A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The accounting profession maintains a voluntary, self-regulatory system through the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) that includes establishing professional standards, monitoring compliance with professional standards, disciplining members for improper acts and substandard performance, and conducting oversight. The Panel of Audit Effectiveness, set up to examine the AICPA's methods, made recommendations to enhance the accounting profession's self-regulatory system. Implementing actions taken or in process have addressed many of the Panel's recommendations. However, the Panel's recommendations did not fully address the limitations of the self-regulatory system identified in its report. Also, some of the Panel's recommendations were either not accepted or are still under study. Additional experience is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of actions taken or planned. However, the system is fragmented, uncoordinated, and has a disciplinary function that is widely perceived to be ineffective. The self-regulatory system is unable to protect the confidentiality of investigative information about alleged audit failures or other disciplinary matters concerning members of the profession. The lack of such protective powers hinders the timing of investigations and affects the public's perception of the self-regulatory system's effectiveness. The Panel recognized the …

Once hostilities end in Afghanistan and the Afghan phase of the war on terrorism starts to wind down, reconstruction efforts will begin in earnest. International attention will likely turn to Afghanistan’s short- and medium-term future, raising questions between the United States and its allies about division of labor, burdensharing, and exit strategies. It is anticipated that Congress will examine reconstruction efforts underway, aid priorities, long-term reconstruction proposals, and the implementation role to be played by the United States.

Molecular, phospholipid fatty acid analysis (PLFA), and substrate utilization (BIOLOG) techniques were used to assess structural and functional differences between microbial communities from a chlorinated-ethene (CE)-contaminated groundwater at a sanitary landfill. The information will be used to evaluate natural attenuation of the associated CE plume. Two groundwater-monitoring wells were tested.

This report discusses the background information and most recent development in U.S.-China relations since mid-1996. Since the early 1990s, U.S.-China relations have followed an uneven course, with modest improvements overshadowed by various recurring difficulties and setbacks. Longstanding bilateral difficulties have included U.S. problems with the PRC’s worsening human rights record, growing tensions over the PRC’s southern military build-up opposite Taiwan and Taiwan’s political status, and continued controversy over allegations of Chinese proliferation of weapons to unstable regimes.

This paper examines the radiation profiles and corresponding ionization source profiles of various carbon and main plasma ions in matched helium and deuterium L-mode plasmas in JET. Operation in helium should reduce chemical sputtering of carbon substantially compared with deuterium. The radiation intensities from C{sup 1+}, C{sup 2+} and C{sup 3+} in the helium plasmas showed reduction by factors of 8, 10 and 25 respectively along the inner SOL and divertor leg compared with the deuterium cases. However, the emission in the outer divertor leg was less than a factor of 2 lower in helium. Using photon efficiencies calculated by the UEDGE code for the spectrometer lines of sight, the calculated source rates of C{sup 1+} and C{sup 3+} along the inner SOL and inner divertor were reduced by a factors of 4 and 20 respectively in the helium plasmas. In the outer divertor leg the source rate of C{sup 3+} was reduced by a factor of 10 but the C{sup 1+} source rate did not change in helium. These measurements are consistent with a model that chemical sputtering of carbon dominates the source from the inner wall and inner divertor in deuterium L-mode plasmas while physical sputtering appears to …

An appraisal of the potential performance of different Low Energy Cooling (LEC) systems in nonresidential buildings in California is being conducted using computer simulation. The paper presents results from the first phase of the study, which addressed the systems that can be modeled, with the DOE-2.1E simulation program. The following LEC technologies were simulated as variants of a conventional variable-air-volume system with vapor compression cooling and mixing ventilation in the occupied spaces: Air-side indirect and indirect/direct evaporative pre-cooling. Cool beams. Displacement ventilation. Results are presented for four populous climates, represented by Oakland, Sacramento, Pasadena and San Diego. The greatest energy savings are obtained from a combination of displacement ventilation and air-side indirect/direct evaporative pre-cooling. Cool beam systems have the lowest peak demand but do not reduce energy consumption significantly because the reduction in fan energy is offse t by a reduction in air-side free cooling. Overall, the results indicate significant opportunities for LEC technologies to reduce energy consumption and demand in nonresidential new construction and retrofit.

