A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (the Commission) was established by the Civil Rights Act of 1957 to serve as an independent, bipartisan, fact-finding agency whose mission is to investigate and report on the status of civil rights in the United States. Since its inception, the Commission has conducted hearings and issued reports highlighting critical, controversial civil rights issues, including racial segregation, impediments to voting rights, and affirmative action. To carry out its fact-finding and reporting mission, the Commission is required to submit at least one report annually to the President and Congress on federal civil rights enforcement efforts, among other requirements. Because the Commission has no enforcement power, the key means for achieving its mission lies in its credibility as an independent and impartial fact-finding and reporting organization. To complement this national fact-finding and reporting effort, separate state advisory committees were also authorized in 1957 to advise the Commission and serve as its "eyes and ears" on state and local civil rights issues. State advisory committees are composed of volunteers appointed by the Commission in every state who conduct public hearings on state and local …

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, …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Marine Corps' Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) is the Corps' number-one priority ground system acquisition program and accounts for 25.5 percent of the Corps' total acquisition budget for fiscal years 2006 through 2011. It will replace the current amphibious assault craft and is intended to provide significant increases in mobility, lethality, and reliability. We reviewed the program under the Comptroller General's authority to examine (1) the cost, schedule, and performance of the EFV program during system development and demonstration; (2) factors that have contributed to this performance; and (3) future risks the program faces as it approaches production."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "A federal employee conversion occurs whenever an individual changes from one personnel status or service to another without a break in federal government service of more than 3 days. This report focuses on conversions of individuals from noncareer to career positions. Federal agencies must use appropriate authorities and follow proper procedures in making these conversions. GAO was asked to determine for departments and selected agencies (1) the number and characteristics of all noncareer to career conversions occurring during the period from May 1, 2001, through April 30, 2005, and (2) whether appropriate authorities were used and proper procedures were followed in making these conversions at the GS-12 level and above."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) tasked the Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) to purchase temporary classrooms for Mississippi schools. To accomplish its task, the Corps placed a $39.5 million order with Akima Site Operations for the purchase and delivery of 450 such classrooms. GAO received an allegation on its Fraud Hotline that the Corps paid inflated prices for the classrooms, and in response, we reviewed the facts and circumstances related to the Corps' issuance of the order."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Based on studies showing that many military members are performing tasks that are not considered military essential, the Air Force, Army, and Navy have plans to convert certain numbers of military health care positions to civilian positions. Questions have surfaced regarding the potential effects of these conversions on the Defense Health Program. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006 prohibits the military departments from performing any further conversions until the secretary of each department certifies to Congress that the conversions will not increase costs or decrease quality or access to care. The act also requires GAO to study the military departments' conversions and their potential effects. Specifically, GAO examined (1) the military departments' plans for and actions to date in converting military health care positions to civilian positions and the departments' experiences in filling the converted positions with civilians and (2) the potential effects of converting military health care positions to civilian positions on the Defense Health Program."

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 …

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

Well ER-12-4 was drilled for the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Site Office, in support of the Nevada Environmental Restoration Project at the Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada. This well was drilled in May 2005, as part of a hydrogeologic investigation program for the Rainier Mesa-Shoshone Mountain Corrective Action Unit in the north-central portion of the Nevada Test Site. The well is located on Rainier/Aqueduct Mesa, northwest of Yucca Flat, within Area 12 of the Nevada Test Site. The well provided information regarding the radiological and physical environment near underground nuclear tests conducted in U12t Tunnel, information on the pre-Tertiary rocks in the area, and depth to the regional water table.

