The world is a cooler, wetter place because of transpiring flowers, say University of Chicago researchers who ran more than a million lines of code on the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center's (NERSC's) IBM Power5 "Bassi" system last year. They found that this effect is especially pronounced in the Amazon basin, where 80 percent of ever-wet rainforest area would not exist without flowering plants. These findings were published online on June 16 in Proceedings of the Royal Society B. More>
A funeral service for Berkeley Lab physicist Gerson Goldhaber who passed away on Monday has been scheduled for today at 1 p.m. at the chapel of Gan Shalom cemetery in Briones, CA. The family will be welcoming visitors to their home, 1022 Euclid Avenue, Berkeley, on Friday afternoon before Shabbat and on Sunday. Go here to read a full obituary on Goldhaber.
People: Earth Scientist Joins Academia SinicaInez Fung of the Lab’s Earth Sciences Division has been elected as an academician to Taiwan’s Academia Sinica. Fung conducts research on atmospheric science, climate change, and the global carbon cycle. Academia Sinica was founded in 1928 to promote and undertake scholarly research in sciences and humanities.
EH&S: Participate in Pipetting Study to Help Improve Lab Ergonomics The Environment, Health and Safety Division’s Ergo Team is working with the Center for Science and Engineering Education on ways to improve pipetting. Employees, guests, and students are invited to participate in a study of the possible benefits of arm support while pipetting. The study will hopefully identify ways to help protect pipette users from repetitive strain injuries in the future. Go here for more information, or contact Paul Rempel (510) 439-6602.
In addition to first aid, physicals, safety glasses and assessment for on-the-job injuries, the Lab’s Health Services also houses the Integrated Disability Management group. The group assists employees with medical absences from work, counseling on disability benefits and job guarantee plans, Workers Compensation claim filing and benefits, coordination of return-to-work accommodation plans, and initiation and tracking of Catastrophic/Voluntary Leave Donation program requests. Contact Laurie Westphal (x5213) for more information.
There’s still space available for two upcoming Berkeley Lab Learning Institute workshops. The Supervisor Scenario workshop (BLI0122 ) on Tuesday, July 27, from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m., focuses on common yet complex HR issues. Using a problem-solving model, you’ll work in small groups to discuss case-study scenarios and explore options with Lab subject-matter experts on hand to provide support. This workshop is required for all new scientist and operations supervisors and a helpful refresher for those with more experience. The Career Planning for Postdocs and Graduate Students workshop (BLI118) on Thursday, Aug. 5, from 1 to 3:30 p.m., provides tools and resources for scientific career planning, including video clips of Lab scientists sharing tips and lessons learned. Registration is required for both workshops.
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