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At least 577 records · Page 32

Area 6 Control Point: An Architectural Survey of the Area 6 Control Point, Nevada National Security Site, Nye County, Nevada

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Field Office (NNSA/NFO) proposes to demolish five buildings and five accessory resources in the Area 6 Control Point at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) in Nye County, Nevada. The demolition and removal of the buildings and accessories constitute an undertaking subject to review under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) (54 United States Code [USC] § 306101) and its implementing regulations, 36 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 800. The buildings and accessories were recorded in Identification and Evaluation of 14 Architectural Resources Scheduled for Demolition, Area 6 Control Point and Vicinity, Nevada National Security Site, Nye County, Nevada (Menocal et al. 2020). The report found that the five buildings were not individually eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP, National Register) but were potentially eligible as contributing elements to an unrecorded Area 6 Control Point district. The report also found that the five accessory resources were not individually eligible for the NRHP but they contributed to other historic properties, including the contributing elements to the unrecorded district. Finally, the report found that the undertaking would result in an adverse effect to historic properties. The State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) concurred with the report’s findings regarding the eligibility of the buildings and structures in the Area of Potential Effect (APE) and that the undertaking would result in an adverse effect (Reed 2020). The NNSA/NFO, in consultation with the SHPO, then developed the Memorandum of Agreement DE-GM58-21NA25543 Between the U.S. Department of Energy and the Nevada State Historic Preservation Officer Regarding Demolition of Fourteen Buildings and Structures in Area 6 of the Nevada National Security Site, Nye County, hereafter referred to as the MOA. The MOA stipulates that a district boundary be delineated with an accompanying boundary report and supporting photographs (Stipulation III.A) followed by an architectural survey of the potential historic district (Stipulation III.B). The SHPO reviewed and concurred with the proposed district boundary and accompanying boundary report and photographs (O’Neill et al. 2021) on August 23, 2021, in fulfillment of Stipulation III.A (Reed 2021). This architectural survey report has been prepared in accordance with Stipulation III.B. It includes an NRHP evaluation of the district, identifies contributing and non-contributing elements, and is accompanied by Architectural Resource Assessment (ARA) forms. The NRHP evaluation concludes that the Area 6 Control Point is recommended eligible as a historic district under the Secretary of the Interior’s Significance Criterion A at the national level as the location of the command center and various support facilities directly related to timing and firing operations for nuclear testing on the NNSS from 1951 to 1992. It is also recommended eligible under Significance Criterion C for embodying the distinctive characteristics of a nuclear command center in the context of the Cold War and as a significant and distinguishable entity. There are a total of 29 primary resources within the district boundary. Of these, 28 are recommended as contributing elements to the Area 6 Control Point Historic District and one is recommended as non-contributing.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

MO-A-BRB-00: Electronic Charting in EBRT and Brachytherapy

The process of converting to an electronic chart for radiation therapy can be daunting. It requires a dedicated committee to first research and choose appropriate software, to review the entire documentation policy and flow of the clinic, to convert this system to electronic form or if necessary, redesign the system to more easily conform to the electronic process. Those making the conversion and those who already use electronic charting would benefit from the shared experience of those who have been through the process in the past. Therefore TG262 was convened to provide guidance on electronic charting for external beam radiation therapy and brachytherapy. This course will present the results of an internal survey of task group members on EMR practices in External Beam Radiation Therapy as well as discuss important issues in EMR development and structure for both EBRT and brachytherapy. Learning Objectives: Be familiarized with common practices and pitfalls in development and maintenance of an electronic chart in Radiation Oncology Be familiarized with important issues related to electronic charting in External Beam Radiation Therapy Be familiarized with important issues related to electronic charting in Brachytherapy.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗

Ring Model Development and Validation for Prismatic HTGR Core Thermal-hydraulics and Safety Analysis

