August 8, 2003 Search the Currents Archive
 

The First Shape Measurement of a Type Ia Supernova

Proposals Now Being Accepted For ‘Incite’

Farewell to Currents, Hello ... ?
Research on Bone-like Material Receives $4.3 Million Grant from the NIH
Lot Eliminated From Revised Bldg. 49 Plan
Presentations Cap High School Summer Internships
A Thank You Letter to Berkeley Lab
New Program Serves ASD Staff — and Entire Lab
Berkeley Lab Currents
Lab Hosts Workshop on Tools For Scientific Computing
Learning from Algae
New Transmission Tower Rises
Computer Protection Brown Bag Looks at Internet Scams
Incident Response Course
Enhanced Security for Accessing UC Online Benefits Access
FleaMarket
Flea Market Policy
In Memoriam — Physicist Ron Ross
LANA Fundraiser


The First Shape Measurement of a Type Ia Supernova

Results confirm these exploding stars are‘standard candles’

By Paul Preuss

Most astronomers agree that Type Ia supernovae are exploding white dwarf stars, although there is less agreement on how they explode: do they accrete matter from a companion? Do two white dwarfs collide? Does some other factor trigger their ignition?

Studies of SN 2001el support the model of a Type Ia supernova that begins as a white dwarf star accreting matter from a companion.

Whatever the mechanics, Type Ia supernovae are astronomy’s best “standard candles,” so extraordinarily bright and remarkably similar that they allow distances of billions of light years to be calculated with precision. Yet good as they are, a small uncertainty persists in the relationship of their measured brightness to their distance.

The cause of that remnant uncertainty has now been plausibly identified by a team of researchers led by Lifan Wang, an astronomer and astrophysicist in the Lab’s Physics Division. Using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile, the most powerful array of optical telescopes in the world, they found that Type Ia supernovae can differ slightly in brightness because they do not explode in a perfectly spherical manner.

“For the first time we have actually measured the asymmetry of a Type Ia supernova,” Wang says. Not only can this information be used to test models of how Type Ia’s originate, he says, it also underlines just “how valid supernovae are for doing cosmology.”

Wang and his colleagues at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) and the University of Texas at Austin, along with fellow Berkeley Lab members of the Supernova Cosmology Project (SCP), measured polarized light in various bands of the spectrum of a supernova designated 2001el.

They were able to show that at peak brightness the exploding star was slightly flattened, with one axis shorter by about 10 percent. A week later, however, the visible explosion was virtually spherical.

It was by measuring distant Type Ia supernovae that the SCP first established the accelerating expansion of the universe. Confirmed by other researchers and announced in 1998, acceleration implies the presence of a “cosmological constant” or other form of so-called dark energy — now known to account for some 75 percent of the density of the universe.

Built into the SCP’s calculations was a “systematic” uncertainty in the brightness-distance relationship — a consistent uncertainty due to unknown physical factors — of just under 10 percent.

“The asymmetry we have measured in SN 2001el is large enough to account for a large part of this intrinsic uncertainty,” says Wang. “If all Type Ia supernovae are like this, it would account for a lot of the dispersion in brightness measurements. They may be even more uniform than we thought.”

Wang’s spectropolarimetry program had previously established that other types of supernovae show considerably higher degrees of polarization, and therefore asphericity, than does Type Ia. Not only is the asphericity of Type Ia supernovae small by comparison, its effect on brightness measurements may be readily correctable.

Asymmetry and how to measure it

Wang and his colleagues use the example of a carton of eggs to explain how asymmetry can affect brightness measurements. All the eggs in the carton are similar, but the egg shape is only apparent when they are viewed from the side; viewed end-on, an egg looks round, and smaller.

Supernova 2001el appeared in September, 2001, in galaxy NGC 1448 in the southern constellation Horologium (the Clock).

Likewise, if supernovae are not spherically symmetric, they will shine less brightly in one direction than in others. Even with a telescope as powerful as the VLT, however, distant supernovae appear only as point-sources of light, so asymmetric shapes cannot be seen directly. Instead they must be inferred from the way the light is polarized.

In the light from a spherically symmetric star, all orientations are equally represented; there is no net polarization. Not so for an asymmetric star or explosion, which shows a net excess of polarization.

“The differences are very small,” says Dietrich Baade, a scientist with the European Southern Observatory and a member of the team that did the spectropolarimetry. “Measuring them requires an instrument that is very sensitive and very stable.”

To study SN 2001el, the team used the FORS1 spectropolarimetry instrument in conjunction with the VLT. They made repeated measurements as the supernova grew brighter, reached maximum brightness, and then slowly faded.

