"Where is the forefront of your disciplines?" was the question with which Pat Dehmer, associate director of DOE's Office of Basic Energy Sciences (BES), challenged the 325 scientists who had come for last week's "Workshop on Scientific Directions at the Advanced Light Source." Meeting in eight separate "working group" sessions, leaders from around the world in the use of synchrotron radiation thrashed out answers to Dehmer's challenge, then determined how the ALS could be used to advance those forefronts. The results, said Berkeley Lab director Charles Shank, were "historic."
From March 23-25, workshop attendees grappled with issues in a wide range of disciplines where the exceptional brightness and coherence of ALS x-rays and ultraviolet light might play a critical role. The eight working group sessions were organized under the headings of strongly correlated materials; nanostructures/ semiconductors; environmental and Earth sciences; polymers and soft matter; biosciences; catalytic material/surface sciences; magnetic materials; atomic, molecular, and optical physics/chemical dynamics. In each case, the conclusion was that the ALS is the right machine at the right time.
"This workshop began rather modestly but expanded in scope as the registration grew," Dehmer said. "With the quality of the working group session reports, we have also increased our expectations." She commended the working group session reports as being impressive enough that they will be submitted to an appropriate scientific journal for publication.
From the workshop's outset, Director Shank made it clear that the purpose of the working group sessions was to make "the most compelling case possible" for the ALS' scientific program. In his address to the opening plenary session, Shank charged the groups to determine the "exciting scientific issues, the role of the ALS, and what specific tools are needed." He also emphasized that without a compelling scientific case, the ALS would not be able to "command the resources it needs."
The critical link between strong, cutting-edge science and budgetary support from Washington was later reiterated by Iran Thomas, who heads BES' materials science division, a primary source of ALS funding.
"Scientific proposals must be pushing the barriers, stretching the forefronts of their fields or they aren't going to be funded," Thomas said.
At the end of the workshop, Shank expressed satisfaction with what the working group sessions produced. "The embryonic reports we have collected here are the fruits for the future."
The workshop was jointly sponsored by the Lab, BES, and the University of California's Office of the President. It was put together in response to the "Birgeneau Report," a DOE-sponsored review of the four national synchrotron radiation facilities. The report placed the ALS fourth in funding priority and cited the facility for shortcomings in its science programs, user relations, and institutional support.
Neville Smith, who heads the ALS scientific program, was recognized by both Dehmer and Shank for his central role in organizing this workshop. "It's been a stressful time here (following the Birgeneau report)," he said, "and the success of this workshop has been a morale booster. As I went around the different working group sessions, it was gratifying to see that so large a turnout of distinguished colleagues had come to Berkeley to help us develop a stronger scientific program."
Following this workshop, Smith said that the ALS management, in close consultation with the users' executive committee and the scientific advisory committee, will "devise a roadmap for the orderly build-out of the ALS." The next measure of success, he said, will be the extent to which the workshop's results "generate compelling research proposals" for the ALS.
The plenary sessions that opened and closed the workshop were chaired by Yves Petroff, director-general of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility. In addition to his chair duties, Petroff also addressed the session, sharing his own experiences as head of a third generation light source that Shank praised as being a "model facility." Petroff joined the chorus in stating that large, expensive research facilities such as third generation synchrotron radiation sources must "push experimentation to its limit." He also stressed that such facilities must have strong in-house research programs as well as strong outside user programs with several "outstanding" experiments in the mix. Costs can be kept down with sound long-range planning, he said, and there should be a "good coupling" of the facility with "neighboring universities and laboratories."
Petroff expressed surprise at the Birgeneau report's conclusions because it is "too soon" to compare the ALS to older facilities such as the synchrotron radiation source at Brookhaven National Laboratory. "The Brookhaven facility is fabulous now, but it, too, had its problems when it was first started," he said.
This view was strongly seconded by Giorgio Margaritondo of Switzerland, who spoke on behalf of the European Commission Round Table for Synchrotron Radiation.
"The United States absolutely needs the ALS," Margaritondo said. "The scientific case for third generation light sources is clear and extremely strong for both soft and hard x-rays, and for coherence and brightness in soft x-rays, the ALS is the best."
Holding this type of a workshop to help plot the future scientific course of the ALS received high marks from Akito Kakizaki, representing the Photon Factory at the University of Tokyo. "The results of this workshop will have benefits for our upgrade of the Photon Factory," he said, an upgrade that is currently being debated in Japan.
Following the reports out of the working group sessions (see sidebar), the workshop concluded with an open forum in which ALS users had the opportunity to air their opinions directly with Werner Myer-Ilse, of the Center for X-Ray Optics, who chairs the ALS users' executive committee, and deputy lab director Pier Oddone, who is overseeing the Lab's response to criticisms in the Birgeneau report.
"Many aspects of our relations with users were reported to be a problem," Oddone candidly told an audience that filled the Bldg. 50 Auditorium. "We are charged with creating a world-class user program at the ALS. We have heard much talk at this workshop about brightness being the measure of quality (for ALS' beams). Our goal is to make our users shine."
