Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense (DOD) faces financial and related management problems that are pervasive, complex, long-standing, and deeply rooted in virtually all business operations throughout the department. These problems have impeded the department's ability to provide complete, reliable, and timely business information to the Congress, DOD managers, and other decision makers. Of the 25 areas on our governmentwide "high-risk" list, 6 are DOD program areas, and the department shares responsibility for 3 other high-risk areas that are governmentwide in scope. DOD's problems in each of these areas hinder the efficiency of operations, and leave the department vulnerable to fraud, waste, and abuse. For fiscal year 2003, DOD's information technology (IT) budget request was over $26 billion. More specifically, to support its business operations, DOD reports that it currently relies on about 2,300 systems, including accounting, acquisition, logistics, and personnel systems that will cost about $18 billion--nearly $5.2 billion for business systems and $12.8 billion primarily for business systems infrastructure--in fiscal year 2003 to operate, maintain, and modernize. As we have previously reported, this environment was not designed to be, but rather has evolved into, an overly complex and …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense (DOD) maintains equipment and infrastructure worth billions of dollars in many environments where corrosion is causing military assets to deteriorate, shortening their useful life. The resulting increase in required repairs and replacements drives up costs and takes critical systems out of action, reducing mission readiness. GAO was asked to review military activities related to corrosion control. Specifically, this report examines the extent of the impact of corrosion on DOD and the military services and the extent of the effectiveness of DOD's and the services' approach to preventing and mitigating corrosion."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Army's five maintenance depots produced work valued at $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2002, with the remaining 49 percent of the Army's depot work performed by contractors. GAO was asked to assess (1) the trends in and the reliability of depot workload projections; (2) whether workloads are sufficient for efficient depot operations, initiatives are under way to improve efficiency, and additional workloads are possible; (3) whether the Army has identified depots' core capability and provided workload to support that capability; and (4) whether the Army has a long-range plan for a viable, efficient depot system."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This letter provides GAO's response for the record to the question posed by Congress concerning whether GAO believes that the Department of Homeland Security should consolidate databases in order to enable the correlation of relationships in that data that can point to developing threats."

The proposed SuperNova/Acceleration Probe (SNAP) mission will have a two-meter class telescope delivering diffraction-limited images to an instrumented 0.7 square degree field in the visible and near-infrared wavelength regime. The requirements for the instrument suite and the present configuration of the focal plane concept are presented. A two year R&D phase, largely supported by the Department of Energy, is just beginning. We describe the development activities that are taking place to advance our preparedness for mission proposal in the areas of detectors and electronics.

This report provides an overview of biodiesel fuel and agriculture in the United States.

The latest development of angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) technique has seen extremely high energy resolution and momentum resolution, as well as multiple angle detection. These advancements have led to new findings through efficient Fermi surface mapping, fine electronic structure resolving, and direct determination of electron self-energy. In this paper, we will highlight some recent high resolution ARPES work on high temperature superconductors. These include: (1) charge-ordering and evolution of electronic structure with doping; (2) bilayer splitting and Fermi surface topology of Bi2212; and (3) strong electron phonon coupling and electron electron interaction in high temperature superconductors.

This report documents the results of Phase 1 of the ''Air Force Hydrazine Detector Characterization and Calibration Project''. A method for calibrating model MDA 7100 hydrazine detectors in the United States Air Force (AF) inventory has been developed. The calibration system consists of a Kintek 491 reference gas generation system, a humidifier/mixer system which combines the dry reference hydrazine gas with humidified diluent or carrier gas to generate the required humidified reference for calibrations, and a gas sampling interface. The Kintek reference gas generation system itself is periodically calibrated using an ORNL-constructed coulometric titration system to verify the hydrazine concentration of the sample atmosphere in the interface module. The Kintek reference gas is then used to calibrate the hydrazine monitors. Thus, coulometric titration is only used to periodically assess the performance of the Kintek reference gas generation system, and is not required for hydrazine monitor calibrations. One advantage of using coulometric titration for verifying the concentration of the reference gas is that it is a primary standard (if used for simple solutions), thereby guaranteeing, in principle, that measurements will be traceable to SI units (i.e., to the mole). The effect of humidity of the reference gas was characterized by using …

Predicting the amount of water that may seep into waste emplacement drifts is important for assessing the performance of the proposed geologic repository for high-level radioactive waste at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. The repository would be located in thick, partially saturated fractured tuff that will be heated to above-boiling temperatures as a result of heat generation from the decay of nuclear waste. Since infiltrating water will be subject to vigorous boiling for a significant time period, the superheated rock zone (i.e., rock temperature above the boiling point of water) can form an effective vaporization barrier that reduces the possibility of water arrival at emplacement drifts. In this paper, we analyze the behavior of episodic preferential flow events that penetrate the hot fractured rock, evaluate the impact of such flow behavior on the effectiveness of the vaporization barrier, and discuss the implications for the performance assessment of the repository. A semi-analytical solution is utilized to determine the complex flow processes in the hot rock environment. The solution is applied at several discrete times after emplacement, covering the time period of strongly elevated temperatures at Yucca Mountain.

