California, West Face Serious Water Problems from Greenhouse Effect

Power Crisis a Hot Topic at Lab

California, West Face Serious Water Problems from Greenhouse Effect

By Lynn Yarris

Most of California's fresh water supply comes from melting snow.

Serious water problems are projected for California and other western states by the year 2049 because of an increase in atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide, say scientists with Berkeley Lab's Earth Sciences Division (ESD). Warmer overall temperatures may spell more rain and less snow in the winter. This in turn will mean more flooding in the spring and a reduced water supply for summers that will grow increasingly dry.

Two papers presented at the 81st meeting of the American Meteorological Society in Albuquerque, New Mexico, discussed the importance of accurately assessing and projecting regional climate changes that can result from global warming. One focused on the problems facing the western United States at the regional level, the other looked at the potential impact of rising temperatures on a representative set of California river systems. Both of the scientists presenting the two papers work out of ESD's hydroclimate and impacts research group which is funded in part by NASA.

"Regional climate significantly affects water resources, frequency of natural disasters such as flood and drought, and the health of ecosystems," said Jinwon Kim, lead author of the paper on regional impacts. "For example, increasing populations and industrial activities in the western U.S. expand urban areas into steep slopes and flood planes. As a result, increasing populations are being exposed to natural hazards."

Norman Miller and Jinwon Kim of Earth Sciences are the lead authors of papers that project major impacts from greenhouse gas emissions.

Norman Miller, leader of the hydroclimate and impacts research group and a member of the California Energy Commission's California Climate Change Panel, was the principal author of the paper on California river systems. Although the projections of both studies showed the same results, Miller warns that climate projections are not guarantees.

"Caution should be exercised in reporting any climate projection as the degree of uncertainty remains significant," he says.

Nonetheless, Miller and Kim agree that accurate assessments and projections of the potential impacts of climate changes on regional and state levels are crucial for managing water resources, reducing the damage caused by natural hazards, and planning for sustainable development.

"These concerns will become even more prominent in California and elsewhere throughout the western United States as population and industrial growth continues to strain the current water resources supply," Miller says.

To obtain climate predictions for the western U.S., Kim and his coauthors downscaled the global climate change scenarios predicted by the United Kingdom's Hadley Centre Global Climate Model (HadCM2). They did this by coupling HadCM2 to a pair of regional climate models called the Mesoscale Atmospheric Simulation (MAS) and Soil-Plant-Snow (SPS) which Kim, working with others, developed.

Projections were based on the doubled carbon dioxide (2xCO2) condition that is widely used as a standard by climate forecasters. The researchers assumed that CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere will continue to rise by a rate of 1% a year, and focused their projections on the climate changes that should take place between the years 2040 and 2049.

"Preliminary analyses of the results suggest that total precipitation in the western U.S. may increase significantly, especially in the high elevation areas where heavy precipitation occurs," Kim said.

The most significant precipitation increases were projected for the Sierra Nevada and the northern California Coastal Range. However, Kim said, "Most of this precipitation increase will be due to increased rainfall. Significant increases of snowfall may occur only in very high elevation areas."

On a regional scale, the western U.S., like California, is characterized by mountainous terrain, interior deserts and coastal areas which see extreme contrasts in seasonal precipitation - very little rainfall in the spring and summer months. Therefore, the western region depends heavily on high elevation snow packs to feed its rivers and other fresh water resources.

The paper presented by Miller also downscaled the HadCM2 global model by coupling it to regional climate models. In addition to the MAS model, Miller and his coauthors also worked with the National Center for Atmospheric Research's RegCM, and the Danish Meteorology Office's HIRHAM. They, too, projected significant increases in precipitation and temperatures for the Sierra Nevada.

"These increases may require California water resources managers to release reservoir storage water to reduce the risks of flooding during the wet season," Miller says. "This would decrease the supply available for the dry season."

The paper Kim presented was titled "Downscaled Climate Change Scenario for the Western U.S. Using MAS-SPS Model Nested within the HadCM2 Scenario." His coauthors included Miller, Tae-Kook Kim of Berkeley Lab's Earth Sciences Division, and Raymond Aritt, William Gutowski, Jr., Zaitao Pan, and Eugene S. Takle, all with Iowa State University at Ames. Miller's paper was titled "Assessing California Streamflow Under Present Day and a Climate Change Condition." His coauthors included Jinwon Kim and Gutowski, Pan, and Takle, plus Eric Strem at the California-Nevada River Forecast Center of the National Oce-anic and Atmospheric Administration, and Jens Christensen of the Danish Meteorological Institute in Copenhagen.

Power Crisis a Hot Topic at Lab

By Jeffery Kahn

The market is broken, electricity supplies are not reliable, the state is heavily reliant on natural gas, and demand is not responsive to the wholesale price of power in real time. That, said Environmental Energy Technology Division researchers Joe Eto and Chris Marnay, is the recipe for an electricity crisis in California.

Speaking to a Jan. 26 standing-room-only crowd in the Bldg. 50 auditorium, Eto and Marnay described the history leading up to AB1890, the 1996 legislation that deregulated electricity in California, and what has happened since.

"The whole thing is an experiment," said Eto, who like Marnay is a member of EETD's Electricity Markets and Policy group. "For our part, what we are trying to do is use science and research to show how this can be done more efficiently."

Eto noted that the whole country had endured many prior electricity industry catastrophes. During the depression in the 1930s, mogul Samuel Insull's empire of electrical utilities collapsed. Insull - the character depicted on the Monopoly game board wearing the top hat - and the history of the 1930s debacle have been all but forgotten.

Eto said that in the aftermath of Insull's collapse, regulatory systems were set up that worked fairly well - at least until the 1970s. As elsewhere, California utilities - Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison, San Diego Gas and Electric and others - were given a franchise to provide electricity to a geographic area, and the prices they charged were regulated. In California, cost overruns on construction of the Diablo Canyon and San Onofre nuclear power plants were a major factor bringing this dependable scheme into question.