In the enthusiastic exchanges that followed, the concerns raised included the possibilities of the ALS helping to defray user expenses, particularly with regards to travel and lodging, and an increase in technical support, including help with sample preparations. There were also calls to improve the proposal submission process and the allocation of beamline time and resources.
Oddone was joined by Shank in pledging that these issues would be taken under advisement. Said Shank, "The ALS is a national user facility, and it is therefore incumbent upon us to accommodate outsider users and balance between internal and external scientific programs."
Dehmer may have best summed up the spirit of the workshop in her concluding remarks. Noting that scientific surprises and technological revolutions can't be predicted, she pointed out that the only forecast about synchrotron radiation that has come true has been the increased use of such light. DOE, she said, shared a commitment with Berkeley Lab, to make the ALS "the premier source of soft x-ray and extreme ultraviolet light in the world."
Photo: Pat Dehmer, associate director of DOE's Office of Basic Energy Sciences (BES), was one of the plenary speakers on opening day of the ALS workshop, which was sponsored by the Lab, BES, and the University of California's Office of the President. (XBD9803-00553-08) Photo by Roy Kaltschmidt
Photo: Neville Smith (XBD9803-00559-02)
Photo: More than 300 scientists from around the world gathered at the Lab to determine how the ALS could best be used to advance the forefronts of their fields. (XBD9803-00560-01)
The most important elements of the "Workshop on Scientific Directions at the Advanced Light Source," which was held last week at Berkeley Lab (see page one), were its eight working groups. Organized according to areas of research where the potential use of soft x-ray and extreme ultraviolet radiation is strongest, each group met separately at locations around the hill. Their mission was to identify the hottest issues in their fields and how the ALS could best be used to make a valuable contribution.
While the conclusions of these individual working groups are still being finalized, there are some overall highlights that can be reported. In the materials sciences, the topics generating the most excitement were unconventional superconductivity; magnetism for multi-electron extended systems; reduced dimensionality, including nanostructures, quantum wells, and mesoscopic devices; composite fermions; and the link between electronic structure and physical properties.
Many of the experiments being considered to study these topics could only be done at the ALS. Reasons cited included existing unique capabilities for soft x-ray absorption, emission, and scattering, and for magnetic circular and linear dichroism; plus potential capabilities in high-resolution angle-resolved photoemission; optical conductivity; and spin-polarized photoemission.
In the environmental and earth sciences, excitement centered around the "three S's" -- speciation of contaminants; spatial inhomogeneity at all length scales; sopping wet. With its unique capabilities for applying soft x-ray spectroscopy through the water window to in-situ speciation studies of soils, clays, minerals, and bio-organisms, the ALS received a strong endorsement here. There was even a call for the ALS to build-out an entire sector for environmental and earth sciences research.
In the biosciences, the fields of protein crystallography, x-ray microscopy and absorption spectroscopy received the most attention. For protein crystallography, the ALS was praised for its Macromolecular Crystallography Facility. There were calls for a superbend microcrystallography MAD (multiple-wavelength anomalous diffraction) beamline, greater use of existing ALS bend magnets, and the use of the ALS to do "all the proteins in a small bacterium" as part of an expanded effort in structural genomics. For x-ray microscopy and absorption spectroscopy, the ALS was seen as having an important potential role in medical studies that include breast cancer, disorders in human blood, and even Mad Cow disease. There was also a discussion of the ALS' enormous potential for diagnostic and functional imaging.
Enthusiasm was also high in areas involving catalytic materials, interfaces, chemical dynamics, and atomic physics. A more detailed report on the workshop results will be forthcoming in a future issue of Currents. The next Research Review will also feature a story on the science that is being done now at the ALS by users from outside of Berkeley Lab.
By Jon Bashor
This month, the Lab will begin phasing in a new e-mail system, Netscape Communicator, which is more reliable than those currently used around the Lab, as well as compliant with Internet standards.
Employees who make the move to the new system will have fewer problems sending documents attached to e-mail messages, since it works across all computer platforms, including PC, Macintosh and UNIX. The new system will also run faster, on more powerful and more reliable computer servers.
"It will work much better than what we now have," says Eric Hibbard, head of the Lab's Computing Infrastructure Support (CIS) Department. "In fact, it's working well already."
About 50 employees are using the new system as a testbed, Hibbard said, and it's proving to be both very popular and very robust.
The Mercury Project, as it has come to be known, offers both server-side and client-side components. The new server application is Netscape SuiteSpot. For users, the preferred software is Netscape's Communicator Pro 4.0.
While the new system will be handled by Netscape software, it's based on IMAP4, which stands for Internet Message Access Protocol. This method accesses electronic mail from a central computer, allowing mail to be read from a desktop computer at home, a workstation at the office, or a notebook computer while traveling--without the need to transfer messages or files back and forth between these computers.
Employees can learn more about the new system during a noon-hour presentation on Tuesday, April 14 , in the Bldg. 50 auditorium. Training classes will also be offered starting in late April.
