Proactively identifying and interdicting transport of commodities associated with illicit nuclear materials and nuclear weapons shielded by high Z-number materials, such as lead, can help ensure effective nuclear nonproliferation. In an embodiment, a method for imaging an object on a surface includes exciting a surface with ultrasonic excitation from an ultrasonic transmitter having an ultrasonic transducer in contact with the surface. The method further includes imaging, at a processor, a two-dimensional representation of the object acoustically coupled to the surface based on the ultrasonic reflections received at an ultrasonic receiver via a receiving transducer in contact with the surface. This method can complement existing x-ray screening systems to increase the odds of detecting radiological materials.

A trolley conveyor. The trolley conveyor includes: a tubular rail track having a slotted opening at the top. A trolley chain installed to move in the rail track. A hanger is provided for suspending therebelow objects to be transported. The hanger includes a connector at the upper end thereof which extends downward to toward the center of the trolley chain. The trolley chain includes vertical and horizontal rollers in chain units, with vertical rollers in one chain unit and horizontal rollers in an adjacent chain unit. The chain units are pivotally connected for up and down and side to side motion within the track. While the trolley chain moves, the connector avoids contact with the ends of the slot in the track. Thus, the trolley conveyor prevents the generation of noise and foreign substances. Also, the trolley conveyor prevents transfer of dirt, oil, and debris to an object being transported.

A system for growing plants includes an elevated track circuit comprising two straight track sections and two arcuate track sections, with the straight track sections each including a cavity. A plurality of wheeled trolleys that each include a wheel configured to roll within the cavities and each include a shaft extending downwardly form the wheel. A drive system is configured to move the wheeled trolleys along the track circuit with the wheeled trolleys connected together by a cable, and with the shafts of the trolleys configured to support plants coupled thereto to selectively move the plants along the track circuit. Uses of the system include for growing produce of vine plants in a lean-and-lower manner, or transporting hanging plants through an irrigation device of the system.

Modular plant cultivation and storage systems are disclosed herein. Such systems may enable individuals to grow, or obtain managed growth of, various plants, such as flowers, trees, fruits and vegetables, herbs, fungi, medicinal plants (e.g., marijuana, where legally permitted), etc. The modular plant cultivation and storage system may be a professionally equipped and staffed cultivation center where individuals can bring seeds and/or seedlings to grow and be serviced, monitored, and stored for a fee. Such modular plant cultivation and storage systems provide a safe, effective method to produce a high quality, high quantity plant products with additional services that can test and produce other products from the initial crop.

In the soil cultivation system equipped with a solar panel, the space between ridges of a plurality of frame units supporting the solar panels is coupled with a roof member, furthermore, the perimeter surface thereof is integrally covered with a cover unit. In this way, a cultivation house in which the frame units are used as support columns is established. Then, in the solar panels, light transmitting regions are provided, a transmissive member is used as the roof member and thus agricultural plants are cultivated by light passing through the light transmitting regions and the roof member. Furthermore, the cultivation of the agricultural plants is performed in cultivation tanks in which a soil is put, and an appropriate cultivation nutrient solution is supplied through a supply means. In this way, the cultivation environment of the agricultural plants is managed, and thus the agricultural plants can be efficiently cultivated while the burden of an operator is reduced.

A plant factory includes a culture room, a lighting assembly, a CO.sub.2 concentration generation controlling module, an air conditioning module, a nutrient supplying module and a controlling module. The plant factory controls the lighting assembly to meet the lighting requirement of the different types of plants at each growth stage and the different types of plants at each growth stage are in the optimal growth state and grow in a predetermined manner of meeting the corresponding growth schemes. The plant factory improves planting efficiency and realizes lean production to achieve the zero inventory target meeting plant production characteristics.

A flexible datacenter includes a mobile container, a behind-the-meter power input system, a power distribution system, a datacenter control system, a plurality of computing systems, and a climate control system. The datacenter control system modulates power delivery to the plurality of computing systems based on unutilized behind-the-meter power availability or an operational directive. A method of dynamic power delivery to a flexible datacenter using unutilized behind-the-meter power includes monitoring unutilized behind-the-meter power availability, determining when a datacenter ramp-up condition is met, enabling behind-the-meter power delivery to one or more computing systems when the datacenter ramp-up condition is met, and directing the one or more computing systems to perform predetermined computational operations.

Certain embodiments may provide a method for controlling a desalination system. The method may include performing a desalination procedure with salt-water in a desalination compartment of the desalination system. The method may also include extracting brine and freshwater from the desalination procedure. The method may further include directing the brine to a brine treatment compartment of the desalination system, and the freshwater to a firewater container. In addition, the method may include performing a brine treatment procedure in the brine treatment compartment. Further, the method may include collecting concentrated brine from the brine treatment compartment.

This disclosure describes a positive pressure greenhouse including one or more plants disposed on a plant table surface, wherein the plant table surface is disposed above ground level and has an area below the plant table surface and above the ground, one or more upper wall tubes including one or more upper wall tube fans disposed above the plant table surface, one or more lower sidewall tubes comprising one or more lower side wall tube fans disposed below the plant table surface which may be at or near ground level. The one or more lower sidewall tube fans may be configured to draw air from the area below the plant table surface, wherein air is further drawn down from above the plant surface table, e.g., the area of the upper wall tubes and upper wall tube fans, to ground level of the greenhouse. The one or more lower wall tube fans may also be configured to blow air into the area below the plant table surface wherein the blown air further rises above the plants and into the area of the upper wall tubes and upper wall tube fans.

A self-watering portable greenhouse is disclosed having a tubular frame constructed of light-weight, water-tight tubular members which serves as a combined structural skeleton for external walls, a platform for plant containers, and a reservoir for liquid nutrients provided to plants in plant containers by self-watering through a wick connecting the reservoir and the plant containers.