Post-Reconstruction Texas in the mid-1870s was still relatively primitive, with communities isolated from each other in a largely open-range environment. Cattlemen owned herds of cattle in numerous counties while brand laws remained local. Friction arose when the nonresident stockmen attempted to gather their cattle, and mavericking was common. Law enforcement at the local level could cope with handling local drunks, collecting taxes, and attending the courts when in session, but when an outrageous crime occurred, or depredations in a community were at a level that severely taxed or overwhelmed the local sheriff, there was seldom any other recourse except a vigilante movement. With such a fragile hold on civilization in these communities, it is not difficult to understand how a “blood feud” could occur. During 1874 the Hoo Doo War erupted in the Texas Hill Country of Mason County, and for the remainder of the century violence and fear ruled the region in a rising tide of hatred and revenge. It is widely considered the most bitter feud in Texas history. Traditionally the feud is said to have begun with the intention of protecting the families, property and livelihood of the largely agrarian settlers in Mason and Llano counties. The …

Report for an Institute of Museum and Library Sciences (IMLS) Grant Partner Uplift Project. This report details the status of the project and covers encountered problems and activities.

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) most recent estimate of the difference between what taxpayers timely and accurately paid in taxes and what they owed was $345 billion. IRS estimates it will eventually recover some of this tax gap, resulting in an estimated net tax gap of $290 billion. The tax gap arises when taxpayers fail to comply with the tax laws by underreporting tax liabilities on tax returns; underpaying taxes due from filed returns; or nonfiling, which refers to the failure to file a required tax return altogether or in a timely manner. The Chairman and Ranking Minority Member of the Senate Committee on the Budget asked GAO to present information on the causes of and possible solutions to the tax gap. This testimony addresses the nature and extent of the tax gap and the significance of reducing the tax gap, including some steps that may assist with this challenging task. For context, this testimony also addressed GAO's most recent simulations of the long-term fiscal outlook and the need for a fundamental reexamination of major spending and tax policies and priorities."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Under the Public Housing Program, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and local public housing agencies (PHA) provide housing for low-income residents at rents they can afford. Today, over 3,000 PHAs administer approximately 1.2 million public housing units throughout the nation. First authorized in 1937, the program has undergone changes over the decades. The Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act of 1998 increased managerial flexibility but also established new requirements for housing agencies. Some observers have questioned the program's ability to provide quality, affordable housing to the nation's neediest families. This testimony, which is based upon a number of reports that GAO has issued related to public housing since 2002, discusses the roles of (1) HUD (2) public housing agencies, (3) capital markets, and (4) community services organizations in the public housing system."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This testimony discusses entitlement and other mandatory spending programs in light of our nation's long-term fiscal outlook and the challenges it poses for the budget and oversight processes. In our report entitled 21st Century Challenges: Reexamining the Base of the Federal Government, we presented illustrative questions for policy makers to consider as they carry out their responsibilities. These questions look across major areas of the budget and federal operations including discretionary and mandatory spending, and tax policies and programs. We hope that this report, among other things, will be used by various congressional committees as they consider which areas of government need particular attention and reconsideration. Congress will also receive more specific proposals, some of them will be presented within comprehensive agendas. Our report provides examples of the kinds of difficult choices the nation faces with regard to discretionary spending; mandatory spending, including entitlements; as well as tax policies and compliance activities."

Experimental results are reported from two measurementtechniques (semiconductor switching and electro-optic sampling) thatallow temporal characterization of electron bunches produced by alaser-driven plasma-based accelerator. As femtosecond electron bunchesexit the plasma-vacuum interface, coherent transition radiation (at THzfrequencies) is emitted. Measuring the properties of this radiationallows characterization of the electron bunches. Theoretical work on theemission mechanism is represented, including a model that calculates theTHz waveform from a given bunch profile. It is found that the spectrum ofthe THz pulse is coherent up to the 200 mu m thick crystal (ZnTe)detection limit of 4 THz, which corresponds to the production of sub-50fs (root-mean-square) electron bunch structure. The measurementsdemonstrate both the shot-to-shot stability of bunch parameters that arecritical to THz emission (such as total charge and bunch length), as wellas femtosecond synchrotron between bunch, THz pulse, and laserbeam.