CIS has been installing new equipment and developing the infrastructure to support a variety of new Netscape applications. While the new e-mail system will be the first of these, the infrastructure will also support a new calendar system, replacing the tottering Meeting Maker, and will eventually support electronic signature and certification capabilities, paving the way for electronic transactions.
The changes mean that employees who currently use such applications as QuickMail, cc: Mail and Meeting Maker will need to move to the new systems. The Lab's versions of QuickMail and Meeting Maker are no longer supported by their vendors, and the infrastructure supporting the applications is obsolete, says Eric Hibbard, head of CIS. For example, QuickMail is now supported primarily by eight or nine pre-PowerMac servers, as is Meeting Maker.
The Netscape applications will be supported by three Sun Microsystems Enterprise 3000 computers. One will support IMAP, one will support the calendar system, and a third will provide backup should either of the other two fail.
CIS is putting the final touches on a series of Web pages designed to walk employees through the process of "migrating" from an older system to the new one. Those pages will be rolled out in conjunction with the April 14 overview.
Employees will be able to download the necessary software, but will have to contact CIS to have a new account created and to get help in moving their saved messages from their old e-mail system to the new one (better yet, go through and delete those old messages!). CIS will also help groups of employees who want to change all at once.
While the conversion is expected to happen gradually, there are certain timely incentives. For example, the VMS-based mail servers will be shut down in September, while the surviving QuickMail servers will be turned off by mid-November.
"When the transition is complete, the Lab will truly have a modern, well-supported array of services to help all of us do our jobs better," Hibbard says. "It's truly an idea whose time has come."
Currents will run news and updates as the Mercury Project progresses.
By Paul Preuss
A fast new way to compute three-dimensional models of internal organs and other anatomical features has been developed by Ravi Malladi and James Sethian in Computing Sciences' Mathematics Department. The ground-breaking work was supported in part by the Department of Energy's Office of Energy Research.
Physicians and surgeons are constantly confronted with questions about the invisible. How big is a brain tumor? Is it shrinking with treatment? How thin is a heart-chamber wall, and how much blood does the heart pump? What is the exact shape and volume of a liver?
Although noninvasive imaging has made great advances in recent decades--whether x-rays, ultrasound, magnetic-resonance imaging, or computed tomography--even the best images have problems. They are flat--at best a series of map-like slices through the anatomical region of interest--and they are usually noisy, like a TV picture plagued with snow.
"We want to make the task of visualizing and reconstructing medical shapes easy for doctors," says Malladi. "One of the first things we set out to do was make cleaner images without destroying essential information. Of course trained physicians and medical technicians can find the boundaries of an object even in noisy images, and indeed, hospitals hire interns to sit in front of computers and painstakingly click out the edges on series of images. The challenge is to create a program that can make these decisions in automatic fashion."
Malladi and Sethian, who is also a professor of mathematics at UC Berkeley, met the challenge with methods that make images useful to doctors in real time, aiding fast, well informed decisions for effective treatment. "Now all a physician has to do is click once or twice inside the region of interest and the program will build a model in a few seconds," Malladi says.
The two researchers have used their methods to make images of organs with shapes as intricate as those of the human brain; from sonograms they have modeled the fetus in the womb; they have made movies of a pumping heart, relating blood flow in and out of the chambers to the thickness of the heart walls.
The way Malladi and Sethian build cleaner images is closely related to the way they build three-dimensional models from a series of flat images. An "implicit representation of curves" is the underlying mathematical approach, a form of partial-differential equations pioneered by Sethian, which tracks boundaries as they evolve in space and time. "Level Sets" and "Fast Marching" are two methods important in recovering medical shapes.
Level Sets models curves and solids by incorporating an extra dimension--viewing the representation from above, as it were. Fast Marching approximates the position of curves and surfaces moving under a simple "speed law," which attracts the evolving curve to boundaries. With these methods the computer algorithm determines the internal and external boundaries of anatomical solids more quickly and less ambiguously than traditional ways of interpreting visual information.
The process begins when the physician uses the computer to plant a visual seed in the image to be modeled. "Even a single point, represented by a computer mouse click, can be thought of as a very small circle or sphere," Malladi says. From that point an increasingly complex shape starts to grow. Knowing when to stop, however, depends on the algorithm recognizing edges that are often hard to read.
As the curve advances, it encounters changes in the gray-scale values of the pixels in the image. Where changes are small from one pixel to the next, the curve moves quickly--the algorithm assumes there is no nearby boundary; but where changes are large, as from white to black, the curve senses a boundary and slows down or stops. Too-abrupt changes in curvature are also smoothed out by the calculation.
Since the mathematical view is always from one dimension "above" the shape being modeled, a complex 3-D model can be quickly constructed, with the propagating boundary curve easily working its way around holes and voids. What's inside and outside a complex solid can be modeled separately. Models constructed at different moments in time produce movies of 3-D shapes in action.
Stills and movies of some of Malladi and Sethian's models can be found on the web at http://www.lbl.gov/~malladi. A lively discussion of Level Sets and Fast Marching, illustrated with movies, can be found at http://math.berkeley. edu/~sethian/ level_set.html.