Following the light curve

“Distance measurements of Type Ia supernovae have typically been calculated at maximum brightness,” says Wang. “Our observations of SN 2001el show that asymmetry persists up to and beyond maximum brightness.”

Scientists used the powerful Very Large Telescope (VLT) at the European Southern Observatory in Paranal, Chile to conduct measurements for this study.

As spherical symmetry begins to dominate, about a week after maximum, “it’s not because the supernova is changing shape, but because we are seeing different layers of it,” says Wang. Outer layers expanding at thousands of kilometers a second grow diffuse and become transparent, allowing the inner layers to become visible. “When it explodes, the outer part is aspherical, but as we see lower down, the dense inner core is spherical.”

Increasing sphericity in the fading part of light curves might be useful to “calibrate” Type Ia observations and reduce uncertainties in the relation between their distance and brightness.

Polarimetry also has much to say about a Type Ia supernova’s progenitors and the way it burns when it explodes. Asphericity and the presence of certain elements in the spectrum of SN 2001el support the model of a white dwarf star sucking matter from an orbiting companion until it reaches critical mass, about 1.4 times the mass of our sun.

The result is a thermonuclear explosion. To understand how it proceeds, three-dimensional models may be essential. Typical one and two-dimensional computer modeling is inadequate.

In addition to polarimetry, analyzing the spectrum of a Type Ia supernova during the rising part of the light curve can reveal specific information about its elemental composition. “This shows that we need to follow the rise and fall of the light curve completely,” Wang says.

Type Ia supernovae are the best way to investigate dark energy, and the new results confirm that they are indeed dependable cosmic measuring sticks. In the future, very high-precision projects like the SuperNova/Acceleration Probe (SNAP) satellite, now under development, will insure that Type Ia supernovae are compared like-to-like, thus averaging out any asymmetries. Meanwhile the ground-based Nearby Supernova Factory, another collaborative project based at Berkeley Lab, will study the spectra of hundreds of Type Ia supernovae as they brighten and fade. In some cases, these studies will include polarimetry like that of SN 2001el. The ESO VLT's extraordinary achievement stands as a paradigm in a new age of supernova observations.

“Spectropolarimetry of SN 2001el in NGC 1448: asphericity of a normal Type Ia supernova,” appeared in the July 10 issue of Astrophysical Journal. Coauthors with Lifan Wang were Dietrich Baade of the European Southern Observatory, Peter Hoeflich and J. Craig Wheeler of the University of Texas at Austin, Alexei Khokhlov of the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, Daniel Kasen, Peter E. Nugent, and Saul Perlmutter of Berkeley Lab, and Claes Fransson and Peter Lundqvist of the Stockholm Observatory.

Science Glossary
Asphericity (spherical asymmetry) — all points on the surface of a sphere are the same distance from its center (mathematical models of spherical phenomena are thus “one dimensional”). A geometrical solid not meeting this condition is aspherical.

Cosmological constant — a mathematical term originally proposed by Albert Einstein, referring to an antigravitational force or property of space that does not change over time.

Polarization refers to the orientation of the plane of the electric wave component of electromagnetic radiation. Thus by blocking or absorbing light polarized by reflection from horizontal surfaces, Polaroid sunglasses reduce glare.

Type Ia supernovae — Supernovae are classified by evidence of elements in their spectra. Type I supernovae have no hydrogen. Type Ia spectra show silicon early and iron later.

White dwarf — A dying star of low or medium mass, like our sun, first expands as a red giant, then loses its outer layers. What remains is a white dwarf, commonly consisting of carbon and oxygen and packing 60 percent of the sun’s mass into an object roughly the size of Earth.

Proposals Now Being Accepted For ‘Incite’

New Program Will Allocate Large Computing Resources to NERSC

The Department of Energy’s Office of Science announced that it is now accepting proposals for a new program to support innovative, large-scale computational science projects.

INCITE — for Innovative and Novel Computational Impact on Theory and Experiment — will award a total of 4.5 million supercomputer processor hours and 100 trillion bytes of data storage space at the Energy Research Scientific Computing (NERSC) Center.

“The INCITE initiative will make Lawrence Berkeley’s NERSC facility available to all qualified researchers for grand challenge calculations,” said Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham, “and in the process bring us closer to achieving the full potential of scientific simulation to solve outstanding scientific and industrial problems of major significance.”

INCITE seeks computationally intensive large-scale research projects that can make high-impact scientific advances through the use of a substantial allocation of computer time and data storage at NERSC. The program specifically encourages proposals from universities and other research institutions. A small number of large awards is anticipated.

NERSC is the most powerful computer for unclassified research in the United States.
Prospective users will not need to have a DOE contract or grant.The applications will be peer reviewed and judged solely on their scientific merit.

