Data were collected with the AGS internal (E880) polarimeter at G{gamma} = 12.5 during the FY04 polarized proton run. Measurements were made with forward scintillation counters in coincidence with recoil counter telescopes, permitting an absolute calibration of the polarimeter for both nylon and carbon targets. The results are summarized and they will also be useful for an absolute calibration of the AGS CNI polarimeter at G{gamma} = 12.5.

Low energy electrons (often referred to as "electron clouds") in the beam chambers of high intensity accelerators and storage rings can limit their performance. They can limit intensity by causing instabilities, unacceptable pressure increases or increases in beam size. Thus, reliable simulations of electron cloud generation in the Los Alamos high intensity Proton Storage Ring (PSR) and similar machines would be a most valuable tool for improving our understanding of its origin, the parameters that affect it and how it might be controlled. Such tools would provide cost-effective methods for designing mitigation measures and evaluating them before going to the expense of fabrication and experimental testing in an operating accelerator facility. In this project we have developed and tested several significant improvements to a widely used electron cloud simulation code, POSINST. In our version, LANLPOSINST V6, we have add several important features including the capability to model a multi-element section of the ring consisting of two quadrupole magnets with 3-dimensional magnetic fields, dipole magnet end fields, several drift spaces and various electron cloud diagnostics. Improvements were also added to the modeling of the initial primary or “seed” electrons from proton beam losses. One important conclusion from benchmarking these improvements was …

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This report provides the information related to the fishery, aquaculture, and marine mammal issues in the 112th Congress

This report summarizes the research conducted as part of the UMD effort of the multi-site PERC project. This project developed and enhanced the Dyninst instrumentation system and the Active Harmony auto-tuning framework.

Small modular reactors (SMRs) are a promising approach to meeting future energy needs. Although the electrical output of an individual SMR is relatively small compared to that of typical commercial nuclear plants, they can be grouped to produce as much energy as a utility demands. Furthermore, SMRs can be used for other purposes, such as producing hydrogen and generating process heat. The design characteristics of many SMRs differ from those of current conventional plants and may require a distinct concept of operations. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) conducted research to examine the human factors engineering and the operational aspects of SMRs. The research identified thirty potential human-performance issues that should be considered in the NRC's reviews of SMR designs and in future research activities. The purpose of this report is to illustrate how the issues can support SMR probabilistic risk analyses and their review by identifying potential human failure events for a subset of the issues. As part of addressing the human contribution to plant risk, human reliability analysis practitioners identify and quantify the human failure events that can negatively impact normal or emergency plant operations. The results illustrated here can be generalized to identify additional human failure events …

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The technologies and practices that have enabled the recent boom in shale gas production have also brought attention to the environmental impacts of its use. Using the current state of knowledge of the recovery, processing, and distribution of shale gas and conventional natural gas, we have estimated up-to-date, life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, we have developed distribution functions for key parameters in each pathway to examine uncertainty and identify data gaps - such as methane emissions from shale gas well completions and conventional natural gas liquid unloadings - that need to be addressed further. Our base case results show that shale gas life-cycle emissions are 6% lower than those of conventional natural gas. However, the range in values for shale and conventional gas overlap, so there is a statistical uncertainty regarding whether shale gas emissions are indeed lower than conventional gas emissions. This life-cycle analysis provides insight into the critical stages in the natural gas industry where emissions occur and where opportunities exist to reduce the greenhouse gas footprint of natural gas.

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This report discusses issues related to each of the major Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) simultaneously seeking increases in their capital bases to fund the continued expansion of their development lending programs. U.S. authorization to participate in the GCIs was provided in the FY2011 and FY2012 budget measures. Key issues regarding U.S. participation in the GCIs include: comparative effectiveness of bilateral and multilateral aid, scope of MDB activity, role of emerging economic powers, U.S. bidding for MDB-funded projects, and anti-corruption policies.

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This report discusses issues regarding the Presidential Nomination Process including information about the 2008 election, calendar changes from 1988 to 2008, changes to national party rules for 2012, an evaluation of the primary system, reform proposals, and legislative considerations.

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "According to information provided by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and our survey of the Inspectors General (IG), five civilian agencies, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Department of Energy, the Corporation for National and Community Service, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission used the Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act's (PFCRA) authorities to refer 141 cases to DOJ for approval by the Attorney General during fiscal years 2006 through 2010. Of the 141 cases, 135, or 96 percent, were referred by HUD. The remaining four agencies referred a total of 6 cases during this period."

