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Laboratory experiments on wave propagation through saturated and partially saturated porous media have often been conducted on porous cylinders that were initially fully saturated and then allowed to dry while continuing to acquire data on the wave behavior. Since it is known that drying typically progresses from outside to inside, a sensible physical model of this process is concentric cylinders having different saturation levels--the simplest example being a fully dry outer cylindrical shell together with a fully wet inner cylinder. We use this model to formulate the equations for wave dispersion in porous cylinders for patchy saturation (i.e. drainage) conditions. In addition to multiple modes of propagation obtained numerically from these dispersion relations, we find two distinct analytical expressions for torsional wave modes. We solve the dispersion relation for torsional waves for two examples: Massillon sandstone and Sierra White granite. The drainage analysis appears to give improved agreement with the data for both these materials.

The NASA Space Radiation Laboratory (NSRL) was constructed in collaboration with NASA for the purpose of performing radiation effect studies for the NASA space program. The results of commissioning of this new facility were reported in [l]. In this report we will describe the results of the first run. The NSRL is capable of making use of heavy ions in the range of 0.05 to 3 GeV/n slow extracted from BNL's AGS Booster. Many modes of operation were explored during the first run, demonstrating all the capabilities designed into the system. Heavy ion intensities from 100 particles per pulse up to 12 x 10{sup 9} particles per pulse were delivered to a large variety of experiments, providing a dose range up to 70 Gy/min over a 5 x 5 cm{sup 2} area. Results presented will include those related to the production of beams that are highly uniform in both the transverse and longitudinal planes of motion [2].

The official Government edition of the Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (also known as the 9-11 Commission, an independent, bipartisan commission created by congressional legislation and the signature of President George W. Bush in late 2002), provides a full and complete account of the circumstances surrounding the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, including preparedness for and the immediate response to the attacks. Provides recommendations designed to guard against future attacks.

The 2001 outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in Europe (Ferguson et al. 2001a, 2001b; Bouma et al. 2003) and concern about the possibility of an intentional introduction of a devastating foreign animal disease triggered renewed interest in both theoretical and experimental research related to FMD. Theoretical models of disease transmission, which influenced the tactical decisions of the United Kingdom (UK) government during the epidemic (Taylor 2003), resulted in large numbers of uninfected animals being slaughtered. After the epidemic, the adopted control policies were sharply criticized (Kitching 2004;, Taylor 2003). Still, the role of computationaL modeling for analyzing the scope of the epidemic and devising control strategies was recognized as substantial and necessary.

Better devices are needed for the detection of aerosolized biological warfare agents. Advances in the ongoing development of one such device, the BioAerosol Mass Spectrometry (BAMS) system, are described here in detail. The system samples individual, micrometer-sized particles directly from the air and analyzes them in real-time without sample preparation or use of reagents. At the core of the BAMS system is a dual-polarity, single-particle mass spectrometer with a laser based desorption and ionization (DI) system. The mass spectra produced by early proof-of-concept instruments were highly variable and contained limited information to differentiate certain types of similar biological particles. The investigation of this variability and subsequent changes to the DI laser system are described. The modifications have reduced the observed variability and thereby increased the usable information content in the spectra. These improvements would have little value without software to analyze and identify the mass spectra. Important improvements have been made to the algorithms that initially processed and analyzed the data. Single particles can be identified with an impressive level of accuracy, but to obtain significant reductions in the overall false alarm rate of the BAMS instrument, alarm decisions must be made dynamically on the basis of multiple analyzed particles. …

Three complex target penetration scenarios are run with a model developed by the U. S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station, called PENCURV. The results are compared with both test data and a Zapotec model to evaluate PENCURV's suitability for conducting broad-based scoping studies on a variety of targets to give first order solutions to the problem of G-loading. Under many circumstances, the simpler, empirically based PENCURV model compares well with test data and the much more sophisticated Zapotec model. The results suggest that, if PENCURV were enhanced to include rotational acceleration in its G-loading computations, it would provide much more accurate solutions for a wide variety of penetration problems. Data from an improved PENCURV program would allow for faster, lower cost optimization of targets, test parameters and penetration bodies as Sandia National Laboratories continues in its evaluation of the survivability requirements for earth penetrating sensors and weapons.

