The work presented here can be divided into two parts: 1) an experimental and analysis section dealing with the investigation of small molecules such as methyl bromide, carbon dioxide, diatomic nitrogen, methane and methane?s photochemical derivative methyl radical adsorbed onto the Pt(111) surface, and 2) A detailed explanation of the current STM and chamber, with included designs and detailed instructions for operation and maintenance of both the STM and chamber. The investigations of the methyl bromide molecule show interesting dipole-dipole interactions on the Pt(111) surface. With a (6 x 3) lattice being described as the full monolayer that was created by overdosing and annealing to 104 K. The (6 x 3) lattice is shown to occupy top sites and three fold hollow sites on the Pt(111) surface giving rise to a very sharp and symmetrically split ν2 RAIRS mode, and the absence of the ν5 mode in RAIRS is indicative that the molecules are all aligned with their C-Br bond parallel to the surface normal. Additional sub-monolayer structures were observed that had components that were not aligned with the surface normal. The submonolayer lattices ranging from a structured 0.12 ML to a random coverages estimated at 0.20 ML, to a …

Closing report for project DOE-FG02-03ER15436. The project studied obligate autotrophy in the ammonia oxidizing bacterium Nitrosomonas europaea. Nitrosomonas europaea can obtain all of its energy and reductant for growth from the oxidation of ammonia to nitrite and is, therefore, classified as a chemolithotroph. This bacterium is also an autotroph, which can derive all cellular carbon from carbon dioxide. N. europaea seems incapable of growth with other carbon or energy sources. This restricted capability is surprising given that ammonia is a poor energy source. The main goal of the project was to examine the basis of autotrophy in N. europaea or, thought of another way, to determine the barriers to heterotrophy. The approach was enabled by the N. europaea genome sequence, stimulating new ways of thinking about this physiological paradox—an insistence on a single, albeit poor, energy source. Objective 1 was to examine the expression and regulation of the genes coding for alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase, determine if the enzyme’s activity is present, and determine whether alteration of the expression levels influences autotrophic growth. Although Nitrosomonas europaea lacks measurable alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity, the genome sequence revealed the presence of the genes encoding the enzyme. A knockout mutation was created in the sucA gene …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Tina Burnham. Burnham was born in Sulpher Springs, Texas and graduated from high school in 1940. She attended a trade school in Texarkana, Texas to become a riveter. She was then employed at Spartan Aircraft Industries in Tulsa, Oklahoma as a riveter. On this job she manufactured wings on Grumman Wildcat aircraft. In January 1944 she joined the Coast Guard Women’s Reserve (SPARS) and went to Palm Beach, Florida for six weeks of intensive training. She describes the clothing she was issued and the training she received. Upon completion of boot camp she went to Philadelphia working as a pharmacist’s mate in the St. Agnes Hospital. She was then selected to attend the College of Pharmacy at Columbia University. She graduated 31 December 1944. After spending a short time in the SPARS barracks sick bay in Norfolk, Virginia she was transferred to the Marine Hospital in Norfolk. While at the hospital she rotated through the various departments. She states that surgery was her favorite. She was then sent to the Elizabeth City, North Carolina, Coast Guard Air Station where she served until being discharged 20 May 1946.