Because of the complex core geometry, prismatic high temperature gas-cooled reactors (prismatic HTGRs) often exhibit complex thermal fluid behaviors during both normal operating and transient conditions. Most HTGR designs rely on passive safety system for decay heat removal, such as the reactor cavity cooling system (RCCS). During postulated accidents like Pressurized Conduction Cooldown (PCC) event, the decay heat is first radially transferred from the core region to the reactor vessel outer surface, then to the RCCS cooling panels. The peak fuel temperature is controlled by heat transfer mechanisms with two distinctive characteristic length scales, i.e., the core-wise effective heat conduction and local heat conduction in the fuel pellet scale. As both length scales are essential to determine the fuel temperature, from the modeling perspective, computer codes must be able to capture heat transfer in both scales. This is challenging for both computational fluid dynamics (CFD) tools because of extremely large amount of computation resources required, and for system analysis codes because of the challenge to model the complex core geometry. Under the support of DOE-NE’s Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation (NEAMS) program, efforts have been pursued to support HTGR technology development and its modeling and simulation needs. There is a particular need for advanced modeling and simulation tools to predict thermal-fluid behavior during safety-related transients. In our previous studies, the ring model was adopted in SAM and further developed to simulate the normal operating condition and a PCC event using the MHTGR-350 design of General Atomics as the reference design. This current work represents a continuation of these previous efforts, and the focus is to critically review and examine simplifications and assumptions made to develop the ring model, and to perform code validation using experimental data from an integral-effect test facility, the High Temperature Test Facility (HTTF) at the Oregon State University. In this study, the test PG-27 from the HTTF test suite was selected for code validation purpose. The test PG-27 is a transient test designed to simulate the PCC event of the MHTGR design. Very good agreements between SAM prediction and experimental measurements were found in both coolant and solid structure temperatures during the transient.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

MO-A-BRB-01: Review of TG-262 Internal Survey of Practices in EMR for External Beam Therapy

The process of converting to an electronic chart for radiation therapy can be daunting. It requires a dedicated committee to first research and choose appropriate software, to review the entire documentation policy and flow of the clinic, to convert this system to electronic form or if necessary, redesign the system to more easily conform to the electronic process. Those making the conversion and those who already use electronic charting would benefit from the shared experience of those who have been through the process in the past. Therefore TG262 was convened to provide guidance on electronic charting for external beam radiation therapy and brachytherapy. This course will present the results of an internal survey of task group members on EMR practices in External Beam Radiation Therapy as well as discuss important issues in EMR development and structure for both EBRT and brachytherapy. Learning Objectives: Be familiarized with common practices and pitfalls in development and maintenance of an electronic chart in Radiation Oncology Be familiarized with important issues related to electronic charting in External Beam Radiation Therapy Be familiarized with important issues related to electronic charting in Brachytherapy.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗

Assessing Foundation Insulation Strategies for the 2012 International Energy Conservation Code in Cold Climate New Home Construction

While the International Energy Conservation Code 2012 (IECC 2012) has been adopted at a national level, only two cold climate states have adopted it as their new home energy code. Understanding the resistance to adoption is important in assisting more states accept the code and engage deep energy strategies nationwide. This three-part assessment by the NorthernSTAR Building America Partnership was focused on foundation insulation R-values for cold climates and the design, construction, and performance implications. In Part 1 a literature review and attendance at stakeholder meetings held in Minnesota were used to assess general stakeholder interest and concerns regarding proposed code changes. Part 2 includes drawings of robust foundation insulation systems that were presented at one Minnesota stakeholder meeting to address critical issues and concerns for adopting best practice strategies. In Part 3 a sampling of builders participated in a telephone interview to gain baseline knowledge on insulation systems used to meet the current energy code and how the same builders propose to meet the new proposed code.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Engineering Analysis Using a Web-based Protocol

This paper reviews the development of a web-based framework for engineering analysis. A one-dimensional, high-speed analysis code called LAPIN was used in this study, but the approach can be generalized to any engineering analysis tool. The web-based framework enables users to store, retrieve, and execute an engineering analysis from a standard web-browser. We review the encapsulation of the engineering data into the eXtensible Markup Language (XML) and various design considerations in the storage and retrieval of application data.

