Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the funding requirements for the technical assistance that the Natural Resources Conservation Service provides to the Conservation Reserve Program, focusing on: (1) the nature and costs of the Conservation Service's technical assistance; (2) the reasons the Conservation Service suspended its technical assistance for the program; (3) budgetary authorities and other statutory requirements that constrain the Conservation Service's performance of technical assistance for the program; and (4) the potential to use contractors to provide this assistance in lieu of the Conservation Service."

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO: (1) examined the estimates of social security's implicit rates of return for different birth years, earning levels, household configurations, and other demographic groupings; (2) examined rates of return available on private market investments; and (3) discussed the issues that arise from comparing social security and market investment returns."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO examined a number of issues concerning water quality problems in the New River and Imperial County in southern California, focusing on the: (1) types and the sources of pollutants entering the New River; (2) agencies and the organizations responsible for monitoring and regulating pollution in the New River; (3) risks to human health and the environment from water pollution in Imperial County; (4) health advisories and the precautions in place to protect the public from pollution in the New River; and (5) actions being taken to reduce the flow of pollutants into the Salton Sea."

The purpose of this panel is to present different perspectives and opinions regarding the issues surrounding why software should or shouldn't be entrusted with critical (high consequence) functionality.

High gain photoconductive semiconductor switches (PCSS) are being used to produce high power electromagnetic pulses foc (1) compact, repetitive accelerators, (2) ultra-wide band impulse sources, (3) precision gas switch triggers, (4) optically-activated firesets, and (5) high power optical pulse generation and control. High power, sub-nanosecond optical pulses are used for active optical sensors such as compact optical radars and range-gated hallistic imaging systems. Following a brief introduction to high gain PCSS and its general applications, this paper will focus on PCSS for optical pulse generation and control. PCSS technology can be employed in three distinct approaches to optical pulse generation and control: (1) short pulse carrier injection to induce gain-switching in semiconductor lasers, (2) electro-optical Q-switching, and (3) optically activated Q-switching. The most significant PCSS issues for these applications are switch rise time, jitter, and longevity. This paper will describe both the requirements of these applications and the most recent results from PCSS technology. Experiments to understand and expand the limitations of high gain PCSS will also be described.

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) is the first nuclear waste repository certified by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Success in regulatory compliance resulted from an excellent natural setting for such a repository, a facility with multiple, redundant safety systems, and from a rigorous, transparent scientific and technical evaluation. The WIPP story, which has evolved over the past 25 years, has generated a library of publications and analyses. Details of the multifaceted program are contained in the cited references. Selected geotechnical highlights prove the eminent suitability of the WIPP to serve its congressionally mandated purpose.

The following description and any attachments and references are provided to the Washington State Department of Health (WDOH), Division of Radiation Protection, Air Emissions & Defense Waste Section as a notice of construction (NOC) in accordance with Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 246-247, Radiation Protection - Air Emissions. WAC 246-247-060, ''Applications, registration, and licensing'', states ''This section describes the information requirements for approval to construct, modify, and operate an emission unit. Any NOC requires the submittal of information listed in Appendix A,'' Appendix A (WAC 246-247-110) lists the requirements that must be addressed. Additionally, the following description, attachments, and references are provided to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as an NOC, in accordance with Title 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 61, ''National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants.'' The information required for submittal to the EPA is specified in 40 CFR 61.07. The potential emissions from this activity are estimated to provide less than 0.1 millirem/year total effective dose equivalent to the hypothetical offsite maximally exposed individual, and commencement is needed within a short time. Therefore, this application also is intended to provide notification of the anticipated date of initial startup in accordance with the requirement listed in …

Measurements of dielectric breakdown during high-field electrical stress are typically performed at or near room temperature via constant voltage or current stress methods. In this summary they explore whether useful information might also be obtained by performing current measurements during a temperature ramp at high electric field.

We report on a search for supersymmetry using the DO detector. The 1994-96 data sample of {radical}s = 1:8 TeV {bar p}p collisions was analyzed for events containing two leptons (e or {mu}), two or more jets, and missing transverse energy. Assuming minimal supergravity, with free parameters m{sub 0}, m{sub 1/2} and tan {beta}, various thresholds were employed to optimize the search. No excess of events was observed. We present exclusion contours in the (m{sub 0}, m{sub 1/2}) plane for tan {beta} = 2-6.

