AFSCME Strike: Picketers at the Lab Today, Contingency Plans in Place
Members of the AFSCME union have gone ahead with their planned strike and picketers are at the Lab today. The strike will affect gate access, bus and shuttle schedules, the cafeteria, custodial and shipping and transportation. Go here to view Lab contingency plans for these affected services.
Special Event: Summer Lecture Tomorrow at Noon in Bldg. 50 Auditorium
Tomorrow, Advanced Light Source Director Roger Falcone will discuss "New Directions in X-Ray Light Sources," the fourth in this year's series of summer lectures. Ultrafast X-ray pulses are a strobe light for making molecular movies that reveal how chemical reactions happen and materials transform. Join us at noon in the Bldg. 50 Auditorium. Full lecture schedule>
Research Update: Latest on the Science of Indoor Air
Air-quality research has focused on the outdoors even though most people spend the majority of their time indoors. Berkeley Lab's Environmental Energy Technologies Division (EETD) has developed the Indoor Air Quality Scientific Findings Resource Bank, a website that provides up-to-date information on how indoor air quality affects human health and work. More>
In The News: Life Scientist Discusses XPD Protein on Podcast
Biochemist Jill Fuss, working in the laboratories of Priscilla Cooper and John Tainer, helped solve the structure of the important DNA repair protein XPD, as reported in a recent article in Cell. In a Podcast interview with Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News, Fuss discusses how XPD can contribute to understanding cancer and aging.
Lab Visitor: DOE Acting Deputy Secretary Jeff Kupfer
Last Wednesday, the Lab hosted the Department of Energy's Acting Deputy Secretary, Jeff Kupfer (right). Kupfer was nominated by President Bush as Deputy Secretary of Energy on April 2 and is awaiting Senate confirmation. As the Department’s Chief Operating Officer, he assists Secretary Bodman with policy and programmatic oversight over the 115,000-employee, $24 billion agency. Previously Kupfer served as Chief of Staff to Secretary Bodman. Kupfer met with Director Steve Chu (left), other Lab leaders and DOE Site Office Director Aundra Richards (center), toured the ALS and NCEM, and visited the Joint BioEnergy Institute.
Parking: Three-Year Closure of South Half of B Lot Starting in August
Beginning August 6, parking will not be available on the south half of Parking Lot B — located off Alvarez Road, just north of the Bevatron lot — for three years. The closure is required to accommodate a temporary trailer (Bldg. 56A) that will house the Lab’s Internal Audit Services Department and Patent and Tech Transfer. For more information on parking, contact Site Access x4855.
JGI News: Redesigned, Enhanced Website Launched
The DOE Joint Genome Institute has launched a complete redesign of its website. Improvements include real time status reports on all JGI genome projects and a page guiding users to a range of analysis tools. The web project was led by JGI's Inna Dubchak and Igor Shabalov with Annette Greiner, Roman Nikitin, and Tatyana Smirnova.