US Government Research Articles

A milestone in encryption control – what sank the US key-escrow policy?

ABSTRACT In the 1990s, the US government recognised its citizens required cryptography for protection of digital data but also that encryption may impede law enforcement and intelligence collection. To reconcile these, President Clinton introduced the key-escrow policy, whereby the state would provide citizens with powerful encryption software whilst retaining decryption capabilities. The policy ultimately failed – the determinant reason for its discontinuation is unknown. This article posits and evidences that industry’s argument that key-escrow would curtail the global growth of the US technology sector was the determinant factor in the policy’s discontinuation.

Representation of Social Actors in US Egress from Afghanistan: A Critical Discourse Analysis

Media through discursive representation as contended by Van Leeuwen (2008) shapes the identity of the participants positively or negatively by their purposeful inclusion or exclusion in a text to gain desired results. Hence, readers' sympathy, cooperation, acceptance or rejection, contempt, and criticism primarily depend on how a social actor (Henceforth SA) has been represented. The objective of this study is to reveal how, at the time of US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, the New York Times and USA TODAY have represented the Afghan army, the Afghan government, the US army, the US government as In-group and the Taliban as Out-group in the news. The findings reveal that both newspapers reported the event discursively by building a positive image of the In-group and creating a negative image of the Out-group to influence the perception of the readers.

Crisis, corruption and state-led development in the making of the Mexican drug trade

Abstract The state of Durango has long been a centre of Mexican heroin production and an important node in transnational drug trafficking networks. As early as 1944, it was the site of one of the biggest drug busts in Mexican history, when an opium poppy plantation the size of 325 football pitches, irrigated by a purpose-built aqueduct, was discovered in the state’s northern mountains. By the mid 1970s, a combination of kinship ties and concrete connected these poppy fields directly with the US drug market hub of Chicago, Illinois, along a route known as the ‘heroin highway’, which helped Mexico become the supplier of 90 per cent of US heroin. But how did a poor, underpopulated and overwhelmingly rural state become a major player in the billion-dollar US–Mexican drug trade? This article shows that in Durango, the rise of heroin production and trafficking were integral aspects of local processes of social, political and economic modernization. Stimulated by the Mexican and US governments’ promotion of infrastructural improvements and mass migration, and protected by representatives of Mexico’s post-revolutionary political system, the drug trade in turn fuelled further ‘licit’ economic development, making it part of the very foundation of Mexico as we know it today.

Abstract 4861: Incidence rates of bladder and kidney cancers among U.S. military servicemen: Comparison with the rates in the general U.S. population

Abstract Background: The military population may differ from the general population in factors related to the incidence of bladder and kidney cancers. However, incidence rates of these cancers have not been systematically compared between the two populations. This study compared incidence rates of bladder and kidney cancers and their trends between active-duty servicemen and men in the general U.S. population. Methods: Data were obtained from the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Automated Central Tumor Registry (ACTUR) and the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database. Patients were active-duty servicemen in ACTUR and men in SEER who were diagnosed with malignant bladder and kidney cancers and 18-59 years at diagnosis from 1990-2013. Age-adjusted rates, incidence rate ratios (IRR), and their 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were compared between the two populations by age, race, and cancer stage. Trends in the incidence were also compared. Results: Incidence rates were lower in ACTUR than SEER for bladder cancer overall (IRR=0.55, 95% CI=0.48-0.62) and by age, race, or tumor stage. However, for 50-59-year-old men, the rates did not differ between the populations. Trend analysis showed bladder cancer incidence decreased more in ACTUR than SEER over the study period. Kidney cancer incidence rates were marginally lower overall (IRR=0.92, 95% CI=0.84-1.00) and significantly lower for 30-49-year-old Black men in the military than the general population. For kidney cancer, the trends were similar between the two populations with increased incidence from 1999 to 2013. Conclusion: Lower bladder and kidney cancer incidence in ACTUR, notably in younger individuals, may be primarily associated with healthier status and better health care. The lack of differences in bladder or kidney cancer incidence among 50-59-year-old men between the populations might result from more cumulative military-related exposures in this age group, which effects were offset by healthier status and better medical care. Disclaimer: The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions or policies of NCI, USUHS, HJF, the DoD or the Departments of the Army, Navy or Air Force. Mention of trade names, commercial products or organizations does not imply endorsement by the US Government. Citation Format: Julie A. Bytnar, Katherine A. McGlynn, Sean Q. Kern, Craig D. Shriver, Kangmin Zhu. Incidence rates of bladder and kidney cancers among U.S. military servicemen: Comparison with the rates in the general U.S. population [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2024; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2024 Apr 5-10; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(6_Suppl):Abstract nr 4861.

