Chapter One the Foundations of Impact Acceleration Research, 1917-1966

IMPACT ACCELERATION AND THE HUMAN RESPONSE A History of the Naval Biodynamics Laboratory By James P. Rife and Eric P. Nardi U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Laboratory Fort Rucker, Alabama ©2017 U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Laboratory Fort Rucker, Alabama Rife, James P. and Nardi, Eric P. Impact Acceleration and the Human Response: A History of the Naval Biodynamics Laboratory Library of Congress Control Number: 2017953029 ISBN: 9780999089903 Table of Contents Foreword …………………………………………………………………… vii Acknowledgments ………………………………………………………… ix Chapter 1: The Foundations of Impact Acceleration Research, 1917-1966 . 1 Chapter 2: Emplacing the First Pillar, 1966-1971 …………………………… 33 Chapter 3: Building the Machine—Beginning the Model, 1971-1975 . 69 Chapter 4: The Limits of Flexible Informality, 1976-1984 . 109 Chapter 5: Decline and Transfer, 1984-1996 ……………………………… 147 Chapter 6: Saving the Legacy, 1996-2017 …………………………………… 181 About the Authors ………………………………………………………… 211 Notes About Sources ……………………………………………………… 213 Annotated Bibliography …………………………………………………… 215 Comprehensive Bibliography ……………………………………………… 267 FOREWORD ne summer day in 2007, two tractor trailers and a couple of pickup trucks ar- Orived at Fort Rucker, Alabama, to deliver forty tons of magnetic tapes, research notebooks, photographs, consent forms, microfiche, paraffin blocks, books, case reports, histology slides, and physiology tracings. The U.S. Naval Biodynamics Labora- tory (NBDL) data set had a new home. NBDL was a remarkable institution that existed from 1971 until 1996. Over the course of its lifetime, NBDL evolved from a cavernous void in NASA’s massive Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, Louisiana, to a world-class center for the study of human response to impact acceleration. The story of how twenty-five years of ground-breaking science came to arrive at Fort Rucker is the subject of this book. However, this book was not written as a tribute to the researchers who contributed so much to this field, as noble an endeavor as that would be, nor was it written to memorialize what occurred at Michoud during this period. This book was commis- sioned for the benefit of current and future researchers in order to provide context and perspective to the material those researchers generated. By fully understanding the study objectives, unique equipment, tailored methods, and social and political times themselves, future researchers may be able to better interpret the NBDL data set and use it to inform current and future research issues. NBDL was the fruition of Dr. Channing L. Ewing’s dream to establish a laboratory dedicated to developing protection standards and strategies for humans exposed to impact accelerations. Toward that aim, the studies performed at this lab focused on the head and neck and were designed to yield three principal products: 1) a math- ematical model of biomechanical dynamics; 2) a biofidelic anthropomorphic test device (ATD); and 3) an injury model that could accurately evaluate protective sys- tems.i Experiments used human research volunteers (HRV), ATDs, and non-human primates (NHP). Well over 7,000 impact runs were conducted on both horizontal i Ewing C.L., Thomas D.J., Sances A., and Larson S.J., eds., Impact Injury of the Head and Spine, (Springfield, Illinois: Charles C. Thomas, 1983). A History of the Naval Biodynamics Laboratory v Foreword and vertical accelerators, over half of them using HRV. Massive volumes of data were collected from these runs, including pre- and post-run medical evaluations of HRV and NHP subjects, somatosensory evoked potentials, electroencephalograms, elec- trocardiograms, and electromyograms. High-speed video kinematics were obtained during Gx, Gy, Gz, and off-axis accelerations. Reports of these data were published in multiple journals, texts, and symposium proceedings, but much went unpublished. Ewing realized that the complex nature of the impact acceleration problem de- manded an integrated, multidisciplinary team of “specialists in biomechanics, bio- engineering, and medical specialties.”ii As it turned out, he needed even more than that—research cinematographers, veterinarians, administrators, technicians, and computer scientists, among many others. This book tells their story too. It is also an account of coordinated efforts with other labs such as the Medical College of Wiscon- sin, U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Laboratory, Duke University, and University of New Orleans. Oral histories were obtained from key team members, though, sadly, Ewing died on September 27, 2011. These original insights and perspectives impart a richness and depth to the text as well as an understanding of the human dimension that was so much a part of this organization over the years. The