Photo: Outer skin covering the skull is a model developed from magnetic-resonance imaging by Malladi and Sethian's new algorithm. The brain was also modeled from the same set of data. (Available on www.lbl.gov/~malladi)
Photo: Ravi Malladi with some of the anatomical images created by the algorithm he and James Sethian devised, which are displayed outside the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center in Bldg. 50B. (XBD9803-00561) Photo by Roy Kaltschmidt
"This study examines an attitude of ignorance by journalists and arrogance by scientists that stand in the way of public understanding of science and the need to bring those worlds closer together," says John Seigenthaler, founder of the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt which commissioned the study.
The typical scientist surveyed was a white male over 50 doing basic research in the physical sciences. Of those responding, about 80 percent agreed with the following statements: the U.S. public is gullible and believes in miracle cures or easy solutions; the media does not understand statistics well enough to explain new findings; the public does not understand the importance of federal funding for research; research produces contradictory findings that confuse the public; and the media are more interested in sensationalism than scientific truth.
The Vanderbilt study recommends that scientists should be trained to be more media-savvy, and that journalists should be given better access to databases and to scientific spokespersons.
Conventional computers use digits, either a one or a zero, to represent and transmit bits of data electronically. Quantum computers use photons or ions, which can be transmitted much faster than bits, making it possible to more efficiently factor large numbers or search large databases.
Many government facilities, including DOE's national labs, use public key cryptography (PKC) to secure transmitted information. PKC uses large numbers that are factored to represent a code, which is shared by a user and a sender. Developed in the 1970s, PKC has become increasingly susceptible to access by unauthorized users.
Richard Hughes, a physicist in LANL's Neutron Science Technology Group, and his colleagues have been developing an encryption system for quantum computers that uses codes with numbers too large to be efficiently processed by a conventional computer.
"A quantum computer can process in a few seconds what would take a normal computer several years to understand," Hughes said. "Quantum computing could therefore fundamentally change the way we protect sensitive information."
--Lynn Yarris
Photo: With a stunning vista of the Bay Area below, a worker clears away trees near the cafeteria in preparation for a new deck to be built there. (XBD9804-00734-03) Photo by Roy Kaltschmidt
On April 9, Jay C. Davis of Lawrence Livermore National Lab will talk about "Climate Change: Scientific Status and Policy Issues." in a noontime presentation in the Bldg. 50 auditorium. A nuclear physicist, Davis is the associate director for Earth and Environmental Sciences at LLNL. He was invited to speak as a visiting lecturer at Berkeley Lab by Director Charles Shank.
Davis' talk will focus on the current status of knowledge about climate change detection, modeling, and prediction, tests of human effect on the climate, and possible effects on economic and social structures.
On Wednesday, April 8, and Thursday, April 9, the National Energy Scientific Computing Center's User Services Group is presenting two days of training in the efficient use of the Cray T3E systems. A limited number of class spaces will be available to Lab researchers, so early registration is encouraged. The sessions will be held in Bldg. 51-201B. For a schedule of the training sessions, visit the web site at: http://www.nersc.gov/training/ersug.training.html To reserve a space in the sessions, send e-mail to Tom DeBoni at TMDeBoni@lbl.gov.
By Paul Preuss
With help from the Department of Energy, Berkeley Lab's Facilities Department and Environmental Health and Safety Departments (EH&S) have been leaders in the Lab's efforts to curb emissions that give rise to global warming. Some of these efforts are heroic, while others, just as significant, could easily be taken for granted.
The Lab's off-site shuttle buses, for example, have been in service for decades, but only in the last couple of years has the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) recognized the contribution of the Lab's buses in cutting back commuter trips by private car.
"Recently we did a survey that allowed us to estimate ridership," says Patrick Thorson of EH&S. "It varies through the year for reasons we don't fully understand -- ridership is lowest in the fall, increases through the year, and is highest in the summer -- but on average we reduce the number of private-vehicle one-way trips off the hill by about 1,500 each day."
Thorson says some of these trips would just be downtown at lunchtime, "but many are commute trips from employees' homes or from BART stations. Based on our surveys, these trips average about ten miles one-way, which means we're saving several thousand private-car miles a day."
In recognition of this saving, Thornton says, the Lab has received some outside funding from BAAQMD "to publicize the shuttle service and keep it going."
For its part, the Facilities Department, working with EH&S, has undertaken direct measures to cut the emission of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which react with atmospheric molecules to reduce the Earth's protective ozone layer, by retrofitting or replacing the Lab's refrigeration equipment.
"Some of this happens as units reach the end of their life and malfunction," says Ken Fletcher of Facilities. "For example, a condensing unit in the cafeteria went bad recently, and we pulled it out from under the counter and replaced it with a non-CFC unit."
But the big jobs are a lot bigger. The National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center in Building 50B cools its hot mechanical brains with two 130-ton chilling units -- a ton is 12,000 British thermal units, a Btu is equivalent to the heat put out by a match, so each unit can handle more than a million and a half matches' worth of heat. Building 2 has two chilling units, each with a cooling capacity of 250 tons--3,000,000 matches' worth each. And in Building 34 the Advanced Light Source houses a 500-ton machine, a whopping 6,000,000 matches' worth of heat-exchange capacity.
