David W. Brown

A masterful, genre-defying narrative of the most ambitious science project ever conceived: NASA's deep-space mission to Europa--the Jovian moon where might swim the first known alien life in our solar system--powered by a motley team of obsessives and eccentrics. When scientists discovered the first ocean beyond Earth, they had two big questions: "Is it habitable?" and "How do we get there?" To answer the first, they had to answer the second, and so began a vivacious team's twenty-year odyssey to mount a mission to Europa, the ocean moon of Jupiter. Standing in their way: NASA, fanatically consumed with landing robots on Mars; the White House, which never saw a science budget it couldn't cut; Congress, fixated on going to the moon or Mars--anywhere, really, to give astronauts something to do; rivals in academia, who wanted instead to go to Saturn; and even Jupiter itself, which guards Europa in a pulsing, rippling, radiation belt--a halo of death whose conditions are like those that follow a detonated thermonuclear bomb. The Mission, or: How a Disciple of Carl Sagan, an Ex-Motocross Racer, a Texas Tea Party Congressman, the World's Worst Typewriter Saleswoman, California Mountain People, and an Anonymous NASA Functionary Went to War with Mars, Survived an Insurgency at Saturn, Traded Blows with Washington, and Stole a Ride on an Alabama Moon Rocket to Send a Space Robot to Jupiter in Search of the Second Garden of Eden at the Bottom of an Alien Ocean Inside of an Ice World Called Europa (A True Story) is the Homeric, never-before-told story of modern space exploration, and a magnificent portrait of the inner lives of scientists who study the solar system's mysterious outer planets. David W. Brown chronicles the remarkable saga of how Europa was won, and what it takes to get things done--down here, and up there. Written with verve, humor, and uncanny empathy, The Mission is an exuberant masterclass in how a few determined cogs can change an entire machine.

A True Story

The Mission

We've all experienced episodes of "lost time," and I'm sure most of us have wondered what really went on during that time. Wouldn't it be amazing if you really could become this amazing person, with unbelievable strength during these episodes? We've all heard of episodes where people gain super-human strength during extreme circumstances. Take for instance, a father lifting a large car off a child trapped beneath, or a group of bystanders holding up a bus to prevent it from plunging off the side of a bridge. These are true events that have occurred in our country. Have you ever wondered where they get this super strength? My book "Lost Time" follows Bryan Fleming, a small town man from Pikeville, Kentucky up to New York where he's invited for the reading of his grandfather's will. During the trip, something strange happens that he may never fully be able to comprehend. Bryan spaced out somewhere in the vicinity of Syracuse, New York and lost over ninety minutes of time. When he comes to, he realizes he's missed the exit he planned to stop at, and has no recollection of the lost time. After doubling back to his exit, he discovers a mysterious gym bag in the backseat of his truck, while filling his gas tank. Upon opening the strange bag, Bryan spills out of his truck onto the hardtop near the fuel pumps. Inside the bag is a large knife, a pair of rubber gloves and five thousand dollars. They are all covered with blood, leaving Bryan to question where it came from and who it belongs to.

Lost Time

Construction Engineering Research Laboratory

CONSTRUCTION ENGINEERING RESEARCH LAB (ARMY) CHAMPAIGN IL.

Richard J. Colver

This report is a management summary of the capabilities provided by the Hospital Equipment Maintenance System (HEMS) and a preview of capabilities to be provided by the Facilities Engineering Equipment Maintenance System (FEEMS), for which HEMS is an operational pilot system. When extended as a Class A Army Standard System (scheduled for FY78), FEEMS will be an integrated module of the Integrated Facilities System (IFS). HEMS was developed for use by the installation-level Directorate of Facilities Engineering (DFAE) to support recurring maintenance activities on critical utility equipment and systems in Army hospitals and medical facilities. However, the system is equally applicable to utility systems and equipment throughout the entire installation. HEMS is designed to operate with the Integrated Facilities System (IFS) and uses several input transactions, code structures, and output documents common to IFS. To use HEMS, however, the DFAE must develop a thorough plan for recurring utilities maintenance before implementing the system. This report provides an overview of HEMS capabilities, a brief description of its benefits, and recommendations for developing the recurring maintenance plan required for HEMS implementation. The DFAE can use this report to evaluate the potential application of HEMS to a given situation and the requirements for such an application.

Management Summary: Hospital Equipment Maintenance System

set in 15th Century Italy, a new teacher of the palace school at Mantua discovers a body, and accidentally becomes a successful merchant,

David W. Brown

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