Diablo Canyon was supposed to cost $400-500 million. Ultimately, it cost almost $6 billion. Eto said what happened at Diablo Canyon was part of a pattern repeated nationally. Utility cost overruns, often related to nuclear power plants, pushed the price of electricity higher. In areas of the country where this occurred, industrial customers seeing lower prices in neighboring systems and an underutilized transmission system that could deliver this low cost power resolved that they did not want to pay high prices, and sought ways that competition could be introduced into electricity supply. Deregulation resulted.

In California deregulation began in 1996. At the insistence of the Legislature, prices to consumers were frozen at a level above the cost of electricity at the time in order to allow the utilities to recover past debts or "stranded costs" they had incurred.

Meanwhile, the three utilities sold off all of their natural gas-fired generating plants, often using the funds to buy plants elsewhere in the country including locales where they are able to sell power on the free market. By the end of 1999, San Diego Gas and Electric had paid off its stranded costs, Southern Cal Edison was within sight of collecting its costs, and PG&E only needed to sell its hydro capacity to likewise complete the transition. Thus, most of the $30 billion of historic debt had been recovered, and the transition was virtually over. However, this was never settled at the California Public Utilities Commission.

Then last year in late May, the California experiment went awry as generators selling on the unregulated market were suddenly able to receive higher prices. According to the Los Angeles Times, since May, PG&E and Southern Cal Edison have gone some $12 billion in the red buying high-priced electricity from other generators.

Nationally, Californians have received much of the blame for the growing crisis. California bashing and jokes about California hot tubs are all over the airwaves. Marnay lay to rest one national canard: Californians are not self-destructing due to individual energy gluttony or to our embrace of the Internet.

"Consumption per capita has not changed much for the past two decades in California," said Marnay. "In fact, consumption per unit of GDP (gross domestic product) has declined over the past two decades. That is, the California economy has become even more electricity efficient."

The chart shows power plants sold by PG&E, Edison, and San Diego Gas & Electric to new owners.

California electricity usage grew at a 3.2 percent annual rate in the 1980s. Growth slowed in the 1990s to a 1.8 percent rate, although there's been a spurt to a 2.5 percent over the last five years. As for the Internet-related use, a study by the EETD End-Use Energy Forecasting Group led by Jonathan Koomey documents that nationally, office and network equipment consume only about three percent of the total electricity usage.

Marnay and Eto agreed that over the long term, a free market in electricity is unlikely to succeed without the implementation of a system that allows consumers to be responsive to the constantly changing price of electricity. Marnay said the biggest mistake made was freezing the price that consumers pay for electricity. "If you knew the true price you might turn off some lights, and, over time, you would buy appliances and other equipment (including for many customers onsite generating capability) that made it easier to avoid high prices. Ultimately, the only sustainable fix is more accurate pricing."

Right now, he said, electricity demand tends to be inelastic and not responsive to the price in real time. In a free market, when demand is so great that it almost equals all available supply, the price will suddenly spike.

Currently, plans call for an additional 13,000 megawatts of generating capacity in California, although not all of these plants will actually be built. All 13,000 megawatts, noted Marnay, would be natural gas-fired.

"California already is heavily reliant on gas," said Marnay. "Close to 50 percent of the current state generation is gas-fired. This lack of diversity is something to worry about for the future."

Although the recent string of Stage III electricity emergency alerts is unprecedented, this summer could be even worse. California peak electricity demand during the summer will probably be at least 50 percent higher than our current daily peaks.

Storing Carbon Underground to Mitigate Emissions

By Paul Preuss

Last year Berkeley Lab became host to two major carbon sequestration programs: one for storing carbon underground in geological formations and one for ocean sequestration. This article looks at the former, while the next issue of currents will address the ocean alternative to mitigating the effects of carbon emissions.

"Industrial carbon sequestration is an extreme option for mitigating greenhouse gases," says Sally Benson, director of Berkeley Lab's Earth Sciences Division (ESD), noting that the Department of Energy's traditional approach to carbon management has emphasized energy efficiency, low-carbon fuels, and alternative energy sources.

Three years ago, however, when the President's Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology urged DOE to pay more attention to carbon sequestration - taking carbon emissions from power plants and other sources out of circulation - Benson became one of the leaders of the new research emphasis. "I see this as an opportunity to prepare for the time when people realize that deep reductions in greenhouse gases are needed."

In 2000, ESD became host to two major DOE sequestration programs. Jim Bishop, with Ken Caldeira of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, codirects the DOE's Center for Research on Ocean Carbon Sequestration. Benson directs the GEO-SEQ Project supported by the Office of Fossil Energy.

GEO-SEQ (pronounced "geo-seek"), which is managed by ESD's Larry Myer, is a partnership of government agencies, academic institutions, and private energy companies in the U.S. and Canada investigating sequestration in geological formations. "Geological sequestration involves taking CO2 that has been separated from industrial fuel gases and pumping it into underground formations," Benson explains.

"CO2 currently makes up 5 to 15 percent of power plant emissions, depending on the type of power plant. Unfortunately, to separate it using existing processes costs $20 to $70 a metric ton, depending on the facility." Therefore, an important research goal is to develop better and cheaper separation and transportation techniques.

However, says Benson, "the economics change if we can use sequestered CO2 to recover more fossil fuels." Carbon dioxide can help extract oil and gas from depleted reservoirs and can increase the production of methane, the chief component of natural gas, from coal beds that can't be mined.

CO2 helps recover more oil

The petroleum industry has long used CO2 injection to get more oil from depleted reservoirs. If the pressure is high enough in these formations, the CO2 and oil become completely miscible, leading to highly efficient oil recovery.

At lower pressures CO2 displaces oil without mixing together to form a single fluid phase. This too enhances recovery by reducing the oil's viscosity and by swelling, as some fraction of the CO2 dissoves in the oil. While some of the carbon dioxide comes back up with the oil, much remains underground. Operations can be modified so that more of the CO2 remains underground after the enhanced-recovery project is complete.