This paper presents in-situ measurement results for energy and environmental performance of thirteen cleanroom systems located in the USA, including key metrics for evaluating cleanroom air system performance and overall electric power intensity. Comparisons with the IEST Recommended Practice (IEST-RP-CC012.1) are made to examine the performance of cleanroom air systems. Based upon the results, the paper discusses likely opportunities for improving cleanroom energy efficiency while maintaining effective contamination control. The paper concludes that there are wide variations in energy performance of cleanroom environmental systems, and that performance benchmarking can serve as a vehicle to identify energy efficient cleanroom design practices and to highlight important issues in cleanroom operation and maintenance.

An experimental technique is presented that permits diagnostics viewing light from the plasma edge to be spatially calibrated relative to one another. By sweeping the plasma edge, each chord of each diagnostic sweeps out a portion of the light emission profile. A nonlinear least-squares fit to such data provides superior cross-calibration of diagnostics located at different toroidal locations compared with simple surveying. Another advantage of the technique is that it can be used to monitor the position of viewing chords during an experimental campaign to ensure that alignment does not change over time. Moreover, should such a change occur, the data can still be cross-calibrated and its usefulness retained.

Recent experimental observations from NSTX [National Spherical Torus Experiment] suggest that many modes in a subcyclotron frequency range are excited during neutral-beam injection (NBI). These modes have been identified as Compressional Alfven Eigenmodes (CAEs) and Global Alfven Eigenmodes (GAEs), which are driven unstable through the Doppler-shifted cyclotron resonance with the beam ions. The injection velocities of the NBI ions in NSTX are large compared to Alfven velocity, V(sub)0 > 3V(sub)A, and a strong anisotropy in the fast-ion pitch-angle distribution provides the energy source for the instabilities. Recent interest in the excitation of Alfven Eigenmodes in the frequency range omega less than or approximately equal to omega(sub)ci, where omega(sub)ci is the ion cyclotron frequency, is related to the possibility that these modes can provide a mechanism for direct energy transfer from super-Alfvenic beam ions to thermal ions. Numerical simulations are required in order to find a self-consistent mode structure, and to include the effects of finite-Larmor radius (FLR), the nonlinear effects, and the thermal plasma kinetic effects.

The neutralization of solutions containing significant quantities of fissile material at the Department of Energy's Savannah River Site and the subsequent transfer of the slurry to the High Level Waste (HLW) system is accomplished with the addition of a neutron poison to ensure nuclear safety. Gd, depleted U, Fe, and Mn have been used as poisons in the caustic precipitation of process solutions prior to discarding to HLW. However, the use of Gd is preferred since only small amounts of Gd are necessary for effective criticality control, smaller volumes of metal hydroxides are produced, and the volume of HLW glass resulting from this process is minimized.

The multilevel physics, massively parallel plasma simulation code, M3D, has been used to study spherical tori (STs) and tokamaks. The magnitude of outboard shift of density profiles relative to electron temperature profiles seen in NSTX [National Spherical Torus Experiment] under strong toroidal flow is explained. Internal reconnection events in ST discharges can be classified depending on the crash mechanism, just as in tokamak discharges; a sawtooth crash, disruption due to stochasticity, or high-beta disruption. Toroidal shear flow can reduce linear growth of internal kink. It has a strong stabilizing effect nonlinearly and causes mode saturation if its profile is maintained, e.g., through a fast momentum source. Normally, however, the flow profile itself flattens during the reconnection process, allowing a complete reconnection to occur. In some cases, the maximum density and pressure spontaneously occur inside the island and cause mode saturation. Gyrokinetic hot particle/MHD hybrid studies of NSTX show the effects of fluid compression on a fast-ion-driven n = 1 mode. MHD studies of recent tokamak experiments with a central current hole indicate that the current clamping is due to sawtooth-like crashes, but with n = 0.

Recent technological advances in high-throughput data collection allow for the study of increasingly complex systems on the scale of the whole cellular genome and proteome. Gene network models are required to interpret large and complex data sets. Rationally designed system perturbations (e.g. gene knock-outs, metabolite removal, etc) can be used to iteratively refine hypothetical models, leading to a modeling-experiment cycle for high-throughput biological system analysis. We use fuzzy logic gene network models because they have greater resolution than Boolean logic models and do not require the precise parameter measurement needed for chemical kinetics-based modeling. The fuzzy gene network approach is tested by exhaustive search for network models describing cyclin gene interactions in yeast cell cycle microarray data, with preliminary success in recovering interactions predicted by previous biological knowledge and other analysis techniques. Our goal is to further develop this method in combination with experiments we are performing on bacterial regulatory networks.

