This report provides a detailed geographic analysis of two specific topics affecting the residential sector. First, we performed an analysis of new construction market trends using annual building permit data. We report summarized tables and national maps to help illustrate market conditions. Second, we performed a detailed geographic analysis of the housing finance market. We analyzed mortgage application data to provide citable statistics and detailed geographic summarization of the residential housing picture in the US for each year in the 1996-2004 period. The databases were linked to geographic information system tools to provide various map series detailing the results geographically. Looking at these results geographically may suggest potential new markets for TD programs addressing the residential sector that have not been considered previously. For example, we show which lenders affect which regions and which income or mortgage product classes. These results also highlight the issue of housing affordability. Energy efficiency R&D programs focused on developing new technology for the residential sector must be conscious of the costs of products resulting from research that will eventually impact the home owner or new home buyer. Results indicate that home values as a proportion of median family income in Building America communities are …

The atomic-scale processes that control the formation of carbon deposits on Ni catalysts in reforming applications are poorly understood. Ab initio Density Functional Theory calculations have been used to examine several key elementary steps in the complex network of chemical reactions that precedes carbon formation on practical catalysts. Attention has been focused on the disproportionation of CO. A comparative study of this reaction on flat and stepped crystal planes of Ni has provided the first direct evidence that surface carbon formation is driven by elementary reactions occurring at defect sites on Ni catalysts. The adsorption and diffusion of atomic H on several flat and stepped Ni surfaces has also been characterized experimentally.

Since the first genetically engineered (GE) crops (also called GM [genetically modified] crops, or GMOs, genetically modified organisms) became commercially available in the mid-1990s, U.S. soybean, cotton, and corn farmers have rapidly adopted them. As adoption has spread, there have been policy debates over the costs and benefits of GE products. Issues include the impacts of GE crops on the environment and food safety, and whether GE foods should be specially labeled. Congress generally has been supportive of GE agricultural products, although some Members have expressed wariness about their adoption and regulation. The 109th Congress will likely continue to follow trade developments, particularly the U.S.-EU dispute, as well as U.S. regulatory mechanisms for approving biotech foods.

Sub-Saharan Africa has been far more severely affected by AIDS than any other part of the world. The United Nations reports that 25.8 million adults and children are infected with the HIV virus in the region, which has about 11.3% of the world's population but more than 64% of the worldwide total of infected people. This report discusses this issue in detail, including the cause of the African AIDS epidemic, the social and economic consequences, response and treatment, and U.S. policy.

Decisions on the composition of the Air Force aerial refueling fleet were made decades ago, when the primary mission was to refuel long-range strategic bombers. Modifications have been made to many of these tanker aircraft (KC-135s and KC-10s) to make them more effective in refueling fighter aircraft. This report examines the balance between two different refueling methods in today's refueling fleet -- "flying boom" and "hose-and-drogue."

This report considers the refueling fleet for the Air Force. The report examines two different refueling methods.

The Air Force has expressed interest in developing a bomber variant of the F-22A Raptor to "bridge the gap" between today's bombers and a follow-on bomber in 2037. Questions exist regarding the FB-22's feasibility, cost, and combat potential.

We use on-shell recursion relations to compute analytically the one-loop corrections to maximally-helicity-violating n-gluon amplitudes in QCD. The cut-containing parts have been computed previously; our work supplies the remaining rational parts for these amplitudes, which contain two gluons of negative helicity and the rest positive, in an arbitrary color ordering. We also present formulae specific to the six-gluon cases, with helicities (-+-+++) and (-++-++), as well as numerical results for six, seven, and eight gluons. Our construction of the n-gluon amplitudes illustrates the relatively modest growth in complexity of the on-shell-recursive calculation as the number of external legs increases. These amplitudes add to the growing body of one-loop amplitudes known for all n, which are useful for studies of general properties of amplitudes, including their twistor-space structure.

This report contains a summary of Argentina's sovereign debt and the resolving of its sovereign defaults.

This report assesses the extent of the Army officer shortfall, examines perceived causes, reviews recent retention initiatives, identifies other possible retention incentives, and concludes with a review of possible options for Congress. This report is focused on the Army’s “line” or basic branch officers.

The Future Combat System (FCS) is the U.S. Army’s multiyear, multibillion dollar program at the heart of the Army’s transformation efforts. The FCS program exists in a dynamic national security environment which could significantly influence the program’s outcome. The FCS is experiencing a number of program development issues - with some technologies advancing quicker than anticipated, others progressing along predicted lines, while still others not meeting the Army’s expectations. Congress, in its authorization, appropriation, and oversight roles may wish to review the FCS program in terms of its capabilities and program costs.