"Berkeley Lab has been very proactive," says Fletcher, "to the point where we've pretty much got most of the job done." Two of the giant refrigerators have been retrofitted to use hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) which have a lower impact on the ozone layer than CFCs. Two others have been entirely replaced. When the fifth unit is converted in the near future, Berkeley Lab will be the first national lab to convert all its major cooling facilities to non-CFC refrigerants.
Says Rich McClure of the Facilities Planning Group, "Among DOE labs we're a leader in terms of converting our facilities to reduce carbon emissions and CFCs."
McClure, Fletcher, Thorson and their colleagues stay on the lookout for new ways to reduce greenhouse emissions and help the Lab do its part to stave off global warming.
The LBNL Bicycle Coalition is offering free minor "tune-ups" to employees who bring their bikes to the fair. Tune-ups include inspection and minor adjustments, checking air pressure and brakes, chain lubrications, and general suggestions for safety. For more extensive work needed, the Coalition will make recommendations.
As an added bonus this year, there will be a special presentation by an artist who specializes in puppets and puns, with an emphasis on ecological messages. All the materials used in the show have been recycled in strange and artistic ways.
Other exhibitors will also be there to show their wares. The Lighting Group from EET will exhibit its Torchiere Lamps. Tilden Nature Center will show off its hiking and nature activities and also have on hand live lop-earred rabbits. Alameda County Composting will market their composting method for home use and offer discounted composting units and schedules for their free workshops. Boise Cascade will be promoting products that contain recycled materials and will give away free plants to the participants.
The Eco fair is being held this year in the lower parking lot of the Cafeteria from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. If it rains, the fair will be cancelled.
--Jacqueline Noble
Cal Day participants will have access to a broad range of entertaining and educational events throughout the day (9 a.m. to 4 p.m.). Faculty, staff and students will host activities such as lectures, demonstrations, music and dance performances. In addition, UC Berkeley will open its museums, labs, classrooms, libraries, and gardens to visitors. Activities for science buffs will include hands-on physics and chemistry demonstrations and visits to the Lawrence Hall of Science. All UC museums will waive admission fees that day.
For more information on Cal Day activities at the Lab, e-mail ejmoxon@lbl.gov. For all other events, call 642-5215 or visit the Cal Day website at http://www.urel.berkeley.edu/calday/
Every time you enter a contest, make a donation, buy something, order a product by mail, write a check, or send in a subscription or warranty card, chances are your name and address are being added to a mailing list, which may in turn be rented, sold or traded.
Here are a few things you can do to stop the onslaught of junk mail.
And don't forget to recycle the junk mail you do receive.
For more information call the Stop Junk Mail Association, 3020 Bridgeway, Suite
150-F, Sausalito, CA 94965,
(800) 827-5549.
Junk mail information websites
http://www.cpsr.org/cpsr/privacy/junkmail.html
http://www.best.com/~recycle//guides/junkmail.html
By Monica Frieldander
It's been four long years in the making, undergoing multiple stages of revisions and thorough field testing. Hot off the presses, Berkeley Lab's Nuclear Science Wall Chart is now ready for local, national, and international distribution. "This is it!" said project leader Howard Matis of the Nuclear Science Division (NSD).
The giant colorful chart, which depicts everything from the phases of nuclear matter to the Big Bang, was designed as a classroom tool for high school and college level students. The project was spearheaded by NSD's educational committee and developed in collaboration with the Contemporary Physics Education Project, a non-profit education organization made up of educators and physicists from around the world.
"The chart introduces contemporary physics research into the classroom," Matis said. "It shows the exciting work being done in nuclear physics today, as well as gives direction to future research. Most of the textbooks in use today are based on science often 50 or 60 years old. The chart shows what is being done now, and even poses some mysteries of science and open questions. It shows that we don't know everything."
The poster also serves to bring to life the often-misunderstood field of nuclear physics by depicting many of its tangible practical applications, including radioactive dating and medical applications, such as PET scans and diagnosis using radioactive isotopes.
As part of Berkeley Lab's educational outreach efforts, 200 wall charts are being donated to local schools, including Berkeley High School. This effort is led by the Lab's Center for Science and Engineering Education (CSEE).
The process of developing the wall charts started in 1994. In addition to support from Berkeley Lab (NSD and CSEE), the project is funded by grants from the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation, and received additional support from the American Physical Society. The J. M. Nitschke Memorial Fund provided money to print the field test versions of the chart. A workshop held at the Lab in the summer of 1996 was major milestone in the chart's development. Subsequently, the chart was distributed to physicists and teachers around the world for feedback before the final version was completed last month.
Worldwide distribution of the wall charts is being handled by Science Kit company in New York state. The charts come in three sizes (59 1/2" x 41 1/2", 29 1/2" x 21", and 16" x 11") and educational institutions are charged a nominal cost.
The Nuclear Science Wall Chart is accompanied by a teacher's guide. In addition, plans are in the works for organizing teacher workshops in the near future.