"One of our partners in GEO-SEQ is Chevron, which is doing a pilot project at the Lost Hills Oil Field in California's Central Valley. They aim to enhance oil recovery in the Diatomite Formation by injecting CO2," Benson explains. Diatomite, which consists of the fossilized skeletal remains of aquatic plants, has been called a "glass sponge" - that is, it holds a lot of oil, but the oil is very difficult to get out.

"Immiscible displacement of oil by CO2 injection is one of the ways they are trying to recover more of the oil in this formation," she says. "This provides a great opportunity for us to develop and demonstrate geophysical imaging methods." ESD's Ernie Majer, Tom Daley and Mike Hoversten have completed the first round of data collection at Lost Hills and are awaiting post-injection surveys; by comparing pre- and post-injection images, they will be able to evaluate how well their high-resolution seismic and electromagnetic techniques can track migration of CO2 deep underground.

More energy from gas and coal

Natural gas fields have shown that they can store gases for millions of years; thus they are promising targets for CO2 sequestration. "As an added benefit - although we haven't tested the idea yet - we are working on the concept of prolonging production in depleted gas fields through carbon dioxide injection," says Benson.

Recently she worked with ESD's Curtis Oldenburg and Karsten Pruess to build a computer model of the depleted Rio Vista gas field in the Sacramento River Delta, the largest onshore field in California. Their study indicated that by injecting the field with carbon dioxide from a nearby gas-fired power plant in Antioch, it might be possible to return methane production, now minimal, to 40 to 80 percent of peak historic levels for at least five years, and perhaps for 10 years or longer.

The researchers used the TOUGH2 reservoir-simulator program developed by Pruess and his ESD colleagues. Benson notes that "our long experience modeling underground flows of all kinds is one of the things that makes Berkeley Lab particularly well suited to the investigation of geologic sequestration."

Unminable coal beds are another likely place to store carbon. Methane adsorbed in coal is familiar as deadly mine gas, a cause of numerous tragedies; formerly discarded, it now accounts for some five percent of the country's natural gas production. A pilot project in the San Juan Basin in New Mexico suggests that methane production from the extensive coal beds there could be increased 75 per-cent by injecting carbon dioxide, which frees and replaces trapped methane.

The salt of the earth

"It is estimated that there is enough capacity in oil and gas reservoirs to sequester many decades of the world's CO2 emissions from power plants and other industries," Benson says. But with much greater capacity, "deep brine-filled formations could store the world's carbon emissions for centuries."

Storing carbon in brine formations gives back no fossil fuel, but offers economic incentives. For example, natural gas from the Statoil company's Sleipner West field in the North Sea contains too much carbon dioxide for commercial use, and Norway taxes CO2 emissions from off-shore production.

So each year a million metric tons of carbon dioxide are separated from the gas and injected into a brine formation deep beneath the seabed. In the United States, brine-filled formations may be able to sequester half a billion metric tons of carbon dioxide.

Cutting costs

"Identifying the sequestration capacities of geological formations is just one of our goals in GEO-SEQ," says Benson. "We're also studying ways to lower the overall cost of geologic sequestration by looking for opportunities to reduce the cost of transportation and CO2 separation. We want to develop and apply advanced reactive-transport models, to identify sequestration sites near our major power plants, and to find the optimal degree of CO2 separation. If we learn that some amount of trace gases can enhance the sequestration process, or at least not interfere with it, the cost of separation may drop dramatically."

And, she says, "we need monitoring technologies to assure us that once the CO2 is stored, it's stored safely and permanently." In the long run, this may be the most important goal of all, the one that determines whether the public accepts the concept of carbon sequestration.

"With ocean and terrestrial sequestration, we need to understand ecosystem impacts and long term effectiveness. With geological sequestration, we need to know that the carbon we put in the ground isn't going to come back up," says Benson. "Otherwise we're just transferring our responsibility to future generations."

News Digest

Washington Report

Report Urges Doubled Budget for DOE's Office Of Science

Congress should double DOE's Office of Science budget over the next five years, to $6.4 billion to keep pace with rapidly advancing fields, a new report from the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) said last week. The report called on Congress to provide DOE Science a $3.7 billion budget for FY02, a level of funding considered vital to maintaining a strong user community for several programs, including the offices of Basic Energy Sciences and Biological and Environmental Research. FASEB, founded in 1912, consists of 21 professional societies with a combined membership of 60,000.

"Doubling its funding (for science) is required if DOE is to continue to meet the increased demands of its user facilities, keep fundamental research viable as well as initiatives to address national priorities," the report said. Such support would have cross-cutting benefits for the rest of the government, not just DOE.

"These facilities will continue to provide essential technologies for the user community, many of whom are supported by NIH, NSF, and other agencies," the report said. Among the biggest beneficiaries of increased funding would be DOE's four synchrotron radiation sources, located at Berkeley Lab, Argonne, Brookhaven and the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, where funding, the report said, "has not kept up with inflation."

New House Science Committee Chair Sympathetic to 'Underfunded' Science

New York Republican Sherwood Boehlert, who has replaced Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. as chair of the House Science Committee, has called on Congress to initiate a review of DOE's "underfunded" science programs. Such a review, he said, would help President Bush decide what role technology can play in national energy policy. Specifically, Boehlert said he wants the committee to consider how renewable energy technologies, such as wind and solar power, can address the nation's growing energy requirements.

"We have spent so much time over the past 20 years having philosophical battles over government energy programs that we haven't devoted enough effort to figuring out how to make the programs work better," Boehlert said in his first speech on his plans for the committee. "The energy supply programs of DOE are due for a good, hard look from people who unequivocally support their goals."