Integrating outer space as a global commons with private property rights to outer space resources

Inspired by the US government’s denial that outer space is a global commons, and the heated discussion in China regarding property rights in outer space resources, this article looks at this controversial term: “global commons”. It finds that this term was mostly adopted as a political, rather than legal, term. As a result of the over-emphasis on the implications of global commons on the property rights to outer space resources, states that plan to develop private space mining may avoid calling outer space a global commons. This article argues that this response may not be necessary. It then examines the real purpose of the global commons discourse by analogizing the tragedy of commons and thus puts forward the suggestion to adopt the non-exclusive use standard to govern the activities of space resource extraction by private parties. This solution will allow countries to continue to view outer space as a global commons while liberalizing private parties’ activities in outer space resource development and extraction. Moreover, China’s initiative of the global community of shared future possesses the potential to serve as the overarching concept to govern its future outer space activities, including space mining.

Management practices in facilities providing HIV services to key populations in Kenya and Malawi: A descriptive analysis of management in community-based organizations.

HIV services for key populations (KP) at higher risk of HIV infection are often delivered by community-based organizations. To achieve HIV epidemic control, countries need to scale up HIV services for KP. Little is known about the management practices of community-based organizations delivering health services. We explored the management practices and facility characteristics of community-based health facilities providing HIV services to key populations as part of the LINKAGES program in Kenya and Malawi. We collected information on management practices from 45 facilities called drop-in centers (DICs) during US Government FY 2019, adapting the World Management Survey to the HIV community-based health service delivery context. We constructed management domain scores for each facility. We then analyzed the statistical correlations between management domains (performance monitoring, people management, financial management, and community engagement) and facility characteristics (e.g., number of staff, organization maturity, service scale) using ordinary least square models. The lowest mean management domain scores were found for people management in Kenya (38.3) and financial management in Malawi (25.7). The highest mean scores in both countries were for performance monitoring (80.9 in Kenya and 82.2 in Malawi). Within each management domain, there was significant variation across DICs, with the widest ranges in scores (0 to 100) observed for financial management and community involvement. The DIC characteristics we considered explained only a small proportion of the variation in management domain scores across DICs. Community-based health facilities providing HIV services to KP can achieve high levels of management in a context where they receive adequate levels of above-facility support and oversight-even if they deliver complex services, rely heavily on temporary workers and community volunteers, and face significant financial constraints. The variation in scores suggests that some facilities may require more above-facility support and oversight than others.

Clinical, Biomarker, and Research Tests Among US Government Personnel and Their Family Members Involved in Anomalous Health Incidents

Since 2015, US government and related personnel have reported dizziness, pain, visual problems, and cognitive dysfunction after experiencing intrusive sounds and head pressure. The US government has labeled these anomalous health incidents (AHIs). To assess whether participants with AHIs differ significantly from US government control participants with respect to clinical, research, and biomarker assessments. Exploratory study conducted between June 2018 and July 2022 at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center, involving 86 US government staff and family members with AHIs from Cuba, Austria, China, and other locations as well as 30 US government control participants. AHIs. Participants were assessed with extensive clinical, auditory, vestibular, balance, visual, neuropsychological, and blood biomarkers (glial fibrillary acidic protein and neurofilament light) testing. The patients were analyzed based on the risk characteristics of the AHI identifying concerning cases as well as geographic location. Eighty-six participants with AHIs (42 women and 44 men; mean [SD] age, 42.1 [9.1] years) and 30 vocationally matched government control participants (11 women and 19 men; mean [SD] age, 43.8 [10.1] years) were included in the analyses. Participants with AHIs were evaluated a median of 76 days (IQR, 30-537) from the most recent incident. In general, there were no significant differences between participants with AHIs and control participants in most tests of auditory, vestibular, cognitive, or visual function as well as levels of the blood biomarkers. Participants with AHIs had significantly increased fatigue, depression, posttraumatic stress, imbalance, and neurobehavioral symptoms compared with the control participants. There were no differences in these findings based on the risk characteristics of the incident or geographic location of the AHIs. Twenty-four patients (28%) with AHI presented with functional neurological disorders. In this exploratory study, there were no significant differences between individuals reporting AHIs and matched control participants with respect to most clinical, research, and biomarker measures, except for objective and self-reported measures of imbalance and symptoms of fatigue, posttraumatic stress, and depression. This study did not replicate the findings of previous studies, although differences in the populations included and the timing of assessments limit direct comparisons.

