A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Act of 2005, requires all full-power television stations in the United States to cease analog broadcasting by February 17, 2009, known as the digital television (DTV) transition. Prior to the transition date, the television broadcast industry must take a series of actions to ensure that over-the-air programming will continue to be available to television households once the transition is complete. For example, broadcast stations must obtain, install, and test the necessary equipment needed to finalize their digital facilities, and some stations will need to coordinate the movement of channels on the day the analog signal ceases transmission. This requested report examines (1) the status of broadcast stations in transitioning to digital, (2) the extent to which broadcast stations are encountering issues, and (3) the actions the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has taken to guide broadcasters in the digital transition. To address these issues, GAO conducted a Web-based survey of full-power television broadcast stations. GAO surveyed 1,682 stations and obtained completed questionnaires from 1,122 stations, for a response rate of 66.7 percent. GAO also reviewed legal, agency, and industry documents …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Improving collaboration and health resource sharing between the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Department of Defense (DOD) has been the focus of numerous efforts by Congress and the executive branch for more than two decades. In 1982, Congress passed the Veterans' Administration and Department of Defense Health Resources Sharing and Emergency Operations Act (Sharing Act), which authorized VA and DOD health care facilities to partner and enter into sharing agreements to buy, sell, and barter medical and support services. Since then, Congress has passed additional legislation to continue to promote VA and DOD health resource sharing. However, in previous work we have pointed out continuing barriers to such efforts, including incompatible computer systems that affect the exchange of patient health information, inconsistent reimbursement and budgeting policies, and burdensome processes for approving agreements between the departments. On May 28, 2001, the President established the 15-member President's Task Force to Improve Health Care Delivery for Our Nation's Veterans. The task force's mission was to identify ways to improve coordination and sharing between VA and DOD in order to improve health care for servicemembers and veterans. The task force …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Oil leaks from aboveground tanks have contaminated soil and water, threatening human health and wildlife. To prevent damage from oil spills, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued the Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) rule in 1973. EPA's 10 regions inspect oil storage facilities to ensure compliance with the rule. EPA estimates that about 571,000 facilities are subject to this rule. Some states also regulate oil storage tanks. GAO determined (1) how EPA regions implement the SPCC program, (2) the data EPA has to implement and evaluate the program, and (3) whether some states' tank programs suggest ways for EPA to improve its program. GAO surveyed all 10 EPA regions and interviewed officials in EPA and six states selected on the basis of experts' recommendations, among other criteria."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "To increase the range of options available to the President, the Department of Defense (DOD) is taking steps to develop a portfolio of capabilities, referred to as global strike, to rapidly plan and deliver limited duration and extended range precision strikes against highly valued assets. GAO was asked to assess (1) whether DOD has clearly defined and instilled a common understanding and approach for global strike throughout the department, (2) the extent to which DOD has developed capabilities needed for global strike, and (3) the extent to which DOD has identified the funding requirements and developed an investment strategy for acquiring new global strike capabilities. GAO reviewed and analyzed plans and studies within DOD, the services, and several commands on global strike implementation and capabilities development."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The federal workforce, like the nation's workforce as a whole, is aging. As experienced employees retire, they leave behind critical gaps in leadership and institutional knowledge, increasing the challenges government agencies face in maintaining a skilled workforce. We and others have emphasized the need to hire and retain older workers as one part of a comprehensive strategy to address expected labor shortages. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM), as the government's central personnel management agency, is responsible for helping agencies manage their human capital. The Chairman of the Senate Special Committee on Aging asked GAO to discuss (1) the age and retirement eligibility trends of the current federal workforce, (2) the strategies federal agencies are using to hire and retain older workers, and (3) our observations on how these strategies position federal agencies to engage and retain older workers. To address these objectives, we analyzed demographic data from OPM's Central Personnel Data File, and interviewed officials at OPM and selected federal agencies. OPM is taking action to address past recommendations related to better assisting agencies in using personnel flexibilities. GAO is making no new recommendations at this time."