“The power of advanced scientific computation is just beginning to be realized,” said Ray Orbach, director of DOE’s Office of Science. “For some promising research efforts, there simply have not been enough cycles, or there wasn’t an infrastructure which would allow large-scale simulations to truly develop and produce the kind of discoveries we hope to achieve.”

The Office of Science decided that 10 percent of NERSC’s IBM supercomputer — now at 10 Tera-flop/s, or 10 trillion operations per second — should be made available for grand challenge calculations.

“We are launching the INCITE initiative for two reasons,” Orbach explained. “For one, it’s the right thing to do: there are opportunities for major accomplishments in this field of science. In addition, there is also a ‘sociology’ that we need to develop. We need to learn how to function at those speeds, how to work together as teams, and how to handle and manipulate data.”

Orbach said NERSC’s computational facilities will be open to everyone, with 10 percent of its capability available to the entire world.

“It may be the case that teams rather than individuals will be involved,” Orbach explained. “It even is possible that one research proposal will be so compelling that the entire 10 percent of NERSC will be allocated to that one research question.”

Successful INCITE proposals will describe high-impact scientific research and will be peer-reviewed both in the area of research and also for general scientific review comparing them with proposals in other disciplines.

Applicants will need to present evidence that they can effectively use a major fraction of the 6,656 processors of the IBM SP supercomputer at NERSC. Applicant codes must be demonstrably ready to run in a massively parallel manner on that computer.

Proposals will be accepted until 5 p.m. PDT on Sunday, Sept. 21, 2003. Awards are expected to be announced by Oct. 31, and access to the NERSC facilities for the awardees will be established immediately following the announcement and remain in effect until Oct. 1, 2004.

Proposals will be accepted only electronically, according to instructions found in the Call for Proposals at http://hpcf.nersc.gov/accounts/allocations/incite.html.

Established in 1974, NERSC currently serves more than 2,000 scientists at national laboratories and universities across the country researching problems in combustion, climate modeling, fusion energy, materials science, physics, chemistry and computational biology.

Farewell to Currents, Hello ... ?

For more than a quarter of a century, Currents has faithfully served the Laboratory as its primary news source. The paper, first published in March of 1976, has grown and changed over time along with the Lab itself and the community that Currents served and linked through its increasingly colorful pages.

And now change comes again, in response to the changing communication needs and technologies of the 21st Century.

Breaking news is now being delivered to each employee via “Today at Berkeley Lab” — an important link in the Lab’s network of internal communications. The daily electronic bulletin is a source of immediate and timely news, something a biweekly newspaper cannot do.

The Public Affairs Department has conducted internal focus groups to learn what employees expect from a print publication today. And what we found out is that they are most interested in receiving news about Lab life, about people, about the story behind the story, the why’s and how’s of what’s happening at the Laboratory. In other words: a more “featury” publication.

Most of the Currents staples will continue to be published — everything from the wonders of scientific discovery at Berkeley Lab to the Flea Market. It is only the general approach to news that’s changing — a change that will be enhanced and complemented by a more contemporary look as well.

When the paper returns from its brief break, you will notice a makeover — complete with a new name and design. Look for it on Sept. 5.

And thanks to all for your continued feedback and support.

— Monica Friedlander, Editor

Research on Bone-like Material Receives $4.3 Million Grant from the NIH

Tomsia

Antoni Tomsia of the Materials Sciences Division will receive a $4.3 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to develop new bone-like materials that could greatly improve implants such as artificial hips and shoulders. The five-year grant includes $3.5 million to develop complex nanocomposites for bone generation, and $800,000 for a new microscope to facilitate this work. Tomsia will lead the research, with help from a multidisciplinary collaboration of scientists from Berkeley Lab, UC Berkeley and San Francisco campuses, and the Bothell, Washington-based SkeleTech, Inc.

The need for better biomaterials is underscored by the growing demand for bone replacements. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, 152,000 total hip replacement and 299,000 knee replacements were performed in 2000. As the average age of the population increases and the patients receiving such implants become younger, these numbers are likely to increase. In addition, today’s implants cannot self-repair or adapt to changing physiological condition, and many of them fail or cause damage to the surrounding tissues because of a mismatch in physical properties between bone and implant.

To address these shortcomings, Tomsia’s research is aimed at developing and testing improved implant systems based on nanotechnology. The ultimate goal is to develop strong and tough implant materials for load-bearing applications. The materials will derive their strength from specially developed nanomaterials, and their toughness from hydrogel polymers, at a scale on the order of tens of nanometers and below.

Look for the Sept. 5 issue for a full article on Tomsia’s research and NIH grant.

Lot Eliminated From Revised Bldg. 49 Plan

Berkeley Lab has issued a revised Notice of Preparation (NOP) for the Environmental Impact Report on its proposed research office building (Building 49).