The Regional HEP Team (RHT) and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) staff conducted a follow-up habitat evaluation procedures (HEP) analysis on the Ladd Marsh Wildlife Management Area (LMWA) in May 2005. The 2005 HEP assessment resulted in a total of 647.44 HUs, or 0.76 HUs/acre. This is an increase of 420.34 HUs (0.49 HUs/acre) over 2001 HEP survey results. The most significant increase in HUs occurred on the Wallender and Simonis parcels which increased by 214.30 HUs and 177.49 HUs respectively. Transects were established at or near 2001 HEP analysis transect locations whenever possible. ODFW staff biologists assisted the RHT re-establish transect locations and/or suggested areas for new surveys. Since 2001, significant changes in cover type acreage and/or structural conditions have occurred due to conversion of agriculture cover types to emergent wetland and grassland cover types. Agricultural lands were seeded to reestablish grasslands and wetlands were restored through active management and manipulation of extant water sources including natural stream hydrology/flood regimes and available irrigation. Grasslands increased on the Wallender parcel by 21% (65 acres), 23% (71 acres) at the Simonis site, and 39% (62 acres) at Conley Lake. The emergent wetland cover type also changed significantly increasing 60% …

This Work Plan outlines the scope of work for targeted sampling at Webber, Kansas (Figure 1.1). This activity is being conducted at the request of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), in accordance with Section V of the Intergovernmental Agreement between the KDHE and the Commodity Credit Corporation of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (CCC/USDA). Data obtained in this sampling event will be used to (1) evaluate the current status of previously detected contamination at Webber and (2) determine whether the site requires further action. This work is being 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 CCC/USDA has entered into an interagency agreement with DOE, under which Argonne provides technical assistance to the CCC/USDA with environmental site characterization and remediation at its former grain storage facilities. Argonne has issued a Master Work Plan (Argonne 2002) that describes the general scope of and guidance for all investigations at former CCC/USDA facilities in Kansas. The Master Work Plan, approved by the KDHE, contains the materials common to investigations at all locations …

The 2004 Toyota Prius is a hybrid automobile equipped with a gasoline engine and a battery- and generator-powered electric motor. Both of these motive-power sources are capable of providing mechanical-drive power for the vehicle. The engine can deliver a peak-power output of 57 kilowatts (kW) at 5000 revolutions per minute (rpm) while the motor can deliver a peak-power output of 50 kW over the speed range of 1200-1540 rpm. Together, this engine-motor combination has a specified peak-power output of 82 kW at a vehicle speed of 85 kilometers per hour (km/h). In operation, the 2004 Prius exhibits superior fuel economy compared to conventionally powered automobiles. To acquire knowledge and thereby improve understanding of the propulsion technology used in the 2004 Prius, a full range of design characterization studies were conducted to evaluate the electrical and mechanical characteristics of the 2004 Prius and its hybrid electric drive system. These characterization studies included (1) a design review, (2) a packaging and fabrication assessment, (3) bench-top electrical tests, (4) back-electromotive force (emf) and locked rotor tests, (5) loss tests, (6) thermal tests at elevated temperatures, and most recently (7) full-design-range performance testing in a controlled laboratory environment. This final test effectively mapped the …

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Well ER-12-3 was drilled for the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Site Office, in support of the Nevada Environmental Restoration Project at the Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada. The well was drilled in March and April 2005 as part of a hydrogeologic investigation program for the Rainier Mesa-Shoshone Mountain Corrective Action Unit. The overall purpose of the well was to gather subsurface data to better characterize the hydrogeology of central Rainier Mesa, especially in the older Tertiary volcanic rocks and Paleozoic sedimentary rocks. The main 47.0-centimeter hole was drilled to a depth of 799.2 meters and cased with 33.97-centimeter casing to 743.1 meters. The hole diameter was then decreased to 31.1 centimeters, and the well was drilled to a total depth of 1,496.0 meters. The completion string consisted of 13.97-centimeter stainless steel casing, with two slotted intervals open to the lower carbonate aquifer, suspended from 19.37-centimeter carbon steel casing. A piezometer string was installed outside the 33.97-centimeter casing to a depth of 467.1 meters to monitor a zone of perched water within the Tertiary volcanic section. Data gathered during and shortly after hole construction include composite drill cuttings samples collected every 3 meters (extra cuttings …

This deliverable is for Task 9, Mixed Alcohols from Syngas: State of Technology, as part of National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Award ACO-5-44027, ''Equipment Design and Cost Estimation for Small Modular Biomass Systems, Synthesis Gas Cleanup and Oxygen Separation Equipment''. Task 9 supplements the work previously done by NREL in the mixed alcohols section of the 2003 technical report Preliminary Screening--Technical and Economic Assessment of Synthesis Gas to Fuels and Chemicals with Emphasis on the Potential for Biomass-Derived Syngas.