Schoeffler, James D.↗

Cost estimation for solid waste management in industrialising regions - Precedents, problems and prospects

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer We review cost estimation approaches for solid waste management. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Unit cost method and benchmarking techniques used in industrialising regions (IR). Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Variety in scope, quality and stakeholders makes cost estimation challenging in IR. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Integrate waste flow and cost models using cost functions to improve cost planning. - Abstract: The importance of cost planning for solid waste management (SWM) in industrialising regions (IR) is not well recognised. The approaches used to estimate costs of SWM can broadly be classified into three categories - the unit cost method, benchmarking techniques and developing cost models using sub-approaches such as cost and production function analysis. These methods have been developed into computer programmes with varying functionality and utility. IR mostly use the unit cost and benchmarking approach to estimate their SWM costs. The models for cost estimation, on the other hand, are used at times in industrialised countries, but not in IR. Taken together, these approaches could be viewed as precedents that can be modified appropriately to suit waste management systems in IR. The main challenges (or problems) one might face while attempting to do so are a lack of cost data, and a lack of quality for what data do exist. There are practical benefits to planners in IR where solid waste problems are critical and budgets are limited.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Assessing Foundation Insulation Strategies for the 2012 International Energy Conservation Code in Cold Climate New Home Construction

Even though the International Energy Conservation Code 2012 (International Code Council 2012) is a model code now available for adoption by individual states, only two cold-climate states have adopted it as their new home energy code. Understanding the resistance to adoption is important in assisting more states to accept the code and engage in deep energy strategies nationwide. This three-part assessment by the NorthernSTAR Building America Partnership was focused on foundation insulation R-values for cold climates and the design, construction, and performance implications. In Section 1, a literature review and attendance at stakeholder meetings held in Minnesota were used to assess general stakeholder interest and concerns about proposed code changes. Section 2 includes drawings of robust foundation insulation systems that were presented at one Minnesota stakeholder meeting to address critical issues and concerns for adopting best practice strategies. In Section 3, a sampling of builders participated in a telephone interview to gain baseline knowledge on insulation systems used to meet the current energy code and how the same builders intend to meet the new proposed code. In general, most builders expressed interest in being able to deliver greater energy efficiency to their customers. Concerns were voiced, however, about the costs compared to the energy savings, constructability, and durability risk resulting from increased foundation insulation R-values. When solutions for building robust foundation wall systems were presented to stakeholders, they did express interest in learning the details of the strategies. There was, however, continued interest in proof of cost, payback, and hygrothermal performance. Builders who participated in the interview were more confident in being able to meet the new requirements. This might have been a result of these respondents already using more advanced techniques for foundation insulation. This insight gives Building America an opportunity to engage the industry with existing research and practice measures that can address constructability and durability concerns at the proposed code levels. It also indicates that builders are interested in more specific information on cost, energy savings, and overall hygrothermal performance. Filling these voids could yield the supportive data needed to enhance building industry confidence and engage more states in the adoption of 2012 International Energy Conservation Code for new homes.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Development of Hexagonal Nodal Diffusion Codes at National Tsing-Hua University

The development of nodal methods for hexagonal geometry reactors at National Tsing-Hua University is reviewed. In particular, the development of the Hybrid Nodal Green's Function Method in hexagonal geometry is re-cast into the Direct-Coarse Mesh Finite Difference Method for efficient implementation with residual solution techniques such as GMRES. The method is further modified to include a rigorous treatment of non-physical terms that arise from the transverse integration procedure. The treatment follows the conformal mapping approach first developed by Y-A Chao and his co-workers. The overall development is implemented into a code written in C++ and tested on a number of well known benchmarks. The new code is shown to be very highly accurate while extremely efficient computationally.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