Neuroimaging Findings in US Government Personnel and Their Family Members Involved in Anomalous Health Incidents

US government personnel stationed internationally have reported anomalous health incidents (AHIs), with some individuals experiencing persistent debilitating symptoms. To assess the potential presence of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-detectable brain lesions in participants with AHIs, with respect to a well-matched control group. This exploratory study was conducted at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Center and the NIH MRI Research Facility between June 2018 and November 2022. Eighty-one participants with AHIs and 48 age- and sex-matched control participants, 29 of whom had similar employment as the AHI group, were assessed with clinical, volumetric, and functional MRI. A high-quality diffusion MRI scan and a second volumetric scan were also acquired during a different session. The structural MRI acquisition protocol was optimized to achieve high reproducibility. Forty-nine participants with AHIs had at least 1 additional imaging session approximately 6 to 12 months from the first visit. AHIs. Group-level quantitative metrics obtained from multiple modalities: (1) volumetric measurement, voxel-wise and region of interest (ROI)-wise; (2) diffusion MRI-derived metrics, voxel-wise and ROI-wise; and (3) ROI-wise within-network resting-state functional connectivity using functional MRI. Exploratory data analyses used both standard, nonparametric tests and bayesian multilevel modeling. Among the 81 participants with AHIs, the mean (SD) age was 42 (9) years and 49% were female; among the 48 control participants, the mean (SD) age was 43 (11) years and 42% were female. Imaging scans were performed as early as 14 days after experiencing AHIs with a median delay period of 80 (IQR, 36-544) days. After adjustment for multiple comparisons, no significant differences between participants with AHIs and control participants were found for any MRI modality. At an unadjusted threshold (P < .05), compared with control participants, participants with AHIs had lower intranetwork connectivity in the salience networks, a larger corpus callosum, and diffusion MRI differences in the corpus callosum, superior longitudinal fasciculus, cingulum, inferior cerebellar peduncle, and amygdala. The structural MRI measurements were highly reproducible (median coefficient of variation <1% across all global volumetric ROIs and <1.5% for all white matter ROIs for diffusion metrics). Even individuals with large differences from control participants exhibited stable longitudinal results (typically, <±1% across visits), suggesting the absence of evolving lesions. The relationships between the imaging and clinical variables were weak (median Spearman ρ = 0.10). The study did not replicate the results of a previously published investigation of AHIs. In this exploratory neuroimaging study, there were no significant differences in imaging measures of brain structure or function between individuals reporting AHIs and matched control participants after adjustment for multiple comparisons.

Legitimising displacement: Academic discourse, territorial stigmatisation and gentrification

This article explores the territorial stigmatisation–gentrification nexus and how it is advanced by an intellectual pipeline between academics and policymakers in the USA. Despite much research revealing the pathologising narratives latent within displacement-inducing urban policies, little work has explicitly sought to underscore the influence of academic discourses in promoting these policies. Centring a triad of discourses surrounding concentrated disadvantage, social mix and neighbourhood effects – emergent namely from the academic fields of urban sociology, criminology, urban planning and urban economics – I provide an evidential linkage between academic discourse and displacement-causing US policymaking by conducting a document analysis of official reports related to two major US government programmes: the Moving to Opportunity for Fair Housing (MTO) Demonstration programme and the Housing Opportunities for People Everywhere (HOPE) VI programme. I suggest that these academic discourses operate to legitimise displacement via neighbourhood-centric framings which advance territorial stigmatisation and related gentrification. These discourses, I argue, reinforce the real estate state and the destructive capitalist force of uneven geographical development while working to facilitate the disregard of propositions that would effect structural change. I conclude with an explanation for the present configuration of the academy-to-policy pipeline and why it has failed to onboard critical, macro-structurally orientated scholarship, and issue a call for a direction forward.

Government Debt of Russia and the United States in the XXI century

This article has three parts. In the first part government debt is analyzed as the stock of government financial obligations in Russia and the USA. Obligations denominated in foreign currencies and direct credits are left behind because they are practically non-existent in US government financial transactions. Also excluded from the analysis are debts incurred by stateowned corporations, which are part of the corporate sector of the System of National Accounts. In the second part government debt is analyzed as a result of financial flows (borrowings) which show how debt changes over time. In both parts Russia is compared with the USA in terms of proportions between federal and sub-federal debts, domestic and foreign debts (Russia only), marketable and non-marketable debts as well as domestic and foreign participants of government securities markets. The third part of the article presents standard methodology of debt sustainability analysis and some results of Bohn test of debt sustainability for both countries.

