Objectives The need for affordable and appropriate medical technologies for developing countries continues to rise as challenges such as inadequate energy supply, limited technical expertise, and poor infrastructure persist. Low-field magnetic resonance imaging (LF MRI) is a technology that can be tailored to meet specific imaging needs within such countries. Its low power requirements and the possibility of operating in minimally shielded or unshielded environments make it especially attractive. Although the technology has been widely demonstrated over several decades, it is yet to be shown that it can be diagnostic and improve patient outcomes in clinical applications. We here demonstrate the robustness of prepolarizing MRI (PMRI) technology for assembly and deployment in developing countries for the specific application to infant hydrocephalus. Hydrocephalus treatment planning and management requires only modest spatial resolution, such that the brain can be distinguished from fluid—tissue contrast detail within the brain parenchyma is not essential. Materials and Methods We constructed an internally shielded PMRI system based on the Lee-Whiting coil system with a 22-cm diameter of spherical volume. Results In an unshielded room, projection phantom images were acquired at 113 kHz with in-plane resolution of 3 mm × 3 mm, by introducing gradient fields of sufficient magnitude to dominate the 5000 ppm inhomogeneity of the readout field. Discussion The low cost, straightforward assembly, deployment potential, and maintenance requirements demonstrate the suitability of our PMRI system for developing countries. Further improvement in image spatial resolution and contrast of LF MRI will broaden its potential clinical utility beyond hydrocephalus.

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To describe the construction and testing of a portable point-of-care low-field MRI system on site in Africa.Methods: All of the components to assemble a 50 mT Halbach magnet-based system, together with the necessary tools, were air-freighted from the Netherlands to Uganda. The construction steps included individual magnet sorting, filling of each ring of the magnet assembly, fine-tuning the inter-ring separations of the 23-ring magnet assembly, gradient coil construction, integration of gradient coils and magnet assembly, construction of the portable aluminum trolley and finally testing of the entire system with an open source MR spectrometer.Results: With four instructors and six untrained personnel, the complete project from delivery to first image took approximately 11 days.Conclusions: An important step in translating scientific developments in the western world from high-income industrialized countries to low-and middle-income countries (LMICs) is to produce technology that can be assembled and ultimately constructed locally. Local assembly and construction are associated with skill development, low costs and jobs. Point-of-care systems have a large potential to increase the accessibility and sustainability of MRI in LMICs, and this work demonstrates that technology and knowledge transfer can be performed relatively seamlessly.

Action Potential Science Experience (APSE) is a five-day summer camp offering science opportunities for K−8 students. The focus of the APSE curriculum is to teach science concepts and methods while challenging the participants to solve an overarching problem from the popular-culture context. The participants in the APSE entitled Burger ‘N Fries Chemistry became food chemists to help a fictitious school board decide whether to continue serving a hamburger-and-French fries lunch. Students collected data using classical food chemistry analytical techniques and drew their own conclusions about the nutritional value of not only a typical hamburger-and-fries lunch, but also alternatives to this meal. On the last day, the young food chemists reported their findings to parents and faculty. Written precamp and postcamp surveys were administered to evaluate students’ nutritional knowledge and their appreciation of science. The results indicated that the curriculum was successful in improving the students’ knowledge of nutritional concepts. The data also revealed that self-motivation was a factor in knowledge gain. The survey data supported the conclusion that the majority of students found science interesting and would elect to participate in camps whose titles followed a theme from popular culture.

A comprehensive investigation of magnetostriction optimization in Metglas 2605SA1 ribbons is performed to enhance magnetoelectric performance. We explore a range of annealing conditions to relieve remnant stress and align the magnetic domains in the Metglas, while minimizing unwanted crystallization. The magnetostriction coefficient, magnetoelectric coefficient, and magnetic domain alignment are correlated to optimize magnetoelectric performance. We report on direct magnetostriction observed by in-plane Doppler vibrometer and domain imagining using scanning electron microscopy with polarization analysis for a range of annealing conditions. We find that annealing in an oxygen-free environment at 400 °C for 30 min yields an optimal magnetoelectric coefficient, magnetostriction and magnetostriction coefficient. The optimized ribbons had a magnetostriction of 50.6 ± 0.2 μm m−1 and magnetoelectric coefficient of 79.3 ± 1.5 μm m−1 mT−1. The optimized Metglas 2605SA1 ribbons and PZT-5A (d31 mode) sensor achieves a magnetic noise floor of approximately 600 pT Hz−1/2 at 100 Hz and a magnetoelectric coefficient of 6.1 ± 0.03 MV m−1 T−1.