer. Drive with caution, obey the posted speed limit and other signs in the work area, and be aware that traffic fines for moving violations are at least double in work zones. As in all work zones, you should stay alert, allow ample space between vehicles, and wear seat belts.

Intermittent lane closures on Iowa 39 between Odebolt and Deloit begin on March 18

News

March 17th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

SIOUX CITY, Iowa – March 11, 2024 – Drivers on Iowa 39 between Odebolt and Deloit in Sac and Crawford counties need to be aware of an asphalt paving and resurfacing project that may impact their trip beginning on Monday, March 18, until late June, weather permitting.

Intermittent lane closures with flaggers and pilot cars will be in place to assist you through the work zone when construction crews are present. InRoads, LLC of Des Moines was awarded this $10.3 million dollar construction project.

Iowa State to open NCAA Tournament in Omaha as the No. 2 seed in East Region

Sports

March 17th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger will go up against his former team when the Cyclones play South Dakota State on Thursday in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament in Omaha. Otzelberger spent three seasons as coach of the Jackrabbits from 2016 to 2019.

Otzelberger on playing against coaches and a program he is familiar with.

Cyclone fans flooded Kansas City last week for the Big 12 Tournament and now have a short trip to the NCAA Tournament.

After crushing top ranked Houston to win the Big 12 Tournament Otzelberger says the Cyclones are focused on the next challenge.