Concurrent resolution introduced by the Texas House of Representatives and Senate relating to declaring April Child Abuse Prevention Month in Texas.

Concurrent resolution introduced by the Texas House of Representatives and Senate commemorating the opening of the Fidel and Andrea R. Villarreal Elementary School in Zapata County and honoring the memory of Fidel and Andrea R. Villarreal.

Concurrent resolution introduced by the Texas House of Representatives and Senate congratulating Coach Kim Mulkey-Robertson and the Baylor Lady Bears for winning the 2005 NCAA Women's National Basketball Championship.

A descriptive journey of the Advanced Fracture Characterization and Well Path Navigation System for Effective Re-Development and Enhancement of Ultimate Recovery from the Complex Monterey Reservoir of South Ellwood Field, Offshore California.

Measurements of radially resolved L-shell Mo spectra from wire array pinches on Sandia's Z generator are presented and analyzed using a collisional-radiative model. The spectra indicate large radial gradients in density over the {approx}8-mm-diameter plasma column, but only the emission from the {approx}2 mm central region of the pinch appears to be influenced by opacity. Population inversions and significant gain factors for 100-200 {angstrom} transitions in Ne-like Mo are predicted to exist at the diagnosed plasma conditions.

This report is on Anti-Doping Policies: The Olympics and Selected Professional Sports.

An issue over the years has been the inaccurate rulemaking to carry out fuel economy ratings and the in-use fuel economy has failed to meet the rated fuel economy. Various amendments and acts are being passed to ensure the accuracy to the fuel economy readings and take other factors into account when measuring them.

Predictions of increasing levels of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) and the specter of global warming have intensified research efforts to identify ways to sequester carbon. A number of novel avenues of research are being considered, including bioprocessing methods to promote and accelerate biosequestration of CO{sub 2} from the environment through the growth of organisms such as coccolithophorids, which are capable of sequestering CO{sub 2} relatively permanently. Calcium and magnesium carbonates are currently the only proven, long-term storage reservoirs for carbon. Whereas organic carbon is readily oxidized and releases CO{sub 2} through microbial decomposition on land and in the sea, carbonates can sequester carbon over geologic time scales. This proposal investigates the use of coccolithophorids--single-celled, marine algae that are the major global producers of calcium carbonate--to sequester CO{sub 2} emissions from power plants. Cultivation of coccolithophorids for calcium carbonate (CaCO{sub 3}) precipitation is environmentally benign and results in a stable product with potential commercial value. Because this method of carbon sequestration does not impact natural ecosystem dynamics, it avoids controversial issues of public acceptability and legality associated with other options such as direct injection of CO{sub 2} into the sea and ocean fertilization. Consequently, cultivation of coccolithophorids could be carried …

This report provides a quantitative framework for policy considerations dealing with U.S. trade with China. It provides basic data and analysis of China’s international trade with the United States and other countries. Since Chinese data differ considerably from those of its trading partners (because of how entrepot trade through Hong Kong is counted), data from both PRC sources and those of its trading partners are presented. Charts showing import trends by sector for the United States highlight China’s growing market shares in many industries and also show import shares for Japan, Canada, Mexico, the European Union, and the Association for Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN ).

The objective of this work is to improve the process for CO{sub 2} capture by alkanolamine absorption/stripping by developing an alternative solvent, aqueous K{sub 2}CO{sub 3} promoted by piperazine. Stripper modeling suggests the energy requirement with a simple stripper will be about the same for 5 m K{sup +}/2.5 m PZ and 7 m MEA. Modeling with a generic solvent shows that the optimum heat of CO{sub 2} desorption to minimize heat duty lies between 15 and 25 kcal/gmol. On-line pH and density measurements are effective indicators of loading and total alkalinity for the K+/PZ solvent. The baseline pilot plant campaign with 30% MEA has been started.

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A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "For over 125 years, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP), within the Department of the Treasury, has relied on a single contractor to supply the paper for U.S. currency. Such a long-term contracting relationship could contribute to higher costs and other risks. Another federal agency that relied on a single contractor, the U.S. Mint, decided to obtain a second supplier for coin metal. In solicitations for currency paper contracts in 1999 and 2003, BEP took steps to address barriers to competition that GAO had identified in 1998 through a survey of paper manufacturers. This report updates GAO's 1998 report using data from a second survey. It addresses (1) the changes BEP made to encourage competition and the results of its efforts, (2) the steps BEP took to ensure that it paid fair and reasonable prices, and (3) the analysis BEP has done of the advantages and disadvantages of obtaining a second supplier."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Since the Iraq conflict began in March 2003, the Departments of Defense (DOD) and State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and other federal agencies have issued contracts to perform reconstruction activities in Iraq. The large number of contractors working amid continued violence has raised concerns over the use of contractors to support U.S. military and civilian operations overseas, including the cost of workers' compensation insurance provided to contractor employees in Iraq under the Defense Base Act (DBA). We have received requests from over 100 members of Congress asking us to review a number of Iraq-related issues, including issues associated with DBA insurance. Because of the level of interest in issues dealing with Iraq, the Comptroller General initiated this review under his statutory authority. The objectives of our review were to identify the cost to the U.S. government of insurance coverage purchased under DBA and to assess the act's implementation. DBA provides disability and medical benefits for contractors' and subcontractors' employees injured on the job and death benefits to survivors when those employees are killed."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In fiscal year 2004, the Department of Defense (DOD) spent more than $200 billion to purchase goods and services. To help ensure defense contracts are awarded fairly and current and former employees do not use their knowledge of DOD acquisition activities to gain financial or other benefits, DOD personnel are required to conduct themselves in a manner that meets federal ethics rules and standards. Regulations require DOD to implement an ethics program and provide that contractors meet certain ethics standards. For this report, GAO assessed (1) DOD's efforts to train and counsel its workforce to raise awareness of ethics rules and standards as well as DOD measures of the effectiveness of these efforts and (2) DOD's knowledge of defense contractors' programs to promote ethical standards of conduct."