This report discusses the Regulatory Developments and Issues regarding Arsenic in Drinking Water. The report reviews issues surrounding the arsenic rule and related congressional and Environmental Protection Agency actions.

We present a mechanism for catalyzed vacuum bubble production obtained by combining moduli stabilization with a generalized attractor phenomenon in which moduli are sourced by compact objects. This leads straightforwardly to a class of examples in which the Hawking decay process for black holes unveils a bubble of a different vacuum from the ambient one, generalizing the new endpoint for Hawking evaporation discovered recently by Horowitz. Catalyzed vacuum bubble production can occur for both charged and uncharged bodies, including Schwarzschild black holes for which massive particles produced in the Hawking process can trigger vacuum decay. We briefly discuss applications of this process to the population and stability of metastable vacua.

This report summarizes the results of the avian surveys conducted at Osan Air Base (AB). This ongoing survey is conducted to comply with requirements of the Environmental Governing Standards (EGS) for the Republic of Korea, the Integrated Natural Resources Management Plan (INRMP) for Osan AB, and the 51st Fighter Wing's Bird Aircraft Strike Hazard (BASH) Plan. One hundred ten bird species representing 35 families were identified and recorded. Seven species are designated as Natural Monuments, and their protection is accorded by the Korean Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Three species appear on the Korean Association for Conservation of Nature's (KACN's) list of Reserved Wild Species and are protected by the Korean Ministry of Environment. Combined, ten different species are Republic of Korea (ROK)-protected. The primary objective of the avian survey at Osan AB was to determine what species of birds are present on the airfield and their respective habitat requirements during the critical seasons of the year. This requirement is specified in Annex J.14.c of the 51st Fighter BASH Plan 91-212 (51 FW OPLAN 91-212). The second objective was to initiate surveys to determine what bird species are present on Osan AB throughout the year and from the survey results, …

This report is about the background of Stabilization Force(SFOR) and peace stabilization duties handed over to a European Union force(EUFOR).

This report is about the peace stabilization duties handed over to a European Union force(EUFOR).

The Senate and the House each passed spending reduction reconciliation bills. A conference agreement of approximately $40 billion in reductions was reached on December 19, but has yet to clear Congress. The Senate passed a five-year revenue reduction reconciliation bill on December 8. The net effect of the legislation on the budget would be to raise the deficit in fiscal year 2006 and over the five-year period covered in the legislation.

On June 20, 2000, congressional leaders of both parties gathered to participate in a symbolic groundbreaking ceremony for the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC). The center has been designed to enhance the security, educational experience, and comfort of those visiting the U.S. Capitol when it is completed. The cost of the center is estimated to be at least $555 million. This report details the different methods of funding for the center, as well as the design and development process for the center.

This report presents the cost of the center, the most extensive addition to the Capitol since the Civil War, and the largest in the structure’s more than 200-year history, is now estimated to be at least $555 million. The project is being financed with appropriated funds, and a total of $65 million from private donations and revenue generated by the sale of commemorative coins.

This report presents the cost of the center, the most extensive addition to the Capitol since the Civil War, and the largest in the structure’s more than 200-year history, is now estimated to be at least $555 million. The project is being financed with appropriated funds, and a total of $65 million from private donations and revenue generated by the sale of commemorative coins.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the United States recognized the independence of all the former Central Asian republics, supported their admission into Western organizations, and elicited Turkish support to counter Iranian influence in the region. Soon after the terrorist attacks on America on September 11, 2001, all the Central Asia states offered overflight and other support to coalition anti-terrorist efforts in Afghanistan. After September 11, 2001, U.S. policy emphasized bolstering the security of the Central Asian states to help them combat terrorism, proliferation, and arms trafficking. Other U.S. objectives include promoting democratization, free markets, human rights, and energy development, as well as integrating these states into the international community.

This report provides an overview of U.S. policy concerns and relations with countries in central Asia. The report discusses issues such as Fostering Pro-Western Orientations, Obstacles to Peace and Independence, Democratization and Human Rights, Security and Arms Control, Trade and Investment, and provides an Aid Overview.

As noted by the Population Reference Bureau, “The U.S. is getting bigger, older, and more diverse.” The objective of this report is to highlight some of the demographic changes that have already occurred since 1950 and to illustrate how these and future trends will reshape the nation in the decades to come (through 2050). This report discusses the current and projected demographic changes if policymakers accelerate efforts to address and adapt to the changing population profile as it relates to a number of essential domains, such as work, retirement, and pensions, private wealth and income security, and the health and well-being of the aging population.

This report discusses child welfare provisions in the budget reconciliation bill.