Boehlert said he plans to hold a hearing in March on energy research at the department, though he said no date had been set. Through a credible review of science and energy research programs, the committee will be in a better position to advise appropriators that DOE Science deserves treatment like that afforded the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation, both of which have seen their budgets grow markedly faster than the DOE's in the past five years, he said. DOE needs more money to maintain its international presence

However he did caution that DOE Science and its national laboratories need to make a stronger case for research funding not only to appropriators but also to the Science Committee, which authorizes such programs.

Hermann Grunder Back at Lab for Talk

Moncton Returns To Argonne Lab

After two years as executive director of the Spallation Neutron Source - a collaboration between Berkeley Lab and Argonne, Brookhaven, Jefferson, Los Alamos, and Oak Ridge national laboratories - David Moncton announced he is returning to Argonne National Laboratory.

Moncton moved to Oak Ridge, where SNS is based, in February 1999 to prepare the $1.4 billion project for construction. Said, ORNL Director Bill Madia, "David made a two-year commitment to help us position the SNS project for long-term success. In those two years he has made remarkable progress, assembling a strong management team, establishing a technical baseline for the project, and guiding a partnership among six national laboratories that contributed greatly to the project's success.

The last year has witnessed significant milestones for the SNS, including the building of the first two components of the front-end system last April at Berkeley Lab. The Administration recommended and Congress appropriated $278 million to begin construction of the project, which got underway in December.

Moncton said he is returning to Argonne for personal reasons. "The time has come to spend more time with my family and resume my research at Argonne National Laboratory," he said. "Thanks to David, the SNS has established credibility and enjoys the support of the scientific community," said Pat Dehmer, who oversees the project for the Department of Energy in Washington.

A search for candidates to head the SNS project was started immediately, and Madia expects to announce the new SNS director by March 1. - Monica Friedlander

HHMI to Build Tech Research Center

The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) of Chevy Chase, Maryland, long known as a virtual institute which has been funding researchers at academic campuses and national labs (including Berkeley Lab) around the country since 1953, has announced it will spend $500 million over 10 years on a suburban research center that will develop cutting-edge bioinformatics, imaging and other tools.

The new tech center will also serve as an "incubator" for visiting scientists, including those who are not HHMI investigators.

"This is something that will cut across all of biomedical science," says HHMI president Thomas Cech, who wants to develop expertise in new technologies, broaden the institute's reach, and continue its mission to support the best research.

HHMI plans to break ground in 2003 on a 112-hectare site in Virginia along the Potomac River, not far from Dulles International Airport. The center will be comprised of a cluster of buildings with 46,000 square meters of space that will eventually house up to 300 scientists. It is expected to open by 2005 with an annual operating budget of about $50 million.

UC Senior Management Position for UC/Labs

Nominations and applications are sought for the new position of Vice President for Laboratory Management, the senior managerial point of contact for University of California's management of the three Department of Energy laboratories at Berkeley, Los Alamos and Livermore. The position is part of the University's plan to strengthen its overall laboratory management process, and is being advertised nationally.

The full text of the posting is available on the UCOP job page at http://jobs.ucop.edu.

To nominate a candidate or to apply, send a letter and resume to: Chair, Search Committee, University of California, 1111 Franklin St., Oakland, CA 94607-5200.

Applications may also be sent by fax to (510) 987-9209, attention Barbara Gerber, or by e-mail to apply-l@ucop.edu.

Fidelity Expands Retirement Options

For almost a year, Fidelity Investments has been offering financial seminars and one-on-one consultations to employees at Berkeley Lab, introducing them to their retirement options. Since the University of California has its own tax deferred retirement plan, the Benefits Department has frequently been asked about the relationship between UC and Fidelity.

For a long time the University has offered its employees a Defined Contribution Plan (DCP) and the Tax Deferred 403(b) plan to complement the pension benefits provided by the University of California Retirement Plan (UCRP). The first DCP was made available to University employees through the Supplemental Retirement Program in 1967, and two years later the 403(b) Plan was added for voluntary pretax savings. UC administers the day-to-day management and operation of these plans.

Starting in mid 1980s, UC decided to expand the investment options for its employees, giving them more choices in the way they wish to direct contributions. In 1986 UC contracted with the Calvert Fund, and then one year later in 1987, with Fidelity Investments - one of America's largest mutual fund companies, known for their diversity of investments and professional management experience.

In addition to the six UC managed investment funds, employees can now also invest their 403(b) or DCP account in mutual funds offered by Fidelity. Lab participants have a choice of more than 133 mutual funds with varying investment objectives and levels of risk and return.

To review current investments with Fidelity or open an account with them, you may set up a personal consultation by calling them at (800) 642-7131.

Consultations are held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Bldg. 65A conference room. The next few sessions will be held on Feb. 14 and 22 and March 6, 14 and 22.

Fidelity also offers periodical workshops, as listed below.

Fidelity Workshops

All sessions are held from 12 to 1 p.m in the Bldg. 66 auditorium

• March 29: Getting Started
• May 22: Investment Strategies, for employees already participating in their workplace savings plan who are more than 10 years away from retirement.
• Sept. 25: Investment Briefings provides more advanced concepts.
• Oct. 24: Retirement in View, for pre-retirees more than five years away from retirement.

New Bus Partnership Lets UC Students Ride from Rockridge

By Ron Kolb

Berkeley Lab has teamed up with the UC Berkeley campus, AC Transit and the City of Berkeley to help relieve traffic congestion in the city and promote the use of public transit.

A new bus partnership that began on Monday, Jan. 29, permits campus faculty, staff and students to use Berkeley Lab's free morning shuttle service between the Rockridge BART station and the UC campus.

Berkeley Lab Director Charles Shank noted the Laboratory's agreement to invite UC Berkeley riders to share the Lab's popular Rockridge shuttle during the morning commute "extends our own commitment to alternative transportation options, which over the years have included a successful shuttle bus system between downtown Berkeley and the Laboratory."