Building energy benchmarking is a useful starting point for commercial building owners and operators to target energy savings opportunities. There are a number of tools and methods for benchmarking energy use. Benchmarking based on regional data can provides more relevant information for California buildings than national tools such as Energy Star. This paper discusses issues related to benchmarking commercial building energy use and the development of Cal-Arch, a building energy benchmarking database for California. Currently Cal-Arch uses existing survey data from California's Commercial End Use Survey (CEUS), a largely underutilized wealth of information collected by California's major utilities. Doe's Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) is used by a similar tool, Arch, and by a number of other benchmarking tools. Future versions of Arch/Cal-Arch will utilize additional data sources including modeled data and individual buildings to expand the database.

The chamber walls in inertial fusion energy (IFE) reactors are exposed to harsh conditions following each target implosion. Key issues of the cyclic IFE operation include intense photon and ion deposition, wall thermal and hydrodynamic evolution, wall erosion and fatigue lifetime, and chamber clearing and evacuation to ensure chamber conditions prior to target implosion. Several methods for wall protection have been proposed in the past, each having its own advantages and disadvantages. These methods include bare walls, gas-filled cavities, and liquid walls/jets. We have developed detailed models for reflected laser light, emitted photon, and target debris deposition and interaction with chamber components and implemented them in the comprehensive HEIGHTS software package. The hydrodynamic response of gas-filled cavities and photon radiation transport of the deposited energy has been calculated using new and advanced numerical techniques. Fragmentation models of liquid jets as a result of the deposited energy have also been developed, and the impact on chamber clearing dynamics has been evaluated. The focus of this study is to critically assess the reliability and the dynamic response of chamber walls in various proposed protection methods in IFE systems. Of particular concern is the effect on wall erosion lifetime of various erosion mechanisms, …

The character file formats for the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory evaluated atomic relaxation library (EADL), the electron library (EEDL), and the photon library (EPDL) are given in this report.

This paper presents enhanced remote manipulation of tools for D&D tasks by extending teleoperation with teleautonomy and tele-collaboration. This work builds on a reactive, agent-based control architecture, which is well suited to unstructured and unpredictable environments, and cobot control technology, which implements a virtual fixture that can be used to guide the application of tools with passive force-feedback control. Developed methodologies are tested using simulation, and then planned to be implemented using a structured light sensor and cobot hand controller on a dual-arm system to measure the enhanced performance of key tool operations that are tedious and difficult to perform purely by teleoperation. This work significantly leverages some 2000 hours of operational experience gained during the D&D of the CP-5 reactor at ANL using a dual-arm remote manipulator system, as well as DOE's investment in the dual-arm system itself, which will serve as a test bed for the proposed investigations.

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the audit report covering the financial statements of the Former Members of Congress for fiscal years 2000 and 1999. GAO found no reportable instances of noncompliance. The audit reports included the auditors' opinions that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with general accounting principles."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the financial statement audit reports for the National Academy of Public Administration for fiscal year 2000. GAO found no reportable instances of noncompliance. The audit report included the auditor's opinion that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the audit report covering the financial statements of the National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum for fiscal year 2000. GAO found no reportable instances of noncompliance. The audit reports included the auditors' opinions that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with general accounting principles."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the audit report covering the financial statements of the National Tropical Botanical Garden for fiscal years 2000 and 1999. GAO found no reportable instances of noncompliance. The audit reports included the auditors' opinions that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the audit report covering the financial statements of the Non Commissioned Officers Association of the United States of America, Incorporated, for fiscal years 2000 and 1999. GAO found no reportable instances of noncompliance. The audit reports included the auditors' opinions that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with general accounting principles."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the audit reports covering the financial statements of the Foundation of the Federal Bar Association for fiscal years 2000 and 1999. GAO found no reportable instances of noncompliance. The audit reports included the auditors' opinions that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the financial statement audit reports for the Naval Sea Cadet Corps for fiscal years 2000 and 1999. GAO found no reportable instances of noncompliance. The audit report included the auditor's opinion that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO audited the financial statements of the Capitol Preservation Fund for fiscal years 2001 and 2000. GAO found that the financial statements (1) were presented fairly in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, (2) contained no material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting and compliance with laws and regulations, and (3) complied with the provisions of laws and regulations tested."