This paper describes the status of the stadium-sized National Ignition Facility (NIF), the world's largest laser system and first operational multi-megajoule laser. The 192-beam NIF, located at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), is 96% complete and scheduled for completion in March 2009. The NIF laser will produce nanosecond laser pulses with energies up to approximately 4 MJ in the infrared (laser wavelength = 1.053-{micro}m) and 2MJ in the ultraviolet (laser wavelength = 0.35-{micro}m). With these energies NIF will access conditions of pressure and temperature not previously available on earth, allowing it to conduct experiments in support of the nation's national security, energy, and fundamental science goals. First ignition experiments at NIF are scheduled for FY2010. This paper will provide an overview of the NIF laser and the ignition, energy, and fundamental science activities at NIF.

We have studied the evolution of the structural properties as well as the static and dynamic spin correlations of spin ice Ho2Ti2O7, where Ho was partially replaced by non-magnetic La. The crystal structure of diluted samples Ho2-xLaxTi2O7 was characterized by x-ray and neutron diffraction and by Ho L-III-edge and Ti K-edge extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) measurements. It is found that the pyrochlore structure remains intact until about x = 0.3, but a systematic increase in local disorder with increasing La concentration is observed in the EXAFS data, especially from the Ti K edge.Quasi-elastic neutron scattering and ac susceptibility measurements show that, in x<= 0.4 samples at temperatures above macroscopic freezing, the spin -spin correlations are short ranged and dynamic in nature. The main difference with pure spin ice in the dynamics is the appearance of a second, faster, relaxation process.

We prove the absence of a mass gap and confinement in the Polyakov model with massless complex fermions in any representation of the gauge group. A U(1){sub *} topological shift symmetry protects the masslessness of one dual photon. This symmetry emerges in the IR as a consequence of the Callias index theorem and abelian duality. For matter in the fundamental representation, the infrared limits of this class of theories interpolate between weakly and strongly coupled conformal field theory (CFT) depending on the number of flavors, and provide an infinite class of CFTs in d = 3 dimensions. The long distance physics of the model is same as certain stable spin liquids. Altering the topology of the adjoint Higgs field by turning it into a compact scalar does not change the long distance dynamics in perturbation theory, however, non-perturbative effects lead to a mass gap for the gauge fluctuations. This provides conceptual clarity to many subtle issues about compact QED{sub 3} discussed in the context of quantum magnets, spin liquids and phase fluctuation models in cuprate superconductors. These constructions also provide new insights into zero temperature gauge theory dynamics on R{sup 2,1} and R{sup 2,1} x S{sup 1}. The confined versus …

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This report documents the operations plan for developing the National Security Technology Incubator (NSTI) program for southern New Mexico. The NSTI program will focus on serving businesses with national security technology applications by nurturing them through critical stages of early development. The NSTI program is being developed as part of the National Security Preparedness Project (NSPP), funded by Department of Energy (DOE)/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). The operation plan includes detailed descriptions of the structure and organization, policies and procedures, scope, tactics, and logistics involved in sustainable functioning of the NSTI program. Additionally, the operations plan will provide detailed descriptions of continuous quality assurance measures based on recommended best practices in incubator development by the National Business Incubation Association (NBIA). Forms that assist in operations of NSTI have been drafted and can be found as an attachment to the document.

In this project, one of our goals is to develop atmospheric models, in which innovative ideas on improving the quality of moisture predictions can be tested. Our other goal is to develop an explicit time integration scheme based on the multi-point differencing that does the same job as an implicit trapezoidal scheme but uses information only from limited number of grid points.