heritage of this lab, however, extends beyond stories of its people and events. The legacy of NBDL lies within the promise of this unique, robust, meticulously collected, and irreplaceable data set. That is why this book is not as much a historical account as it is foundational to future impact acceleration research. It is our hope that an understanding of context surrounding the development of these data will be a lens through which its value is magnified. The U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Lab- oratory is the current custodian of this material. It is being digitized and organized into an electronically accessible system, known as the Biodynamics Data Resource, to facilitate its utility for all researchers in this field. This book is the gateway to that new and enduring resource. As Dr. John P. Stapp wrote of Ewing’s efforts in 1983, “May our crusade prosper.” James S. McGhee, MD, MPH COL (RET), US Army USAARL Commander, 2003-2008 ii Ibid. vi Impact Acceleration and the Human Response ACKNOWLEDGMENTS his book could not have been completed without the help of many people, includ- Ting U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Laboratory (USAARL) and Biodynamic Resource (BDR) staff, History Associates colleagues, and former Naval Biodynamics Laboratory (NBDL) commanders, scientists, engineers, and technicians throughout this twenty-four-month project. Consequently, a round of acknowledgments is in order for those who helped make this work possible. First, we would like to thank Dr. Carol Chancey, the chief of USAARL’s Injury Biomechanics Division, who provided direction, feedback, and expert guidance to us throughout the project to ensure the focus and accuracy of the history. She also shared her knowledge and insight into NBDL’s history and legacy through an oral history interview conducted in October 2016. We are also indebted to former USAARL commander and contracting officer’s representative Dr. Jim McGhee, who served as the USAARL point of contact and was a true collaborator in this effort, contacting oral history interviewees to secure their cooperation, assisting in research scheduling, handling administrative and contractual matters for the government, and participat- ing in an interview himself. He and Dr. Chancey also sat on the project’s steering committee, alongside Dr. Barry Shender, Dr. Adrianne Noe, and Christine Beltran, which reviewed all chapter drafts and provided vital feedback for manuscript tone and revision. Ms. Beltran likewise provided research support for the project at USAARL and shared her expertise concerning the documentation and photographic imagery contained within the BDR database. Additionally, during a site visit, Joe McEntire shared his recollections about the 2007-2008 equipment and data recovery effort at Michoud and gave us a tour of USAARL’s new facility housing the refurbished vertical accelerator tower. We would also like to thank BDR staff members Ardyn Olszko and Kimberly Vasquez for their support and assistance throughout this effort, as well as contracting officer, John Niziolek, who managed the contract on behalf of USAARL. Dr. Angus H. Rupert also served as an advisor to the project, sitting for an oral history interview and patiently answering many questions through email messages A History of the Naval Biodynamics Laboratory vii Acknowledgements and telephone calls concerning the 2007 transfer of NBDL’s equipment and data from New Orleans and Pensacola to USAARL. Dr. Rupert also arranged for our attendance at the Spatial Orientation Modeling Expert Workgroup (SOMEW) at Pensacola in January 2017 to meet and interview Dr. Robert S. Kennedy, NBDL’s officer in charge from 1976 to 1979, who provided critical information about both his research and administration at the laboratory during his tenure there and its elevation to military command. NBDL’s last commanding officer, Dr. Dan Dolgin, also provided invaluable insight into the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) transfer of NBDL to the University of New Orleans in 1996. He recounted the discussions concerning the decision at that time to move important data and documentation from NBDL to the Naval Aerospace Medical Research Laboratory (NAMRL) in Pensacola. Dr. Dolgin not only sat for an oral history interview but also answered numerous other questions later concerning his time as NBDL commander. He also graciously allowed us to scan his personal photograph collection and to use select images for the book. Special thanks go to Dr. Dan Thomas, who provided critical guidance and insights into NBDL’s history from his perspective as one of NBDL’s founders and earliest scientists. He participated in two oral history interviews and composed ten highly de- tailed personal histories focusing on the early experiments at Wayne State University and

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