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This report presents the highlights of GAO's fiscal year 2005 Performance and Accountability report. In short, fiscal year 2005 was an exceptional year for GAO. For example, we received a clean opinion from independent auditors on our financial statements and met or exceeded targets for 10 of 14 key performance measures, while setting or matching all-time records for 3 measures. We documented $39.6 billion in financial benefits--a return of $83 for every dollar we spent--and over 1,400 nonfinancial benefits--a record for us. The work we did to produce these benefits helped to shape important legislation, such as the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (Pub. L. No. 108-458), and increase the efficiency of various federal programs, thus improving the lives of millions of Americans. In addition, the rate at which our recommendations were implemented by the Congress or federal agencies rose to 85 percent in fiscal year 2005, and the percentage of our fiscal year 2005 products containing recommendations increased to 63 percent--exceeding the targets we set for both of these measures this year. In addition, in the first year that we are reporting …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Soaring retail gasoline prices, increased oil company profits, and mergers of large oil companies have garnered extensive media attention and generated considerable public concern. Gasoline prices impact the economy because of our heavy reliance on motor vehicles. According to the Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration (EIA), each additional ten cents per gallon of gasoline adds about $14 billion to America's annual gasoline bill. Given the importance of gasoline for the nation's economy, it is essential to understand the market for gasoline and how prices are determined. In this context, this testimony addresses the following questions: (1) What factors affect gasoline prices? (2) What has been the pattern of oil company mergers in the United States in recent years? (3) What effects have mergers had on market concentration and wholesale gasoline prices? To address these questions, GAO relied on previous reports, including (1) a 2005 GAO primer on gasoline prices, (2) a 2005 GAO report on the proliferation of special gasoline blends, and (3) a 2004 GAO report on mergers in the U.S. petroleum industry. GAO also collected updated data from a number of sources that we deemed …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "GAO has undertaken a body of work to address federal, state, and local preparations for, response to, and recovery from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This correspondence contains GAO's preliminary findings."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides a uniform set of health care services to eligible veterans who enroll to receive such care and seek it from VA. These services include preventive and primary health care, a full range of outpatient and inpatient services, and prescription drugs. VA provides additional services, such as nursing home and dental care and other services, as required by law for some veterans and makes these services available to other veterans on a discretionary basis as resources permit. Most of the nation's 24 million veterans are eligible for some aspect of VA's health care services if they choose to enroll. In fiscal year 2005, about 7 million veterans were enrolled to receive VA health care services. In that year, VA planned to provide health care services to about 5 million veterans based on its initial budget request of $ 30.2 billion. Funding for VA's health care program has increased substantially in recent years. Congress appropriates funds annually for VA to provide health care services to eligible veterans. Congressional budget deliberations start when the President submits his annual budget request to Congress as the …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Rigorous planning is key to a successful census as it helps ensure greater effectiveness and efficiency. The U.S. Census Bureau (Bureau) estimates the 2010 Census will cost around $11.3 billion, which would make it the most expensive census in our country's history, even after adjusting for inflation. GAO was asked to testify on (1) the Bureau's progress in preparing for the 2010 Census, (2) the challenges that Hurricanes Katrina and Rita might pose for the Bureau's future activities, and, (3) more broadly, the importance of planning for a range of events that could severely disrupt the census."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Census Bureau plans to increase its use of automation to conduct the 2010 Decennial Census. Two key acquisitions are the Decennial Response Integration System (DRIS) and the Field Data Collection Automation program (FDCA). DRIS is expected to standardize and integrate data from census forms and other response modes. FDCA is expected to provide automation support for field data collection activities. Last year, Congress asked GAO to assess the status, plans, and management capabilities of both of these projects. In January 2006, GAO briefed Congressional staff on the results of that work. This testimony summarizes key findings from that briefing, including the status and management capabilities of each project."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Future Combat System (FCS) is a networked family of weapons and other systems in the forefront of efforts by the Army to become a lighter, more agile, and more capable combat force. When considering complementary programs, projected investment costs for FCS are estimated to be on the order of $200 billion. FCS's cost is of concern given that developing and producing new weapon systems is among the largest investments the government makes, and FCS adds significantly to that total. Over the last five years, the Department of Defense (DOD) doubled its planned investments in such systems from $700 billion in 2001 to $1.4 trillion in 2006. At the same time, research and development costs on new weapons continue to grow on the order of 30 to 40 percent. FCS will be competing for significant funds at a time when Federal fiscal imbalances are exerting great pressures on discretionary spending. In the absence of more money being available, FCS and other programs must be executable within projected resources. Today, I would like to discuss (1) the business case needed for FCS to be successful and (2) related business …

News release about a DART auction where vehicles, including trolley buses, will be sold to the highest bidder.

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "GAO is required by law to annually audit the consolidated financial statements of the U.S. government. The Congress and the President need to have timely, reliable, and useful financial and performance information. Sound decisions on the current results and future direction of vital federal government programs and policies are made more difficult without such information. Until the problems discussed in GAO's audit report on the U.S. government's consolidated financial statements are adequately addressed, they will continue to (1) hamper the federal government's ability to reliably report a significant portion of its assets, liabilities, costs, and other information; (2) affect the federal government's ability to reliably measure the full cost as well as the financial and nonfinancial performance of certain programs and activities; (3) impair the federal government's ability to adequately safeguard significant assets and properly record various transactions; and (4) hinder the federal government from having reliable financial information to operate in an economical, efficient, and effective manner."

