Calcium fluorometry is critical to determine cell homeostasis or to reveal communication patterns in neuronal networks. Recently, characterizing calcium signalling in neurons related to interactions with nanomaterials has become of interest due to its therapeutic potential. However, imaging of neuronal cell activity under stable physiological conditions can be either very expensive or limited in its long-term capability. Here, we present a low-cost, portable imaging system for long-term, fast-scale calcium fluorometry in neurons. Using the imaging system, we revealed temperature-dependent changes in long-term calcium signalling in kidney cells and primary cortical neurons. Furthermore, we introduce fast-scale monitoring of synchronous calcium activity in neuronal cultures in response to nanomaterials. Through graph network analysis, we found that calcium dynamics in neurons are temperature-dependent when exposed to chitosan-coated nanoparticles. These results give new insights into nanomaterial-interaction in living cultures and tissues based on calcium fluorometry and graph network analysis.

istance Ixaming" c;tn mean many things, ;tnd I like to think of it quite activity that oxcurs awway from the providers traditional place of business. It may take the fomi of live classes, telecouws, or more recently, Internet cla~sses in which students read and react to supplied material and each other's electronic contributions. 'I'he rapid proliferation of technology since the early 198O's, and the subsequent advances in our ability to connect, communicate, ;tnd educate tias occurred faster than our ability to ;tuiniilate tlie technology siiitwtlily into classr(x)m practices at most educational institutions. It has also txcurrtul faster than our ability to understand the stxial :ind psychologic:il issues involved with students and faculty in this profound departure from "the college iiorni." At the "lnternation:tl Conference on the Stxial Impact of Infomiation 'I'echnologies" during the fall of 1998 in St. Imis, 22 papers were presented by higher education fimlty that identified both opportunities and challenges with regard to educational technologies. One dominant theme portrayed in many of tlie papers wxs the need to get organixd, :tiid harness the technological capabilities to benefit society in gener;il, and our students in particular.Spring 1999

We have experimentally studied growing a large (about 1 liter) solid ortho-deuterium crystal in a real UCN source cryostat and recorded the growing process optically using a camera. The best quality was observed when growing the crystal directly from a vapor phase. The crystal was grown at different mass flows of deuterium and annealed at different temperatures. Optimum conditions were found for both, obtaining an optically transparent crystal and cooling it down with minimal damage. We found that the quality, final shape and changes during annealing of the crystal are very much dependent on the temperature profile of the cryostat walls.