For more information contact Howard Matis at the Nuclear Science Division, X5031 or view the chart on the web at http://www-nsd.lbl.gov/NSD_docs/abc/wallchart.html .
Photo: Berkeley High science teacher Don Hubbard (right) and Nuclear Science's Howard Matis with the Nuclear Science Wall Chart. The chart was donated to Berkeley High as part of the Lab's education outreach efforts. (XBD9803-00757) Photo by Don Fike
Do you have an interesting story or anecdote to tell? Did you or one of your colleagues accomplish something that you think others would like to hear about? Are you working on some interesting research? Do you have a picture you would like published in Currents? If so, please send your suggestions to msfriedlander@ lbl.gov. We cannot publish every item submitted, but we will consider all your suggestions.
The Science Exploration Camp at Berkeley Lab has opened registration for the Summer of 1998. Six weekly sessions will be offered from July 27 through Sept. 4. The program website at http://eande.lbl.gov/EA/SEC/secindex.htm contains program description, registration information and forms. For more information send e-mail to sec@lbl.gov or call X6566.
Construction activities have started at the Bldg. 54 Conference Center, and will continue through Sept. 1. The project will upgrade Perseverance Hall. Work includes construction of a new deck on the south and west sides of the building and a new concrete walkway on the east side. Staff with meetings scheduled in the building during this period are advised that some noise and disruption may occur. Questions can be directed to Richard Stanton at X6221.
BodyWorks will start the spring session this year in a joint exercise with UC Berkeley's Muscle Works program. Classes will be offered on campus at 2301 Bancroft Way (accessible by Lab shuttle), noon to 1 p.m. every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. The cost is $8 per session. For more information, look up the Employees Activities Association website at http://www.lbl.gov/Workplace/HumanResources/EAA/. Look under Resources, Activities, then Adult Sports Program.
A new series of Weight Watchers classes started on Tuesday, March 31. Classes are held at noon in Bldg. 26. For more information or to sign up, contact Judy Kody at X4000.
The full text as well as photographs of each edition of Currents are also published on the World Wide Web. You can find a link to Currents on the Lab's home page (http:// www.lbl.gov) under the heading "Publications." The site allows users to do searches of past articles.
To set up your computer to access the web, call the Mac and PC Support Group at X6858.
Life Sciences researchers are seeking cigarette smokers between the ages of 18 and 30 to participate in a study sponsored by the California Tobacco Related Disease Program to determine the effect of cigarette smoking on plasma antioxidative enzymes. The information will provide new insights into how smoking contributes to premature cardiovascular disease. A stipend of $100 will be provided for participation in the study. Healthy volunteers will be asked to smoke up to six cigarettes for one hour after a 12 hour fast from food and cigarettes. Small blood samples will be obtained before and after smoking. For additional information please contact Trudy Forte at X5567 (e-mail: tmforte@lbl.gov) or Laura Knoff at X4088.
The new system will be implemented starting on May 1. In addition to e-mailing capability, the system will also include scheduling and electronic directory services, as well as electronic certificate/signature authority. See story on page 1 for more information on the new system.
The Employees' Activities Association is accepting orders for tickets to the Oakland A's vs. the Arizona Diamondbacks. Game time is 1:05 p.m. on Saturday, June 6, at the Oakland Coliseum. Seating is at field level in Section 129 along the third base line. Tickets cost $6.50, and checks should be made payable to UC Regents. To reserve your seat send a check to Jacqueline Noble, Bldg. 65B, or place your order on Thursdays, noon to 1 p.m. in the cafeteria foyer. The deadline for ordering tickets is May 15. For more information call Jacqueline Noble at X4762.
Berkeley Lab's Outdoor Club invites all employees and their families to turn out for the Fishing Derby--one of the Club's greatest events, to be held at the San Pablo Reservoir Recreation Area on April 18. Fishing prizes will be awarded, including a grand prize for the biggest trout. Weigh-in time will be from 3:30 to 4 p.m. at the South End Boat Ramp. Tickets are $1 per person. For more information, contact Al Salazar at X5908 or Ed Tully at X5907.
On March 27, the 1998 statements of Maximum Annual Contributions (MAC) were mailed to employees who contributed to the tax-deferred 403(b) Plan during 1997. These amounts will be installed on the payroll/personnel system by April 1. The payroll system monitors contributions throughout the year and stops them automatically if a participant reaches the maximum before the end of the year.
After April 1, participants can call UC's Bencom line (1-800-888-8267) to get information about their MAC. A MAC is calculated for all University employees who were on active payroll in January. Employees whose MAC was zero in previous years and who canceled their salary reduction agreement should call to find out if their MAC has increased so they can begin contributing again in 1998. Employees who were not on active payroll status in January must contact the Benefits Office at X6403 for a MAC calculation before beginning contributions.
Jeopardy Tonight
A quick reminder for Jeopardy fans: Tonight's show will feature Lab's own Diane Fisher of EETD. More information on her experience can be found in the Feb. 20 issue of Currents.
Wedding Bells
Congratulations to David Batzloff of the Computer Systems Maintenance group, who married Lesley Means on March 21.
