Berkeley Lab scientists — including Len Pennacchio and Axel Visel — have learned how an interval of DNA in an unexplored region of the human genome increases the risk for coronary artery disease, the leading cause of death worldwide. Their research paints a fuller picture of a genetic risk for the disease that was discovered only three years ago and which lurks in one out of two people. It also reinforces the tantalizing possibility that many more disease risks — and potential disease-fighting therapies — are hidden in the vast and uncharted part of the genome that doesn’t contain instructions for making proteins. More>
Lab researchers are invited to submit proposals for Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) funding, which is funded at about $20 million for the FY 2011 cycle. LDRD is one of the Lab’s principal means to seed innovative science and new research directions. Proposals that are synergistic with the Carbon Cycle 2.0 or Next Generation Light Source (NGLS) initiatives are strongly encouraged, with approximately two thirds of funding directed to these two areas. The review process will use two tracks: Divisional and/or Lab-wide proposals will be reviewed by a team of senior managers, while the Discovery proposals will be reviewed by external scientific reviewers. LDRD deadline is March 19. More>
Traditional cook stoves, which normally use wood or charcoal, can negatively affect the environment with increased carbon emissions, indoor air pollution, and deforestation. To help mitigate these impacts and improve the living conditions of some of the world’s poorest populations, researchers are working to develop better cook stove designs, such as the Patsari cook stove (pictured) in Mexico. Omar Masera presents a talk on cook stove innovation on Thursday at noon in Building 90-3122, hosted by the Environmental Energy Technologies Division. Those who would like to view the talk but are unable to attend physically can arrange for a computer simulcast.
The Lab’s Earth Sciences Division is hosting a talk on “Carbon Sequestration: Science Above 50 Nanometers” by Lab researcher Carl Steefel on Friday at 10 a.m. in the Building 50 Auditorium. “Many of the physical and chemical processes associated with injection and sequestration of carbon in the subsurface play out at the molecular scale, so progress in unraveling these molecular-scale mechanisms is crucial to understanding carbon sequestration scientifically,” says Steefel, explaining the subject of his lecture.
Employee Activity: Tai-Chi Club Will Meet on Wednesdays at 4 p.m. Starting tomorrow, the Lab’s Tai-Chi club will host their meetings on Wednesdays from 4 to 5 p.m. in the Building 76 recreation room. Go here to watch a demonstration of Chen-style Tai-Chi.
Today at Berkeley Lab encourages comments, suggestions, and story ideas. Please send them here.
TABL is produced by Public Affairs' Communications Group
