A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Federal Financial Management Improvement Act of 1996 (FFMIA) requires the 24 Chief Financial Officers (CFO) Act agencies to implement and maintain financial management systems that comply substantially with (1) federal financial management systems requirements, (2) federal accounting standards, and (3) the U.S. Government Standard General Ledger (SGL). FFMIA also requires GAO to report annually on the implementation of the act. This report, primarily based on GAO and inspectors general reports, discusses (1) the problems that continued to affect agencies systems' FFMIA compliance in fiscal year 2006 and (2) the initiatives under way to help move federal financial management toward FFMIA compliance."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In November 2006, about 18,000 undervotes were reported in Sarasota County in the race for Florida's 13th Congressional District. Following the contesting of the election results in the House of Representatives, the Task Force met and unanimously voted to seek GAO's assistance in determining whether the voting systems contributed to the large undervote in Sarasota County. On June 14, 2007, we met with the Task Force and agreed upon an engagement plan, which included the following review objectives: (1) What voting systems and equipment were used in Sarasota County and what processes governed their use? (2) What was the scope of the undervote in Sarasota County in the general election? (3) To what extent were tests conducted on the voting systems in Sarasota County prior to the general election and what were the results of those tests? and (4) Considering the tests that were conducted on the voting systems from Sarasota County after the general election, are additional tests needed to determine whether the voting systems contributed to the undervote? In our meetings with Sarasota County, we learned the entire process of configuring the election, running the election, …

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Economic, medical, technological, and social changes have increased opportunities for persons with disabilities to live with greater independence and more fully participate in the workforce. In addition, social and legal changes have promoted the goal of greater inclusion of persons with disabilities in the mainstream of society. However, GAO's reviews of the largest federal disability programs indicate that such programs have not evolved in line with these larger societal changes and, therefore, are poorly positioned to provide meaningful and timely support for persons with disabilities. Furthermore, program enrollment and costs for the largest federal disability programs have been growing and are poised to grow even more rapidly in the future. For these reasons, GAO added modernizing federal disability to its high-risk areas in January 2003. GAO convened this forum to address some of the key issues related to modernizing federal disability policy. The forum brought together a diverse array of experts, including employers; advocate groups, researchers, and academia; and federal officials. Comments expressed do not necessarily represent the views of any individual participant or the organizations they represent, including GAO. However, GAO does make some concluding …

Several proteins involved in the response to DNA doublestrand breaks (DSB) f orm microscopically visible nuclear domains, orfoci, after exposure to ionizing radiation. Radiation-induced foci (RIF)are believed to be located where DNA damage occurs. To test thisassumption, we analyzed the spatial distribution of 53BP1, phosphorylatedATM, and gammaH2AX RIF in cells irradiated with high linear energytransfer (LET) radiation and low LET. Since energy is randomly depositedalong high-LET particle paths, RIF along these paths should also berandomly distributed. The probability to induce DSB can be derived fromDNA fragment data measured experimentally by pulsed-field gelelectrophoresis. We used this probability in Monte Carlo simulations topredict DSB locations in synthetic nuclei geometrically described by acomplete set of human chromosomes, taking into account microscope opticsfrom real experiments. As expected, simulations produced DNA-weightedrandom (Poisson) distributions. In contrast, the distributions of RIFobtained as early as 5 min after exposure to high LET (1 GeV/amu Fe) werenon-random. This deviation from the expected DNA-weighted random patterncan be further characterized by "relative DNA image measurements." Thisnovel imaging approach shows that RIF were located preferentially at theinterface between high and low DNA density regions, and were morefrequent than predicted in regions with lower DNA density. The samepreferential nuclear location was also measured …

Two Si-based spintronic materials, a Mn-Si digital ferromagnetic heterostructure ({delta}-layer of Mn doped in Si) with defects and dilutely doped Mn{sub x}Si{sub 1-x} alloy are investigated using a density-functional based approach. We model the heterostructure and alloy with a supercell of 64 atoms and examine several configurations of the Mn atoms. We find that 25% substitutional defects without vacancies in the {delta} layer diminishes half metallicity of the DFH substantially. For the alloy, the magnetic moment M ranges from 1.0-9.0 {mu}{sub B}/unit-cell depending on impurity configuration and concentration. Mn impurities introduce a narrow band of localized states near E{sub F}. These alloys are not half metals though their moments are integer. We explain the substantially different magnetic moments.

The commonly used current-voltage characteristics are foundinadequate for describing the pulsed nature of the high power impulsemagnetron sputtering (HIPIMS) discharge, rather, the description needs tobe expanded to current-voltage-time characteristics for each initial gaspressure. Using different target materials (Cu, Ti, Nb, C, W, Al, Cr) anda pulsed constant-voltage supply it is shown that the HIPIMS dischargestypically exhibit an initial pressure dependent current peak followed bya second phase that is power and material dependent. This suggests thatthe initial phase of a HIPIMS discharge pulse is dominated by gas ionswhereas the later phase has a strong contribution from self-sputtering.For some materials the discharge switches into a mode of sustainedself-sputtering. The very large differences between materials cannot beascribed to the different sputter yields but they indicate thatgeneration and trapping ofsecondary electrons plays a major role forcurrent-voltage-time characteristics. In particular, it is argued thatthe sustained self-sputtering phase is associated with thegeneration ofmultiply charged ions because only they can cause potential emission ofsecondary electrons whereas the yield caused by singly charged metal ionsis negligibly small.

Free weekly newspaper that includes business and classified advertising.