This deliverable is Subtask 2.3 of Task 2, Gas Cleanup Design and Cost Estimates, of NREL Award ACO-5-44027, ''Equipment Design and Cost Estimation for Small Modular Biomass Systems, Synthesis Gas Cleanup and Oxygen Separation Equipment''. Subtask 2.3 builds upon the sulfur removal information first presented in Subtask 2.1, Gas Cleanup Technologies for Biomass Gasification by adding additional information on the commercial applications, manufacturers, environmental footprint, and technical specifications for sulfur removal technologies. The data was obtained from Nexant's experience, input from GTI and other vendors, past and current facility data, and existing literature.

Nano-phosphors of Y3Al5O12:Ce3+ (YAG:Ce) were synthesized with a novel salted sol-gel method, in which aqueous solution of inorganic salts (yttrium/cerium nitrates) were used along with the metal alkoxide precursor, aluminum sec-butoxide, Al(OC4H9)3. YAG single phase was formed at temperature as low as 800 C. Luminescence of YAG:Ce reached the maximum intensity when calcined above 1350C. The SEM image reveals that the grain sizes of the nano-phosphors calcined at 1100 C are in a range of 50-150 nm.

Conference paper regarding research in freeze-protection methods that could extend market acceptance for passive solar domestic water heating systems in more northern climates if the U.S.

Wind Power Today is an annual publication that provides an overview of the wind energy research conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy Wind and Hydropower Technologies Program.

We extract parameters relevant for distinguishing among single-field inflation models from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) three-year data set, and also from WMAP in combination with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) galaxy power spectrum. Our analysis leads to the following conclusions: (1) the Harrison-Zel'dovich model is consistent with both data sets at a 95% confidence level; (2) there is no strong evidence for running of the spectral index of scalar perturbations; (3) Potentials of the form V {infinity} {phi}{sup P} are consistent with the data for p = 2, and are marginally consistent with the WMAP data considered alone for p = 4, but ruled out by WMAP combined with SDSS. We perform a ''Monte Carlo reconstruction'' of the inflationary potential, and find that: (1) there is no evidence to support an observational lower bound on the amplitude of gravitational waves produced during inflation; (2) models such as simple hybrid potentials which evolve toward an inflationary late-time attractor in the space of flow parameters are strongly disfavored by the data, (3) models selected with even a weak slow-roll prior strongly cluster in the region favoring a ''red'' power spectrum and no running of the spectral index, consistent with …

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In this paper we discuss long-term least cost CO2stabilization scenarios based on the SRES AIM A1B scenario in the contextof an international burden-sharing regime. Starting from a stabilizationtarget, regional emission caps are formulated dynamically on the basis ofpast emissions. With these regional caps, the cost-optimal supply fuelmix in the energy sector in the four SRES world regions is calculated,and lower bounds on the volume of traded carbon are estimated. Theallocation scheme provides incentives for early mitigation action. Weestimate additional regional costs incurred by the allocation scheme, andassess the sensitivity of results to changes in the concentrationceiling, discount rates, and start date for burden sharing.

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Today's need for rapid software development has generated a great interest in employing Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) software products as a way of managing cost, developing time, and effort. With an abundance of COTS software packages to choose from, the problem now is how to systematically evaluate, rank, and select a COTS product that best meets the software project requirements and at the same time can leverage off the current corporate information technology architectural environment. This paper describes a systematic process for decision support in evaluating and ranking COTS software. Performed right after the requirements analysis, this process provides the evaluators with more concise, structural, and step-by-step activities for determining the best COTS software product with manageable risk. In addition, the process is presented in phases that are flexible to allow for customization or tailoring to meet various projects' requirements.