America’s decoupling from China narrative: development, determinants, and policy implications

ABSTRACT America’s decoupling from China debate started after July 2018, reached its peak in August 2020, and is likely to continue even if it may not be a high priority for the Biden administration. Many studies have examined various aspects of this topic. Unlike previous research, using Google Trends data, this study creatively created a high-frequency weekly dataset to measure the narrative of decoupling from China in the US. Based on this dataset from January 2020 to June 2021, three issues are examined from a novel perspective. First, this study provides a quantitative description of its development. Second, for the first time in the academic literature, this study provides empirical evidence on the determinants of the decoupling narrative, including Chinese trade, Chinese investment, Chinese students, Chinese technology, Chinese companies, and Covid-19. Third, this study also discusses the policy implications of these findings. In particular, if the US government wants to adopt an aggressive strategy of decoupling from China in the future, COVID-19 is one tool that could be used. While this study makes original contributions to policy-makers, it also contributes to academia by presenting a (still) new quantitative approach to international relations.

Afghanistan in US-Iran Relations in the 1990s

In the rising new world order, following the collapse of the Soviet Union, confrontation and partnership alternated between US and Iranian policies on the situation in Afghanistan. It was viewed by both US and Iranian governments as a tricky, delicate and potentially turbulent zone of international relations. The present study examines the relations between the administrations of G. Bush, Bill Clinton and G. W. Bush and Iranian Presidents Rafsanjani and Khatami during the Afghan Civil War, the 9/11 attacks and the subsequent operation to overthrow the Taliban. In the light of the American troops withdrawal from Afghanistan announced by the US State Department earlier this year, the article offers a review of the US and Iranian policies in Afghanistan in the 1990s.

Exploring the link between technological innovation, economic development, and CO2 emissions in the US. Application of the ANN and EKC techniques

The developed world, which includes the United States of America (US), constantly works to reduce carbon dioxide emissions for the benefit of its people's health while advancing technical innovation to achieve impressive economic development. This motivates this study to use artificial neural network (ANN) and the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) technique to explore the relationship between technological innovation, economic development, and CO2 emissions in the US in order to add to the body of knowledge already in existence. For this study, secondary data from 1990 to 2023 was gathered from the World Bank and globaleconomy.com. The results show that, whereas the artificial neural network shows that economic development contributes more to C02 emissions, the Environmental Kuznets Curve shows that higher levels of technical innovation and economic development lower C02 emissions. Hence, in order to maintain C02 emissions at the lowest possible level and improve the nation's atmospheric conditions, the US government should guarantee sustainable policies that will promote economic development and technological innovation.

Mpox Case Presenting With Genital Lesions and Proctitis.

Monkeypox (Mpox) is a zoonotic Orthopoxvirus of the Poxviridae family, endemic to Africa. In August 2022, the US government declared it an emergency because of the worldwide spread. Traditionally, Mpox infection spreads through contact with infected animals. However, the 2022 outbreak Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data note that 94% of cases had recent male-to-male sexual or close intimate contact, suggesting a novel sexual transmission. In this article, we report a 39-year-old HIV-positive man presenting with a diffuse cutaneous rash, perianal pain, and bloody stool of 2-week duration. A medical history includes intravenous drug use and multiple sexual partners. Physical examination revealed umbilicated, tan-colored, crusted cutaneous papules scattered across the face, trunk, and genital regions. Perianal lesion biopsy showed an acanthotic epidermis with spongiosis, ballooning degeneration of keratinocytes, and the formation of multinucleated syncytial keratinocytes. A dermal superficial/lichenoid mixed inflammatory cell infiltrate with multinucleated giant cells was noted. Perianal lesion polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was positive for Mpox. Colonoscopy revealed a 3-cm circumferential rectal ulcer with gray exudate and necrosis. A rectal ulcer biopsy showed an ulcerated mucosa with acute proctitis and necrosis. There were scattered macrophages with intranuclear inclusion and glassy vacuolization, and Mpox infection was confirmed by immunostaining with a Mpox-specific anti-Vaccinia virus antibody.

