The Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program has unveiled a course introducing third-party assessment organizations to obligations and performance standards in the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation R311 policy.

FedRAMP said Tuesday the training course outlines the scope of a 3PAO’s roles and responsibilities related to the assessment of commercial cloud offerings and the process for qualifying an independent assessment organization as a FedRAMP-recognized 3PAO.

3PAO personnel must complete the first mandatory course within 60 days of the training announcement and maintain copies of the certificates in their training records for the A2LA assessment.

In late July, FedRAMP announced that A2LA will review assessment reports to ensure that accredited 3PAO personnel are competent and qualified to evaluate documents from cloud service providers starting on Oct. 1.

The remaining seven courses in the training curriculum will focus on readiness assessment report guidance, security assessment plan guidance, security assessment report guidance, documenting evidence procedures, 3PAO vulnerability scanning methodology and documentation, review of SAR  tables and assessment of penetration testing guidance.

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers who used a commercial quantum computer learned that the energetic levels of the four-hydrogen linear molecule meet the requirements of singlet fission, a process that could boost the efficiency of solar cells.

The H1-1 quantum computer used for the study was developed by Quantinuum, formerly Honeywell International, ORNL said Friday.

The findings, which are published in the Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters, show the potential of quantum computers as a simulation tool for scientific research.

To describe the quantum states of singlet fission and calculate energetics data, ORNL used a quantum computational solver created by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory based on the Peeters-Devreese-Soldatov approach.

They maximized the use of qubits in the H1-1 computer using a technique called qubit tapering, and through parallel implementation of the four circuits the system. The process could serve as a best practice to speed up the problem-solving process in scientific quantum computing, ORNL stated.

Leidos participated in a successful project to destroy all remaining chemical weapons in the Department of Defense’s inventory and associated manufacturing facilities.

This historic effort was completed in early July, and throughout the process, Leidos offered technical and program support for multiple DOD organizations, the Reston, Virginia-based organization announced on Wednesday.

According to James Ridgely, senior program manager at Leidos, the company’s work encompassed technical expertise, engineering support, compliance with treaty mandates and planning analysis for technical and program efforts as well as public engagement.

“Leidos personnel have been side-by-side with government teams and contributed significantly to key technical and programmatic decisions that led to the safe completion of operations. We’re proud to have been part of making the world a safer place by eliminating these deadly weapons,” he said.

As a project participant, Leidos assisted the Defense Threat Reduction Agency in treaty compliance and inspector interface and supported the U.S. Army Chemical Materials Activity while it carried out program work across seven sights.

Leidos also helped the Program Executive Office Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives destroy the final chemical weapons at Pueblo Chemical Depot in Colorado and Blue Grass Army Depot in Kentucky.

The initiative took over three decades to complete, and its conclusion reflects the U.S.’ commitment to chemically disarm under the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention.