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- The Development of New User Research Capabilities in Environmental Molecular Science: Workshop Report
- On August 1, and 2, 2006, 104 scientists representing 40 institutions including 24 Universities and 5 National Laboratories gathered at the W.R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a National scientific user facility, to outline important science challenges for the next decade and identify major capabilities needed to pursue advanced research in the environmental molecular sciences. EMSL’s four science themes served as the framework for the workshop. The four science themes are 1) Biological Interactions and Interfaces, 2) Geochemistry/Biogeochemistry and Surface Science, 3) Atmospheric Aerosol Chemistry, and 4) Science of Interfacial Phenomena.
- Process Design for the Biocatalysis of Value-Added Chemicals from Carbon Dioxide
- This report describes results toward developing a process to sequester CO{sub 2} centered on the enzyme pyruvate carboxylase. The process involves the use of bacteria to convert CO{sub 2} and glucose as a co-substrate and generates succinic acid as a commodity chemical product. The phases of research have included strain development and process development. Though we continue to work on one important component of strain development, the research has principally focused on process development. In the previous year we constructed several strains which would serve as templates for the CO{sub 2} sequestration, including the knock-out of genes involved in the formation of undesirable byproducts. This project period the focus has been on the integration of the pyruvate carboxylase gene (pyc) onto the E. coli chromosome. This has proven to be a difficult task because of relatively low expression of the gene and resulting low enzyme activity when only one copy of the gene is present on the chromosome. Several molecular biology techniques have been applied, with some success, to improve the level of protein activity as described herein. Progress in process development has come as a result of conducting numerous fermentation experiments to select optimal conditions for CO{sub 2} sequestration. This process-related research has progressed in four areas. First, we have clarified the range of pH which results in the optimal rate of sequestration. Second, we have determined how the counterion used to control the pH affects the sequestration rate. Third, we have determined how CO{sub 2} gas phase composition impacts sequestration rate. Finally, we have made progress in determining the affect of several potential gaseous impurities on CO{sub 2} sequestration; in particular we have completed a study using NO{sub 2}. Although the results provide significant guidance as to process conditions for CO{sub 2} sequestration and succinate production, in some …
- Collaborative Research: Metabolic Engineering of E. coli Sugar-Utilization Regulatory Systems for the Consumption of Plant Biomass Sugars.
- The overall objective of this project is to metabolically engineer the E. coli sugar-utilization regulatory systems (SURS) to utilize sugar mixtures obtained from plant biomass. Of particular relevance is the implementation of a metabolic engineering cycle aided by functional genomics and systems biology tools. Our findings will help in the establishment of a platform for the efficient production of fuels and chemicals from lignocellulosic sugars. Our research has improved the understanding of the role of SURS in regulating sugar utilization and several other cellular functions. For example, we discovered that Mlc, a global regulatory protein, regulates the utilization of xylose and demonstrated the existence of an important link between catabolite repression and respiratory/fermentative metabolism. The study of SURS mutants also revealed a connection between flagellar biosynthesis and catabolite repression. Several tools were also developed as part of this project. A novel tool (Elementary Network Decomposition, END) to help elucidate the network topology of regulatory systems was developed and its utility as a discovery tool was demonstrated by applying it to the SURS in E. coli. A novel method (and software) to estimate metabolic fluxes that uses labeling experiments and eliminates reliance on extracellular fluxes was also developed. Although not initially considered in the scope of this project, we have developed a novel and superior method for optimization of HPLC separation and applied it to the simultaneous quantification of different functionalities (sugars, organic acids, ethanol, etc.) present in our fermentation samples. Currently under development is a genetic network driven metabolic flux analysis framework to integrate transcriptional and flux data.
- Effects of Coumarate 3-Hydroxylase Down-regulation on Lignin Structure
- Article on the effects of coumarate 3-hydroxylase down-regulation on lignin structure.
- Genomic Science Series
- No Description Available.
- NSLS 2006 ACTIVITY REPORT (NATIONAL SYNCHROTRON LIGHT SOURCE ACTIVITY REPORT 2006)
- This past year has seen both challenges and fantastic new opportunities for the user community at the NSLS. The fantastic new opportunities are clear and abundant. We now have a five-year strategic plan for new development and continued operation of the NSLS. The NSLS continues to be an extremely productive facility, and the UEC is delighted at how NSLS Chair Chi-Chang Kao has consulted widely within the user community to develop a five-year plan for strategic upgrades and continued operation of the facility. The NSLS-II project, led by Associate Lab Director Steve Dierker, has done very well in its Department of Energy (DOE) reviews and will hopefully soon receive Critical Decision-1 (CD-1) approval, which in DOE lingo gives a go-ahead to launch the detailed design of the facility. We also held the first joint user meeting between the NSLS and Brookhaven's Center for Functional Nanomaterials (CFN), for which the building is near completion. The joint user meeting is an important step toward the close collaboration of the two facilities. The CFN, led by Emilio Mendez, promises to provide capabilities and research foci that are complementary to those at the NSLS. Together, all of these developments give a clear path to an exciting future of synchrotron radiation research at Brookhaven! However, with opportunities come challenges! One of the largest of these faced in the past year involved congressional support for scientific research in general, and DOE user facilities in particular. As you likely know, Congress did not complete its usual budget process in 2006, with the exceptions of the departments of Defense and Homeland Security. This left science funding at the budget levels enacted in late 2005 for FY2006, and unfortunately, FY2006 was not a particularly memorable vintage for science support. The good news is that you, the user community, have …
- LABORATORY DIRECTED RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT ANNUAL REPORT TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY - DECEMBER 2006
- Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) is a multidisciplinary laboratory that carries out basic and applied research in the physical, biomedical, and environmental sciences, and in selected energy technologies. It is managed by Brookhaven Science Associates, LLC, (BSA) under contract with the U. S. Department of Energy (DOE). BNL's total annual budget has averaged about $460 million. There are about 2,500 employees, and another 4,500 guest scientists and students who come each year to use the Laboratory's facilities and work with the staff. The BNL Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program reports its status to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) annually in March, as required by DOE Order 413.2B, ''Laboratory Directed Research and Development,'' April 19, 2006, and the Roles, Responsibilities, and Guidelines for Laboratory Directed Research and Development at the Department of Energy National Nuclear Security Administration Laboratories dated June 13, 2006. In accordance this is our Annual Report in which we describe the Purpose, Approach, Technical Progress and Results, and Specific Accomplishments of all LDRD projects that received funding during Fiscal Year 2006.
- Final Progress Report for the activity called AMO2010 committee
- The committee was charged to produce a comprehensive report on the status of AMO Science. The committee was charged to produce a report that: 1. Reviewed the field of AMO science, emphasize recent accomplishments, and identify new opportunities and compelling scientific questions; 2. Identified the impact of AMO science on other scientific fields, emerging technologies, and national needs; 3. Identified future workforce, societal and educational needs for AMO science; and 4. Made recommendations on how the US research enterprise might realize the full potential of AMO science. The committee also produced an intermediate report addressing key research issues and themes facing the research community.
- Laboratory Directed Research and Development Annual Report to the Department of Energy - December 2005
- No Description Available.
- Molecular dissection of the roles of the SOD genes in mammalian response to low dose irradiation
- It has been long recognized that a significant fraction of the radiation-induced genetic damage to cells are caused by secondary oxidative species. Internal cellular defense systems against oxidative stress play significant roles in countering genetic damage induced by ionizing radiation. The role of the detoxifying enzymes may be even more prominent in the case of low-dose, low-LET irradiation, as the majority of genetic damage may be caused by secondary oxidative species. In this study we have attempted to decipher the roles of the superoxide dismutase (SOD) genes, which are responsible for detoxifying the superoxide anions. We used adenovirus vectors to deliver RNA interference (RNAi or siRNA) technology to down-regulate the expression levels of the SOD genes. We have also over-expressed the SOD genes by use of recombinant adenovirus vectors. Cells infected with the vectors were then subjected to low dose γ-irradiation. Total RNA were extracted from the exposed cells and the expression of 9000 genes were profiled by use of cDNA microarrays. The result showed that low dose radiation had clear effects on gene expression in HCT116 cells. Both over-expression and down-regulation of the SOD1 gene can change the expression profiles of sub-groups of genes. Close to 200 of the 9000 genes examined showed over two-fold difference in expression under various conditions. Genes with changed expression pattern belong to many categories that include: early growth response, DNA-repair, ion transport, apoptosis, and cytokine response.
