A brief summary is presented of results pertinent to quark spectroscopy derived from high statistics data on K{sup {minus}}p interactions obtained with the LASS spectrometer at SLAC. The present status of strange meson spectroscopy is briefly reviewed, and the impact of the proposed KAON Factory on the future of the subject considered. 36 refs., 24 figs.

Recently, we have expanded our efforts to develop state-of-the-art optical components for use in large-scale, high-peak-power, solid state lasers. Laser-induced damage to many of these components sets critical constraints on construction costs and limits the peak powers attainable in current and proposed devices. Increasing the damage threshold whenever possible by improving materials fabrication technology is therefore the ultimate goal of our work. Our research has resulted in an extensive database of laser-damage measurements. We present summaries of these measurements with particular emphasis on those taken at 1064 nm and 355 nm.