This chapter will address some of the many issues associated with the identification of signatures based on genomic DNA/RNA, which can be used to identify and characterize pathogens for biodefense and microbial forensic goals. For the purposes of this chapter, we define a signature as one or more strings of contiguous genomic DNA or RNA bases that are sufficient to identify a pathogenic target of interest at the desired resolution and which could be instantiated with particular detection chemistry on a particular platform. The target may be a whole organism, an individual functional mechanism (e.g., a toxin gene), or simply a nucleic acid indicative of the organism. The desired resolution will vary with each program's goals but could easily range from family to genus to species to strain to isolate. The resolution may not be taxonomically based but rather pan-mechanistic in nature: detecting virulence or antibiotic-resistance genes shared by multiple microbes. Entire industries exist around different detection chemistries and instrument platforms for identification of pathogens, and we will only briefly mention a few of the techniques that we have used at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) to support our biosecurity-related work since 2000. Most nucleic acid based detection chemistries involve …

The Materials Science and Technology Division (MSTD) supports the central scientific and technological missions of the Laboratory, and at the same time, executes world-class, fundamental research and novel technological development over a wide range of disciplines. Our organization is driven by the institutional needs in nuclear weapons stockpile science, high-energy-density science, nuclear reactor science, and energy and environment science and technology. We maintain expertise and capabilities in many diverse areas, including actinide science, electron microscopy, laser-materials interactions, materials theory, simulation and modeling, materials synthesis and processing, materials science under extreme conditions, ultrafast materials science, metallurgy, nanoscience and technology, nuclear fuels and energy security, optical materials science, and surface science. MSTD scientists play leadership roles in the scientific community in these key and emerging areas.

The purpose of this handbook is to furnish guidance for planning and conducting a"high-performance building" charrette, sometimes called a"greening charrette." The handbook answers typical questions that will arise, such as"What is a charrette?""Why conduct a charrette?""What topics should we cover during the charrette?" and"Whom should we invite?" It also contains samples of agendas, invitation letters, and other commonly used charrette materials. This handbook also outlines the characteristics of a good charrette facilitator. It gives suggestions for the types of experts to invite to the event to motivate participants and answer their questions. The handbook includes sample presentations that can be used by these experts to ensure they address the required technical content. It suggests the types of participants, including technical, political, and community representatives, to invite to the charrette. It offers advice for forming effective breakout groups to ensure that a broad range of complementary expertise is represented in each group. We have also included guidance on how best to include key decision makers and stakeholders who are able to attend only portions of the event.

There is overwhelming evidence that addiction is a disease of the brain (Leshner, 1997). Yet public perception that addiction is a reflection of moral weakness or a lack of willpower persists. The insidious consequence of this perception is that we lose sight of the fact that there are enormous medical consequences of addiction including the fact that a large fraction of the total deaths from cancer and heart disease are caused by smoking addiction. Ironically the medical school that educates physicians in addiction medicine and the cancer hospital that has a smoking cessation clinic are vanishingly rare and efforts at harm reduction are frequently met with a public indignation. Meanwhile the number of people addicted to substances is enormous and increasing particularly the addictions to cigarettes and alcohol. It is particularly tragic that addiction usually begins in adolescence and becomes a chronic relapsing problem and there are basically no completely effective treatments. Clearly we need to understand how drugs of abuse affect the brain and we need to be creative in using this information to develop effective treatments. Imaging technologies have played a major role in the conceptualization of addiction as a disease of the brain (Fowler et al., 1998a; …

None

This book is intended as a laboratory reference tool. The separate book chapters have been written by workers in the various fields covered, with a couple written by the contributing editor, Clement J. Rodden. The chapters were abstracted separately for the database.

Positron emission tomography (PET) has become a valuable interdisciplinary tool for understanding physiological, biochemical and pharmacological functions at a molecular level in living humans, whether in a healthy or diseased state. The utility of tracing chemical activity through the body transcends the fields of cardiology, oncology, neurology and psychiatry. In this, PET techniques span radiochemistry and radiopharmaceutical development to instrumentation, image analysis, anatomy and modeling. PET has made substantial contributions in each of these fields by providing a,venue for mapping dynamic functions of healthy and unhealthy human anatomy. As diverse as the disciplines it bridges, PET has provided insight into an equally significant variety of psychiatric disorders. Using the unique quantitative ability of PET, researchers are now better able to non-invasively characterize normally occurring neurotransmitter interactions in the brain. With the knowledge that these interactions provide the fundamental basis for brain response, many investigators have recently focused their efforts on an examination of the communication between these chemicals in both healthy volunteers and individuals suffering from diseases classically defined as neurotransmitter specific in nature. In addition, PET can measure the biochemical dynamics of acute and sustained drug abuse. Thus, PET studies of neurotransmitter interactions enable investigators to describe a multitude …

