We have made preliminary neutron-capture cross-section calculations of the Hauser-Feshbach type for the isotopes /sup 144/Sm, /sup 145/Sm, and /sup 145/Pm to investigate the production of radioactive /sup 145/Pm by neutron capture on the stable isotope /sup 144/Sm. The calculations were made for incident neutron energies from 2.5 MeV to about 1/sup -4/ or 10/sup -5/ MeV, wherever the first unbound resonance was estimated to occur in each case. At that energy, the calculated value was reduced by a somewhat arbitrary factor, and the excitation function extended down to thermal energy using a (E/sub n/)/sup -1/2/ energy dependence. Since very large uncertainties are associated with the position and magnitude of the first unbound resonance and the subsequent extrapolation back to thermal energy, the cross sections in this low-energy region should not be considered more accurate than +- a factor of 10. For incident neutron energies above each step, the calculations represent an average through the separated and overlapping resonance regions and may be accurate to better than +- a factor of 2. 18 refs., 7 figs., 5 tabs.

Project Gnome was the first nuclear experiment conducted under the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), predecessor to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Plowshare Program. Gnome was part of a joint government-industry experiment focused on developing nuclear devices exclusively for peaceful purposes. The intent of the Gnome experiment was to evaluate the effects of a nuclear detonation in a salt medium. Historically, Project Gnome consisted of a single detonation of a nuclear device on December 10, 1961. Since the Gnome detonation, the AEC/DOE has conducted surface restoration, site reconnaissance, and decontamination and decommissioning activities at the site. In addition, annual groundwater sampling is performed under a long-term hydrological monitoring program begun in 1980. Coach, an experiment to be located near the Gnome project, was initially scheduled for 1963. Although construction and rehabilitation were completed for Coach, the experiment was canceled and never executed. Known collectively as Project Gnome-Coach, the site is situated within the Salado Formation approximately 25 miles east of Carlsbad, New Mexico, in Eddy County, and is comprised of nearly 680 acres, of which 60 acres are disturbed from the combined AEC/DOE operations. The scope of this work plan is to document the environmental objectives and the proposed …

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A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "GAO is required to annually audit the financial statements of the Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) and FSLIC Resolution Fund (FRF), which are administered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). GAO is responsible for obtaining reasonable assurance about whether FDIC's financial statements for DIF and FRF are presented fairly in all material respects, in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, and whether FDIC maintained effective internal control over financial reporting and compliance. Also, GAO is responsible for testing FDIC's compliance with selected laws and regulations. Created in 1933 to insure bank deposits and promote sound banking practices, FDIC plays an important role in maintaining public confidence in the nation's financial system. In 1989, legislation to reform the federal deposit insurance system created three funds to be administered by FDIC: the Bank Insurance Fund (BIF) and the Savings Association Insurance Fund (SAIF), which protect bank and savings deposits, and FRF, which was created to close out the business of the former Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation. In accordance with subsequent legislation passed in 2006, FDIC merged the BIF and SAIF into the newly established DIF …

This is the twenty-eighth in a series of semiannual technical progress reports on fusion materials. This report combines the full spectrum of research and development activities on both metallic and non-metallic materials with primary emphasis on the effects of the neutronic and chemical environment on the properties and performance of materials for in-vessel components. This effort forms one element of the materials program being conducted in support of the Fusion Energy Sciences Program of the U.S. Department of Energy. The other major element of the program is concerned with the interactions between reactor materials and the plasma and is reported separately.

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