Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "On November 8, 2007, GAO testified before the committee at a hearing entitled "Protecting the Employment Rights of Those Who Protect the United States." This letter responds to the Congressional request that I provide answers to questions for the record. The questions are as follows: (1) Why are the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) claims taking so long to resolve at The Department of Defense (DOD), the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Office of the Special Council (OSC)? (2) What can each of the agencies do to make this process more efficient and effective for veterans? (3) Is the system as it stands today, ready and able to handle a possible increase in USERRA claims? (4) How can the agencies work proactively to prevent the need for USERRA claims in the future? And (5) Will this new initiative fully address the data concerns GAO raised so that Congress has a more complete picture of the types of USERRA claims being filed?"

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "GAO has prepared this report under the Comptroller General's authority as part of a continued effort to assist Congress in reviewing concentration in the market for public company audits. The small number of large international accounting firms performing audits of almost all large public companies raises interest in potential effects on competition and the choices available to large companies needing an auditor. This report examines (1) concentration in the market for public company audits, (2) the potential for smaller accounting firms' growth to ease market concentration, and (3) proposals that have been offered by others for easing concentration and the barriers facing smaller firms in expanding their market shares. GAO surveyed a random sample of almost 600 large, medium, and small public companies on their experiences with their auditors. GAO also interviewed the four largest accounting firms and surveyed all other U.S. accounting firms that audit at least one public company. GAO also developed an econometric model that analyzed the extent to which various factors, including concentration and new auditing requirements, affected fee levels. To supplement this work, GAO interviewed market participants, including public companies, investors, …

A procedure has been developed for the selective etching of Ag from Pt nanoparticles of well-defined shape, resulting in the formation of elementally-pure Pt cubes, cuboctahedra, or octahedra, with a largest vertex-to-vertex distance of {approx}9.5 nm from Ag-modified Pt nanoparticles. A nitric acid etching process was applied Pt nanoparticles supported on mesoporous silica, as well as nanoparticles dispersed in aqueous solution. The characterization of the silica-supported particles by XRD, TEM, and N{sub 2} adsorption measurements demonstrated that the structure of the nanoparticles and the mesoporous support remained conserved during etching in concentrated nitric acid. Both elemental analysis and ethylene hydrogenation indicated etching of Ag is only effective when [HNO{sub 3}] {ge} 7 M; below this concentration, the removal of Ag is only {approx}10%. Ethylene hydrogenation activity increased by four orders of magnitude after the etching of Pt octahedra that contained the highest fraction of silver. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy of the unsupported particles after etching demonstrated that etching does not alter the surface structure of the Pt nanoparticles. High [HNO{sub 3}] led to the decomposition of the capping agent, polyvinylpyrollidone (PVP); infrared spectroscopy confirmed that many decomposition products were present on the surface during etching, including carbon monoxide.

In the early 1960s, an area of privately-owned swamp adjacent to the US Department of Energy's Savannah River Site (SRS), known as Creek Plantation, was contaminated by site operations. Studies conducted in 1974 estimated that approximately 925 GBq of {sup 137}Cs was deposited in the swamp. Subsequently, a series of surveys--composed of 52 monitoring locations--was initiated to characterize and trend the contaminated environment. The annual, potential, maximum doses to a hypothetical hunter were estimated by conservatively using the maximum {sup 137}Cs concentrations measured in the soil. The purpose of this report is to calculate an 'effective dosimetric' half-life for {sup 137}Cs in soil (based on the maximum concentrations) and compare it to the effective environmental half-life (based on the geometric mean concentrations).

An optical resonance transition rubidium laser (5{sup 2}P{sub 1/2} {yields} 5{sup 2}S{sub 1/2}) is demonstrated with a hydrocarbon-free buffer gas. Prior demonstrations of alkali resonance transition lasers have used ethane as either the buffer gas or a buffer gas component to promote rapid fine-structure mixing. However, our experience suggests that the alkali vapor reacts with the ethane producing carbon as one of the reaction products. This degrades long term laser reliability. Our recent experimental results with a 'clean' helium-only buffer gas system pumped by a Ti:sapphire laser demonstrate all the advantages of the original alkali laser system, but without the reliability issues associated with the use of ethane.

