The Archaea are a fascinating and diverse group of prokaryotic organisms with deep roots overlapping those of eukaryotes. The focus of this GRC conference, 'Archaea: Ecology Metabolism & Molecular Biology', expands on a number of emerging topics highlighting the evolution and composition of microbial communities and novel archaeal species, their impact on the environment, archaeal metabolism, and research that stems from sequence analysis of archaeal genomes. The strength of this conference lies in its ability to couple reputable areas with new scientific topics in an atmosphere of stimulating exchange. This conference remains an excellent opportunity for younger scientists to interact with world experts in this field.

We have demonstrated the ability to measure the neutron flux produced by the cosmic-ray interaction with nuclei in the ground surface using aerial neutron detection. High energy cosmic-rays (primarily muons with GeV energies) interact with the nuclei in the ground surface and produce energetic neutrons via spallation. At the air-surface interface, the neutrons produced by spallation will either scatter within the surface material, become thermalized and reabsorbed, or be emitted into the air. The mean free path of energetic neutrons in air can be hundreds of feet as opposed to a few feet in dense materials. As such, the flux of neutrons escaping into the air provides a measure of the surface nuclei composition. It has been demonstrated that this effect can be measured at long range using neutron detectors on low flying helicopters. Radiological survey measurements conducted at Government Wash in Las Vegas, Nevada, have shown that the neutron background from the cosmic-soil interactions is repeatable and directly correlated to the geological data. Government Wash has a very unique geology, spanning a wide variety of nuclide mixtures and formations. The results of the preliminary measurements are presented.

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

Daily newspaper from Altus, Oklahoma that includes local, state, and national news along with advertising.

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "American Samoa is the only populated U.S. insular area that does not have a federal court. Congress has granted the local High Court federal jurisdiction for certain federal matters, such as specific areas of maritime law. GAO was asked to conduct a study of American Samoa's system for addressing matters of federal law. This testimony discusses: (1) the current system for adjudicating matters of federal law in American Samoa and how it compares to those in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI); (2) the reasons offered for or against changing the current system for adjudicating matters of federal law in American Samoa; (3) potential scenarios and issues associated with establishing a federal court in American Samoa or expanding the federal jurisdiction of the local court; and (4) the potential cost elements and funding sources associated with implementing those different scenarios. This testimony is based on GAO work performed from April 2007 to June 2008."

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

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

Type IV waste tanks were designed and built to store waste that does not require auxiliary cooling. Each Type IV tank is a single-shell tank constructed of a steel-lined pre-stressed concrete tank in the form of a vertical cylinder with a concrete domed roof. There are four such tanks in F-area, Tanks 17-20F, and four in H-Area, Tanks 21-24H. Leak sites were discovered in the liners for Tanks 19 and 20F in the 1980's. Although these leaks were visually observed, the investigation to determine the mechanism by which the leaks had occurred was not completed at that time. Therefore, a concern was raised that the same mechanism which caused the leak sites in the Tanks in F-area may also be operable in the H-Area tanks. Data from the construction of the tanks (i.e., certified mill test reports for the steel, no stress-relief), the service history (i.e., waste sample data, temperature data), laboratory tests on actual wastes and simulants (i.e., electrochemical testing), and the results of the visual inspections were reviewed. The following observations and conclusions were made: (1) Comparison of the compositional and microstructural features indicate that the A212 material utilized for construction of the H-Area tanks are far more …

Semi-weekly newspaper from Bastrop, Texas that includes local, state and national news along with advertising.

The SEMATECH Berkeley Actinic Inspection Tool (AIT) is an EUV-wavelength mask inspection microscope designed for direct aerial image measurements, and pre-commercial EUV mask research. Operating on a synchrotron bending magnet beamline, the AIT uses an off-axis Fresnel zoneplate lens to project a high-magnification EUV image directly onto a CCD camera. We present the results of recent system upgrades that have improved the imaging resolution, illumination uniformity, and partial coherence. Benchmarking tests show image contrast above 75% for 100-nm mask features, and significant improvements and across the full range of measured sizes. The zoneplate lens has been replaced by an array of user-selectable zoneplates with higher magnification and NA values up to 0.0875, emulating the spatial resolution of a 0.35-NA 4 x EUV stepper. Illumination uniformity is above 90% for mask areas 2-{micro}m-wide and smaller. An angle-scanning mirror reduces the high coherence of the synchrotron beamline light source giving measured {sigma} values of approximately 0.125 at 0.0875 NA.

This report analyzes Brazil's political, economic, and social conditions, and how those conditions affect its role in the region and its relationship with the United States. It then discusses a number of key issues in Brazil-U.S. relations.

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

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

This report discusses national positions on nuclear testing and the comprehensive nuclear-test-ban treaty (CTBT), as well as addressing nuclear weapon issues in the annual National Defense Authorization Act and the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act. Congress is considering the Stockpile Stewardship Program (listed as Weapons Activities), which seeks to maintain nuclear weapons without testing.