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Bill Lane. Lane was attending the University of Texas and tried joining the Marine Corps, but did not pass the physical. He instead opted for the Army, which accepted him. He trained at Fort Custer, Michigan. There he trained as a military policeman and was soon shipped to a prisoner of war camp housing German submarine sailors in New Mexico. After being sent to west coast, Lane boarded a ship and sailed 23 days to New Caledonia, where he was assigned to the Americal Division. From there, Lane went to Guadalcanal in late 1942 and relieved and replaced a Marine unit on the front line. Lane recalls his experiences fighting he Japanese at the Tenaru River on Guadalcanal. He was armed with a Browning Automatic Rifle. Lane also describes some experiences while on R & R in Australia before he headed for Bougainville. After a brief amount of time in the Palau Islands, Lane headed for the invasion of Leyte. Later on, he moved to Luzon and fought in Manila. Lane backtracks and shares some anecdotes about being a personal river for General Douglas MacArthur in Sydney while …

This article deals with the protest march that took place in Arlington. Most of the participants were students. Both the original Spanish article and the English translation are included.

The document contains the opening addresses of the conveners and presentation slides of the presenters in the Tokyo Office of the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES) event. The conference was organized around the idea of introducing two important groups to each other to stimulate new ideas to break through barriers for carbon management, a major environmental and social challenge in the 21st Century.

News release about DART's annual senior health fair.

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This document is a guide to GAO Protective Orders."

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; Use of county jail inmate labor in projects for nonprofit organizations (RQ-0406-GA)

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; Whether the state or its political subdivisions may regulate international border crossings by persons under the age of 18 years, or whether the state may regulate the conduct of persons under the age of 18 years who are at or near an international border (RQ-0407-GA)

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; Duty of officers who are magistrates under Code of Criminal Procedure article 2.09 to provide warnings to arrestees and whether magistrate duties constitute a judicial function (RQ-0410-GA)

This is a description of marriage customs. Both families send 'go-betweens' to mediate the agreement and discuss dowry. For the ceremony, the bride passes through a bundle of reeds, and a gift called "geumbang siya" is given. Sometimes, there are other gifts as well, and a feast. If someone cannot pay the dowry, elders may allow them to pay something later, at a time when they can afford it. He also describes the different practices of groups in surrounding areas, and compares traditional marriage customs to current ones affected by Christian influence. The speaker is from Krangku originally, but had moved to Putao several years before the time of recording.

This is a narrative about how people started building houses after the world was flooded. They watched animals build their houses, like wild boars and birds, and then collected the tools and materials to build houses. Then, they blessed the house.

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This report presents an analysis of information on the members of the 51 state advisory committees of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (Commission). These state advisory committees exist to provide information on state and local civil rights issues to the Commission. This analysis contains information on state and advisory committee member demographics and the members' occupations. Information on the members was obtained from the Commission from the most recent charter for each advisory committee at the time of our analysis. We obtained our state demographic information from U.S. census data except for data on religion and politics. Religion data was obtained from The American Religious Identification Survey 2001.1 The political data was obtained from The 2004 Political Landscape by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press. We are providing this information so that readers may see how the advisory committees' membership reflects various criteria. For more detailed information on the old and new membership criteria, please see our report entitled U. S. Commission on Civil Rights: The Commission Should Strengthen Its Quality Assurance Policies and Make Better Use of Its State Advisory …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The wildland fire problems facing our nation continue to grow. The number of acres burned by wildland fires annually from 2000 to 2005 was 70 percent greater than the average burned annually during the 1990s, while appropriations for the federal government's wildland fire management activities tripled from about $1 billion in fiscal year 1999 to nearly $3 billion in fiscal year 2005. Experts believe that catastrophic damage from wildland fire probably will continue to increase until an adequate long-term federal response, coordinated with others, is implemented and has had time to take effect. In the past 7 years, the federal government has made important progress in putting into place basic components of a framework for managing and responding to the nation's wildland fire problems. Many challenges lie ahead, however, if the federal agencies having primary responsibility for managing wildland fire issues--the Forest Service within the Department of Agriculture and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), and National Park Service (NPS) within the Department of the Interior--are to address the problems in a timely and effective manner. Most notably, …