The Berkeley Lab Calendar is published biweekly here on the World Wide Web and in Currents by the Public Information Department. Employees can list a meeting, class, or event in the Calendar by using this submission form. The deadline for submissions is 5 p.m. on Monday in the week that Currents is published.In addition to the events listed below, Berkeley Lab's Washington, D.C. Projects office is hosting a Science and Technology Seminars series.
Scientific Conferences
General Interest
Music Club
General meeting, noon, lower cafeteria
LBNL Postdoctoral Society
Workshop on "The Academic Job Search," 4-7
p.m., UCB campus
African American Employees Association
General meeting, noon, Bldg.
90-1099
Shoemobile
7:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Bldg. 54 parking lot
E-Mail Presentation by Computer Infrastructure Support
Introduction
to new e-mail system, noon, Bldg. 50 auditorium
Daughters and Sons to Work Day
9:30 a.m.-3:15p.m., various sites
Registration required.
ALS/CXRO Seminar
"X-ray Spectromicroscopy of Polymers - Quantitative
Speciation of Bulk, Surfaces and Interfaces" will be presented by Adam
Hitchcock of McMaster University.
3:30 p.m., Bldg. 2-100B
ALS/CXRO Seminar
"Performance Improvements of the NSLS Storage Rings"
will be presented by James Safranek of SLAC.
9 a.m., Bldg. 2-400F
UCB Chemical Engineering Colloquia
"No Reduction by CH4 over
Metal-Exchanged ZSM5 Catalysts" will be presented by Lisa Lobree, LBNL;
and
"Experimental Studies of Polymer Chain Conformation in Flow: Testing of
Kinetic Theory Models" will be presented by Ellen Lee, LBNL.
4:10 p.m.,
Pitzer Auditorium, Latimer Hall
Surface Science and Catalysis Science Seminars
"Electronic Structure
and Bonding at Complex Oxide Surfaces: Theoretical Studies" will be presented
by K. Hermann, Fritz Haber Institute of Berlin, Germany.
1:30 p.m. Bldg.
66-317.
Lecture on Climate Change
"Climate Change: Scientific Status and
Policy Issues" will be presented by Jay C. Davis of Livermore.
Noon., Bldg.
50 auditorium
ALS/CXRO Seminar
"X-rays and Electrons: Similarities, Differences,
Complimentary Goals, Imaging, Microanalysis, Lithography, and Diffraction
Experiments in NCEM" will be presented by John Spence, Arizona State
University.
3:30 p.m., Bldg 2-100B
Physics Division Seminar
"Status of the Mw Measurement at LEP" will
be presented by Douglas Glenzinski of the University of Chicago.
4 p.m.,
Bldg. 50A-5132. Refreshments at 3:40 p.m.
Pre-registration is required for all courses except EHS 010 (Introduction to EH&S). To pre-register for classes send name, employee ID number, extension, course title, EH&S course code, and date of course to EH&S Training, 90-0026, Room 16C; by e-mail to EHS-Train@lbl.gov; by fax: X4805; phone: X7366. You may register online at http://www-ehs.lbl.gov/training/registration/.
558-9140
`86 OLDSMOBILE Cutlass Ciera, 115K mi, cruise control, a/c, stereo, some damage on body, runs good, $600, Tom, X4867
`90 PLYMOUTH Grand Voyager LE, 7 passenger van, fully loaded, 125K mi, transmission replaced last Oct, $5900, Allan, X7573, 528-0171
`91 PONTIAC LE MANS, 93K mi, two owners, automatic, 2 doors, like new, avail 4/23, $2500, Giuseppe, X5446, 845-9407
`91 VOLVO 940 Turbo Sedan, Gray, 83K mi, exc cond, auto, abs, alloy rims, leather, power seats/locks/ windows, cassette, a/c, sun roof, $12,800, Brent, X5614, Krista, X7523, 339-3079
`96 JEEP Grand Cherokee LTD, 4x4, V8, leather, tow pkg, char-gold, loaded, $24,500, Carl, X7197, 254-7969
PORSCHE alloy wheels and tires, 7.5" x 9" w/seven spoke rims, exc cond, $450, Gary, 229-1241, eve
BERKELEY, sunny, furn, 1 bdrm apt in duplex, pleasant neighborhood nr Alta Bates Hospital, for up to one year only, $700/mo, Lara, X7276
NORTH BERKELEY, lg furn room, historic brown shingle, easy walk to campus & shuttle, kitchen privileges, ideal for visiting scientist, post doc, $425/mo, avail immediately, Rob, 843-5987
MORAGA, 3 bdrm partially furn house in beautiful setting, 30 min scenic drive to LBNL, avail from 6/5 to 8/25, prefer non-smoker, visiting scholar and spouse, $1500/mo + dep, Jahan, X4905, 376-4126
COMPUTER, Macintosh IIsi 9/80, color monitor, new keyboard & mouse, software, handbooks, etc, $360; Imagewriter II, like new, $35, Ulli, X5347, 601-6541