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A weekly publication, the Texas Register serves as the journal of state agency rulemaking for Texas. Information published in the Texas Register includes proposed, adopted, withdrawn and emergency rule actions, notices of state agency review of agency rules, governor's appointments, attorney general opinions, and miscellaneous documents such as requests for proposals. After adoption, these rulemaking actions are codified into the Texas Administrative Code.

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This report addresses key questions concerning the impact of enactment of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) on the TRICARE and VA health care programs. To provide some context to this discussion, the report begins with a brief overview of the two health systems and eligibility for care under each system.

This report provides an overview of the U.S. Postal Service's (USPS's) financial condition, legislation enacted to alleviate the USPS's financial challenges, and possible issues for the 112th Congress. It also includes a side-by-side comparison of two of the postal reform bills, H.R. 2309 and S. 1789.

This report identifies the names, committee assignments, dates of service, and (for Representatives) congressional districts of the 276 women who have served in Congress.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Pacific Northwest Site Office (PNSO) oversees and manages the DOE contract for the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), a DOE Office of Science multi-program laboratory located in Richland, Washington. PNSO is responsible for ensuring that all activities conducted on the PNNL site comply with applicable laws, policies, and DOE Orders. The DOE Pacific Northwest Site Office Cultural and Biological Resources Management Plan (DOE/PNSO 2008) addresses the requirement for annual surveys and monitoring for species of concern and to identify and map invasive species. In addition to the requirement for an annual survey, proposed project activities must be reviewed to assess any potential environmental consequences of conducting the project. The assessment process requires a thorough understanding of the resources present, the potential impacts of a proposed action to those resources, and the ultimate consequences of those actions. The PNNL site is situated on the southeastern corner of the DOE Hanford Site, located at the north end of the city of Richland in south-central Washington. The site is bordered on the east by the Columbia River, on the west by Stevens Drive, and on the north by the Hanford Site 300 Area (Figure 1). The environmental …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "U.S. agencies under Chief of Mission authority and the Department of Defense (DOD) have reported expanding their civilian presence in Afghanistan and took steps to improve their ability to track that presence. Since January 2009, U.S. agencies under Chief of Mission authority more than tripled their civilian presence from 320 to 1,142. However, although State could report total Chief of Mission numbers by agency, in mid-2011 GAO identified discrepancies in State’s data system used to capture more-detailed staffing information such as location and position type. State began taking steps in the fall of 2011 to improve the reliability of its data system. Also, DOD reported expanding its overall civilian presence from 394 civilians in January 2009 to 2,929 in December 2011 to help assist U.S. efforts in Afghanistan. The extent to which DOD’s data is reliable is unknown due to omissions and double counting, among other things. In a 2009 report, GAO noted similar data issues and recommended DOD improve data concerning deployed civilians. DOD concurred with the recommendation and expects the issues will be addressed by a new tracking system to be completed in fiscal …

This report discusses the current political state of Afghanistan, as well as the Afghan government. This report also discusses Afghanistan's relationship with the United States, particularly U.S. efforts to urge President Hamid Karzai, to address corruption within the Afghan government. The report also includes discussion of election fraud and corruption in Afghanistan.

Both the Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory (KAPL) in Schenectady, NY and the Kesselring Site Operations (KSO) facility near Ballston Spa, NY are required to estimate the effects of hypothetical emissions of radiological material from their respective facilities by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which regulates these facilities. An atmospheric dispersion model known as CAP88, which was developed and approved by the EPA for such purposes, is used by KAPL and KSO to meet this requirement. CAP88 calculations over a given time period are based on statistical data on the meteorological conditions for that period. Both KAPL and KSO have on-site meteorological towers which take atmospheric measurements at a frequency ideal for EPA regulatory model input. However, an independent analysis and processing of the meteorological data from each tower is required to derive a data set appropriate for use in the CAP88 model. The National Atmospheric Release Advisory Center (NARAC) was contracted by KAPL to process the on-site data for the calendar year 2011. The purpose of this document is to: (1) summarize the procedures used in the preparation/analysis of the 2011 meteorological data; and (2) document adherence of these procedures to the guidance set forth in 'Meteorological Monitoring Guidance …