- 2005 Annual Report
- As the cover of our ''2005 Annual Report'' highlights, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory joined the international science community in celebrating the World Year of Physics in 2005, with special events and science outreach and education programs. Einstein's remarkable discoveries in 1905 provided an opportunity to reflect on how physics has changed the world during the last century and on the promise of future beneficial discoveries. For half of the past century, Lawrence Livermore, which was established to meet an urgent national security need, has been contributing to the advancement of science and technology in a very special way. Co-founder Ernest O. Lawrence was the leading proponent in his generation of large-scale, multidisciplinary science and technology teams. That's Livermore's distinctive heritage and our continuing approach as a national laboratory managed and operated by the University of California for the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA). We focus on important problems that affect our nation's security and seek breakthrough advances in science and technology to achieve mission goals. An event in 2005 exemplifies our focus on science and technology advances in support of mission goals. In October, distinguished visitors came to Livermore to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Accelerated Strategic Computing Initiative (now called the Advanced Simulation and Computing Program, or ASC). ASC was launched in 1995 by DOE/NNSA to achieve a million-fold increase in computing power in a decade. The goal was motivated by the need to simulate the three-dimensional performance of a nuclear weapon in sufficient resolution and with the appropriately detailed physics models included. This mission-driven goal is a key part of fulfilling Livermore's foremost responsibility to ensure that the nuclear weapons in the nation's smaller 21st-century stockpile remain safe, reliable, and secure.
- Carbon Sequestration on Surface Mine Lands
- Since the implementation of the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) in May of 1978, many opportunities have been lost for the reforestation of surface mines in the eastern United States. Research has shown that excessive compaction of spoil material in the backfilling and grading process is the biggest impediment to the establishment of productive forests as a post-mining land use (Ashby, 1998, Burger et al., 1994, Graves et al., 2000). Stability of mine sites was a prominent concern among regulators and mine operators in the years immediately following the implementation of SMCRA. These concerns resulted in the highly compacted, flatly graded, and consequently unproductive spoils of the early post-SMCRA era. However, there is nothing in the regulations that requires mine sites to be overly compacted as long as stability is achieved. It has been cultural barriers and not regulatory barriers that have contributed to the failure of reforestation efforts under the federal law over the past 27 years. Efforts to change the perception that the federal law and regulations impede effective reforestation techniques and interfere with bond release must be implemented. Demonstration of techniques that lead to the successful reforestation of surface mines is one such method that can be used to change perceptions and protect the forest ecosystems that were indigenous to these areas prior to mining. The University of Kentucky initiated a large-scale reforestation effort to address regulatory and cultural impediments to forest reclamation in 2003. During the three years of this project 383,000 trees were planted on over 556 acres in different physiographic areas of Kentucky (Table 1, Figure 1). Species used for the project were similar to those that existed on the sites before mining was initiated (Table 2). A monitoring program was undertaken to evaluate growth and survival of the …
- Sequence Ready Characterization of the Pericentromeric Region of 19p12
- Current mapping and sequencing strategies have been inadequate within the proximal portion of 19p12 due, in part, to the presence of a recently expanded ZNF (zinc-finger) gene family and the presence of large (25-50 kb) inverted beta-satellite repeat structures which bracket this tandemly duplicated gene family. The virtual of absence of classically defined “unique” sequence within the region has hampered efforts to identify and characterize a suitable minimal tiling path of clones which can be used as templates required for finished sequencing of the region. The goal of this proposal is to develop and implement a novel sequence-anchor strategy to generate a contiguous BAC map of the most proximal portion of chromosome 19p12 for the purpose of complete sequence characterization. The target region will be an estimated 4.5 Mb of DNA extending from STS marker D19S450 (the beginning of the ZNF gene cluster) to the centromeric (alpha-satellite) junction of 19p11. The approach will entail 1) pre-selection of 19p12 BAC and cosmid clones (NIH approved library) utilizing both 19p12 -unique and 19p12-SPECIFIC repeat probes (Eichler et al., 1998); 2) the generation of a BAC/cosmid end-sequence map across the region with a density of one marker every 8kb; 3) the development of a second-generation of STS (sequence tagged sites) which will be used to identify and verify clonal overlap at the level of the sequence; 4) incorporation of these sequence-anchored overlapping clones into existing cosmid/BAC restriction maps developed at Livermore National Laboratory; and 5) validation of the organization of this region utilizing high-resolution FISH techniques (extended chromatin analysis) on monochromosomal 19 somatic cell hybrids and parental cell lines of source material. The data generated will be used in the selection of the most parsimonious tiling path of BAC clones to be sequenced as part of the JGI effort on chromosome 19 and …