Do US states’ responses to COVID-19 restore investor sentiment? Evidence from S&P 500 financial institutions

This paper specifically investigates the effects of US government emergency actions on the investor sentiment–financial institution stock returns relationship. Despite attempts by many studies, the literature still provides no answers concerning this nexus. Using a new firm-specific Twitter investor sentiment (TS) metric and performing a panel smooth transition regression for daily data on 66 S&P 500 financial institutions from January 1 to December 31, 2020, we find that TS acts asymmetrically, nonlinearly, and time varyingly according to the pandemic situation and US states’ responses to COVID-19. In other words, we uncover the nexus between TS and financial institution stock returns and determine that it changes with US states’ reactions to COVID-19. With a permissive government response (the first regime), TS does not impact financial institution stock returns; however, when moving to a strict government response (the overall government response index exceeds the 63.59 threshold), this positive effect becomes significant in the second regime. Moreover, the results show that the slope of the transition function is high, indicating an abrupt rather than a smooth transition between the first and second regimes. The results are robust and have important policy implications for policymakers, investment analysts, and portfolio managers.

Market-based Estimation of Average Electricity Outage Costs in the United States

Electricity outage cost (EOC) estimates ($ per kWh unserved) are essential input data for optimal reliability planning and efficient pricing of electricity services. Based on the 2019-2020 market data published by two US government agencies for the lower 48 states, this paper’s EOC estimates by census region and year are median values of $1.39 to $2.93 per kWh unserved, well below the estimate of $9 per kWh unserved adopted by Texas for optimal reliability planning. The policy implications of adopting our lower EOC estimate are (a) a reduction in an electric grid’s optimal planning reserve to improve the grid’s cost efficiency; and (b) a decline in the grid’s marginal cost-based retail price to encourage welfare-enhancing end-use consumption.

The effect of female leadership on contracting from Capitol Hill to Main Street

This paper provides novel evidence that female politicians increase the proportion of US government procurement contracts allocated to women-owned firms. For identification, we use a regression discontinuity design on a sample of mixed-gender elections in the US House of Representatives. The effect grows over a female representative's tenure and concentrates in female representatives who are on powerful congressional committees. Changes in the pool of and behavior by government contractors cannot explain the result. The more gender-balanced representation in government contracting is not associated with economic costs.

A Parametric Study of the SASI Comparing General Relativistic and Nonrelativistic Treatments* * Notice: This manuscript has been authored by UT-Battelle, LLC, under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725 with the US Department of Energy (DOE). The US government retains and the publisher, by accepting the article for publication, acknowledges that the US government retains a nonexclusive, paid-up, irrevocable, worldwide license to publish or

We present numerical results from a parameter study of the standing accretion shock instability (SASI), investigating the impact of general relativity (GR) on the dynamics. Using GR hydrodynamics with GR gravity, and nonrelativistic (NR) hydrodynamics with Newtonian gravity, in an idealized model setting, we vary the initial radius of the shock, and by varying its mass and radius in concert, the proto-neutron star compactness. We investigate four compactnesses expected in a post-bounce core-collapse supernova (CCSN). We find that GR leads to a longer SASI oscillation period, with ratios between the GR and NR cases as large as 1.29 for the highest-compactness suite. We also find that GR leads to a slower SASI growth rate, with ratios between the GR and NR cases as low as 0.47 for the highest-compactness suite. We discuss implications of our results for CCSN simulations.

Remembering and Forgetting the Past on the Mississippi River: Toward an Environmental History of Catholicism

Abstract: After the flood of 1927, the US government decided to master the Mississippi River. Nowhere was this state-sponsored determination more evident than in the lower Mississippi River delta. An historical examination of a cluster of Catholic churches in Pointe Coupée Parish, Louisiana, permits some understanding of how physical and material alterations to landscapes are not easily traced, especially when we consider the temporal and spatial scales of change to the Mississippi over the last one hundred years. In that time, Catholics of Pointe Coupée Parish managed to retain, erase, and revise aspects of their bonds to a river once central to the lives of their ancestors. This is not at all surprising, as the fallibility of memory is made apparent every time we try to tell stories about our pasts. Pointe Coupée Parish is one site where we can explore how alterations to a landscape have an impact not only on the trajectory of a Catholic community's future, but also on access to its past. Absences of memory in the living, combined with the erasure of material remains in modified landscapes, challenge us to consider how we might account for the relationship between Catholicism and the built environment throughout American history.

The Anatomy of an Apology

ABSTRACT: This article discusses the elements of a genuine apology. I conclude that the myriad apologies coming from all corners of society—individuals and institutions, including the US government's apology for slavery—are woefully inadequate. What we are witnessing is not deep remorse but something less than that, such as perpetrators who are only sorry that they got caught, those who are only apologizing for show or who are only interested in scoring political points. Serious transgression and injury require a redemptive act to make the apology more than just rhetoric. Saying "I'm sorry" is often not enough.