[en] DOE workplaces strive to comply with the 10 CFR 850.31(b)(1) surface concentration release criterion. The usual planning considerations for demonstrating compliance are these: how many swipes, and where; which sample preparation and analytical methods; what reporting limits; and what sample statistic to compare with the criterion. We have reviewed swipe samples from hundreds of Nevada Test Site workplaces: office buildings; experimental facilities; forward area field units; shops; and tunnels. Our experiences have led us to a critical examination of the inner workings of the measurement process itself, involving details generally taken for granted when those usual questions are asked. In this presentation we dissect the ICP-AES Be measurement process. We discuss calibration options and how they impact the distributions of analytical results. We look at distributions of blank results obtained from different labs, and discuss their relevance to determining reporting limits. We examine the way measurements are made from spectra, how that process impacts our understanding of the actual statistical distributions of Be measurements, and how interferences can affect Be measurements. Our objective is to gain sufficient confidence in the measurement process so that the usual questions will make sense and the survey results will be credible. Based on our observations, we offer these recommendations: prepare calibration samples in digested blank swipes; force the calibration line through (0,0); base reporting limits on field blank measurement distributions rather than 40 CFR 236 calculations; use, but do not believe, the usual lognormal distribution assumption; and avoid the 234.861 nm emission line

[en] Purpose: To assess the results of salvage therapy using surgery alone or surgery and re-irradiation for patients with locally recurrent extremity soft tissue sarcoma (STS) following conservative surgery and radiotherapy. Materials and methods: 25 patients with locally recurrent STS after conservative surgery and irradiation were assessed between 1990 and 1995. Two patients with concurrent systemic relapse were treated palliatively. Seven patients were not candidates for conservative re-excision and underwent amputation, 11 patients underwent conservative resection without irradiation. Seven of these patients relapsed, and five went on to receive combined conservative surgery and re-irradiation. A further five patients initially received combined retreatment, for a total of ten patients treated with combined conservative surgery and re-irradiation. Six of these ten patients were treated with brachytherapy alone, one with brachytherapy and external beam therapy, and three with external beam therapy alone. The median retreatment dose was 49.5 Gy (range 35-65 Gy), and the median cumulative soft tissue dose was 100 Gy (range 93-120 Gy). Results: The median follow-up from the most recent treatment is 24 months (range 7-42 months). At the last follow-up 14 patients are alive and disease free; two are alive with local disease and four with systemic disease, and five are dead of disease. Overall local control is(19(23)) (91%). The local control for patients treated with conservative excision without irradiation is(4(11)) (36%) and for conservative excision with re-irradiation (10(10)) (100%). Six (60%) of these patients experienced significant post-irradiation wound-healing complications, but three have recovered fully. Functional scores for the entire treated group are significantly lower after treatment, as are those for patients undergoing combined surgery and re-irradiation, but 70% of those treated with conservative surgery and re-irradiation had a good or excellent post-treatment functional score. Conclusions: Combined conservative surgery and re-irradiation provided superior local control to local re-excision alone and a functional outcome superior to amputation. Combined treatment with re-irradiation should be considered the primary salvage therapy for patients who fail combined therapy and who are suitable for conservative re-excision. Systemic relapse is a significant problem, and optimal therapy should minimize the risk of local relapse after the initial therapy. Eighteen patients (72%) had a history of intralesional excision as their initial intervention, and suggests that inappropriate initial management is a risk factor for relapse after combined conservative therapy. Improvements in therapy must include the appropriate education of the primary care physicians

[en] Various methods may be utilized to determine if overburden soil meets approved release criteria to allow for reuse of overburden soil as backfill material: soil scanning and sorting equipment, survey and sampling of excavated soil, in-situ sampling, and utilization of box or truck counters are common approaches. This paper focuses on a modified approach using elements of in-situ sampling and after excavation survey for a large volume of overburden soil that was expected to meet soil release criteria. This approach was utilized for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) St. Louis District at a North St. Louis County property. (authors)

[en] The Qweak experiment at Jefferson Lab aims to make a 4% measurement of the parity-violating asymmetry in elastic scattering at very low Q² of a longitudinally polarized electron beam on a proton target. The experiment will measure the weak charge of the proton, and thus the weak mixing angle at low energy scale, providing a precision test of the Standard Model. Since the value of the weak mixing angle is approximately 1/4, the weak charge of the proton Q_w^p = 1-4 sin² θ_w is suppressed in the Standard Model, making it especially sensitive to the value of the mixing angle and also to possible new physics. The experiment is approved to run at JLab, and the construction plan calls for the hardware to be ready to install in Hall C in 2007. The theoretical context of the experiment and the status of its design are discussed