DUSTMOP, prof, 24" wide, never used, $10; 18/8 stainless steel restaurant-style teapots (2), $6 ea; Arrow heavy duty staple gun, like new, $9, Greenwing Macaw, beautiful hand fed male, 5 yrs old, tame, talks, seven foot wrought iron cage & separate floor-standing perch incl, $1000, Sherry, X6972,
799-8414
HAM RADIO Equipment, Drake R8 receiver, short wave radio, 100 Mhz Tekronix TAS 465 two-channel scope, BK Precision power supply, LCR meter & 2 signal generators, Fluke multimeter, Frequency counter and Weller solder station, Joe X7631
PHOTO Equipment, Ricoh KR-10m motorized body, w/multi exposure, 1/2000 shutter, w/Kalimar 28-200mm, F 3.5-5.3, automatic one-touch, multi-coated Macro zoom lens+ 72mm UV filter, $200; Achiever 630AF flash dedicated to Olympus AF cameras, autofocus illumination range 1-7 meters, swivel, bounce & zoom head, 3 color filters & wide angle diffuser, $80, George, X6930,
676-8581
SAILBOAT, Sunfish, `93, w/trailer and some accessories, exc cond, white and aqua, never sailed in salt water, $1800/b.o., John 531-1739 (eve)
SEARAY cruiser, 1982, 22.5 ft, SRV225, 260 Merc outdrive, sleeps 4, head, galley, 310 hrs, delta canvas, vhf, depth sounder, trim tabs, very good cond, include Trailrite tandem axle trailer, $9500/b.o., Bob, 376-2211
SKIS, Salomon 9E, 2S racing skis, blk/purple/red, PR6-198cm, w/Salomon DR9 EXP suspension bindings, exc cond, $290/b.o.; ski poles, Gipron Comp Poles, $10; cross-country skis, boots, poles, Fischer Crown Air Core Touring Skis, 195 cm, Ratefella NNN bindings, poles, boots size 42 Euro, 8.5 mens, 9.5 ladies, good cond, $120/b.o.; Gold Club pull cart, Solex Sports Par Cart, never used, $30, Doug, X4933, 339-1033
SPEAKERS, ESS AMT1A Towers, $400; Marantz 2325 Receiver, 125 watts per channel, $100, Kathy, 685-5659
TV, 19" w/built in VCR, $170; small boombox (CD, stereo, cassette), $50; wireless telephone, $50; answering machine, coffee maker, toaster, blender, electric water heater, $10 ea; 33.6 pc-faxmodem, 2 mos old, $40, Thomas, X4867
TV Quasar, 19" color, good cond, $50; Global Village 14.4 Fax modem for Macintosh, $25; Proctor-Silex 12 cup coffee maker, almost new, $30, Evan, X7349
EXCHANGE, visiting scientist and family from Paris hopes to exchange housing w/LBNL family w/home in Berkeley area who are wishing to stay in Paris area for 2 yr period beg 8/98, Marcella, X6304
HOUSING for Spanish LBNL visitor w/wife & 2 children 3 & 5, approx 1 yr from 4/15, tomas@iit.upco.es
HOUSING for responsible middle-aged visiting physicist & wife from Harvard, Berkeley area, for 2 wks, 6/14-28, seeking 1 bdrm apt or a detached house, will water plants, care for cats, etc, coleman@physics.harvard.edu.
HOUSING for visiting prof & family from North Carolina State, housing needed for 9 mos to 1 yr beginning 8/1/98, 2-4 bdrm house w/in 15 min drive of LBNL, Tony, X5819
ARCHERY Equipment for Oakland High School Archery Club, must be in good working cond, will pay, donations gladly accepted, Randy, X6354, 893-8029
Flea Market Ad Policy
Ads are accepted only from LBNL employees, retirees, and on-site DOE personnel. Only items of your own personal property may be offered for sale.
Submissions must include name, affiliation, extension, and home telephone number.
Ads must be submitted in writing--via e-mail (fleamarket@lbl.gov), fax (X6641), or delivered/ mailed to Bldg. 65B. No ads will be taken by phone.
Ads will run one week only unless resubmitted in writing. They will be repeated only as space permits.
The deadline for the April 17 issue is 5 p.m. Friday, April 10.
Please note also:
Published once a month by the Communications Department for the employees and retirees of Berkeley Lab.
Reid Edwards, Public Affairs Department head
Ron Kolb, Communications Department headEDITOR
Pamela Patterson, 486-4045, pjpatterson@lbl.gov
Associate editor
Lyn Hunter, 486-4698, lhunter@lbl.govSTAFF WRITERS
Dan Krotz, 486-4019
Paul Preuss, 486-6249
Lynn Yarris, 486-5375CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Ucilia Wang, 495-2402
Allan Chen, 486-4210
David Gilbert, (925) 296-5643DESIGN
Caitlin Youngquist, 486-4020
Creative Services OfficeBerkeley Lab
Communications Department
MS 65, One Cyclotron Road, Berkeley CA 94720
(510) 486-5771
Fax: (510) 486-6641Berkeley Lab is managed by the University of California for the U.S. Department of Energy.
Flea Market is now online at www.lbl.gov/fleamarket
