Investigation of the Neutron Quantum States in the Earth's Gravitational Field.

We studied the neutron quantum states in the potential well formed by the Earth's gravitational field and a horizontal mirror. The estimated characteristic sizes of the neutron wave functions in two lowest quantum states correspond to their expectations with an accuracy of ≈25 %. The spatial density distribution in a standing neutron wave above a mirror was measured for a set of a few lowest quantum states. A position-sensitive neutron detector with an extra high spatial resolution of 1 µm to 2 µm was developed and tested for this particular task. Although this experiment was not designed or optimized to search for an additional short-range force, nevertheless it allowed us to slightly improve the published boundary in the nanometer range of characteristic distances. We studied systematical uncertainties in the chosen "flow-through" method as well as the feasibility to improve further the accuracy in this experiment.

[The effect of the life style of machinery operators in metallurgical production on their health status]. / Vliianie obraza zhizni operatorov metallurgicheskogo proizvodstva na sostoianie ikh zdorov'ia.

The influence of social and living conditions and lifestyle on the health status of operators engaged in metallurgy was determined. Physical exercises and balanced diets were demonstrated to have a positive impact on their health. The results of investigations were used to prepare guidelines for the prevention of occupational diseases of metallurgical operators.

Odogenic change of blood coagulation in humans.

The blood coagulation time as an integral sign of human homeostasis is revealed to be influenced by conscious or unconscious olfactory stimuli through autonomic mechanisms. The hemostasis of subjects with predominance of sympathetic activity is more sensitive to the olfactory stimuli than that of subjects with vagal prevalence. The effects of the olfactory stimuli upon hemostasis in humans support the viewpoint that simultaneous information and physico-chemical processes act together in parallel to play and important role in life activities of human organism (Simonov, 1981; Sudakov, 1995). Emotions, therefore, are essential in the transfer of information from the environment (Anokhin, 1966; Miltner et al., 1994). It is not excluded that even very weak stimuli which are subthreshold for conscious perception might be informational for the organism as those engaging emotional response.

[Morbidity with temporary loss of work capacity in workers in the operational jobs of the main metallurgical manufactures]. / Zabolevaemost' s vremennoi utratoi trudosposobnosti u rabotnikov operatorskikh professii osnovnykh metallurgicheskikh proizvodstv.

Study into morbidity involving temporary unfitness for work among workers of operating vocations in the basic metallurgy industries versus those working in the repair-and-machine shops, maintenance workshops, revealed high levels of temporary disability in the former working populations, especially in respect of such health disorders as diseases of the digestive organs, affections of the nervous, cardiovascular and osseomuscular systems, that were noted to go upwards with length of service and age of the workmen. Significant differences in morbidity pattern and level in vocational groups as a whole and in respect of classes of disorders and nosological forms were found out to be related to labour pattern and its conditions, degree of strain, physical strength and mental concentration the work to be done was demanding of, level of exposure to adverse occupational factors common in metallurgy industry. Methodical recommendations have been worked out concerning preventive strategies toward occupational health problems.

[The isolation of the surface antigen from vegetative cells of Bacillus anthracis STI-1 and study of its protective properties]. / Vydelenie poverkhnostnogo antigena vegetativnykh kletok Bacillus anthracis STI-1 i izuchnie ego protektivnykh svoistv.

The method for the extraction of native surface protein antigen with a mol. wt. of 92 kD from vegetative cells of B.anthracis STI-1 and its purification was developed. The antigen was extracted with 3% sodium lauryl sarcosylate at 4 degrees C from bacterial mass previously treated with 0.1 M tris-HCl buffer solution, pH 8.0 Purification was carried out by adsorption chromatography on hydroxylapatite. The isolated protein antigen with a mol. wt. of 92 kD was electrophoretically and immunochemically homogeneous. The study of the protective properties of this protein in combination with Freund's adjuvant, made on white mice, revealed that it had good prospects for use in the creation of chemical vaccines against the causative agent of anthrax.

[The morbidity characteristics of diseases of the bone and muscle systems in workers in iron-ore mines and quarries depending on the conditions and nature of the work]. / Osobennosti zabolevaemosti bolezniami kostno-myshechnoi sistemy u rabochikh zheleorudnykh shakht i kar'erov v zavisimosti ot uslovii i kharaktera truda.

In terms of applying for medical advice in osteomuscular disorders, taking second place in the structure, it has been established that in practically identical values for the general level of morbidity, the incidence rate of lumbosacral radiculites, myalgias and myosites in drifters and drillers is 5.8 and 2.5 times as high respectively, that of thoracic and lumbar, cervical osteochondrosis, epicondylitis in drivers--3.9, 2.4, and 3.3 times as high, which facts might suggest an important role in the etiology of the above conditions, in the first place, of great physical loads plus high levels of noise, vibration, cooling microclimate, in the former case, and such loads coupled with high nervous and emotional tension, general low frequency vibration, noise, in the latter case. The established level and structure of occupational disorders of the locomotor system in both groups workers suggest their inadequate identification in respect of both amount and nosology.

[The industrial environment in the electric-furnace steel smelting, converter and open-hearth furnace methods of manufacturing manganese-alloyed steels]. / Sostoianie proizvodstvennoi sredy pri élektrostaleplavil'nom, konvertornom i martenovskom sposobakh proizvodstva legirovannykh margantsem stalei.

Inspection of the environment in manganese-alloyed steel production showed inadequate hygienic conditions of the technological processes employed. Air was more polluted by manganese oxides during the oxygen-converter process though their highest concentrations, 38 times exceeding the MAS, appeared during the casting of steel. An electric furnace coated by dust-noise-proof material and gas cleaning is preferable from a hygienic point of view. The influence of unfavourable microclimate, intensive infrared irradiation and loud noise on workers necessitates automation and mechanization of the process in order to improve the working conditions.

[The temporary loss of work capacity in workers in the hot shops of the metallurgical industry due to diseases of the circulatory organs]. / Vremennaia netrudosposobnost' rabochikh goriachikh tsekhov metallurgicheskoi promyshlennosti, obuslovlennaia bolezniami organov krovoobrashcheniia.

It was established that morbidity with temporary loss of working capacity due to diseases of the circulatory organs showed a tendency towards increase among workers of modern hot shops of the blast furnace, steel-smelting furnace, converter and the steel rolling industry. Most frequent in these category of workers was incidence of ischemic heart disease, hypertensive disease and hemorrhoid. The incidence varied among different professions enumerated above and depended also on the age, working conditions. The nosological entities varied as well.

[Hemodynamics and mechanisms of the regulation of the cardiovascular system in workers in hot shops]. / Sostoianie gemodinamiki i mekhanizmov reguliatsii serdechno-sosudistoi sistemy u rabochikh goriachikh tsekhov.

Furnace workers showed definite changes of indices of the central hemodynamics against the background of a pronounced "sympathetic alteration" in controlling the cardiac rhythm. These findings evidence significant increase of tension in the mechanisms of adaptation and development of premorbid states in workers with a 10-year length of work and over 40 years of age.