As part of the High Performance Commercial Building Systems program, LBNL has been working with the City of Oakland to understand the ongoing performance of the Oakland Administration Buildings. The primary objective of this research is to understand the performance targets and ongoing performance of two buildings that were the subject of a new construction performance contract. Secondary objectives include examining the building performance information systems developed as part of the new construction performance contract and evaluating the role of the energy management and control system (EMCS) as a data acquisition tool to provide recommendations for future new construction projects. We examine the results of the performance contract in detail, and provide additional performance metrics that go beyond what was required in the performance contract. We found that the energy cost intensities (ECI) linked to the project ranged from $1.08/ft{sup 2} to $1.44/ft{sup 2}. Changes in floor area, energy costs, rate schedules, and energy use complicate the evaluation of the performance because of the lack of tracking of underlying data and assumptions. Overall, Oakland has two large office buildings with relatively low-energy use (50 kBtu/ft{sup 2}-yr site electricity and gas use). We compare this energy-use intensity with a number of …

Solute segregation to ceramic grain boundaries governs material processing and microstructure evolution, and can strongly influence material properties critical to engineering performance. Understanding the evolution and implications of grain boundary chemistry is a vital component in the greater effort to engineer ceramics with controlled microstructures. This study examines solute segregation to engineered grain boundaries in titanium-doped sapphire (Al2O3) bicrystals, and explores relationships between grain boundary structure and chemistry at the nanometer scale using spectroscopic and imaging techniques in the transmission electron microscope (TEM). Results demonstrate dramatic changes in solute segregation stemming from small fluctuations in grain boundary plane and structure. Titanium and silicon solute species exhibit strong tendencies to segregate to non-basal and basal grain boundary planes, respectively. Evidence suggests that grain boundary faceting occurs in low-angle twis t boundaries to accommodate nonequilibrium solute segregation related to slow specimen cooling rates, while faceting of tilt grain boundaries often occurs to expose special planes of the coincidence site lattice (CSL). Moreover, quantitative analysis of grain boundary chemistry indicates preferential segregation of charged defects to grain boundary dislocations. These results offer direct proof that static dislocations in ionic materials can assume a net charge, and emphasize the importance of interactions between charged …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "To protect the Great Lakes and to address common water quality problems, the United States and Canada entered into the bilateral Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement in 1972. The agreement has been amended several times, most recently in 1987. That year, the two countries agreed to cooperate with state and provincial governments to develop and implement remedial action plans (RAPs) for designated areas in the Great Lakes Basin--areas contaminated, for example, by toxic substances. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) leads the effort to meet the goals of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, which include RAP development and implementation. As of April 2002, all of the 26 contaminated areas in the Great Lakes Basin that the United States is responsible for have completed the first stage of the RAP process; however, only half have completed the second stage. Even though EPA has been charged with leading the effort to meet the goals of the agreement, it has not clearly delineated responsibility for oversight of RAPs within the agency, and, citing resource constraints and the need to tend to other Great Lakes priorities, reduced its staff and …

This report presents sketch of selected proposals and congressional authority related to Hate Crimes.

This report is a summary and comparison of the selected proposals, which includes a discussion of the constitutional basis that might be claimed or challenged with respect to the federal crimes they create.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In 1999, the Army announced its plans to transform its forces during the next 30 years to enable them to deploy more rapidly and operate more effectively during all types of military conflicts, from small-scale contingencies to major wars. The Army's goal is to be able to deploy a brigade anywhere in the world within 96 hours, a division within 120 hours, and five divisions within 30 days. The first step is to form and equip six interim brigade combat teams by 2008. Created to fill a gap in military capability, the teams are intended to be a lethal and survivable deterrent force that can be rapidly deployed around the world. The commanders in chief envision different uses for the teams according to the unique requirements of their respective regions. However, they generally agree that the teams should provide them with a broader choice of capabilities to meet their operational needs. The Army faces many challenges in assembling its first team. For example, some planned combat capabilities will not be present when the team is certified for deployment next year. In addition, the interim armored vehicle …