Development and transfer of automated methods in neuroscience: The DADTA.

In the second half of the 20th century, neuroscientists across North America developed automated systems for use in their research laboratories. Their decisions to do so were complex and contingent, partly a result of global reasons, such as the need to increase efficiency and flexibility, and partly a result of local reasons, such as the need to amend perceived biases of earlier research methodologies. Automated methods were advancements but raised several challenges. Transferring a system from one location to another required that certain components of the system be standardized, such as the hardware, software, and programming language. This proved difficult as commercial manufacturers lacked incentives to create standardized products for the few neuroscientists working towards automation. Additionally, investing in automated systems required massive amounts of time, labor, funding, and computer expertise. Moreover, neuroscientists did not agree on the value of automation. My brief history investigates Karl Pribram's decisions to expand his newly created automated system by standardizing equipment, programming, and protocols. Although he was an eminent Stanford neuroscientist with strong institutional support and computer know-how, the development and transfer of his automated behavioral testing system was riddled with challenges. For Pribram and neuroscience more generally, automation was not so automatic.

Avances y aplicación clínica de la citometría hemática automatizada / Advances and clinical application of automated hematic cytometry

Se revisan los antecedentes históricos del surgimiento de la automatización en la rama hematológica y los principios de detección utilizados por los contadores automáticos de células sanguíneas, con referencia a su acción combinada en la caracterización de las distintas poblaciones celulares hemáticas. Se describen los componentes básicos de los analizadores hematológicos. Se detalla la obtención, intervalo de referencia y utilidad clínica de las variables de uso común ofrecidas por estos equipos en el estudio de los eritrocitos y trombocitos, referidos a los parámetros más actualizados en el estudio de estas series celulares. En cuanto a los leucocitos, se mencionan los principales parámetros relacionados con el estudio automatizado de uso rutinario, la utilidad de los novedosos principios inmunológicos de detección en la caracterización de esta población celular, así como los logros y obstáculos manifiestos durante el conteo y estudio de las subpoblaciones leucocitarias inmaduras o anómalas. Por último, se exponen las ventajas del uso de los contadores hematológicos para el trabajo actual del laboratorio de hematología y la necesidad del conocimiento de sus potencialidades diagnósticas por parte de los médicos, especialmente los hematólogos e inmunólogos

Historical background on the development of automation in hematology as well as the major detection principles used by automated blood cell counters are reviewed, referring to their combined action in the characterization of various hematic cell populations. The basic components of hematological analyzers are described. Obtention reference interval and clinical utility of commonly used variables provided by these equipments for the study of erythrocytes and thrombocytes are described referring to the most updated parameters for the study of these cell series. The main parameters of the everyday leukocyte automated study, the novel immunological detection principles used in its characterization, as well as the achievements and obstacles found during this process are mentioned. Finally, the advantages of blood cell counters for the current hematology laboratory work and the need of knowledge of its diagnostic potential by physicians, particularly hematologists and immunologists, are presented

The first 110 years of laboratory automation: technologies, applications, and the creative scientist.

Prior to the widespread availability of electronic components after the Second World War, laboratory automation was constructed by end users and designed for specific tasks, mostly filtration, percolation, and washing operations. The earliest mention of automation in the chemical literature of the United States was in 1875, announcing a device to wash filtrates unattended. In the years that followed, a small number of commercial automated devices were sold, including large grinders for the preparation of coal samples. Around 1900, power stations began adopting automated carbon dioxide analysis. The development of electrical equipment for conductivity measurements enabled the first commercial, automated gas detection instruments for laboratory and field use around the time of the First World War. The growth of industrial production in the 1920s led to a desire for automated testing equipment, and the growing rubber industry was among the more successful early adapters. Photoelectric cells were first used in the early 1930s to create automatic titrators, and by the 1950s, automatic titration encompassed coulometric, potentiometric, and photometric devices. Combinations of chart recorders, photocells, and timers created other types of automated equipment such as stills and fraction collectors. The first true stand-alone automation for the laboratory included clinical chemistry analyzers, introduced during the 1950s.