Effective spatial domain decomposition for discrete ordinate (Sn) neutron transport calculations has been critical for exploiting massively parallel architectures typified by the ASCI White computer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. A combination of geometrical and computational constraints has posed a unique challenge as problems have been scaled up to several thousand processors. Carefully scripted decomposition and corresponding execution algorithms have been developed to handle a range of geometrical and hardware configurations.

The spheromak, with its simply connected geometry, holds promise as a less expensive fusion reactor. It has reasonably good plasma beta and can be formed and sustained in steady state with a magnetized coaxial plasma gun. The Sustained Spheromak Physics Experiment (SSPX) shown in Fig. 1 was constructed to investigate the key issues of magnetic field generation and energy confinement. In addition to the coaxial gun, nine magnetic field coils are utilized to shape the vacuum magnetic flux. This flexibility allows operation in many different regimes producing very different plasma characteristics. Pulse length is extended and magnetic field strength is increased. Improved surface conditioning produces plasmas with low impurity content, and higher electron temperature, T{sub e}. Electron heat transport within the separatrix is reduced by a factor of 4. The results strongly suggest the existence of closed flux surfaces even though the plasma is connected to the coaxial source. The CORSICA Grad-Shafranov 2-d equilibrium code with data from edge magnetic probes along with T {sub e} and electron density ne from Thomson scattering is used to calculate internal profiles: normalized current {gamma} = {mu}{sub 0}J/B, safety factor = q, ohmic heating, thermal energy density, and thermal diffusivity = {xi}{sub e}. …

Large-aperture laser-resistant mirrors are required for the construction of the National Ignition Facility, a 1.8 MJ laser. In order to fabricate the 1408 mirrors, a development program was started in 1994 to improve coating quality, manufacturing rate, and lower unit cost. New technologies and metrology tools were scaled to meter size for facilitization in 1999 at Spectra-Physics and the Laboratory of Laser Energetics at the University of Rochester. Pilot production, to fabricate 5-10% of each component, commenced in 2001 and full production rates were achieved in 2002. Coating production will be completed in 2008 with the coating of 460 m{sup 2} of high-damage-threshold precision coatings on 100 tons of BK7 glass with yields exceeding 90%.

Within collapsing protogalaxies, thermal instability leads to the formation of a population of cool fragments which are confined by the pressure of a residual hot background medium. The critical mass required for the cold clouds to become gravitationally unstable and to form stars is determined by both their internal temperature and external pressure. Massive first generation stars form in primordial clouds with sufficient column density to shield themselves from external UV photons emitted by nearby massive stars or AGNs. Less massive photoionized clouds gain mass due to ram pressure stripping by the residual halo gas. Collisions may also trigger thermal instability and fragmentation into cloudlets. While most cloudlets have substellar masses, the largest become self-gravitating and collapse to form protostellar cores without further fragmentation. The initial stellar mass function is established as these cores capture additional residual cloudlets. Energy dissipation from the mergers ensures that the cluster remains bound in the limit of low star formation efficiency. Dissipation also promotes the formation and retention of the most massive stars in the cluster center. On the scale of the protogalactic clouds, the formation of massive stars generates intense UV radiation which photoionizes gas and quenches star formation in nearby regions. As …

The pressure profile and plasma shape, parameterized by elongation ({kappa}), triangularity ({delta}), and squareness ({zeta}), strongly influence stability. In this study, ideal stability of single null and symmetric, double-null, advanced tokamak (AT) configurations is examined. All the various shapes are bounded by a common envelope and can be realized in the DIII-D tokamak. The calculated AT equilibria are characterized by P{sub 0}/{l_angle}P{r_brace} {approx} 2.0-4.5, weak negative central shear, high q{sub min} (>2.0), high bootstrap fraction, an H-mode pedestal, and varying shape parameters. The pressure profile is modeled by various polynomials together with a hyperbolic tangent pedestal, consistent with experimental observations. Stability is calculated with the DCON code and the resulting stability boundary is corroborated by GATO runs.

This report provides information about the Country Applicability of the U.S. Normal Trade Relations (Most-Favored-Nation) Status. The united states extends unlimitedand permanent nondiscriminatory treatment to all of its trading partners.

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An estimated 41.2 million people were without health insurance in 2001. Legislation under consideration by the 108th and earlier Congresses is intended to assist small employers in offering health insurance as a benefit to their workers. A new bill, H.R. 4281, introduced on May 5, 2004, The Small Business Health Fairness Act of 2003 (H.R. 6601s. 545), and a number of bills from the earlier Congresses include provisions creating new groups for small firms to join or encouraging the growth of existing groups so that small employers can band together to offer coverage to their employees.