- CONCEPTUAL DESIGN REPORT
- Brookhaven National Laboratory has prepared a conceptual design for a world class user facility for scientific research using synchrotron radiation. This facility, called the ''National Synchrotron Light Source II'' (NSLS-II), will provide ultra high brightness and flux and exceptional beam stability. It will also provide advanced insertion devices, optics, detectors, and robotics, and a suite of scientific instruments designed to maximize the scientific output of the facility. Together these will enable the study of material properties and functions with a spatial resolution of {approx}1 nm, an energy resolution of {approx}0.1 meV, and the ultra high sensitivity required to perform spectroscopy on a single atom. The overall objective of the NSLS-II project is to deliver a research facility to advance fundamental science and have the capability to characterize and understand physical properties at the nanoscale, the processes by which nanomaterials can be manipulated and assembled into more complex hierarchical structures, and the new phenomena resulting from such assemblages. It will also be a user facility made available to researchers engaged in a broad spectrum of disciplines from universities, industries, and other laboratories.
- Exploring Metric Symmetry
- Relatively minor perturbations to a crystal structure can in some cases result in apparently large changes in symmetry. Changes in space group or even lattice can be induced by heavy metal or halide soaking (Dauter et al, 2001), flash freezing (Skrzypczak-Jankun et al, 1996), and Se-Met substitution (Poulsen et al, 2001). Relations between various space groups and lattices can provide insight in the underlying structural causes for the symmetry or lattice transformations. Furthermore, these relations can be useful in understanding twinning and how to efficiently solve two different but related crystal structures. Although (pseudo) symmetric properties of a certain combination of unit cell parameters and a space group are immediately obvious (such as a pseudo four-fold axis if a is approximately equal to b in an orthorhombic space group), other relations (e.g. Lehtio, et al, 2005) that are less obvious might be crucial to the understanding and detection of certain idiosyncrasies of experimental data. We have developed a set of tools that allows straightforward exploration of possible metric symmetry relations given unit cell parameters and a space group. The new iotbx.explore{_}metric{_}symmetry command produces an overview of the various relations between several possible point groups for a given lattice. Methods for finding relations between a pair of unit cells are also available. The tools described in this newsletter are part of the CCTBX libraries, which are included in the latest (versions July 2006 and up) PHENIX and CCI Apps distributions.
- Security and Policy for Group Collaboration
- “Security and Policy for Group Collaboration” was a Collaboratory Middleware research project aimed at providing the fundamental security and policy infrastructure required to support the creation and operation of distributed, computationally enabled collaborations. The project developed infrastructure that exploits innovative new techniques to address challenging issues of scale, dynamics, distribution, and role. To reduce greatly the cost of adding new members to a collaboration, we developed and evaluated new techniques for creating and managing credentials based on public key certificates, including support for online certificate generation, online certificate repositories, and support for multiple certificate authorities. To facilitate the integration of new resources into a collaboration, we improved significantly the integration of local security environments. To make it easy to create and change the role and associated privileges of both resources and participants of collaboration, we developed community wide authorization services that provide distributed, scalable means for specifying policy. These services make it possible for the delegation of capability from the community to a specific user, class of user or resource. Finally, we instantiated our research results into a framework that makes it useable to a wide range of collaborative tools. The resulting mechanisms and software have been widely adopted within DOE projects and in many other scientific projects. The widespread adoption of our Globus Toolkit technology has provided, and continues to provide, a natural dissemination and technology transfer vehicle for our results.
