The osteocyte.

Osteocytes are the most numerous cells in mature bone and have the potential to live as long as the organism itself. However, study and subsequent understanding of osteocyte biology has been thwarted by the remote location of the cell in the mineralized matrix. This review is intended to synthesize current understanding of osteocyte biology and to suggest future paths that will promote understanding of this obscure cell and translation of knowledge to disease prophylaxis and management.

The influence of gravity on the precise measurement of solute diffusion coefficients in dilute liquid metals and metalloids.

It is now well known that the diffusion coefficient (D) measured in a laboratory in low earth orbit (LEO) is less than the corresponding value measured in a terrestrial laboratory. However, all LEO laboratories are subject to transient accelerations (g-jitter) superimposed on the steady reduced gravity environment of the space platform. In measurements of the diffusion coefficients for dilute binary alloys of Pb-(Ag, Au,Sb), Sb-(Ga,In), Bi-(Ag,Au,Sb), Sn-(Au,Sb), Al-(Fe, Ni,Si), and In-Sb in which g-jitter was suppressed, it was found that D proportional to T (temperature) if g-jitter was suppressed, rather than D proportional to T(2) as observed by earlier workers with g-jitter present.