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

We present dimensional and density changes in an aging plutonium alloy enriched with 7.3 at.% of {sup 238}Pu and reference alloys of various ages. After 45 equivalent years of aging, the enriched alloys at 35 C have swelled in volume by 0.14 to 0.16% and now exhibit a near linear volume increase, without void swelling. Based on X-ray diffraction measurements, the lattice expansion by self-irradiation appears to be the primary cause for dimensional changes during the initial 2-3 years of aging. Following the initial transient, the density change is primarily cause by a constant helium in-growth rate as a result of {alpha}-particle decay.

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

A Retarding Field Analyzer (RFA) was inserted in a drift region of a magnetic transport section of the high-current experiment (HCX) that is at high-vacuum to measure ions and electrons resulting from beam interaction with background gas and walls. The ions are expelled during the beam by the space-charge potential and the electrons are expelled mainly at the end of the beam, when the beam potential decays. The ion energy distribution shows the beam potential of {approx} 2100 V and the beam-background gas total cross-section of 1.6x10{sup -20} m{sup 2}. The electron energy distribution reveals that the expelled electrons are mainly desorbed from the walls and gain {approx} 22 eV from the beam potential decaying with time before entering the RFA. Details of the RFA design and of the measured energy distributions are presented and discussed.

Semiweekly newspaper from Boerne, Texas that includes local, state, and national news along with advertising.

The roles of ionizing radiation (IR)-inducible genes/proteins are now being elucidated and the research team will focus on the functions of the clusterin (CLU) proteins after low dose IR exposures. With funding from the DOE, we discovered that x-ray-inducible transcript/protein #8 (xip8) bound to the Ku70 DNA double strand break repair protein using various molecular biology techniques. We showed that translation of the CLU/xip8 transcript was complicated, leading to two classes of proteins separated by their intracellular processing. One set of CLU proteins (a secreted and precursor protein, sCLU and psCLU, respectively) were induced by very low doses of IR (>2.0 cGy) and subsequently secreted from the cell. The functions of sCLU, particularly in bystander effects, are not known; sCLU does not bind Ku70, but can interact with the TGF-ß II receptor. Another intracellular class of CLU proteins was targeted to the cytoplasm and existed in a dormant precursor nuclear form (pnCLU). After higher IR doses (>1.0 Gy), pnCLU was activated via post-translational modification, and translocated to the nucleus, where nuclear CLU (nCLU) interacted with Ku70/Ku80, and signaled cell death. The mechanism(s) of how cells die following nCLU accumulation are unknown. Recent data from our lab indicate that CLU gene …

The Solitario Canyon fault, which bounds the west side of Yucca Mountain, Nevada, is the closest fault with Quaternary offset adjacent to the proposed spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste repository. Dip-slip offset between 12.8 and 10.7 Ma is determined from lithostratigraphic displacement in boreholes USW H-3 and USW WT-7, drilled in the footwall and hanging wall, respectively. The base of the 12.8-Ma Topopah Spring Tuff is interpreted to have 463.3 m of separation across the fault, an average dip slip rate of 0.036 mm/yr. Previous researchers identified a geothermal system active from 11.5 to 10.0 Ma with peak activity at 10.7 Ma that resulted in pervasive alteration of vitric rock to zeolitic minerals where the rocks were in the ground-water saturated zone. The contact between vitric (V) and pervasively zeolitic (Z) rocks cuts across the lithostratigraphic section and offset of this V-Z boundary can be used to measure slip rates between 12.8 and 10.7 Ma. In H-3, the V-Z boundary is 138.4 m below the base of the vitric, densely welded subzone of the Topopah Spring Tuff (Tptpv3). In WT-7, although the V-Z boundary is identified at the base of the Tptpv3, borehole video, cuttings, and geophysical log …

Weather forecasts started from realistic initial conditions are used to diagnose the large warm and dry bias over the United States Southern Great Plains simulated by the GFDL climate model. The forecasts exhibit biases in surface air temperature and precipitation within 3 days which appear to be similar to the climate bias. With the model simulating realistic evaporation but underestimated precipitation, a deficit in soil moisture results which amplifies the initial temperature bias through feedbacks with the land surface. The underestimate of precipitation is associated with an inability of the model to simulate the eastward propagation of convection from the front-range of the Rocky Mountains and is insensitive to an increase of horizontal resolution from 2{sup o} to 0.5{sup o} latitude.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Millions of U.S. workers participate in "contingent" employment, such as temporary or part-time work, and not in permanent or full-time jobs. The Department of Labor (DOL) enforces several labor laws to protect these and other workers, including the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which provides minimum wage, overtime pay, and child labor protections. In June 2000, GAO reported that contingent workers lagged behind standard full-time workers in terms of income, benefits, and workforce protections, and that some employees do not receive worker protections because employers misclassified them as independent contractors. GAO was asked to update this report by describing (1) the size and nature of the contingent workforce, (2) the benefits and workforce protections provided to contingent workers, and (3) the actions that DOL takes to detect and address employee misclassification. We analyzed DOL survey data on contingent workers and interviewed DOL officials."