- Factors Influencing The Accuracy Of A Macroinvertebrate Bioassessment Protocol In South Carolina Coastal Plain Streams (DRAFT)
- The Multiple Habitat Sampling Protocol (MHSP) is a bioassessment method designed to assess the ecological health of South Carolina streams on the basis of macroinvertebrate samples collected from natural substrates. The MHSP is computed by averaging the EPT (number of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera taxa) and BI (a biotic index that reflects the pollution tolerances of individual taxa) to produce a bioclassification score. The MHSP produced low bioclassification scores that could falsely indicate environmental degradation in some undisturbed, high quality streams in the Sandhills ecoregion. This problem had two causes: (1) the metrics (especially EPT) were significantly related to stream size, which confounded stream size effects with environmental impacts, and (2) the scoring criteria for EPT were too high for some Sandhills streams, likely because of unrecognized heterogeneity among the Sandhills streams from which the criteria were derived. We corrected these problems by developing new scoring criteria from ecologically comparable undisturbed streams and by utilizing residuals from regressions of the metrics on stream width to normalize for stream size. The MHSP and related protocols are effective methods for assessing environmental quality but allowances must be made for the effects of stream size and the potential ecological heterogeneity that naturally exists among streams in some ecoregions.
- Transgenic Medicago truncatula plants obtained from Agrobacterium tumefaciens-transformed roots and Agrobacterium rhizogenes-transformed hairy roots
- Article on transgenic Medicago truncatula plants obtained from Agrobacterium tumefaciens-transformed roots and Agrobacterium rhizogenes-transformed hairy roots.
- STRUCTURAL FLUCTUATIONS, ELECTRICAL RESPONSE AND THE RELIABILITY OF NANOSTRUCTURES (FINAL REPORT)
- The goal of the research supported by DOE-FG02-01ER45939 was to synthesize a number of experimental and theoretical approaches to understand the relationship between morphological fluctuations, the electrical response and the reliability (failure) of metallic nanostructures. The primary focus of our work was the study of metallic nanowires which we regard as prototypical of nanoscale interconnects. Our research plan has been to link together these materials properties and behaviors by understanding the phenomenon of, and the effects of electromigration at nanometer length scales. The thrust of our research has been founded on the concept that, for nanostructures where the surface-to-volume ratio is necessarily high, surface diffusion is the dominant mass transport mechanism that governs the fluctuations, electrical properties and failure modes of nanostructures. Our approach has been to develop experimental methods that permit the direct imaging of the electromagnetic distributions within nanostructures, their structural fluctuations and their electrical response. This experimental research is complemented by a parallel theoretical and computational program that describes the temporal evolution of nanostructures in response to current flow.
- Highly Compact Accelerator-Driven Subcritical Assembly for Medical and Industrial Applications
- Highly Compact Accelerator-Driven Subcritical Assembly for Medical and Industrial Applications
- Human Health Risk Assessment: EPA Has Taken Steps to Strengthen Its Process, but Improvements Needed in Planning, Data Development, and Training
- A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Over 100,000 chemicals, pollutants, and toxic substances are used in the United States and regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). EPA uses risk assessment to determine the health risk from exposure to these substances, collectively referred to as contaminants. In the last 12 years, independent reviewers have examined this process and made recommendations for how it could be improved. GAO was asked to (1) identify the significant recommendations that have been made to improve human health risk assessment; (2) describe what EPA has done to modify its human health risk assessment process; (3) determine the effects these past modifications have had on the preparation of risk assessments; and (4) identify any additional actions experts believe EPA could take to improve its process, and the barriers it would face in doing so."
- NERSC Annual Report 2005
- The National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC) is the premier computational resource for scientific research funded by the DOE Office of Science. The Annual Report includes summaries of recent significant and representative computational science projects conducted on NERSC systems as well as information about NERSC's current and planned systems and services.