Berkeley City Councilmember Polly Armstrong, whose council district includes both the campus and Berkeley Lab, was instrumental in getting the shuttle agreement realized. Thanks to her initiative, the parties signed a memorandum of understanding for a five-month pilot program.

The Laboratory's Rockridge shuttle runs every 30 or 40 minutes on weekday mornings between 6:30 and 8:15 a.m. Under the new agreement, campus riders with appropriate identification will be able to take the morning shuttle from the Rockridge BART station to a new stop in front of the International House on Piedmont Avenue at Bancroft Way. Because of the new passengers, Laboratory riders will have to show their IDs upon boarding the bus.

The Lab's evening shuttle service to Rockridge will remain unchanged, with no additional stops. Campus riders also have the option of using the AC Transit's #64 bus for free all day between Rockridge and Bancroft/Telegraph. They are required to show Cal photo IDs.

"This new service is another step in our ongoing efforts to help reduce traffic on city streets and ease the demand for parking," said UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert M. Berdahl. "Thanks to terrific cooperation we're able to offer a convenient alternative to campus commuters that also promises to be a real benefit to southside residents."

"We all share a common interest in improving gridlock in south of campus. I'm excited to bring this group together for what I hope will be a helpful solution," said Armstrong.

After the five-month trial, the service will be evaluated to determine whether it will be modified or continued. For more information on the service, visit http://www.berkeley.edu/transportation.

Included on the joint shuttle committee that developed the initiative were Berkeley Lab representatives Laura Chen, Bill Llewellyn and Terry Powell.

New Downtown Van Route Now Servicing Building 941

Starting last Monday, the Lab van service to downtown Berkeley was expanded on a trial basis to also service Bldg. 94, located at Milvia and Center Streets, in addition to Bldg. 937 (University and Center).

The van shuttles Lab employees to and from two parking lots (Kittredge and Center lots) in addition to providing transportation between the Hill and the downtown locations.

The morning van service starts at 6:55 a.m. at the Kittredge lot and continues to Bldg. 941, the Center lot, and Bldg. 937 (Shattuck/University bus stop).

The afternoon return route starts at Bldg. 941 at 3:31 and continues until 6:01.

For more information about the van service contact bus supervisor Tammy Brown at TABrown@lbl.gov or call X4165.

CSEE Open House Highlights Education Projects

By Lisa Gonzales

"Glenn's spirit is here today."

Recalling Glenn Seaborg's "vision for science education," Director Charles Shank greeted attendees to an Open House hosted by the Center for Science and Engineering Education (CSEE) last Monday. Project coordinators for education outreach activities at the Lab - such as Cathy Blankespoor of the Genome Sciences tour program and Liz Moxon of the ALS' Microworlds website - discussed opportunities for employees to become involved.

CSEE Director Rollie Otto describes educational outreach programs during the Center's Open House last week.

"As a publicly funded institution, we have a special obligation to make the Lab open to the community," said Director Shank, recalling that his first job was here at the Lab as a summer intern. "We have the opportunity to have an enormous impact on the children of our community."

CSEE develops and implements programs that utilize Lab resources to improve the quality of mathematics, science and technology education. CSEE Director Rollie Otto, who played an important role in the development of the new science standards for the California Department of Education, has worked to create partnerships with East Bay schools to expand the scientific knowledge of both teachers and students. CSEE also oversees college programs in which undergraduates come to the Lab as interns and work under the guidance of researchers here.

Shank praised scientists who volunteer as mentors to students and teachers and those who develop educational materials.

"The influence of mentors on their students is more important than they can imagine," Shank said. "Mentors shape their students' thoughts for the future. By developing the scientists of the future, they extend science and the reach of the Lab into our community."

For more information about CSEE educational outreach programs, contact Rollie Otto at X5325.

Is It Real, or Is It ... CD-ROM?

By Monica Friedlander

Time travel may be theoretically possible in Einstein's relativistic models, but the world's best known scientist made a rare appearance at Berkeley Lab via slightly more conventional means. A good stylist and lucky genes made the transformation from Dale Sartor to Einstein a snap. And if imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, the father of relativity would be hard pressed to find a bigger fan - or a much better educational project to lend his reputation to: a campaign to improve energy efficiency.

For Sartor, who works in the Environmental Energy Technologies Division, it all started with a 15-minute presentation to the National Association of State Energy Officials in Southern California about activities that link R&D efforts to the real world. To inject a little attention-grabbing humor, Sartor included an imitation of Albert Einstein. He shaved his beard, grew a bushy mustache, and had the hotel stylist mess his hair as best he could. That was not too much of a challenge, Sartor quipped: "My hair is naturally unwieldy, so I think I look a little like Einstein. When I asked people who they thought I would do an imitation of, one hundred percent of them got it right."

Sartor's performance also caught the attention of a representative from the Department of Energy's Rebuild America program, which was in the process of putting together an educational CD-ROM promoting energy efficiency. Rebuild America is a volunteer-based community partnership program that brings together business and local programs to renovate buildings with energy-efficient technologies.

"They loved the idea of using an icon character to provide continuity throughout the training," Sartor says. So he became an instant star of the CD-ROM world, contracted by the DOE to pose for their entire training. They even gave Sartor specific instruction as to each pose they wanted - not to mention a good chuckle to the photo team at Berkeley Lab.

The CD will be out in March. As for Sartor, he has no further acting plans, although the Einstein look may be here to stay ... for now.

Bulletin Board

Pappy's Boys, Going Strong Half a Century Later

In the spirit of Lynn "Pappy" Waldorf's favorite saying "If you can't have fun, it's too bad," the board of directors for "Pappy's Boys" - a Cal Alumni club - capped their triannual meeting with a tour of the ALS. Pappy's Boys is an organization of former football players who played for Cal's legendary coach from 1947-1956.

Founded 15 years ago, the group supports the current football program at UC Berkeley in addition to getting together for fun.

