A blade of grass destined to be converted into biofuel may pull double duty in the fight against climate change. In addition to offsetting fossil-fuel emissions, scientists are also considering potential bioenergy crops as a tool to snare carbon from the atmosphere and trap it in the soil for millennia. Sounds promising. But should scientists genetically engineer bioenergy crops to be better at ridding the atmosphere of the greenhouse gas? And can this strategy take place on the scale needed to mitigate climate change? These questions are framed in a new analysis by Christer Jansson of the Earth Sciences Division and researchers from Oak Ridge National Lab. More>
Research: Six New Isotopes of the Superheavy Elements Discovered A team of Berkeley Lab scientists has detected six isotopes, never seen before, of the superheavy elements 104 through 114. Starting with the creation of a new isotope of the yet-to-be-named element 114, the researchers observed successive emissions of alpha particles that yielded new isotopes of copernicium (element 112), darmstadtium (element 110), hassium (element 108), seaborgium (element 106), and rutherfordium (element 104). Rutherfordium ended the chain when it decayed by spontaneous fission. More>
Special Event: Watch World Series at Guest House Today, Tomorrow Can’t get home in time to see the first pitch of the World Series? Don’t want to miss the first five innings of the Lincecum vs. Lee pitching duel while stuck in traffic? The Guest House has you covered. Staff are invited to gather in the Bay View Lounge of the Guest House today and tomorrow at 4:30 p.m. to watch the Giants take on the Texas Rangers. Pretzels, popcorn and Cracker Jack will be provided, and soft drinks can be purchased. Giant’s attire is encouraged and anyone brave enough to wear Ranger’s attire will be heckled mercilessly.
The Lab will host an onsite interactive UC Sexual Harassment Prevention training course on Monday, Nov. 15, from 10 a.m. to noon in the Building 66 Auditorium. Supervisors and managers who attend will receive full credit for the biannual training mandated by California Law AB 1825 (Gov. Code Section 12950.1). Registration is required (BLI0955). Call x7443 for more information.
From Open Enrollment webinars to a workshop on elder care, the HR Benefits department hosts a number of events to help staff manage their work and life. To assist in tracking upcoming events, the department produces a monthly calendar, and the November edition is now available.
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