We study logarithmically enhanced electromagnetic corrections to the decay rate in the high dilepton invariant mass region as well as corrections to the forward backward asymmetry (FBA) of the inclusive rare decay {bar B} {yields} X{sub s}{ell}{sup +}{ell}{sup -}. As expected, the relative effect of these corrections in the high dilepton mass region is around -8% for the muonic final state and therefore much larger than in the low dilepton mass region. We also present a complete phenomenological analysis, to improved NNLO accuracy, of the dilepton mass spectrum and the FBA integrated in the low dilepton mass region, including a new approach to the zero of the FBA. The latter represents one of the most precise predictions in flavor physics with a theoretical uncertainty of order 5%. We find (q{sub 0}{sup 2}){mu}{mu} = (3.50 {+-} 0.12)GeV{sup 2}. For the high dilepton invariant mass region, we have {Beta}({bar B} {yields} X{sub s}{mu}{mu}){sub high} = (2.40{sub -0.62}{sup +0.69}) x 10{sup -7}. The dominant uncertainty is due to the 1/m{sub b} corrections and can be significantly reduced in the future. For the low dilepton invariant mass region, we confirm previous results up to small corrections.

Methyl decanoate is a large methyl ester that can be used as a surrogate for biodiesel. In this experimental and computational study, the combustion of methyl decanoate is investigated in nonpremixed, nonuniform flows. Experiments are performed employing the counterflow configuration with a fuel stream made up of vaporized methyl decanoate and nitrogen, and an oxidizer stream of air. The mass fraction of fuel in the fuel stream is measured as a function of the strain rate at extinction, and critical conditions of ignition are measured in terms of the temperature of the oxidizer stream as a function of the strain rate. It is not possible to use a fully detailed mechanism for methyl decanoate to simulate the counterflow flames because the number of species and reactions is too large to employ with current flame codes and computer resources. Therefore a skeletal mechanism was deduced from a detailed mechanism of 8555 elementary reactions and 3036 species using 'directed relation graph' method. This skeletal mechanism has only 713 elementary reactions and 125 species. Critical conditions of ignition were calculated using this skeletal mechanism and are found to agree well with experimental data. The predicted strain rate at extinction is found to be …

The Industrial Assessment Center (IAC) program at West Virginia University (WVU), which is funded by the Industrial Technologies Program (ITP) in the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), has provided a unique opportunity to enhance efficient energy utilization in small to medium-sized manufacturers. It has also provided training to engineering students in the identification and analysis of efficient energy use in each aspect of the manufacturing process and associated supporting elements. The outcomes of the IAC Program at WVU have assisted the manufacturers and the students in having a heightened sensitivity to industrial energy conservation, waste reduction, and productivity improvement, as well as a better understanding of the technical aspects of manufacturing processes and the supporting elements through which efficient energy utilization can be enhanced. The IAC at WVU has conducted 101 energy assessments from 2002 until 2006. The focus of the industrial assessments has been on energy savings. It has been the IAC’s interest to strongly focus on energy savings and on waste minimization and productivity improvements that strictly have an impact on energy. The IAC at WVU was selected as the Center of the year in 2005 from amongst 26 centers …

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This project seeks to compute ground motions for large (M>6.5) scenario earthquakes on the Hayward Fault using realistic pseudodynamic ruptures, the USGS three-dimensional (3D) velocity model and anelastic finite difference simulations on parallel computers. We will attempt to bound ground motions by performing simulations with suites of stochastic rupture models for a given scenario on a given fault segment. The outcome of this effort will provide the average, spread and range of ground motions that can be expected from likely large earthquake scenarios. The resulting ground motions will be based on first-principles calculations and include the effects of slip heterogeneity, fault geometry and directivity, however, they will be band-limited to relatively low-frequency (< 1 Hz).

Two recent issues related to nucleosynthesis in early proton-rich neutrino winds are investigated. In the first part we investigate the effect of nuclear physics uncertainties on the synthesis of {sup 92}Mo and {sup 94}Mo. Based on recent experimental results, we find that the proton rich winds of the model investigated here can not be the only source of the solar abundance of {sup 92}Mo and {sup 94}Mo. In the second part we investigate the nucleosynthesis from neutron rich bubbles and show that they do not contribute to the nucleosynthesis integrated over both neutron and proton-rich bubbles and proton-rich winds.