The NASA SPACE RADIATION LABORATORY (NSRL) has been constructed and started operations at the Brookhaven National Laboratory in 2003. The NSRL facility will be used by NASA to perform radiation effect studies on materials and biological samples for the space program. The facility utilizes proton and heavy-ion beams of energies from 50 to 3000 MeVln which are accelerated by the AGS Booster synchrotron accelerator. To date, {sup 1}H, {sup 12}C, {sup 56}Fe, {sup 48}Ti, and {sup 197}Au ion beams of various magnetic rigidities have been extracted from the Booster, and transported by the NSRL beam transport line to the sample location which is located 100 m from the extraction point. The NSRL beam transport line has been designed to employ octupole magnetic elements which transform the normal (Gaussian) beam distribution at the location of the sample into a beam with rectangular cross section, and uniformly distributed over the sample. When using the octupole magnetic elements to obtain the uniform beam distribution on the sample, no beam-collimation is applied at any location along the NSRL beam transport line and the beam focusing on the sample is purely magnetic. The main subject of this paper will be the performance of the octupoles …

This study is about the history and evolution of the offshore oil and gas industry in southern Louisiana in an objective and comprehensive way.

Rhodospirillum rubrum is a phototrophic purple non-sulfur bacterium known for its unique and well-studied nitrogen fixation and carbon monoxide oxidation systems, and as a source of hydrogen and biodegradable plastics production. To better understand this organism and to facilitate assembly of its sequence, three whole-genome restriction maps (Xba I, Nhe I, and Hind III) of R. rubrum strain ATCC 11170 were created by optical mapping. Optical mapping is a system for creating whole-genome ordered restriction maps from randomly sheared genomic DNA molecules extracted directly from cells. During the sequence finishing process, all three optical maps confirmed a putative error in sequence assembly, while the Hind III map acted as a scaffold for high resolution alignment with sequence contigs spanning the whole genome. In addition to highlighting optical mapping's role in the assembly and validation of genome sequence, our work underscores the unique niche in resolution occupied by the optical mapping system. With a resolution ranging from 6.5 kb (previously published) to 45 kb (reported here), optical mapping advances a ''molecular cytogenetics'' approach to solving problems in genomic analysis.

Primary amine-functionalized glass slides obtained through a multi-step plasma treatment were conjugated with anionic amino acids that are frequently found as mineral binding elements in acidic extracellular matrix components of natural bone. The modified glass surfaces were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and contact angle measurements. Human osteosarcoma TE85 cells were cultured on these functionalized slides and analyses on both protein and gene expression levels were performed to probe the ''biocompatibility'' of the surface ligands. Cell attachment and proliferation on anionic surfaces were either better than or comparable to those of cells cultured on tissue culture polystyrene (TCPS). The modified glass surfaces promoted the expression of osteocalcin, alkaline phosphatase activity and ECM proteins such as fibronectin and vitronectin under differentiation culture conditions. Transcript analysis using gene chip microarrays confirmed that culturing TE85 cells on anionic surfaces did not activate apoptotic pathways. Collectively, these results suggest that the potential mineral-binding anionic ligands examined here do not exert significant adverse effects on the expression of important osteogenic markers of TE85 cells. This work paves the way for the incorporation of these ligands into 3-dimensional artificial bone-like scaffolds.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In the face of growing demand for veterans' health care, GAO and the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (OIG) have raised concerns about the Veterans Health Administration's (VHA) ability to maximize its third-party collections to supplement its medical care appropriation. GAO has testified that inadequate patient intake procedures, insufficient documentation by physicians, a shortage of qualified billing coders, and insufficient automation diminished VA's collections. In turn, the OIG reported that VA missed opportunities to bill, had billing backlogs, and did inadequate follow-up on bills. While VA has made improvements in these areas, GAO was asked to review internal control activities over third-party billings and collections at selected medical centers to assess whether they were designed and implemented effectively."

An historical evaluation and documentation of the offshore oil and gas industry and its impact on the economy of Southern Louisiana from its inception in the early decades of the twentieth century.

Proceedings of the SECA Annual Workshop and Core Technology Meeting.

Biweekly, comprehensive compilation of decisions, reports, public notices, and other documents of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission.