Multi Cluster Removal Container Procurement

The United States Navy currently has three pieces of large nuclear reactor servicing equipment in storage at a private shipyard. This equipment must be removed from the shipyard by October 1, 2017 or the Navy will incur significant storage fees. This project is to design and build a reusable container system for transporting this equipment, known as Multi Cluster Removal Containers (MCRCs). This item is extremely large and weighs approximately 170,000 Lbs. The inside surfaces of the MCRCs are contaminated with low levels of radioactivity and cannot be dismantled prior to shipping. The container must be fully compliant with US Department of Transportation requirements for low level radioactive material shipment in accordance with Federal Regulations and Navy Radiological Controls. The design must include specification of and securement to a rail car in accordance with the Association of American Railroads Interchange Rules

Energy and Atomic Number Dependence of Electron Depth-Dose and Lateral-Dose Function

A review of available Depth-Dose functions determined both experimentally and by Monte-Carlo simulation in a variety of materials reveals that, although there is general agreement as to the shape of the function, there is considerable disagreement concerning quantitative measures such as the range of the incident electrons and the position of the maximum of the Depth-Dose curve relative to the range. This finding is contrary to the typical assumption that the shape of the Depth-Dose curve is not dependent on the beam energy and only slightly dependent on the target material

Embrace Change by Embracing the Library!

Embrace Change By Embracing the Library! With budgetary concerns abounding in almost every area of legal education, now more than ever is the time to exploit the existing synergies in your law school when thinking of how to enhance and support your international programs without undertaking unnecessary cost. Law school libraries are equipped not only with resources that can inform and educate students on the legal systems and cultures of other countries, but also with qualified librarians who are able to provide research training for students before they depart. This panel will discuss ways in which the library can help contribute to the success of the school’s international programs and increase the benefits students take away from their international experiences. Presenters: Alison Shea, Reference Librarian/Foreign & International Specialist, Fordham University School of Law Stephen Young, Senior Reference Librarian, Catholic University School of La

Separating State from Church: Researching the Legal System of the Vatican City State

Mr. Young and Ms. Shea discuss the unique situation of the Vatican City State in legal research. They provide an overview of the founding documents and the constitutional structure of the world\u27s smallest sovereign nation, a discussion of the complex nature of the Vatican\u27s international status, and a bibliographic essay covering the materials most likely to be available in law libraries in the United States

Terror on High: Deterring ASAT

Student Contribution: As technology becomes even more pervasive in daily life, valuable and relatively vulnerable space assets will inspire greater desire to attack U.S. power through space.1 As a result, Anti-Satellite (ASAT) deterrence, a fledgling area of study, will need to be developed and addressed in detail. The proceeding essay will attempt to answer the following questions. What motivates space attacks? How will the enemy try to attack our space assets? What can be done to deter future ASAT attacks

Moving from Pattern to Process: Coexistence Mechanisms Under Intermediate Disturbance Regimes

Coexistence mechanisms that require environmental variation to operate contribute importantly to the maintenance of biodiversity. One famous hypothesis of diversity maintenance under disturbance is the intermediate disturbance hypothesis (IDH). The IDH proposes patterns of peaked diversity under intermediate disturbance regimes, based on a tension between competitively superior species and species which can rapidly colonize following disturbance. We review the literature, and describe recent research that suggests that more than one underlying mechanism can generate this unimodal diversity pattern in disturbed environments. Several exciting emerging research areas are identified, including interactions between disturbance types, operation of the IDH in multi-trophic systems, and changes in disturbance regimes. However, empirical work is still focussed on describing the IDH pattern, with little emphasis on identifying its mechanistic basis. We discuss how to extend methods for identifying different coexistence mechanisms, developed in the theoretical literature, to experimental research. In an attempt to operationalize these various ideas we outline a hypothetical IDH research programme. A solid understanding of the life history attributes of the component species and their responses to disturbance will facilitate identification of the coexistence mechanism(s) underlying the IDH pattern, and provide a framework by which empirical and theoretical results can be more fully integrated

Moving from Pattern to Process: Coexistence Mechanisms Under Intermediate Disturbance Regimes

Coexistence mechanisms that require environmental variation to operate contribute importantly to the maintenance of biodiversity. One famous hypothesis of diversity maintenance under disturbance is the intermediate disturbance hypothesis (IDH). The IDH proposes patterns of peaked diversity under intermediate disturbance regimes, based on a tension between competitively superior species and species which can rapidly colonize following disturbance. We review the literature, and describe recent research that suggests that more than one underlying mechanism can generate this unimodal diversity pattern in disturbed environments. Several exciting emerging research areas are identified, including interactions between disturbance types, operation of the IDH in multi-trophic systems, and changes in disturbance regimes. However, empirical work is still focussed on describing the IDH pattern, with little emphasis on identifying its mechanistic basis. We discuss how to extend methods for identifying different coexistence mechanisms, developed in the theoretical literature, to experimental research. In an attempt to operationalize these various ideas we outline a hypothetical IDH research programme. A solid understanding of the life history attributes of the component species and their responses to disturbance will facilitate identification of the coexistence mechanism(s) underlying the IDH pattern, and provide a framework by which empirical and theoretical results can be more fully integrated

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: An International Update on the Comparative Performance of American Health Care

Using data from patient and physician surveys, finds that the U.S. healthcare system ranks last or next-to-last when comparing healthcare performance against that of five other nations -- Australia, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, the United Kingdom