This report describes the implementation and results of a field demonstration wherein residential electric water heaters and thermostats, commercial building space conditioning, municipal water pump loads, and several distributed generators were coordinated to manage constrained feeder electrical distribution through the two-way communication of load status and electric price signals. The field demonstration took place in Washington and Oregon and was paid for by the U.S. Department of Energy and several northwest utilities. Price is found to be an effective control signal for managing transmission or distribution congestion. Real-time signals at 5-minute intervals are shown to shift controlled load in time. The behaviors of customers and their responses under fixed, time-of-use, and real-time price contracts are compared. Peak loads are effectively reduced on the experimental feeder. A novel application of portfolio theory is applied to the selection of an optimal mix of customer contract types.

High-energy neutrinos from Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) have been expected since the pre-Swift era. Such signals may be detected by future large neutrino detectors such as IceCube. Recently Swift has shown several novel phenomena. We suggest the new prospects for high-energy neutrino emission in the Swift era. Expected signals, if detected, are useful for revealing of the nature of GRBs.

A detailed chemical kinetic model for the mixtures of Primary Reference Fuel (PRF: n-heptane and iso-octane) and toluene has been proposed. This model is divided into three parts; a PRF mechanism [T. Ogura et al., Energy & Fuels 21 (2007) 3233-3239], toluene sub-mechanism and cross reactions between PRF and toluene. Toluene sub-mechanism includes the low temperature kinetics relevant to engine conditions. A chemical kinetic mechanism proposed by Pitz et al. [Proc. the 2nd Joint Meeting of the U.S. Combust. Institute (2001)] was used as a starting model and modified by updating rate coefficients. Theoretical estimations of rate coefficients were performed for toluene and benzyl radical reactions important at low temperatures. Cross-reactions between alkane, alkene, and aromatics were also included in order to account for the acceleration by the addition of toluene into iso-octane recently found in the shock tube study of the ignition delay [Y. Sakai et al, SAE 2007-01-4014 (2007)]. Validations of the model were performed with existing shock tube and flow tube data. The model well predicts the ignition characteristics of toluene and PRF/Toluene mixtures under the wide range of temperatures (500-1700 K) and pressures (2-50 atm). It is found that reactions of benzyl radical with oxygen molecule …

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

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This paper discusses the Export Administration Act in terms of its evolution in the 20th century, its major features including the types of controls authorized by the act, the Commercial Control List and export licensing procedures, and issues concerning the maintenance of export controls under IEEPA. It then highlights several controlled commodities that have been featured prominently in export control discussions.

This report examines the importance to the U.S. economy of China’s investment in U.S. securities, as well as U.S. concerns over the possibility that China might unload a large share of those holdings, the likelihood that this would occur, and the potential implications such action could have for the U.S. economy.

This report begins by showing how much the household saving rate has declined in recent years. Next, it explains how household saving is measured, and provides some detail on how saving varies across the income distribution. Finally, it discusses factors that may account for the decline in household saving, as well as how much of a policy concern the decline in household saving may be.

This report mainly provides information about the Economic Issues and Options for U.S. Trade Policy on China’s Currency. Lower priced goods from China may hurt the U.S.

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This report contains a summary of technical achievements during a three-year project to demonstrate high efficiency LED luminaire designs based on small area array-based gallium nitride diodes. Novel GaN-based LED array designs are described, specifically addressing the thermal, optical, electrical and mechanical requirements for the incorporation of such arrays into viable solid-state LED luminaires. This work resulted in the demonstration of an integrated luminaire prototype of 1000 lumens cool white light output with reflector shaped beams and efficacy of 89.4 lm/W at CCT of 6000oK and CRI of 73; and performance of 903 lumens warm white light output with reflector shaped beams and efficacy of 63.0 lm/W at CCT of 2800oK and CRI of 82. In addition, up to 1275 lumens cool white light output at 114.2 lm/W and 1156 lumens warm white light output at 76.5 lm/W were achieved if the reflector was not used. The success to integrate small area array-based LED designs and address thermal, optical, electrical and mechanical requirements was clearly achieved in these luminaire prototypes with outstanding performance and high efficiency.

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