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

The authors report a Dalitz-plot analysis of the charmless hadronic decays of neutral B mesons to K{sup {+-}}{pi}{sup {-+}}{pi}{sup 0}. With a sample of (231.8 {+-} 2.6) x 10{sup 6}{Upsilon}(4S) {yields} B{bar B} decays collected by the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy B Factory at SLAC, they measure the magnitudes and phases of the intermediate resonant and nonresonant amplitudes for B{sup 0} and {bar B}{sup 0} decays and determine the corresponding CP-averaged branching fractions and charge asymmetries. The inclusive branching fraction and CP-violating charge asymmetry are measured to be {Beta}(B{sup 0} {yields} K{sup +}{pi}{sup -}{pi}{sup 0}) = (35.7{sub -1.5}{sup +2.6} {+-} 2.2) x 10{sup -6}, and {Alpha}{sub CP} = -0.030{sub -0.051}{sup +0.045} {+-} 0.055 where the first errors are statistical and the second systematic. They observe the decay B{sup 0} {yields} K*{sup 0}(892){pi}{sup 0} with the branching fraction {Beta}(B{sup 0} {yields} K*{sup 0}(892){pi}{sup 0}) = (3.6{sub -0.8}{sup +0.7} {+-} 0.4) x 10{sup -6}. This measurement differs from zero by 5.6 standard deviations (including the systematic uncertainties). The selected sample also contains B{sup 0} {yields} {bar D}{sup 0}{pi}{sup 0} decays where {bar D}{sup 0} {yields} K{sup +}{pi}{sup -}, and they measure {Beta}(B{sup 0} {yields} {bar D}{sup 0}{pi}{sup 0}) = (2.93 …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In July 2006, the former Commander of North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) announced plans to relocate certain functions from Cheyenne Mountain to create an integrated command center in Building 2 at Peterson Air Force Base (AFB), Colorado. In May 2007, we reported that NORAD and USNORTHCOM had not analyzed the anticipated operational effects--both positive and negative--of the relocation, and that the Department of Defense (DOD) could not discern the full costs or security implications of the move until ongoing security assessments had been completed and a protection level designated for the integrated command center. We suggested that Congress should consider restricting DOD's authority to fund the relocation until all security analyses were complete, the full costs for the move were determined, and DOD provided Congress with an analysis of the operational effects of the proposed realignments. As a result, in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 (hereinafter referred to as the Act), Congress directed the Secretary of Defense to submit a report by March 1, 2008, assessing the relocation of the NORAD Command Center and related functions from …

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

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

This report identifies and discusses oversight issues and legislation introduced in the 110th Congress to address specific concerns related to how Endangered Species Act (ESA) is implemented and how endangered species are managed.

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "As part of its mission to protect human health and the environment, the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) enforcement office maintains civil and criminal enforcement programs to help enforce the requirements of major federal environmental laws such as the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act. EPA's civil and criminal enforcement programs work with the Department of Justice (DOJ), and in some cases states, to take legal actions to bring polluters into compliance with federal laws. While civil enforcement actions require polluters to pay penalties and take other corrective actions, criminal enforcement actions also may include imprisonment. EPA's enforcement office sets national priorities to focus resources on significant environmental risks and non-compliance patterns; prepares nationally significant civil and criminal cases for legal action by DOJ; uses 10 regional offices to implement civil enforcement actions on a day-to-day basis; and pursues criminal violations of environmental laws through its criminal enforcement office. The agency exercises its authority to independently pursue some violators through administrative proceedings--civil administrative actions--and to refer significant matters to DOJ when it believes cases need to be filed in federal court as civil judicial actions. DOJ is …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) contains EPA's scientific position on the potential human health effects of exposure to more than 540 chemicals. Toxicity assessments in the IRIS database constitute the first two critical steps of the risk assessment process, which in turn, provides the foundation for risk management decisions. Thus, IRIS is a critical component of EPA's capacity to support scientifically sound environmental decisions, policies, and regulations. This testimony discusses (1) highlights of GAO's March 2008 report, Chemical Assessments: Low Productivity and New Interagency Review Process Limit the Usefulness and Credibility of EPA's Integrated Risk Information System; (2) key aspects of EPA's revised IRIS assessment process, released on April 10, 2008; and (3) progress EPA has made in completing assessments in fiscal year 2008. For the March 2008 report, GAO reviewed and analyzed EPA data and interviewed officials at relevant agencies, including the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). For this testimony, GAO supplemented the prior audit work with a review of EPA's revised IRIS assessment process announced on April 10, 2008. We also updated our information on EPA's assessment productivity through September …

Daily newspaper from Chickasha, Oklahoma that includes local, state, and national news along with advertising.