After hearing comments from the community and considering alternatives to an earlier plan to construct a parking lot near the site, officials have eliminated the lot and instead plan to remove excess soils off-site. The review period for the NOP has been extended to Sept. 5. Copies of the revised NOP are available in the main library in Building 50.

Presentations Cap High School Summer Internships

Photo (Top): Brittany Murlas from Berkeley High School during her final presentation.
Photo (Bottom): Rollie Otto, head of CSEE, with program director Gwen Espino and Lamont Harper of Berkeley High School.

Participants in the High School Student Research Participation program ended their six-week scientific adventure on the Hill with a bang on August 1. Their final presentations, summarizing their research at Berkeley Lab over the course of the summer, was delivered in front of an audience made up of their peers, Lab mentors, teachers, and the mayor of Berkeley.

Now in its fourth year, the program, which is sponsored by the Lab’s Center for Science and Engineering Education, gives talented high school students from the San Francisco Bay Area the opportunity to come face to face with real science and gain valuable work experiences in a variety of fields of science, computing sciences, and engineering. Twenty-six students from 12 high schools participated in the program this summer.

The inernship program is open to high school juniors or seniors. Selection is based on the applicant academic performance, teacher recommendations, and demonstrated commitment to a future career in the sciences, computer sciences, engineering or related field.The interns worked 40 hours a week for six weeks and were paid a stipend.

The goal of the program is to reinforce classroom learning and promote careers in science and engineering.

A Thank You Letter to Berkeley Lab

Sometimes you think that things can’t get any better. Then they do. When I sat there on Friday and listened to the students make their PowerPoint presentations, I was so very proud of their accomplishments that I had tears in my eyes. When I started this program four years ago, I had no idea that it would turn out to be such a remarkable asset for educating our youth.

Students have benefited so much from this program. Working with real scientists is something they can only dream about while doing experiments in a school chemistry lab. To be able to share your learning experiences with your teachers and fellow classmates is extraordinary. To then take your favorite science classes — chemistry, biology and physics — and see them in action in the real world is unbelievable.

This program has given students an opportunity to be more creative and expressive in science and math, and opened new career paths. Several years ago we had a student who wanted to major in chemical engineering. She was mentored by Dr. George Smoot from Astrophysics, working on a project on galactic emission mapping. She was so excited that she ended up doing a double major in chemical engineering and physics at the University of California, Berkeley. She took the love of science and math to another level.

There are students who completed the High School Student Research Participation Program several years ago who are now working at Berkeley Lab in Information Technologies and Services and in the Life Sciences Division while still attending college. There are so many career opportunities in science, engineering and technology for students to explore here, it is mind-boggling. Having the mentors here at the Lab guiding the students on a daily basis for six weeks is making a huge difference.

I’dl like to thank all of the departments that participated in the program. You really made a difference in each of these students’ lives. Working at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has been a learning experience like no other for these students. Besides learning about specific research methods, they also get to experience the excitement involved in scientific discovery that’s common for all fields of science.

Sudents who worked in Life Sciences labs said that the experience made biology much more real for them. Biology was no longer a textbook filled with endless lines of small column text with an occasional picture or diagram, but the experience of working with life and knowing that the work being done today by these scientists might end up saving lives.

Berkeley Lab and the mentors in this program have had a profound impact on these students, something they will never forget. And neither will I.

Gwen Espino
Director, High School Student Research Participation Program

New Program Serves ASD Staff — and Entire Lab

ASD Training Academy launches August 28

By Dan Krotz

Berkeley Lab’s Administrative Services Department (ASD) will soon launch the ASD Academy, a program designed to meet both the training needs of the administrative staff and the ever-changing support needs of the Lab’s scientific community.

The Academy, which opens on Aug. 28 in conjunction with the annual ASD picnic, will provide the Lab’s administrative professionals with a wide range of educational, networking, and career development resources. Among other opportunities, ASD members will have access to mentoring programs, online tutorials, soft-skills training seminars, and a Resource and Learning Center that features a career development library, training videos, and a meeting room.

“We feel the Academy gives us the best opportunity to finally address the learning needs of administrative staff in a more consistent, quality and equitable way,” says Karen Ramorino, deputy of ASD and chief developer of the Academy. “It also enables ASD to more fully support our partnering efforts with scientists. If the Lab’s role is to stay on the cutting edge of science, then we need to stay on the cutting edge of what it takes to support our scientists.”

Overall, the Academy helps ASD manage its workforce, provide more of an equitable workplace through learning opportunities, and provide scientists with state-of-the-art administrative and business support services. To meet these goals, the Academy will focus primarily on knowledge and skills development in the two primary ASD career paths: administrative and business services, and division budget and resource management. Other critical competencies and skills needed for career path specialty areas, supervision and technology use, will also be addressed.

At the heart of the Academy’s learning environment is a reliance on inhouse expertise rather than expensive, commercially offered training programs. Staff members with a range of expertise, from PowerPoint presentations to conference and travel coordination to business policies and processes, can share their knowledge with others. This peer-based education taps into a longstanding tradition within ASD. As Ramorino explains, ASD members have always showed a tremendous amount of energy when it comes to volunteer teaching and helping others.

“The Academy recognizes this tradition of volunteer sharing, and places an umbrella over it” Ramorino says. “The Academy recognizes the rich and diverse talents of our own staff and provides a central place for people to connect with each other”

The ASD Academy also recognizes people learn in diverse ways, and an employee’s career and skill development needs change over time. So, the Academy offers a variety of ways to learn. For example, in subject areas in which ASD does not have internal expertise, the Academy can utilize resources from other Lab divisions or outside consultants when funding is available, which is a more cost effective use of Lab funds.

Sue Bowen, the administrator of the new ASD Academy program, demonstrates a Writing Advantage skill to Valarie Ross-Espinoza (left) and Maki Tabata.

The Academy will offer online tutorials and assessments, one-on-one mentoring partnerships, one-hour training modules, internships, and even role-playing sessions that explore conflict resolution strategies. There will be a list of mentors capable of coaching employees through real-time problems. For example, if an ASD employee is having trouble formatting a Word document, they can call an ASD expert. Prior to teaching a course, even volunteer Academy instructors will receive training in writing and presentations skills to focus content quality and ensure their success. The Academy will also partner with individual division leaders to pilot specific support initiatives.

In addition to course and learning experiences, on Aug. 28 the Academy is opening its Resource and Learning Center, to be located in trailer 7C (next to Building 7). It will be open every weekday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. The center features computer workstations and library area, as well as a small meeting room for one-on-one sessions between ASD employees and mentors.

“The Academy’s Resource and Learning Center will be a place where ASD employees can access, in the privacy of the learning center, career development information and skills assessment tools through a resource library and a suite of on-line learning options,” says Sue Bowen, the new administrator of the Academy who will have the primary responsibility for connecting all of the learning opportunities between the ASD staff and the needs of the scientific community.

The focus on ASD members meeting and networking with their peers throughout the Lab is a valuable advantage for a department whose members are matrixed to the Lab’s many divisions.

“We need to connect people who are doing similar kinds of work, but are dispersed throughout the Lab,” says Bowen. “In this way, the Academy is a result of input we have received over the years from our own staff and the Laboratory at large. And when we’re better connected with each other, it enriches our experience at the Lab.”

Ultimately, the Academy will serve ASD staff — and the entire Lab — by enabling ASD members to learn new skills, explore career options, and share their knowledge with others.

“What makes the Academy different from past attempts at training is its recognition of our own people as valuable resources in the development and delivery of our training and learning program,” says Anil More, the head of ASD. “ASD staff are the ones closest to the diverse support needs of the Laboratory. Through volunteering, participating and attending courses, the Academy enables more of a partnership with the scientific community in shaping learning experiences around real-time support needs.”

Ramorino adds, “In this kind of learning environment, everyone has an important role to play and contribution to make in providing the best possible services to the scientific community.”

Berkeley Lab Currents

Currents is published twice a month by the Communications Department for the employees and retirees of Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
Ron Kolb, PID department head.

EDITOR: Monica Friedlander, (510) 495-2248, msfriedlander@lbl.gov
STAFF WRITERS: Dan Krotz, 486-4019; Paul Preuss, 486-6249; Lynn Yarris, 486-5375
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Jon Bashor, X5849; Allan Chen, X4210
FLEA MARKET / CALENDAR: 486-4698, fleamarket@lbl.gov
currents_calendar@lbl.gov

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Berkeley Lab is managed by the University of California for the U.S. Department of Energy.

Lab Hosts Workshop on Tools For Scientific Computing

More than 40 computational scientists from around the country attended the fourth workshop on the DOE Advanced Computational Software Collection. Hosted by the Computational Research Division, the workshop was held on the Clark Kerr Campus of UC Berkeley. The ACTS Collection (http://acts.nersc.gov) comprises a set of software tools developed at DOE laboratories. It is aimed at simplifying the solution of common and important computational problems, with substantial benefits demonstrated in a wide range of scientific and industrial applications.

The four-day workshop presented an introduction to the ACTS Collection for application scientists whose research demands include either large amounts of computation, a large volume of data manipulation, the use of robust numerical algorithms, or combinations of these.