TU-E-BRB-01: Overview of DIR Advantages/Challenges and Workflow

Deformable image registration (DIR) is developing rapidly and is poised to substantially improve dose fusion accuracy for adaptive and retreatment planning and motion management and PET fusion to enhance contour delineation for treatment planning. However, DIR dose warping accuracy is difficult to quantify, in general, and particularly difficult to do so on a patient-specific basis. As clinical DIR options become more widely available, there is an increased need to understand the implications of incorporating DIR into clinical workflow. Several groups have assessed DIR accuracy in clinically relevant scenarios, but no comprehensive review material is yet available. This session will also discuss aspects of the AAPM Task Group 132 on the Use of Image Registration and Data Fusion Algorithms and Techniques in Radiotherapy Treatment Planning official report, which provides recommendations for DIR clinical use. We will summarize and compare various commercial DIR software options, outline successful clinical techniques, show specific examples with discussion of appropriate and inappropriate applications of DIR, discuss the clinical implications of DIR, provide an overview of current DIR error analysis research, review QA options and research phantom development and present TG-132 recommendations. Learning Objectives: Compare/contrast commercial DIR software and QA options Overview clinical DIR workflow for retreatment To understand uncertainties introduced by DIR Review TG-132 proposed recommendations.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

TU-E-BRB-02: DIR QA Options and Research Development

Deformable image registration (DIR) is developing rapidly and is poised to substantially improve dose fusion accuracy for adaptive and retreatment planning and motion management and PET fusion to enhance contour delineation for treatment planning. However, DIR dose warping accuracy is difficult to quantify, in general, and particularly difficult to do so on a patient-specific basis. As clinical DIR options become more widely available, there is an increased need to understand the implications of incorporating DIR into clinical workflow. Several groups have assessed DIR accuracy in clinically relevant scenarios, but no comprehensive review material is yet available. This session will also discuss aspects of the AAPM Task Group 132 on the Use of Image Registration and Data Fusion Algorithms and Techniques in Radiotherapy Treatment Planning official report, which provides recommendations for DIR clinical use. We will summarize and compare various commercial DIR software options, outline successful clinical techniques, show specific examples with discussion of appropriate and inappropriate applications of DIR, discuss the clinical implications of DIR, provide an overview of current DIR error analysis research, review QA options and research phantom development and present TG-132 recommendations. Learning Objectives: Compare/contrast commercial DIR software and QA options Overview clinical DIR workflow for retreatment To understand uncertainties introduced by DIR Review TG-132 proposed recommendations.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

TU-E-BRB-03: Overview of Proposed TG-132 Recommendations

Deformable image registration (DIR) is developing rapidly and is poised to substantially improve dose fusion accuracy for adaptive and retreatment planning and motion management and PET fusion to enhance contour delineation for treatment planning. However, DIR dose warping accuracy is difficult to quantify, in general, and particularly difficult to do so on a patient-specific basis. As clinical DIR options become more widely available, there is an increased need to understand the implications of incorporating DIR into clinical workflow. Several groups have assessed DIR accuracy in clinically relevant scenarios, but no comprehensive review material is yet available. This session will also discuss aspects of the AAPM Task Group 132 on the Use of Image Registration and Data Fusion Algorithms and Techniques in Radiotherapy Treatment Planning official report, which provides recommendations for DIR clinical use. We will summarize and compare various commercial DIR software options, outline successful clinical techniques, show specific examples with discussion of appropriate and inappropriate applications of DIR, discuss the clinical implications of DIR, provide an overview of current DIR error analysis research, review QA options and research phantom development and present TG-132 recommendations. Learning Objectives: Compare/contrast commercial DIR software and QA options Overview clinical DIR workflow for retreatment To understand uncertainties introduced by DIR Review TG-132 proposed recommendations.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Cardiovascular Disease Outcomes Among the NASA Astronaut Corps