Prokaryotic life on earth is manifested by its diversity and omnipresence. These microbes serve as natural sources of a large variety of compounds with the potential to serve the ever growing, medicinal, chemical and transportation needs of the human population. However, commercially viable production of these compounds can be realized only through significant improvement of the native production capacity of natural isolates. The most favorable way to achieve this goal is through the genetic manipulation of metabolic pathways that direct the production of these molecules. While random mutagenesis and screening have dominated the industrial production of such compounds in the past our increased understanding of microbial physiology over the last five decades has shifted this trend towards rational approaches for metabolic design. Major drivers of this trend include recombinant DNA technology, high throughput characterization of macromolecular cellular components, quantitative modeling for metabolic engine ring, targeted combinatorial engineering and synthetic biology. In this chapter we track the evolution of microbial engineering technologies from the black box era of random mutagenesis to the science and engineering-driven era of metabolic design.

The U.S. electric power system comprises multiple distinct interconnections of generators, high voltage transmission systems, and local distribution systems that maintain a continuous balance between generation and load with impressive levels of efficiency and reliability. This critical infrastructure has served the nation remarkably well, but is likely to see more changes over the next decade than it has seen over the past century. In particular, the widespread deployment of renewable generation, smart-grid controls, energy storage, and new conducting materials will require fundamental changes in grid planning and the way we run the power grid. Two challenges in the realization of the smart grid technology are the ability to visualize the deluge of expected data streams for global situational awareness; as well as the ability to detect disruptive and classify such events from spatially-distributed high-speed power system frequency measurements. One element of smart grid technology is the installation of a wide-area frequency measurement system on the electric poles in the streets for conditions monitoring of the distribution lines. This would provide frequency measurements about the status of the electric grid and possible information about impending problems before they start compounding and cascading. The ability to monitor the distribution lines is just …

None

Gain an in-depth understanding of the role of quark flavor.

Proceedings of a workshop about minicomputers and computations in chemistry, including information about the workshop (program, participants, etc.) and text of the papers that were presented.

is a growing demand for adaptation science as a vehicle for delivering critical knowledge to public and private organizations that are attempting to adapt to the changing climate. This expansion of adaptation science is occurring, however, in the absence of a robust understanding of how that science can or should contribute to successful adaptation. For the adaptation science enterprise to be successful, it must provide knowledge that has value to adaptation actors. Accomplishing this objective, however, often requires more than just research, and, in fact, may necessitate new cultural perspectives regarding the role of science in public policy as well as new kinds of researchers and research institutions. These issues are explored through a series of case studies from Australia and the United Kingdom that illustrate the various ways in which adaptation science engages with adaptation processes and the extent to which that science can be judged as successful. The case studies demonstrate that there are multiple pathways by which adaptation science can be successful, depending on the knowledge that is needed by a particular actor at a particular stage in the adaptation process. Nevertheless, there are significant opportunities for the more explicit alignment of the needs of decision-makers and …

Second volume outlining the history of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC): "[it] begins in January, 1947, when the Commission assumed responsibility for the nation's atomic energy program; it ends with the detonation of the first thermonuclear device and the Presidential election in November, 1952" (p. xiii). Index starts on page 679.

The report discusses the perspectives on the evolving U.S. electricity future, the renewable electric technology portfolio, the regional outlook, and the opportunities to move forward. Renewables are at a critical juncture as the domestic electricity marketplace moves toward an era of increased choice and greater diversity. The cost and performance of these technologies have improved dramatically over the past decade, yet their market penetration has stalled as the power industry grapples with the implications of the emerging competitive marketplace. Renewable energy technologies already contribute to the global energy mix and are ready to make an even greater contribution in the future. However, the renewables industry faces critical market uncertainties, both domestically and internationally, as policy commitments to renewables at both the federal and state levels are being reshaped to match the emerging competitive marketplace. The energy decisions that we make, or fail to make, today will have long-lasting implications. We can act now to ensure that renewable energy will play a major role in meeting the challenges of the evolving energy future. We have the power to choose.