The workshop included a range of tutorials on the ACTS tools (those currently available in the collection and some deliverables from the DOE SciDAC ISICs), discussion sessions aimed at solving specific computational needs of the participants, and hands-on practice sessions on NERSC's state-of-the-art computers.

Jeremy Hanlon (Top, front) and Eric Amaro are shown collecting algae samples and examining them in the laboratory.

Learning from Algae

Recently graduate researchers and students from the Earth Sciences Division made a trip to the San Luis Drain near Los Banos in the Central Valley to collect and test samples of algae-laden water. Will Stringfellow of ESD’s Microbial Ecology and Environmental Engineering Department directs the project, which is aimed at developing inexpensive methods for measuring agricultural run-off in real time.

“Unlike other pollutants, algae fluctuate on a short time-scale, constantly growing and decaying,” Stringfellow says. “In deep pools and lakes dead algae can depelete oxygen. Algae also affect the taste of drinking water and introduce undesireable forms of organic carbon.”

The test is aimed at providing regulators like the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board with a practical way to monitor “non-point-source” pollution. After proving the method in the “simple hydrology of the drain — one inflow, one outflow — we'll eventually test it in the San Joaquin River,” Stringfellow says.

New Transmission Tower Rises

The sparkling new all-steel tower stands 140 feet above Berkeley Lab, a silent sentinel today but a critical element to the Lab’s enhanced communications capabilities in 2004. Completed last week near Building 25, the tower will be the key transmission element for a new digital radio system that was mandated by the Federal Communications Commission.

Project Manager Chuck Taberski said the radio coverage “will be superior to the old system and will cover the entire Bay Area as well as areas of the Lab missed by our old radios. The radio system serves our facilities maintenance workers, Lab security forces, and building managers. The radio system is a central component of the Lab's emergency preparedness plan.”

The tower was manufactured by Magnum Towers, Inc. of Sacramento, who subcontracted to Western CommTower, Inc. of Martinez. The foundations consist of three 30-inch-diameter, 25-foot-long reinforced concrete piers sunk directly into bed rock. The tower is designed and constructed to withstand 90 mile-per-hour winds and seismic zone 4 earthquakes.

The new radio system will have six channels which are switched by a computer controller to maintain optimum efficiency.

The Project Engineer was Glenn Skipper, structural engineer was Max Ostas, and construction superintendent was Steve Waters.

Computer Protection Brown Bag Looks at Internet Scams

Eve Edelson of the Environmental Energy Technologies Division has been studying Internet scams for several years. On Wednesday Aug. 13, at the next Computer Protection Brown Bag, Edelson will report her findings and offer practical advice about what to do with those urgent requests for business relationships we are all so familiar with.

The event will be held at noon in the Building 50 auditorium.

Incident Response Course

What should you do if your system is hacked, infected by a worm, or misused? A free computer protection program course on “Incident Response” will be held on August 28 to address this topic. The course starts with planning and goes on to discuss the types of analyses, remedial measures and precautions needed.

Topics include an introduction to incident response, detecting an incident, what to do if an incident occurs, and basic forensics procedures.

The course will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 28 in Perseverance Hall (Building 54). To sign up, visit https:// hris.lbl.gov/.

Enhanced Security for Accessing UC Online Benefits Access

The University of California has enhanced its benefits website by adding new security features to its interactive tools. The “Your Benefits On-Line” area of the “At Your Service” website (http://atyourservice.ucop.edu/) will now require employees to enter a one-time sign-in authorization through the use of a personal identification number (PIN). Employees can also establish a username in addition to their Social Security number for access.

An authorization sign-in system has also been added to UC’s 24-hour, interactive bencom.fone (800-888-8267).

The new features include:

Sign-in authorization

Every employee who logs on to “Your Benefits On-Line” or who calls bencom.fone will see or hear a sign-in authorization. Agreeing to the authorization acknowledges the use of the UC PIN in lieu of a signature for benefits transactions. This is a one-time process. Once agreed to, the authorization will not appear or be heard again.

Username as sign-in identification

Employees will now be given the option to establish a username (6 to 15 characters in length) to supplement their Social Security number. They will be able to use either their username or their Social Security number in conjunction with their UC PIN to access the application.

Personal Q&A to reset PIN

Users will be encouraged to create a personal question and answer to confirm their identity if they forget their UC PIN and need to reset it.

Lost PIN application expanded

Former employees and annuitants can now use the “Lost Your PIN” application on the “At Your Service website.” This function was previously restricted to current employees only.

First time access

The procedure for accessing “Your Benefits On-line” or bencom.fone for the first time remains the same. Employees use their Social Security number in conjunction with the generic “0000” PIN. After agreeing to the sign-in authorization, the user will be able to establish a personalized four-digit UC PIN and take advantage of the new security enhancements.