Injection of coal-water slurries (CWS) made with both waste coal and bituminous coal was tested for enhanced reduction of NO{sub x} and Hg emissions at the AES Beaver Valley plant near Monaca, PA. Under this project, Breen Energy Solutions (BES) conducted field experiments on the these emission reduction technologies by mixing coal fines and/or pulverized coal, urea and water to form slurry, then injecting the slurry in the upper furnace region of a coal-fired boiler. The main focus of this project was use of waste coal fines as the carbon source; however, testing was also conducted using pulverized coal in conjunction with or instead of waste coal fines for conversion efficiency and economic comparisons. The host site for this research and development project was Unit No.2 at AES Beaver Valley cogeneration station. Unit No.2 is a 35 MW Babcock & Wilcox (B&W) front-wall fired boiler that burns eastern bituminous coal. It has low NO{sub x} burners, overfire air ports and a urea-based selective non-catalytic reduction (SNCR) system for NO{sub x} control. The back-end clean-up system includes a rotating mechanical ash particulate removal and electrostatic precipitator (ESP) and wet flue gas desulfurization (FGD) scrubber. Coal slurry injection was expected to help …

Large fuel casks present challenges when evaluating their performance in the Hypothetical Accident Conditions (HAC) specified in the Code of Federal Regulations Title 10 part 71 (10CFR71). Testing is often limited by cost, difficulty in preparing test units and the limited availability of facilities which can carry out such tests. In the past, many casks were evaluated without testing by using simplified analytical methods. This paper presents a numerical technique for evaluating the dynamic responses of large fuel casks subjected to sequential HAC loading. A nonlinear dynamic analysis was performed for a Hanford Unirradiated Fuel Package (HUFP) [1] to evaluate the cumulative damage after the hypothetical accident Conditions of a 30-foot lateral drop followed by a 40-inch lateral puncture as specified in 10CFR71. The structural integrity of the containment vessel is justified based on the analytical results in comparison with the stress criteria, specified in the ASME Code, Section III, Appendix F [2], for Level D service loads. The analyzed cumulative damages caused by the sequential loading of a 30-foot lateral drop and a 40-inch lateral puncture are compared with the package test data. The analytical results are in good agreement with the test results.

In 2006 the gundrilling oil used at Honeywell FM&T (Federal Manufacturing and Technology) was known as 50-50. This name was selected because the oil is a mixture of two machining oils, Milpro 634 and Pennex N47. Unfortunately, Honeywell FM&T was notified that one component, Pennex N47, would be discontinued by the manufacturer. At this point the Honeywell FM&T team decided to select a single oil to eliminate mixing and procurement of two products. In addition, the team also wanted to select new oil with lower viscosity than the 50-50 mixture. Lower (than 50-50) viscosity oil was recommended by Nagel the manufacturer of the new TBT gundrilling machines. To this end Honeywell FM&T evaluated seven cutting oils in order to select a substitute that would achieve acceptable gundrilling results. This work resulted in the selection of Castrol Ilocut 334 based on cutting performance and human factors. The Castrol oil can easily achieve up to 8 holes per drill at a feed rate 30% greater than that achieved by the 50-50 oil. Once design agency approval is received, this oil will be installed as the drilling oil for all FM&T stems. This oil will also be used for other reservoir machining operations …

We show that the QCD color transparency of higher-twist contributions to inclusive hadroproduction cross sections, where baryons are produced directly in a short distance subprocess, can explain several remarkable features of high-p{sub T} baryon production in heavy ion collisions which have recently been observed at RHIC: (a) the anomalous increase of the proton-to-pion ratio with centrality (b): the increased power-law fall-off at fixed x{sub T} = 2p{sub T}/{radical}s of the charged particle production cross section in high centrality nuclear collisions, and (c): the anomalous decrease of the number of same-side hadrons produced in association with a proton trigger as the centrality increases. We show that correlations between opposite-side hyperons and kaons can provide a clear signature of higher-twist contributions. These phenomena emphasize the importance of understanding hadronization at the amplitude level in QCD illustrate how heavy ion collisions can provide sensitive tools for interpreting and testing fundamental properties of QCD.