Application materials submitted to the Texas Historical Commission requesting a historic marker for the Officers' Quarters 2-3 and 4, in Brackettville, Texas. The materials include the inscription text of the marker, original application, narrative, maps, floor plans, and photographs.

Weekly newspaper from Dallas, Texas that includes local, state, and national news and advertising of interest to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) community.

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification; Calculation of the "base year" from which to impose a tax freeze adopted by county voters in November 2005 (RQ-0575-GA)

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The focus of this report is how best to construct and finance a system of deterrence, protection, and response that effectively reduces the possibility and consequences of another terrorist attack without unduly interfering with travel, commerce, and civil liberties.

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We study the emission and absorption properties of photonic crystals and metamaterials using Comsol Multiphysics and Ansoft HFSS as simulation tools. We calculate the emission properties of metallic designs using drude model and the results illustrate that an appropriate termination of the surface of the metallic structure can significantly increase the absorption and therefore the thermal emissivity. We investigate the spontaneous emission rate modifications that occur for emitters inside two-dimensional photonic crystals and find the isotropic and directional emissions with respect to different frequencies as we have expected.

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and New York State Department of State (DOS) requested the help of DOE’s Building Energy Codes Program (BECP) in estimating the annual building energy savings and cost impacts of adopting ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2004 (ASHRAE 2004) requirements. This report summarizes the analysis methodology and results of energy simulation in response to that request.

Modeling and simulation of segregation phenomena in granular flows are investigated. Computational models at different scales ranging from particle level (microscale) to continuum level (macroscale) are employed in order to determine the important microscale physics relevant to macroscale modeling. The capability of a multi-fluid model to capture segregation caused by density difference is demonstrated by simulating grain-chaff biomass flows in a laboratory-scale air column and in a combine harvester. The multi-fluid model treats gas and solid phases as interpenetrating continua in an Eulerian frame. This model is further improved by incorporating particle rotation using kinetic theory for rapid granular flow of slightly frictional spheres. A simplified model is implemented without changing the current kinetic theory framework by introducing an effective coefficient of restitution to account for additional energy dissipation due to frictional collisions. The accuracy of predicting segregation rate in a gas-fluidized bed is improved by the implementation. This result indicates that particle rotation is important microscopic physics to be incorporated into the hydrodynamic model. Segregation of a large particle in a dense granular bed of small particles under vertical. vibration is studied using molecular dynamics simulations. Wall friction is identified as a necessary condition for the segregation. Large-scale force …

An initial series of calculations of the reactivity-worth of the OSMOSE samples in the MINERVE reactor with the R2-UO2 and MORGANE/R core configuration were completed. The calculation model was generated using the lattice physics code DRAGON. In addition, an initial comparison of calculated values to experimental measurements was performed based on preliminary results for the R1-MOX configuration.

Four different laser-based techniques were applied to study physical and chemical characteristics of biomolecules and dye molecules. These techniques are liole burning spectroscopy, single molecule spectroscopy, time-resolved coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy and laser-induced fluorescence microscopy. Results from hole burning and single molecule spectroscopy suggested that two antenna states (C708 & C714) of photosystem I from cyanobacterium Synechocystis PCC 6803 are connected by effective energy transfer and the corresponding energy transfer time is {approx}6 ps. In addition, results from hole burning spectroscopy indicated that the chlorophyll dimer of the C714 state has a large distribution of the dimer geometry. Direct observation of vibrational peaks and evolution of coumarin 153 in the electronic excited state was demonstrated by using the fs/ps CARS, a variation of time-resolved coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy. In three different solvents, methanol, acetonitrile, and butanol, a vibration peak related to the stretch of the carbonyl group exhibits different relaxation dynamics. Laser-induced fluorescence microscopy, along with the biomimetic containers-liposomes, allows the measurement of the enzymatic activity of individual alkaline phosphatase from bovine intestinal mucosa without potential interferences from glass surfaces. The result showed a wide distribution of the enzyme reactivity. Protein structural variation is one of the major reasons that …

Oxygen-evolving complex (Mn4Ca cluster) of Photosystem II cycles through five intermediate states (Si-states, i =0-4) before a molecule of dioxygen is released. During the S-state transitions, electrons are extracted from the OEC, either from Mn or alternatively from a Mn ligand. The oxidation state of Mn is widely accepted as Mn4(III2,IV2) and Mn4(III,IV3) for S1 and S2 states, while it is still controversial for the S0 and S3 states. We used resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) to study the electronic structure of Mn4Ca complex in the OEC. The RIXS data yield two-dimensional plots that provide a significant advantage by obtaining both K-edge pre-edge and L-edge-like spectra (metal spin state) simultaneously. We have collected data from PSII samples in the each of the S-states and compared them with data from various inorganic Mncomplexes. The spectral changes in the Mn 1s2p3/2 RIXS spectra between the S-states were compared to those of the oxides of Mn and coordination complexes. The results indicate strong covalency for the electronic configuration in the OEC, and we conclude that the electron is transferred from a strongly delocalized orbital, compared to those in Mn oxides or coordination complexes. The magnitude for the S0 to S1, and S1 to …

Daily newspaper from Baytown, Texas that includes local, state, and national news along with advertising.

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A news story from the Dallas Voice about the fifty year pattern of Dallas Police Department seeking out LGBT individuals and charging them with public indecency and disorderly conduct. Internet comments are at the bottom of the article.

This report discusses agricultural credit, which makes or guarantees loans to farmers who cannot qualify at other lenders, and the Farm Credit System (FCS), which is a network of borrower-owned lending institutions operating as a government-sponsored enterprise.

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