“At Your Service,” “Your Benefits On-Line” and bencom.fone provide employees with benefits information and the ability to make paperless benefits transactions. For a guide to options or for more information regarding the UC automated benefits applications, contact the Lab’s Benefits office at X6403 or by e-mail at benefits@ lbl.gov.

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BERKELEY HILLS, fully furn rm w/ sep entry, full kitchen privil, w/d, quiet neighb, backyard, near bus, avail now, $890/mo incl util, Arun, X2529, labartists@aol.com, 524-3851

BERKELEY HILLS, lge furn 1 bdrm apt, quiet neighb, marble bthrm, priv patio, no smok/pets, $1,295/mo+util, Helga, 524-8308

BERKELEY HILLS, studio, priv ent, bth, kitchenette, pantry, microw, hot plate, fridge, priv deck, carpet, no smok/no pets, DSL avail, near bus, pianist in bldg, $695/mo + 25% util + sec dep, avail 8/01, Rozalina, rozalinpiano@earthlink.net, 845-4624

BERKELEY, furn 2 bdrm/ 1 bth house, hrdwd flrs, sep din rm , fp, w&d, nr UC/ Bart/pub trans/shops, 1-yr lease, $2,400/mo, last mo in adv, $2,400, dep $1,200, avail 9/1 or sooner, Christopher, 649-8295

BERKELEY, furn room in priv 4 bdrm house, 5 blks to campus/shuttle, $650/ mo+ util, priv bthrm, kitchen & laundry facil, no smoking or overnight visitors, avail 8/10, Glenda, 548-1287

BERKELEY, lge studio unit with wood beam ceilings & skylight, nr pub trans/ BART/ shops, walk or bike to LBL shuttle & UC, max 2 people, non-smok unit avail 9/1 or earlier, 548-9869 or ellymandel@comcast.net

BERKELEY, walk to campus, eleg furn rms & apts, hrdwd flrs, PC & DSL incl $950-1,575/mo, 845 5959, jin.young@juno.com, Paul X7363

NORTH BERKELEY 1+ apt, 5 rms in 1920s duplex, 900+ sq ft, nr campus/LBL shuttle, quiet street, easy parking, sep ent, lge closets, storage rm, lge sunny liv/din rm, extra office, hrdwd flrs, fp, bay windows, renov kitchen w/ dw & gas stove, patio & veggie garden, shared w/d, shared DSL & wireless, $1,650/mo, avail 8/17, 649-9919

NORTH BERKELEY, brwn shingle home, furn, sunny rm w/ priv ent, 2 mo min, $650/mo, first+last mo rent req to move in, rm incl tv, phone connection, desk, bed, plenty of closet space & bookshelves, avail 8/2, Karen, 525-6621, khmgarden@comcast.net

NORTH BERKELEY HILLS, bay view, 15 min walk to Lab, short-term furn rm in house, quiet Grizzly Peak location, own bthrm + use of kitchen, DSL/wireless, no smok/pets, conv for vis prof or Lab scientist, $690, avail 8/1-12/31, vgo@pacbell.net

NORTH BERKELEY HILLS, Euclid nr Grizzley Peak, fully furn home, panoram bay view, 3 bdrms, 2.5 bths, renovated master bdrm area, large landscaped garden + gard serv incl, 2 lge redwood decks w/ bay views, close to bus stop, $2,800/mo, avail ~ 8/15, 1-yr lease, mpripstein@lbl.gov

NORTH BERKELEY HILLS, furn studio apt, no oven, 2 hot plates, microw, European style refrig, table/ chairs, twin bed, desk, cable tv, bthrm, w/d, parking, walk to campus or 65 bus $735/mo, izamanian@ aol.com, (925) 258-0237, cell (925) 352-4133

NORTH BERKELEY, by wk/mo, furn 1 bdrm/1bth flat, quiet, spacious, walk to UCB/pub trans, BART, downtown Berkeley; priv garden, gated carport, Geoff, 848-1830, gfchew@ mindspring.com

NORTH BERKELEY, 1bdrm, 1bth, fully furn flat, Glendale/Campus drive, laundry rm, deck, offstr park, fp, no smok/pets, avail 8/13, $1,100/mo+util, dep+1st month rent req, Rochelle, (415) 435-7539

OAKLAND'S CROCKER HIGHLANDS above Lakeshore, nice safe neighb nr public trans, freeways, & shopping, 3 bdrms/1.5 bth, hrdwd flrs, breakfast nook, sep din rm, bay windows, priv w/d, older, charming, 1922 home, pets ok, $1,800/mo, 549-9489