Waldorf and his Bears compiled a 38-1-1 regular season record, three of Cal's eight total Rose Bowl berths, and a perennial top-five ranking in national polls from 1947 through 1950. Today, they are still accomplishing great things for Cal, such as establishing a $400,000 endowment for football scholarships, providing grants to the football program for special events, and raising funds for the two most recent additions to campus statuary: that of Pappy kneeling near Faculty Glade and the giant grizzly bear by Memorial Stadium.

Pappy's Boys also had an enduring relationship with Glenn Seaborg and the Berkeley Lab. Seaborg wrote the preface to their book, "Pappy's Boys, The Rose Bowl Years: A Legacy of Winning," and their organization funds the plaque given for the annual Seaborg Award.

"We always look for something fun to do when we get together," said former quarterback and current Pappy's Boys president Dick Erickson. "Coming up to the Lab and seeing the facilities that are so hidden from down below was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Many of our members even took Lab literature to give to their grandkids."

Over 990 Additional Journal Titles Now Available Online

The Library has recently reached an agreement with the California Digital Library (CDL) that will give Berkeley Lab researchers additional desktop access to science journal. A first step of this agreement adds over 990 titles from Elsevier Publishing. These titles can be accessed from the Library's journal page (http://www-library.lbl.gov/Library/text/ftext/ejour.html) as well as by searching various CDL databases available to LBNL employees (http://www.melvyl.ucop.edu/).

The Library welcomes comments about the new service and seeks users' suggestions for additional online resources. Send your comments to library@lbl.gov.

Calendaring System Brown Bag Added

The Computing Infrastructure Support (CIS) Department is hosting its last onsite brown bag presentation to roll out the new calendaring system client, Steltor CorporateTime (CS&T), on Friday, Feb. 16 at 11 a.m. in the Bldg. 937-302 conference room.

New Procurement Systems Contract & Info Sessions

Procurement has set up a new system contract with industrial supplier McMaster Carr to provide maintenance, repair and operating (MRO) supplies to the Laboratory. Users will now have the flexibility of ordering materials from the 340,000-item McMaster-Carr catalog by using either the vendor's website or ordering by fax or phone, without having to use the Procurement Card or issue a purchase order.

Two information sessions to demonstrate the new ordering process have been scheduled for Feb. 20 at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. in Perseverance Hall.

For additional information contact David Chen at X4506. Information about other system contracts is available on the Procurement Homepage at http://procurement.lbl.gov.

Farewell Dinner for Chattopadhyay

The Center for Beam Physics in AFRD will host an appreciation dinner in honor of Swapan Chattopadhyay, the head of the Center, who will leave Berkeley Lab to assume a new position as associate laboratory director at Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility (Jefferson Lab) in Newport News, Virginia in mid-March. His friends and colleagues would like to show their appreciation for Chattopadhyay's contributions to the Lab.

The dinner will take place on Saturday, March 10 at "Chez CBP" - aka, the LBNL cafeteria. The event will start at 5 p.m. with a no-host bar and reception. The dinner and program will continue at 6 p.m. The cost is $35 per person. Please RSVP by Friday, Feb. 23 to cbp@lbl.gov or X5792.

USPS Signature Confirmation

The Mail Room reminds employees of the new "signature confirmation" service provided by the Postal Service, which gives senders proof of delivery on request with quick online or over-the phone access to delivery information, such as delivery date, time and zip code as well as the recipient's first initial and last name.

The service is available with Priority Mail and Package Services (formerly standard B). The fee is $1.75 plus postage.

For more information visit www.usps.com or call 1-800-222-1811.

March MoveSMART Training Schedule

Due to popular demand, six MoveSMART (EHS 62) training sessions have been scheduled in early March. The MoveSMART program is designed to develop skills for safer and stronger handling of materials, boosting balance, lifting correctly, and the safe use of hands and knees. Training sessions are three-hours long. Preenrollment is required.

Monday, March 5 - 8:30-11:30 a.m., Bldg. 51-201
Monday, March 5 - 12:30-3:30 p.m., Bldg. 51-201
Tuesday, March 6 - 8:30-11:30 a.m., Bldg. 51-201
Tuesday, March 6 - 12:30-3:30 p.m., Bldg. 51-201
Wednesday, March 7 - 8:30-11:30 a.m., Bldg. 51-201
Wednesday, March 7 -12:30-3:30 p.m., Bldg. 51-201

To register for classes, look up the EH&S training website at http://hris.lbl.gov/self_service/training/index.html. Questions concerning MoveSMART training may be directed to Don Van Acker at X2976. Classes are expected to fill up, so early registration is encouraged.

LBNL Karate and Arnis Club

The LBNL Karate and Arnis (Pilipino Stick Fighting) Club holds classes every Tuesday and Thursday from 5:15 to 6:30 p.m. on the lower level of Bldg. 51 (the Bevatron).

For more information call John Spring at X2844.

Calendar

General Interest

NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION
8:30 a.m, Bldg. 50 auditorium
Tuesday, February 13

FIDELITY ONE-ON-ONE
By appointment, Bldg. 65A conference room
Thursday, February 15

SHOEMOBILE
7:30 - 3:30, cafeteria parking lot
Thursday, February 16

CALENDAR BROWNBAG
11 a.m., Bldg. 937-302
Monday, February 19

PRESIDENT'S DAY
Official Lab holiday
Thursday, February 22

FIDELITY ONE-ON-ONE
By appointment, Bldg. 65A conference room

Send us your announcements

Announcements for the General Calendar and Bulletin Board page may be sent to MSFriedlander@lbl.gov. Seminar & Lectures items may be mailed to currents_calendar@lbl.gov. You may also fax items to X6641 or mail them to Bldg. 65B. The deadline for the Feb. 23 issue is 5 p.m. Monday, Feb. 19.