Cellular automata provide a fascinating class of dynamical systems based on very simple rules of evolution yet capable of displaying highly complex behavior. These include simplified models for many phenomena seen in nature. Among other things, they provide insight into self-organized criticality, wherein dissipative systems naturally drive themselves to a critical state with important phenomena occurring over a wide range of length and the scales. This article begins with an overview of self-organized criticality. This is followed by a discussion of a few examples of simple cellular automaton systems, some of which may exhibit critical behavior. Finally, some of the fascinating exact mathematical properties of the Bak-Tang-Wiesenfeld sand-pile model [1] are discussed.

The use of isotope labels has had a fundamentally important role in the determination of mechanisms of homogeneously catalyzed reactions. Mechanistic data is valuable since it can assist in the design and rational improvement of homogeneous catalysts. There are several ways to use isotopes in mechanistic chemistry. Isotopes can be introduced into controlled experiments and followed where they go or don't go; in this way, Libby, Calvin, Taube and others used isotopes to elucidate mechanistic pathways for very different, yet important chemistries. Another important isotope method is the study of kinetic isotope effects (KIEs) and equilibrium isotope effect (EIEs). Here the mere observation of where a label winds up is no longer enough - what matters is how much slower (or faster) a labeled molecule reacts than the unlabeled material. The most careti studies essentially involve the measurement of isotope fractionation between a reference ground state and the transition state. Thus kinetic isotope effects provide unique data unavailable from other methods, since information about the transition state of a reaction is obtained. Because getting an experimental glimpse of transition states is really tantamount to understanding catalysis, kinetic isotope effects are very powerful.

The March 1999 issue of Energy Matters (formerly Turning Point) discusses options industrial customers have for financing energy projects through utilities. This issue also features information about the services provided by energy service companies (ESCOs) and explains how the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance sponsors projects to protect the environment and help customers cut utility costs. A special 4-page supplement focuses on the Compressed Air Challenge and opportunities to improve the efficiency of industrial compressed air systems.

A quarterly magazine with articles the proposed National Energy Policy; the 2001 National Clean Cities Conference including Clean Cities Coalition Award and National Partner Award recipients; station cars (shared my multiple drivers); and new emissions-reducing incentives in Texas.

In this overview, the goals that were met in FY 1998 are highlighted along with progress that was made toward long-term goals for research, technology development, and applications. The manufacture, sale, and use of photovoltaic (PV) devices to generate electricity directly from sunlight has become a billion-dollar industry worldwide. The production capacity for PV modules in the US had doubled between 1993 and 1997. While continuing research to improve technology, one must work with industry to move this technology from the laboratory to the marketplace.

This third volume in the official history of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission covers the years of the Eisenhower Administration.

Taking an Alternative Route is a 30-page guide for fleet managers and individual owners on using alternative fuels in cars and trucks. Discussed in detail are all fuels authorized for federal credits under the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPAct). The publication informs federal and state fleet managers about how to comply with EPAct, and provides information about the Clean Air Act Amendments.

The preliminary findings of fact and conclusion adopted by the Commission Committee are presented. Also, a description of the proposed project, a summary of the proceedings to date, and local, state, and federal government agency comments on the proposal are included. Preliminary findings and conclusions are presented on: (a) conformity to the forecast of statewide and service area electric power demands; (b) the degree to which the proposed site and facility conform with applicable local, regional, state, and federal standards, ordinances and laws; (c) the safety and reliability of the facility; and (d) the relative merit of the proposed transmission line corridors. (MHR)

Developing a predictive understanding of subsurface flow and transport is complicated by the disparity of scales across which controlling hydrological properties and processes span. Conventional techniques for characterizing hydrogeological properties (such as pumping, slug, and flowmeter tests) typically rely on borehole access to the subsurface. Because their spatial extent is commonly limited to the vicinity near the wellbores, these methods often can not provide sufficient information to describe key controls on subsurface flow and transport. The field of hydrogeophysics has evolved in recent years to explore the potential that geophysical methods hold for improving the quantification of subsurface properties and processes relevant for hydrological investigations. This chapter is intended to familiarize hydrogeologists and water resource professionals with the state-of-the-art as well as existing challenges associated with hydrogeophysics. We provide a review of the key components of hydrogeophysical studies, which include: geophysical methods commonly used for shallow subsurface characterization; petrophysical relationships used to link the geophysical properties to hydrological properties and state variables; and estimation or inversion methods used to integrate hydrological and geophysical measurements in a consistent manner. We demonstrate the use of these different geophysical methods, petrophysical relationships, and estimation approaches through several field-scale case studies. Among other applications, …