The photochemical disproportionation mechanism of [CpW(CO){sub 3}]{sub 2} in the presence of Lewis bases PR{sub 3} was investigated on the nano- and microsecond time-scales with Step-Scan FTIR time-resolved infrared spectroscopy. 532 nm laser excitation was used to homolytically cleave the W-W bond, forming the 17-electron radicals CpW(CO){sub 3} and initiating the reaction. With the Lewis base PPh{sub 3}, disproportionation to form the ionic products CpW(CO){sub 3}PPh{sub 3}{sup +} and CpW(CO){sub 3}{sup -} was directly monitored on the microsecond time-scale. Detailed examination of the kinetics and concentration dependence of this reaction indicates that disproportionation proceeds by electron transfer from the 19-electron species CpW(CO){sub 3}PPh{sub 3} to the 17-electron species CpW(CO){sub 3}. This result is contrary to the currently accepted disproportionation mechanism which predicts electron transfer from the 19-electron species to the dimer [CpW(CO){sub 3}]{sub 2}. With the Lewis base P(OMe){sub 3} on the other hand, ligand substitution to form the product [CpW(CO){sub 2}P(OMe){sub 3}]{sub 2} is the primary reaction on the microsecond time-scale. Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations support the experimental results and suggest that the differences in the reactivity between P(OMe){sub 3} and PPh{sub 3} are due to steric effects. The results indicate that radical-to-radical electron transfer is a previously …

This report documents the formalization of relationships with external service providers in the development of the National Security Technology Incubator (NSTI). The technology incubator is being developed as part of the National Security Preparedness Project (NSPP), funded by a Department of Energy (DOE)/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) grant. This report summarizes the process in developing and formalizing relationships with those service providers and includes a sample letter of cooperation executed with each provider.

To investigate the extent of genetic stratification in structured microbial communities, we compared the metagenomes of 10 successive layers of a phylogenetically complex hypersaline mat from Guerrero Negro, Mexico. We found pronounced millimeter-scale genetic gradients that are consistent with the physicochemical profile of the mat. Despite these gradients, all layers displayed near identical and acid-shifted isoelectric point profiles due to a molecular convergence of amino acid usage indicating that hypersalinity enforces an overriding selective pressure on the mat community.

In this project, one of our goals is to develop atmospheric models, in which innovative ideas on improving the quality of moisture predictions can be tested. Our other goal is to develop an explicit time integration scheme based on the multi-point differencing (MED) that does the same job as an implicit trapezoidal scheme but uses information only from limited number of grid points. Below we discuss the work performed at UCLA toward these goals during the funding period indicated above.

This final technical report describes work performed for the project 'Experimental Investigation and High Resolution Numerical Simulator of In-Situ Combustion Processes', DE-FC26-03NT15405. In summary, this work improved our understanding of in-situ combustion (ISC) process physics and oil recovery. This understanding was translated into improved conceptual models and a suite of software algorithms that extended predictive capabilities. We pursued experimental, theoretical, and numerical tasks during the performance period. The specific project objectives were (i) identification, experimentally, of chemical additives/injectants that improve combustion performance and delineation of the physics of improved performance, (ii) establishment of a benchmark one-dimensional, experimental data set for verification of in-situ combustion dynamics computed by simulators, (iii) develop improved numerical methods that can be used to describe in-situ combustion more accurately, and (iv) to lay the underpinnings of a highly efficient, 3D, in-situ combustion simulator using adaptive mesh refinement techniques and parallelization. We believe that project goals were met and exceeded as discussed.

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This report discusses the mining of hardrock minerals on fedearl lands, which is governed by the claim-patent system under the General Mining Law of 1872. It gives an overview the issues involved with the current system, such as competing land uses, and discusses proposed legislation meant to reform the claim-patent system.

Weekly newspaper from Rusk, Texas that includes local, state and national news along with extensive advertising.

Weekly student newspaper from Texas Wesleyan University in Fort Worth, Texas that includes campus and local news along with advertising.