This sampling and analysis plan (SAP) identifies the type, quantity, and quality of data needed to support characterization of the sludge that remains in Tank 241-2-361. The procedures described in this SAP are based on the results of the 241-2-361 Sludge Characterization Data Quality Objectives (DQO) (BWHC 1999) process for the tank. The primary objectives of this project are to evaluate the contents of Tank 241-2-361 in order to resolve safety and safeguards issues and to assess alternatives for sludge removal and disposal.

Understanding turbulence and mix in compressible flows is of fundamental importance to real-world applications such as chemical combustion and supernova evolution. The ability to run in three dimensions and at very high resolution is required for the simulation to accurately represent the interaction of the various length scales, and consequently, the reactivity of the intermixing species. Toward this end, we have carried out a very high resolution (over 8 billion zones) 3-D simulation of the Richtmyer-Meshkov instability and turbulent mixing on the IBM Sustained Stewardship TeraOp (SST) system, developed under the auspices of the Department of Energy (DOE) Accelerated Strategic Computing Initiative (ASCI) and located at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. We have also undertaken an even higher resolution proof-of-principle calculation (over 24 billion zones) on 5832 processors of the IBM, which executed for over an hour at a sustained rate of 1.05 Tflop/s, as well as a short calculation with a modified algorithm that achieved a sustained rate of 1.18 Tflop/s. The full production scientific simulation, using a further modified algorithm, ran for 27,000 timesteps in slightly over a week of n-all time using 3840 processors of the IBM system, clocking a sustained throughput of roughly 0.6 teraflop per second. …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on federal agencies' reporting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on the year 2000 status of their classified systems, focusing on: (1) whether agencies are including classified systems in their quarterly reports to OMB; (2) whether agencies are separately reporting to OMB on the status of their classified systems; and (3) for those agencies not reporting to OMB, the status of those systems."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the Health Care Financing Administration's (HCFA) new rule on Medicare's prospective payment system and consolidated billing for skilled nursing facilities. GAO held that: (1) the new rule updates the required section 1888(e) of the Social Security Act, as added by section 4432 of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 related to Medicare payments and consolidated billing for skilled nursing facilities; and (2) HCFA complied with applicable requirements in promulgating the rule."

It is estimated that two billion people live without electricity and its services worldwide. In addition, there is a sizeable number of rural villages that have limited electrical service, with either part-day operation by diesel generator or partial electrification. For many villages connected to the grid, power is often sporadically available and of poor quality. The US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado, has initiated a program that involves hybrid systems, to address these potential electricity opportunities in rural villages through the application of renewable energy technologies.1 The objective of this program is to develop and implement applications that demonstrate the technical performance, economic competitiveness, operational viability, and environmental benefits of renewable rural electric solutions, compared to the conventional options of line extension and isolated diesel mini-grids. Hybrid systems are multi-disciplinary, multi-technology, multi-application programs composed of six activities, including village applications development, computer model development, systems analysis, pilot project development, technical assistance, and Internet-based village power project data base. While the current program emphasizes wind, photovoltaics (PV), and their hybrids with diesel generator, micro-hydro and micro-biomass technologies may be integrated in the future. Thirteen countries are actively engaged in hybrid systems for rural and remote applications and another …

By the end of June 1999, about 250 megawatts of wind generation will have been dedicated in the state of Iowa. This represents the beginning of what is likely to be significant wind capacity development during the next 20 years in the state, as a result of possible public and governmental mandates and consumers' desire for sustainable sources of energy. As the utility industry in the United States moves towards a new structure, renewable energy sources continue to be an important part of new resource development. In this paper, we consider the predicted trends in load growth in Iowa. After accounting for the retirement of nuclear and older fossil fuel facilities over the next 15 years, we estimate Iowa's potential renewable generating capacity through the year 2015 and anticipate the contribution of wind energy to Iowa's portfolio. The Iowa Wind Energy Institute (IWEI) has been monitoring the wind resource in Iowa since June 1994 to obtain wind speed averages at 10, 33 and 50 meters above ground at fourteen geographically dispersed potential wind farm sites. Winds in the Midwest are primarily generated by fronts moving through the region. The Northwest Buffalo Ridge area of Iowa typically has wind speed averages …

The purpose of this document is to provide a physical, chemical, hazardous and radiological characterization of Low-Level Waste (LLW) generated in HB-Line as required by the 1S Manual, Savannah River Site Waste Acceptance Criteria Manual.