- Mercury Information Clearinghouse
- The Canadian Electricity Association (CEA) identified a need and contracted the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) to create and maintain an information clearinghouse on global research and development activities related to mercury emissions from coal-fired electric utilities. With the support of CEA, the Center for Air Toxic Metals{reg_sign} (CATM{reg_sign}) Affiliates, and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the EERC developed comprehensive quarterly information updates that provide a detailed assessment of developments in the various areas of mercury monitoring, control, policy, and research. A total of eight topical reports were completed and are summarized and updated in this final CEA quarterly report. The original quarterly reports can be viewed at the CEA Web site (www.ceamercuryprogram.ca). In addition to a comprehensive update of previous mercury-related topics, a review of results from the CEA Mercury Program is provided. Members of Canada's coal-fired electricity generation sector (ATCO Power, EPCOR, Manitoba Hydro, New Brunswick Power, Nova Scotia Power Inc., Ontario Power Generation, SaskPower, and TransAlta) and CEA, have compiled an extensive database of information from stack-, coal-, and ash-sampling activities. Data from this effort are also available at the CEA Web site and have provided critical information for establishing and reviewing a mercury standard for Canada that is protective of environment and public health and is cost-effective. Specific goals outlined for the CEA mercury program included the following: (1) Improve emission inventories and develop management options through an intensive 2-year coal-, ash-, and stack-sampling program; (2) Promote effective stack testing through the development of guidance material and the support of on-site training on the Ontario Hydro method for employees, government representatives, and contractors on an as-needed basis; (3) Strengthen laboratory analytical capabilities through analysis and quality assurance programs; and (4) Create and maintain an information clearinghouse to ensure that all parties can keep informed …
- Improved Oil Recovery from Upper Jurassic Smackover Carbonates through the Application of Advanced Technologies at Womack Hill Oil Field, Choctaw and Clarke Counties, Eastern Gulf Costal Plain
- Pruet Production Co. and the Center for Sedimentary Basin Studies at the University of Alabama, in cooperation with Texas A&M University, Mississippi State University, University of Mississippi, and Wayne Stafford and Associates proposed a three-phase, focused, comprehensive, integrated and multidisciplinary study of Upper Jurassic Smackover carbonates (Class II Reservoir), involving reservoir characterization and 3-D modeling (Phase I) and a field demonstration project (Phases II and III) at Womack Hill Field Unit, Choctaw and Clarke Counties, Alabama, eastern Gulf Coastal Plain. Phase I of the project has been completed. The principal objectives of the project are: increasing the productivity and profitability of the Womack Hill Field Unit, thereby extending the economic life of this Class II Reservoir and transferring effectively and in a timely manner the knowledge gained and technology developed from this project to producers who are operating other domestic fields with Class II Reservoirs. The major tasks of the project included reservoir characterization, recovery technology analysis, recovery technology evaluation, and the decision to implement a demonstration project. Reservoir characterization consisted of geoscientific reservoir characterization, petrophysical and engineering property characterization, microbial characterization, and integration of the characterization data. Recovery technology analysis included 3-D geologic modeling, reservoir simulation, and microbial core experiments. Recovery technology evaluation consisted of acquiring and evaluating new high quality 2-D seismic data, evaluating the existing pressure maintenance project in the Womack Hill Field Unit, and evaluating the concept of an immobilized enzyme technology project for the Womack Hill Field Unit. The decision to implement a demonstration project essentially resulted in the decision on whether to conduct an infill drilling project in Womack Hill Field. Reservoir performance, multiwell productivity analysis, and reservoir simulation studies indicate that water injection continues to provide stable support to maintain production from wells in the western unitized area of the field and that …
- Mitigating the Impacts of Uncontrolled Air Flow on Indoor Environmental Quality and Energy Demand in Non-Residential Buildings
- This multi-faceted study evaluated several aspects of uncontrolled air flows in commercial buildings in both Northern and Southern climates. Field data were collected from 25 small commercial buildings in New York State to understand baseline conditions for Northern buildings. Laboratory wall assembly testing was completed at Syracuse University to understand the impact of typical air leakage pathways on heat and moisture transport within wall assemblies for both Northern and Southern building applications. The experimental data from the laboratory tests were used to verify detailed heat and moisture (HAM) simulation models that could be used to evaluate a wider array of building applications and situations. Whole building testing at FSEC's Building Science Laboratory (BSL) systematically evaluated the energy and IAQ impacts of duct leakage with various attic and ceiling configurations. This systematic test carefully controlled all aspects of building performance to quantify the impact of duct leakage and unbalanced flow. The newest features of the EnergyPlus building simulation tool were used to model the combined impacts of duct leakage, ceiling leakage, unbalanced flows, and air conditioner performance. The experimental data provided the basis to validate the simulation model so it could be used to study the impact of duct leakage over a wide range of climates and applications. The overall objective of this project was to transfer work and knowledge that has been done on uncontrolled air flow in non-residential buildings in Florida to a national basis. This objective was implemented by means of four tasks: (1) Field testing and monitoring of uncontrolled air flow in a sample of New York buildings; (2) Detailed wall assembly laboratory measurements and modeling; (3) Whole building experiments and simulation of uncontrolled air flows; and (4) Develop and implement training on uncontrolled air flows for Practitioners in New York State.