BACKGROUND: Acute effects of spaceflight on the cardiovascular system have been studied extensively, but the combined chronic effects of spaceflight and aging are not well understood. Preparation for and participation in spaceflight activities are associated with changes in the cardiovascular system such as decreased carotid artery distensibility and decreased ventricular mass which may lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Additionally, astronauts who travel into space multiple times or for longer durations may be at an increased risk across their lifespan. To that end, the purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of common cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes among the NASA astronaut corps during their active career and through retirement. METHODS: Cardiovascular disease outcomes were defined as reports of any of the following: myocardial infarction (MI), revascularization procedures (coronary artery bypass graft surgery [CABG] or percutaneous coronary intervention [PCI]), hypertension, stroke or transient ischemic attack [TIA], heart failure, or total CVD (as defined by the AHA - combined outcome of MI, Angina Pectoris, heart failure, stroke, and hypertension). Each outcome was identified individually from review of NASA's Electronic Medical Record (EMR), EKG reports, and death certificates using ICD-9 codes as well as string searches of physician notes of astronaut exams that occurred between 1959 and 2016. RESULTS: Of 338 NASA astronauts selected as of 2016, 9 reported an MI, 12 reported a revascularization procedure, (7 PCI and 5 CABG), 4 reported Angina (without MI), 5 reported heart failure, 9 reported stroke/TIA, and 96 reported hypertension. Total CVD was reported in 105 astronauts. No astronaut who had an MI or revascularization procedure flew a spaceflight mission following the event. All MI, revascularization, and stroke events occurred in male astronauts. When reviewing astronaut ECG reports, abnormal ECG reports were found in only 8% of records (n=430) and mainly among retired astronauts (82%), with marked sinus bradycardia being the reason for the abnormal classification.

Charvat, Jacqueline M.↗

A large-scale analysis of bioinformatics code on GitHub

In recent years, the explosion of genomic data and bioinformatic tools has been accompanied by a growing conversation around reproducibility of results and usability of software. However, the actual state of the body of bioinformatics software remains largely unknown. Here, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the state of source code in the bioinformatics community, specifically looking at relationships between code properties, development activity, developer communities, and software impact. To investigate these issues, we curated a list of 1,720 bioinformatics repositories on GitHub through their mention in peer-reviewed bioinformatics articles. Additionally, we included 23 high-profile repositories identified by their popularity in an online bioinformatics forum. We analyzed repository metadata, source code, development activity, and team dynamics using data made available publicly through the GitHub API, as well as article metadata. We found key relationships within our dataset, including: certain scientific topics are associated with more active code development and higher community interest in the repository; most of the code in the main dataset is written in dynamically typed languages, while most of the code in the high-profile set is statically typed; developer team size is associated with community engagement and high-profile repositories have larger teams; the proportion of female contributors decreases for high-profile repositories and with seniority level in author lists; and, multiple measures of project impact are associated with the simple variable of whether the code was modified at all after paper publication. In addition to providing the first large-scale analysis of bioinformatics code to our knowledge, our work will enable future analysis through publicly available data, code, and methods.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

A Framework for Evaluating the Implementation Cost of Attacks on Large Language Models

Large Language Models (LLMs) have been increasingly proposed as a method to enhance productivity in tasks that involve language and code. However, these models are large, complex, and their capabilities are not easily understood and controlled, meaning that their adoption opens many possibilities for new cyberattacks and misuse. Numerous attacks on LLMs have been reported and summarized in literature reviews, but we found existing reviews lacking in understanding the implementation cost of the attacks - i.e., how much effort would an attacker need in terms of coding, expertise, and resources to adopt attacks presented in the literature. Therefore, we divide existing attacks on LLMs into a taxonomy, and define a cost evaluation framework to determine the cost of the attack. An attack’s cost can be 1) estimated from reading the publication about the attack or 2) determined by implementing the attack from that publication. We provide an example evaluation of a couple jailbreaking frameworks based on experiments, and then apply the more lightweight cost estimate to a representative selection of attacks across the taxonomy we define. We discuss the relative difficulty of the attacks and also highlight defenses that have attempted to mitigate these attacks and assess their effectiveness.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