We have released Version 2 of Milagro, an object-oriented, C++ code that performs radiative transfer using Fleck and Cummings' Implicit Monte Carlo method. Milagro, a part of the Jayenne program, is a stand-alone driver code used as a methods research vehicle and to verify its underlying classes. These underlying classes are used to construct Implicit Monte Carlo packages for external customers. Milagro-2 represents a design overhaul that allows better parallelism and extensibility. New features in Milagro-2 include verified momentum deposition, restart capability, graphics capability, exact energy conservation, and improved load balancing and parallel efficiency. A users' guide also describes how to configure, make, and run Milagro2.

WRN is unique among the five human RecQ DNA helicases by having a functional exonuclease domain (WRN-exo) and being defective in the premature aging and cancer-related disorder Werner syndrome. Here, we characterize WRN-exo crystal structures, biochemical activity and participation in DNA end-joining. Metal ion complex structures, active site mutations and activity assays reveal a two-metal-ion mediated nuclease mechanism. The DNA end-binding Ku70/80 complex specifically stimulates WRN-exo activity, and structure-based mutational inactivation of WRN-exo alters DNA end-joining in human cells. We furthermore establish structural and biochemical similarities of WRN-exo to DnaQ family replicative proofreading exonucleases, with WRN-specific adaptations consistent with dsDNA specificity and functionally important conformational changes. These results indicate WRN-exo is a human DnaQ family member and support analogous proof-reading activities that are stimulated by Ku70/80 with implications for WRN functions in age related pathologies and maintenance of genomic integrity.

This paper provides a comparative discussion of coupledhydromechanical processes in three different geological formations:crystalline rock, plastic clay, and indurated clay. First, the importantprocesses and associated property characteristics in the three rock typesare discussed. Then, one particular hydromechanical coupling is broughtup for detailed consideration, that of pore pressure changes in nearbyrock during tunnel excavation. Three field experiments in the three rocktypes are presented and their results are discussed. It is shown that themain physical processes are common to all three rock types, but with verydifferent time constants. The different issues raised by these cases arepointed out, and the transferable lessons learned are identified. Suchcross fertilization and simultaneous understanding of coupled processesin three very different rock types help to greatly enhance confidence inthe state of science in this field.

Free weekly newspaper that includes business and classified advertising.

Weekly newspaper from Rusk, Texas that includes local, state and national news along with extensive advertising.

Daily student newspaper from the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas that includes local, state and campus news along with advertising.

Weekly student newspaper from the University of Dallas in Irving, Texas that includes campus news and commentaries along with advertising.

Photograph of students making their way through a school's hallway. There are multiple groups of students wearing different colored clothing.

Three students participate in a vocational class at Diamond Hill-Jarvis High School, Fort Worth, Texas. They are working on the roof of a structure their class is building. These students and their classmates will participate in a competition to take place in Waco, Texas that will measure their abilities against the best students in the United States.

The instructor of a vocational class at Diamond Hill-Jarvis High School in Fort Worth, Texas is seen through a metal screen.

A teacher of vocational classes stands next to some equipment at Diamond Hill-Jarvis High School in Fort Worth, Texas.

Carlos Linares, center, was honored by Big Brothers, Big Sisters for his mentoring work with Ray Alake (right). Mr. Alake's mother, Bose Oludipe, is on the left. The ceremony was held at a school in Mansfield, Texas.

Carlos Linares and Ray Alake enjoy a ceremony for volunteers of Big Brothers, Big Sisters. Mr. Linares was Mr. Alake's mentor for five years. The ceremony took place at a school in Mansfield, Texas.

Carlos Linares shares a joke with Ray Alake at the ceremony to honor Mr. Linares for his work with Big Brothers, Big Sisters. The ceremony was held at a school in Mansfield, Texas.

Carlos Linares (left) celebrates the recognition of his work with Big Brothers, Big Sisters. He was honored for mentoring Ray Alake (center) for five years. Accompanying them is Ray's mother Bose Oludipe of Nigeria. The ceremony was held at a school in Mansfield, Texas.

A female student and an instructor work on a project in a vocational class at Diamond Hill-Jarvis High School in Fort Worth, Texas.

Students learn to lay bricks in a vocational skills class at Diamond Hill-Jarvis High School in Fort Worth, Texas.

A student works on a welding project at Diamond Hill-Jarvis High School in Fort Worth, Texas. She and twenty-four of her classmates will participate in a competition to take place in Waco, Texas that will measure their abilities against the best students in the United States.