Seminars & Lectures

Monday, February 12

PHYSICS DEPARTMENT COLLOQUIUM
Chemistry and Biology on the Surfaces of Cells
Speaker: Carolyn Bertozzi, Materials Sciences and UC Berkeley
4:30 p.m., 1 LeConte Hall

Tueday, February 13

LIFE SCIENCES DIVISION SEMINAR
The C. elegans ORFeome and Interactome Projects
Speaker: Marc Vidal, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School
4 p.m., Bldg 84, Room 318

ENVIRONMENTAL ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES DIVISION
Moisture, Microbes and Health
Speaker: Aino Nevalainen, Pennsylvania State University
Noon, Bldg. 90, Room 3148

PHYSICS DIVISON RESEARCH PROGRESS MEETING
Problems with Atmospheric Neutrino Oscillations
Speaker: John LoSecco, Notre Dame
4 p.m., Bldg. 50A-5132

Thursday, February 15

PHYSICS DIVISON RESEARCH PROGRESS MEETING
Status of FNAL E871
Speaker: Kam-Biu Luk, Physics Department and UC Berkeley
4 p.m., Bldg. 50A-5132
Tuesday, February 20

LIFE SCIENCES DIVISION SEMINAR
Ets Regulation of the ErbB2 Promoter
Speaker: Chris Benz, Buck Institute for Age Research
4 p.m, Bldg 84, Room 318

CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL BIOTECHNOLOGY
Scanning Transmission X-Ray Microscopy (STXM) of Environmentally Important Transition Element Precipitates Manganese Biominerals and Green Rusts
Speaker: Klaus Pecher, University of Central Florida
Noon, 338 Koshland Hall

ENVIRONMENTAL ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES DIVISION
Global Scale Movement and Foodchain Transfers of POPs
Speaker: K.C. Jones, Lancaster University, United Kingdom
Noon, Bldg. 90, Room 3148

PHYSICS DIVISON RESEARCH PROGRESS MEETING
ANTARES: A Neutrino Telescope in the Mediterranean Sea
Speaker: John Carr, Particle Physics Center of Marseilles
4 p.m., Bldg. 50A-5132

Thursday, February 22

ENVIRONMENTAL ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES DIVISION
Crisis? What Crisis?: An academic debate on the role of deregulation in the California energy drama
Speakers: Robert Van Buskirk and Katie Coughlin, EETD
Noon, Bldg. 90, Room 3148

PHYSICS DIVISON RESEARCH PROGRESS MEETING
The CDF Silicon Vertex Trigger: Performance and Physics Properties
Speaker: Alessandro Cerri, INFN and Scuola Normale Superiore
4 p.m., Bldg. 50A-5132

EH&S Classes - Fabruary 2000

* Includes EHS 392/405, followed by the orientation. Please arrive at 8:15 for sign-in.

For more information or to enroll, contact Susan Aberg at Saberg@lbl.gov or enroll via the web at http://www-ehs.lbl.gov/ehstraining/registration/. Preregistration is required for all courses except EHS 10 (Introduction to EH&S). Times and locations are subject to change. For a full, updated schedule of EH&S training sessions see http://www-ehs.lbl.gov/schedule/.

Flea Market

Autos / Supplies

'97 JEEP CHEROKEE SPORT, forest green, 4.0 L, 4 wd w/ Selec Track, f/t 4 wd on the fly, multi-options, alarm, great cond, fact maint sched, 45K mi, careful driver, blue book over $15,000, price neg, Massimo, X7695

'95 BUICK REGAL GS, black w/ tan leather int, 3.8 L V6 eng, all pwr, moonrf, ac, sport susp, new tires, 124K mi, exc cond, $7,500/ bo, (925) 735 6526

'95 HONDA CIVIC DX sedan, pearl blue, 52K mi, 5 spd, new ac, am/fm/cass premium sound, well maint, all paperwork, ext warranty 100 K miles, $8,500/ bo, Sanjeev, X4663

'94 TOYOTA PASEO Coupe 2D, 5 spd, teal, 68K mi, ac, airbag, cd/radio, exc cond, $5,600, Petra, X6612, 845-9013

'94 HONDA CIVIC LX sedan 4D, white, auto, frnt wheel dr, 75K mi, pwr steer/win, cruise, dual air bags, am/fm/cass, avail around Feb, $6,000, Yeonbae, X6252

'90 HONDA ACCORD LX, 132K mi, brown, manual, ac, mechanically sound, new tires & battery, well maint, cosmetic blemishes, $3,700, Dario, X5090, (415) 753-3823

'89 NISSAN SENTRA, auto, 15K mi, 2 dr, very gd cond, $1,500/ bo, Xingjiang, X7634, 357-2123

'87 HONDA ACCORD LX sedan 4 dr, blue, 5 spd, 188 K mi, good cond, cruise, ac, pwr steer/win/ lock, stereo/cass, all records, runs exc, $2,500, Werner, X2901, 525-1090

'83 TOYOTA COROLLA, 1 owner, 87K mi, 2 dr, stick, runs beautifully, $2,500/bo Beppe, 642-4649, 526-7055

'79 CHEVY BLAZER 4x4, removable half top, rebuilt 350 w/ very few mi, new world heads, pistons, RV cam, smogged, $2,500/ bo, John, X7505, Geoff 524-8734

BRUSH GUARD, fits Dakota/Durango, black, like new, $150, John, X5523

Housing

ALBANY HOUSE, short-term, attractive 3 bdrm, furn, 1/2 block from Solano Ave buses, restaurants, shops, 1 cat, quiet, nice backyard w/ patio, pref visiting LBNL staff, avail end of June for 1 mo, flex, $1,500/mo, Hugh, X5815, hchigley@lbl.gov

BERKELEY HILLS, furn room w/ bay view, priv bth, kitchen & laundry, $600+ split util, avail now, Chris or Betty, X7448, 848-7722

EL CERRITO house for rent, late Aug to mid-June, dates neg, walk dist to shopping, BART, bus, grocery, schools, mall; quiet/clean neighborhd, fully furn, lvg/dining/family rm, 3 bdrm/2-1/2 bth, no indoor pets, $2,500/mo, Ken or Kimi, 525-5559