Organically modified alkoxy silanes play an important role in tailoring different properties of silica produced by the sol-gel method. Changes in the size and functionality of the organic group allows control of both physical and chemical properties of the resulting gel, with the kinetics of the polymerization process playing an important role in the design of new siloxane materials. High resolution {sup 29}Si NMR has proven to be valuable tool for monitoring the polymerization reaction, and has been used to investigate a variety of organically modified alkoxy silane systems.

We gain-switch flared waveguide lasers to obtain 14.5 W peak powers and 0.5 nJ pulse energies with laser structures compatible with the generation of diffraction-limited beams. The results are in excellent agreement with a microscopic laser model.

Low temperature electrical performance characteristics of A and T, Moli, and Panasonic 18650 Li-ion cells are described. Ragone plots of energy and power data of the cells for different temperatures from 25 C to {minus}40 C are compared. Although the electrical performance of these cells at and around room temperature is respectable, at temperatures below 0 C the performance is poor. For example, the delivered power and energy densities of the Panasonic cells at 25 C are {approximately}800 W/l and {approximately}100 Wh/l respectively and those at {minus}40 C are <10 W/l and {approximately}5 Wh/l. In order to identify the source for this poor performance at subambient temperatures, both 2- and 3-electrode impedance studies were made on these cells. The 2-electrode impedance data suggests that the cell ohmic resistance remains nearly constant from 25 C to {minus}20 C but increases modestly at {minus}40 C while the overall cell impedance increases by an order of magnitude over the same temperature range. The 3-electrode impedance data of the A and T cells show that the increase in cell resistance comes mostly from the cathode electrolyte interface and very little either from the anode electrolyte interface or from the ohmic resistance of the cell. …

The longevity of high gain GaAs photoconductive semiconductor switches (PCSS) has been extended to over 50 million pulses. This was achieved by improving the ohmic contacts through the incorporation of a doped layer beneath the PCSS contacts which is very effective in the suppression of filament formation and alleviating current crowding to improve the longevity of PCSS. Virtually indefinite, damage-free operation is now possible at much higher current levels than before. The inherent damage-free current capacity of the switch depends on the thickness of the doped layers and is at least 100A for a dopant diffusion depth of 4pm. The contact metal has a different damage mechanism and the threshold for damage ({approximately}40A) is not further improved beyond a dopant diffusion depth of about 2{micro}m. In a diffusion-doped contact switch, the switching performance is not degraded when contact metal erosion occurs. This paper will compare thermal diffusion and epitaxial growth as approaches to doping the contacts. These techniques will be contrasted in terms of the fabrication issues and device characteristics.

This issue of the State Renewable Energy News highlights state activities in California, Illinois, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island along with updates on state restructuring laws in 9 other states.

Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is a multidisciplinary, multiprogram laboratory with a mission to enhance national military and economic security through science and technology. Its mission is to reduce the nuclear danger through stewardship of the nation`s nuclear stockpile and through its nonproliferation and verification activities. An important secondary mission is to promote US industrial competitiveness by working with US companies in technology transfer and technology development partnerships. Los Alamos is involved in partnerships and collaborations with other federal agencies, with industry (including New Mexico businesses), and with universities worldwide. For this report, the reference period is FY 1998 (October 1, 1997, through September 30, 1998). It includes two major impact analysis: the impact of LANL activities on north-central New Mexico and the economic impacts of LANL on the state of New Mexico. Total impact represents both direct and indirect responding by business, including induced effects (responding by households). The standard multipliers used in determining impacts result from the inter-industry, input-output models developed for the three-county region and the state of New Mexico.

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When DOE funds were exhausted in March 1995, all Phase 2 activities were placed on hold. In February 1996 a detailed cost estimate was submitted to the DOE for completing the two remaining Phase 2 Multi Annular Swirl Burner (MASB) topping combustor test campaigns; in August 1996 release was received from FETC to proceed with the two campaigns to: (1) test the MASB at proposed demonstration plant full to minimum load operating conditions; (2) identify the lower oxygen limit of the MASB; (3) demonstrate natural gas to carbonizer fuel gas switching; and (4) demonstrate operation with ''low temperature'' compressor discharge air rather than high temperature ({approx}1600 F) vitiated air.