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The Helium Privatization Act of 1996 (PL 104-273) directs the Department of the Interior to begin liquidating the US Federal Helium Reserve by 2005 in a manner consistent with "minimum market disruption" and at a price given by a formula specified in the act. This report is the product of that mandate.

The federal government has invested in facilities worldwide to support the provision of government services. This book identifies factors contributing to this deterioration and recommends a framework of strategies to foster acccountability for the stewardship of federal facilities and to allocate resources for their maintenance and repair.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is developing advanced technologies to form the foundation for the breakthrough in civil aviation. This book examines aircraft design requirements, assesses the program's planning and progress, and recommends changes that helps the program achieve its overall objectives.

The reduction of the fire hazard of fuel is critical to improving survivability in impact-survivable aircraft accidents. This title reviews the state of development, technological needs, and promising technology for the future development of aviation fuels that are most resistant to ignition during a crash.

Draws together relevant geological, technical, economic, and environmental factors and recommends specific directions for US research and development efforts on alternative fuel sources. This volume is useful for executives and engineers in the automotive and fuel industries, policymakers, environmental and alternative fuel specialists, and more.

The Space Station Freedom program is a major US manned space initiative. This book summarizes the findings and recommendations of a workshop that examined the space station program with a view toward identifying engineering issues related to the design and operation of the station.

Studies both sides of the engineering equation, education and utilization. This volume presents a discussion of the development of engineering in the United States followed by an examination of the status of engineering. It looks at the strengths and weaknesses of engineering and evaluates trends in the composition of the engineering work force.

Identifies criteria for the USNRC's (US Nuclear Regulatory Commission) review and acceptance of digital applications in nuclear power plants. This book focuses on different areas: software quality assurance, common-mode software failure potential, systems aspects of digital instrumentation and control technology, and more.

Advances in guidance and control, communications, sensors, and other technologies for undersea vehicles provide an opportunity to understand the oceans' influence on the energy and chemical balance. This book provides guidance about vehicle subsystem development priorities, and describes how national research can be focused effectively.

Describes the Conference on Fire and Smoke-Resistant Materials. This work identifies trends in aircraft fire safety and research directions for the FAA program. It contains 15 papers and summaries of the workshop sessions concerning toxicity issues, fire performance parameters, drivers for materials development, and materials technology.

Develops a framework for guiding attempts at measuring the performance of infrastructure systems and grapples with the concept of defining good performance. This book focuses on urban regions, within a context of national policy. It also provides the basis for analysis and application at the local, regional, state, and national levels.

Evaluates the safety, oversight, and management functions that are implemented in the Space Shuttle program to ensure that the software is of the highest quality possible. This work makes numerous recommendations regarding safety and management procedures and offers a rationale for continuing the Independent Verification and Validation effort.

On November 13, 1985, catastrophic mudflows swept down the slopes of the erupting Nevado del Ruiz volcano. This volume analyzes the disaster's many aspects: the extent, constitution, and behavior of the mudflows; the nature of damage to structures; the status of the area's disaster warning system; and more.

High performance synthetic fibers are key components of composite materials. This book stresses the need for redesigning university curricula to reflect the interdisciplinary nature of fiber science and technology. It also urges greater government and industry cooperation in support of academic instruction in fiber-related disciplines.

The hazard posed by large dams has long been known. This book evaluates contemporary knowledge about the earthquake performance of concrete dams, including procedures for investigating the seismic safety of such structures. It informs researchers about earthquake analysis of concrete dams and identifies areas where additional knowledge is needed.

In modern times, snow avalanches are a concern in recreational mountainous areas. However, programs for snow avalanche hazard mitigation in other countries are far ahead of those in the US. This book identifies many steps that should be taken in order to establish guidelines for research, technology transfer, and avalanche legislation and zoning.

Surveys the relationship between economic activity and electricity use, showing how trends in the growth of electricity demand may be affected by changes in the economy, and examines the connection between the use of electrotechnologies and productivity. This book contains a mix of historical perspective and a synthesis of econometric findings.

Evaluates the state of knowledge about adverse aircraft-pilot coupling (APC) and processes that may be used to eliminate it from military and commercial aircraft. This book is useful for technical, government, and administrative decisionmakers and their technical and administrative support staffs.

Examines the development of the tourist submarines industry around the world and explores the problems involved with strengthening the Coast Guard's capability of providing the oversight and expertise needed to certify and inspect tourist submersibles. This book identifies the needs for system redundancy, hazards analysis, and quality control.