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Several environmental statutes contain national security exemptions, which the Department of Defense (DOD) can obtain on a case-by-case basis. Since FY2003, DOD has sought broader exemptions that it argues are needed to preserve training capabilities and ensure military readiness. There has been disagreement in Congress over the need for broader exemptions in the absence of data on the overall impact of environmental requirements on training and readiness. There has also been disagreement over the potential impacts of broader exemptions on environmental quality. This report outlines this issue and relevant legislation in detail.

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

This ''Work Plan'' outlines the scope of work for a targeted groundwater sampling investigation and monitoring well installation at Barnes, Kansas. This activity is being conducted at the request of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), in accordance with the intergovernmental agreement between the KDHE and the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC), an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Data resulting from the proposed work will be used to determine the hydraulic gradient near the former CCC/USDA facility, delineate the downgradient carbon tetrachloride plume, and determine additional monitoring requirements at Barnes. The overall goal is to establish criteria for monitoring leading to potential site reclassification. The proposed work will be performed on behalf of the CCC/USDA by the Environmental Science Division of Argonne National Laboratory. Argonne is a nonprofit, multidisciplinary research center operated by the University of Chicago for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The Farm Service Agency of the USDA has entered into an interagency agreement with DOE, under which Argonne provides technical assistance with environmental site characterization and remediation at former CCC/USDA grain storage facilities. Argonne issued a ''Master Work Plan'' (Argonne 2002) to provide general guidance for all investigations at former CCC/USDA facilities …

Funeral program for Mr. Charlie Washington, born April 14, 1931 and died July 4, 2006. The funeral was held July 11, 2006 at Lewis Funeral Home, officiated by Reverend Edward Hayes. Funeral arrangements were made through Lewis Funeral Home and he was buried in Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio, Texas.

Funeral program for Brother Walter Charles Williams, born June 1, 1933. The funeral was held July 11, 2006 at the Westridge Park First Baptist Church, officiated by Rev. Ray Weathers. Funeral arrangements were made through the Lewis Funeral Home, and he was buried in the Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery near San Antonio, Texas.

Free weekly newspaper that includes business and classified advertising.

Free weekly newspaper that includes business and classified advertising.

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "To lawfully work in the United States, individuals must provide identification and evidence of work authorization to their employers. Individuals who are not U.S. citizens must have authorization to work from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Yet individuals without these required authorizations can gain employment using fraudulent documents containing fictitious information or information that belongs to someone else or by being hired by an employer who does not follow the law. In prior GAO work on these issues, we have reported that Social Security Administration (SSA) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) data can be useful for identity and employment eligibility verification as well as to facilitate more effective worksite enforcement. However, the use of these data has drawbacks since they contain some erroneous information and information about hundreds of thousands or even millions of U.S. citizens and work-authorized aliens. Because the confidentiality of tax data is considered crucial to voluntary taxpayer compliance, IRS is restricted under Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code from sharing taxpayer information with third parties except in very limited circumstances. Currently, IRS is not authorized to share taxpayers' information for worksite enforcement …

A Congressional Research Service report for Congress detailing negotiations of an Israeli-Arab Nature. This report contains conferences, negotiation, and conflicts as well as significant agreements and documents.

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An e-mail from the Texas Ethics Commission to Al Daniels acknowledging receipt of filing for Texas Stonewall Democratic Caucus. There is an electronic filing version of General-Purpose Committee Campaign Finance Report submitted to the Texas Ethics Commission. A report of Texas Stonewall Democratic Caucus, Sales by Item Detail made on January through June 2006. The report lists type of services, contribution, dues, and sales, with an account balance ending of $10,884.00. A report of Texas Stonewall Democratic Caucus, Expenses by Vendor Detail made on January through June 2006, with an account ending of $9,554.95. Also, a General Ledger for the Texas Stonewall Democratic Caucus about payment and invoice history as of June 2006.

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In March 2006, we issued our opinions on the calendar year 2005 financial statements of the Bank Insurance Fund (BIF), the Savings Association Insurance Fund (SAIF), and the FSLIC Resolution Fund (FRF). We also issued our opinion on the effectiveness of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's (FDIC) internal control over financial reporting (including safeguarding assets) and compliance as of December 31, 2005, and our evaluation of FDIC's compliance with significant provisions of selected laws and regulations for the three funds for the year ended December 31, 2005. The purpose of this report is to discuss issues identified during our audits of the 2005 financial statements regarding internal controls and accounting procedures that could be improved, and to recommend actions to address these weaknesses. Although these issues were not material in relation to the financial statements, we believe they warrant management's attention."

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