OAKLAND, Lake Merritt, 2 bdrm apt, hardwd floor, firepl, close to BART, 1100 sq ft, $1,800/mo, gas/water/trash incl, no pets/ smoking, Ying, 530-3760

ORINDA, in-law apt, 1 bdrm, sep entr, bth, kitchen, approx 600 sq ft, fully renovated, tranquil, suburban setting, big garden, avail 2/1, initially thru 6/30 w/ possibility to extend, $1,100 + util, Klaus, X2232, or Darius, (925) 254-2491

WALNUT CREEK, share 2 bdrm/ 2 bth apt in resort environm, 20 min drive to Berkeley, 2nd floor end unit, very clean, controlled access gate, ch&a, dw, coin-op laundry, balcony, views, heated pool/spa, gym, pool table, bbq/ picnic area, onsite staff, near shopping, easy hwy & BART access, share w/ software engineer, single prof'l pref, $730/month +1/2 util, avail 2/17, Cindy, (925) 296-5746, cindyqz@yahoo.com

Housing Wanted

VISITING FEMALE RESEARCHER, non-smoking, seeks small apt, studio or 1 bdrm, University area or near pub trans, $1,000 or less, arriving from France 2/16, grob@lmes.ibs.fr

VISITING MALE RESEARCHER from Germany seeks shared accommodation in Berkeley up to $350/mo, single, nonsmoker, quiet, can do minor work to reduce rent, Michael, X4053, mdoering@lbl.gov

VISITING RESEARCHER from Canada seeks studio close to LBNL or near BART, 1 yr, up to $900/mo, single, nonsmoker, Ivo, X6731, IKoprinarov@lbl.gov

VISITING SCIENTIST from Germany w/ wife & son seeks furn 2-3 bdrm house or apt w/ yard, 3/1-4/15, peter.fischer@physik.uni-wuerzburg.de, phone +49 8202 2387, or Greg, X4051

Misc Items For Sale

15" FLAT PANEL DISPLAY NEC 1525M w/ blk frame, 4 USB ports in base, $650; 1.5 mega pixel digital camera, Toshiba PRD-M1 w/16MB, $200, Henry, 658-7807

2 HIGH CHAIRS Peg Perego, $75 ea; Graco side-by-side double stroller, $50; white crib w/ front panel that can be lowered & drawer underneath, barely used, $125 incl mattress; traditional wood crib w/ mattress, $100; 2 Graco 3 spd musical swings, $50 ea; all in good cond, other baby items also for sale, Joe, X7082

90" SOFA w/ matching love seat, beige w/ maroon design, exc cond, $450, Vic, 531-6948

BLUE COUCH, sectional w/ 2 recliners on each end & a pull-out bed, 2-1/2 yrs old, exc cond, paid $1,800, asking $1,200, Lisa, X5314, (925) 906-9786

DELL XPS D300 Pentium P2, 300 MHZ, 128 mb dram, 6.2 GB HD runs Win 98, CDROM, internal zip & tape drive, floppy, 56K modem, 10/100 smc ethernet card for cable modem; sound card, Altec speakers, 19" Trinitron monitor incl, $650, (925)202-4841

DINING ROOM SET, solid rosewood, Chinese c. 1960, 4' round w/ two 18" leaves, 6 chairs w/ cushions, fold-down desk & 7' sidepiece, $2,000/bo, Karen, X5784, 207-3234

MAC POWERBOOK 1400 series, 133 MHz w/ power PC 603e processor, cd/floppy, 16MB, loaded w/ software, $500; USB zip drive, brand new, Mac/PC compat, $50; antique walnut dining table w/ 4 reupholst chairs, $80; antique bin table, needs refinish, solid cond, $60; mattress & box spring, exc cond, $50; antique Victrola, needs restoration, $80; antique Singer sewing machine, needs lots of restoration, $20, PJ, X4290, 419-0646

OLYMPUS IS-10 35MM POCKET SLR FILM CAMERA, 28-110 mm zoom lens, built-in flash, auto-focus, auto-exposure w/ manual override, very sharp optics, compact design, great for travel, exc cond, over $300 new, asking $170, Roy, X5731

QUEEN SIZE MATRESS & box set, looks new, $80; high chair, $30, Yunian, (925) 296-5760

QUICKBOOKS financial software, PRO 2001, brand new, bought for $219, sell b/o, G. Gidal, X5368, 841-4376

RIVAL CROCK POT w/ removable stoneware, 5-1/2 qt, oval, $20; steam pot, 3-tier, stainless steel body & crystal cover, $20; both items used only once or twice, Tennessee, X5013

SOFA, $75; maple din set, w/ 6 chairs, $50; twin bed, $25, top loading freezer, 36"h x 24"w x 25"d, $45; 9 dr dresser w/ mirror, $50, all exc cond, Ann, X6579, (925) 798-6786

UMAX C500 MAC clone, 180 MHZ, 1GB, 32 MB, w/ 56KB ext modem, keyboard, Apple 15" monitor, scsi zip drive, UMAX scanner & lots of software, all for $420, Ed, 339-3505

Wanted

GRAPHON 200-300 series terminals w/ 4014 emulation for LBNL experimenter, Jerry, X5407

Free

KITCHEN CABINETS, wall & base, ideal for garage, Duo, X6878

DRAWING/DRAFTING TABLE, adj angle drawing surface 48"w x 33"d, table 38"h w/ storage for drawing instruments under top, red oak, Pat, X7110

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 number. Ads must be submitted in writing via e-mail (fleamarket@lbl.gov), fax (X6641), or delivered/mailed to Bldg. 65B.

Ads run one week only unless resubmitted, and are repeated only as space permits. They may not be retracted once submitted for publication.

The deadline for the Feb. 23 issue Thursday, Feb. 15.