SU-E-J-129: A Strategy to Consolidate the Image Database of a VERO Unit Into a Radiotherapy Management System

Purpose: To present a strategy to integrate the imaging database of a VERO unit with a treatment management system (TMS) to improve clinical workflow and consolidate image data to facilitate clinical quality control and documentation. Methods: A VERO unit is equipped with both kV and MV imaging capabilities for IGRT treatments. It has its own imaging database behind a firewall. It has been a challenge to transfer images on this unit to a TMS in a radiation therapy clinic so that registered images can be reviewed remotely with an approval or rejection record. In this study, a software system, iPump-VERO, was developed to connect VERO and a TMS in our clinic. The patient database folder on the VERO unit was mapped to a read-only folder on a file server outside VERO firewall. The application runs on a regular computer with the read access to the patient database folder. It finds the latest registered images and fuses them in one of six predefined patterns before sends them via DICOM connection to the TMS. The residual image registration errors will be overlaid on the fused image to facilitate image review. Results: The fused images of either registered kV planar images or CBCT images are fully DICOM compatible. A sentinel module is built to sense new registered images with negligible computing resources from the VERO ExacTrac imaging computer. It takes a few seconds to fuse registered images and send them to the TMS. The whole process is automated without any human intervention. Conclusion: Transferring images in DICOM connection is the easiest way to consolidate images of various sources in your TMS. Technically the attending does not have to go to the VERO treatment console to review image registration prior delivery. It is a useful tool for a busy clinic with a VERO unit.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Metaplectic geometrical optics for ray-based modeling of caustics: Theory and algorithms

The optimization of radio frequency-wave (RF) systems for fusion experiments is often performed using ray-tracing codes, which rely on the geometrical-optics (GO) approximation. However, GO fails at caustics such as cutoffs and focal points, erroneously predicting the wave intensity to be infinite. This is a critical shortcoming of GO, since the caustic wave intensity is often the quantity of interest, e.g., RF heating. Full-wave modeling can be used instead, but the computational cost limits the speed at which such optimizations can be performed. Here, we have developed a less expensive alternative called metaplectic geometrical optics (MGO). Instead of evolving waves in the usual x (coordinate) or k (spectral) representation, MGO uses a mixed X$\equiv$Ax+Bk representation. By continuously adjusting the matrix coefficients A and B along the rays, one can ensure that GO remains valid in the X coordinates without caustic singularities. The caustic-free result is then mapped back onto the original x space using metaplectic transforms. Here, we overview the MGO theory and review algorithms that will aid the development of an MGO-based ray-tracing code. We show how using orthosymplectic transformations leads to considerable simplifications compared to previously published MGO formulas. We also prove explicitly that MGO exactly reproduces standard GO when evaluated far from caustics (an important property that until now has only been inferred from numerical simulations), and we relate MGO to other semiclassical caustic-removal schemes published in the literature. Finally this discussion is then augmented by an explicit comparison of the computed spectrum for a wave bounded between two cutoffs.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Structural Code Considerations for Solar Rooftop Installations

Residential rooftop solar panel installations are limited in part by the high cost of structural related code requirements for field installation. Permitting solar installations is difficult because there is a belief among residential permitting authorities that typical residential rooftops may be structurally inadequate to support the additional load associated with a photovoltaic (PV) solar installation. Typical engineering methods utilized to calculate stresses on a roof structure involve simplifying assumptions that render a complex non-linear structure to a basic determinate beam. This method of analysis neglects the composite action of the entire roof structure, yielding a conservative analysis based on a rafter or top chord of a truss. Consequently, the analysis can result in an overly conservative structural analysis. A literature review was conducted to gain a better understanding of the conservative nature of the regulations and codes governing residential construction and the associated structural system calculations.

Dwyer, Stephen F.↗