The report presents a comprehensive summary of the prototype development process utilized towards the development of a permanent mechanical repair fitting intended to be installed on damaged PE mains under blowing gas conditions. Specifically, the step by step construction approach is presented and the experimental data to support the mitigation of ensuing slow crack growth (SCG) of the damage area.

In spring and summer 2003, the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory led a team that conducted mobile and fixed hydroacoustic surveys in the forebay of The Dalles Dam for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Portland District, for the Anadromous Fish Evaluation Program. The surveys provided information on the distribution and movement of smolt-sized fish relative to ambient factors such as flow, bathymetry, or diel cycle in the forebay at The Dalles Dam. This information is intended to provide baseline data for the development of a surface bypass alternative for juvenile salmon at The Dalles Dam. We sampled the forebay of The Dallas Dam one day and night each week for six weeks in the spring and another six weeks in the summer. In general, during the day in the spring, the greatest densities of smolt-sized fish were observed in the thalweg of the main channel from the Washington bank, to the east side of the powerhouse, along the powerhouse, and concentrated in the areas next to the sluiceway. Fish density was lower on the Washington side of the river and west of mid-powerhouse (north spillway side). The spring night distribution was similar, with a few notable differences. The density …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Despite its significant investment in business systems, the Department of Defense (DOD) continues to have long-standing financial and business management problems that preclude the department from producing reliable and timely information for making decisions and for accurately reporting on its billions of dollars of assets. GAO was asked to (1) identify DOD's fiscal year 2005 estimated funding for its business systems and (2) determine whether DOD has effective control and accountability over its business systems modernization investments."

The 107th Congress version of (H.R. 7), passed by the House, had eight new tax provisions designed to benefit charities and charitable giving, the most important one being the charitable deduction for non-itemizers.This report focuses on the economic effect of the deduction for nonitemizers, assessing the incentive such deductions would create for increased charitable giving.

Possible deterioration of anode sense wires used in a hydrogen-filled neutron detector is investigated. Wires were loaded with free weights and put into a wire detector environment. Stainless Steel, Tungsten, and Platinum wires did not break after exposure to charge equivalent to many wire lifetimes. Furthermore, exposure to hydrogen gas caused no noticeable surface degradation or change in wire yield strength.

This document discusses functions and capabilities of a typical building/facility energy management and control systems (EMCS). The overall intent is to provide a building operator, manager or engineer with basic background information and recommended functions, capabilities, and good/best practices that will enable the control systems to be fully utilized/optimized, resulting in improved building occupant quality of life and more reliable, energy efficient facilities.

Maintaining a multi-model database over a generation or more of model development provides an important framework for assessing model improvement. Using control integrations, we compare the simulation of the El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO), and its extratropical impact, in models developed for the 2007 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report with models developed in the late 1990's (the so-called Coupled Model Intercomparison Project-2 [CMIP2] models). The IPCC models tend to be more realistic in representing the frequency with which ENSO occurs, and they are better at locating enhanced temperature variability over the eastern Pacific Ocean. When compared with reanalyses, the IPCC models have larger pattern correlations of tropical surface air temperature than do the CMIP2 models during the boreal winter peak phase of El Nino. However, for sea-level pressure and precipitation rate anomalies, a clear separation in performance between the two vintages of models is not as apparent. The strongest improvement occurs for the modeling groups whose CMIP2 model tended to have the lowest pattern correlations with observations. This has been checked by subsampling the multi-century IPCC simulations in a manner to be consistent with the single 80-year time segment available from CMIP2. Our results suggest that multi-century …

Personnel completed a rapid study of organic entrainment during operation of a CINC V-5 contactor under prototypical conditions covering the range of expected MCU operation. The study only considered the entrainment of organic into the strip acid effluent destined for the Defense Waste Processing Facility. Based on this work, the following observations are noted: (1) Concentrations of total organic from the contactor discharge, based upon modifier measurements, in the acid typically averaged 330 ppm{sub m}, for a range to 190-610 ppm{sub m}. (2) Entrained droplet sizes remained below 18 microns for samples collected at the decanter outlet and below 11 microns for samples taken from the contactor discharge. (3) Scouting tests showed that a vendor coalescer material promotes coalescence of smaller size droplets from the decanter effluent. (4) Personnel observed a previously unreported organic impurity in the solvent used for this study. Additional efforts are needed to ascertain the source of the impurity and its implication on the overall process. (5) Process throughputs and planned operating conditions result in very stable hydraulics, suggesting that the MCU stripping stages will have spare operating capacity. (6) The V-5 contactors show operated with relatively cool surfaces under the planned operating conditions. (7) If …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The federal government has created a framework to provide for EEO by prohibiting unlawful discrimination based on such factors as race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, and disability, and offers redress when discrimination and retaliation have occurred. To further EEO and help bring about a diverse workforce, federal agencies are required to carry out affirmative employment and minority recruitment programs. EEOC and OPM have primary responsibility for ensuring that the government's policies for a fair, equitable, and inclusive workplace are carried out. In response to a congressional request that GAO provide information on the federal government's performance in promoting EEO and managing its diverse workforce, this report provides information on (1) the statutory and policy framework relating to EEO, affirmative employment, and workforce diversity and (2) the roles and responsibilities of EEOC and OPM within the framework and how these agencies carry out these roles and responsibilities."

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