SAN LEANDRO, cute home, 2 bdrms/2 bth+lge family rm w/ wall-to-wall bookcases, on quiet tree lined street, exc neighbors min from BART, 580/880 fways, schools, downtown, mall, avail 9/1, $2,000 sec dep may be spread over 1st 4 mo, 1-yr lease, tenants pay PG&E, no pets/smok, platinum4me@aol.com, 597-1382

MISC FOR SALE

DRESSERS, Deco style, faux stone finish, all hardwd, one upright, one horizontal, exc cond, $300; crib, maple fin w/ cobalt bl arched headrail, bottom sliding drawer, drop rail, Simmons mattress, perf cond, $300, (925) 516-2358, David

GOING PC: MacIntosh items no longer needed; avail: 1 unused MAC OSX 10.2 Jaguar operating system software: $10; Epson 740i color printer, $50/bo, Ron, X7586

SCANDINAVIAN DESIGN comp desk, like new, $35, photo avail, Nanyang Li, (650) 926-2252

TRAVEL VOUCHER, $399/ea, 2 indiv 4 day/ 3 night vouchers for 2 people at any of ~ 100 places in the US, Canada, Mexico & 3 sites in Europe, no blackout periods, reserv subject to availability, Laura, X5186, 758-8744

WHITE LGE CAPACITY WASHER & DRYER, $200/bo, Harsh, X5575, (925) 210-1883

OTHER

PLAYERS NEEDED, adult co-ed soccer team seeks 1-2 female 27 or older players, also have 1 opening for male 30 or older or female goalie, team plays in fall & spring on Sundays, Matis, X5031, 540-6718

CATSITTER, temp home for 6 mo-old male cat, neutered, vaccinated, home needed for approx 6 mo, starting 8/01, will pay expenses & fee to be determined, Jordan, X4118, (805) 550-1634

LOST

DOLPHIN TM HAND HELD SCANNER, alpha numeric keypad on front, may have been lost in front of Bldg 46 on July 16, Rich, X6015

FREE

GERMAN SHORT-HAIR & BULL TERRIER MIX, 7 mo old female w/ shots, very friendly, good w/ children, Mike, X7913, (707) 644-8049

WANTED

BABY BACKPACK, Bruce, X7089

Flea Market Policy

Ads are accepted only from LBNL employees, retirees, and onsite DOE personnel. Only items of your own personal property may be offered for sale.

Submissions must include name, affiliation, extension, and home phone. Ads must be submitted in writing (e-mail: fleamarket@ lbl.gov, fax: X6641, or mailed/delivered to Bldg. 65.

Ads run one issue only unless resubmitted, and are repeated only as space permits.
The deadline for the Sept. 5 issue is Thursday, Aug. 28.

In Memoriam — Physicist Ron Ross

Ronald R. Ross, long-time faculty senior scientist in Berkeley Lab’s Physics Division and Professor Emeritus of Physics at UC Berkeley, died on June 25 at the age of 71.

Ross earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees in physics from UC Berkeley in 1956 and 1961. He started his career as a graduate student with Luis Alvarez’s Group in the Physics Division and joined the UC Berkeley Physics Department in 1963.

His research activities spanned a wide range of topics in particle physics and astrophysics. While part of the Alvarez group, Ross contributed to the discovery of many new particles and to determining their properties utilizing the 72" Hydrogen Bubble Chamber at the Bevatron during the 1960s. Along with his collaborators in the group, Ron built a detector to search for magnetic monopoles and used it to study moon rocks brought back to earth from the first Apollo missions.

Ross was instrumental in the construction of the large superconducting magnet for the TPC detector at PEP. In the early 1990s, he oversaw the design and construction of a unique cryostat for the ultra-low temperature CDMS, the cold dark matter search experiment.

As a professor, Ross mentored students, worked with postdocs, and served as an engineering physics advisor for several years. Although he officially retired in 1994, Ross continued to actively participate in the CDMS experiment.

Ross’s rich life was remembered during a ceremony held at the Tilden Park Botanical Garden on July 11 — what would have been Ross’ 72nd birthday.

"Ron was a very compassionate, encouraging and a highly revered researcher, professor, husband, father and grandfather," said colleague Tony Spadafora.

LANA Fundraiser

Berkeley Lab’s Latino and Native American Association (LANA) is holding a fundraiser at Chevy's Fresh Mex restaurant in Emeryville on Thursday, Aug. 14 from 5 to 10 p.m. (1890 Powell Street).

Fifteen percent of the proceeds on food and drinks will go to LANA’s scholarship fund.

In order for the scholarship credit to be applied, participants will need to present a LANA flier when ordering. To obtain one or for more information, contact Alice Ramirez at X6600 or send an email to LANA@lbl.gov.