Silver nanowires

Minuscule wires a few nanometers across are proving to be versatile electronic components, as demonstrated recently by chemists who used silver nanowires as key elements of a sensitive explosives detector. The researchers, led by Berkeley Lab Materials Sciences Division researcher Peidong Yang, also an assistant professor of chemistry at UC Berkeley, made about a trillion silver nanowires -- essentially nanocopic needles -- and packed them tightly together in a thin layer. Full story.

	Pattiz
	Huerta

The state Senate confirmed appointments Thursday of United Farm Workers Union co-founder Dolores Huerta and Westwood One radio network chairman Norman J. Pattiz to the University of California Board of Regents. Huerta will serve the remainder of Pattiz's term, which expires March 1. Pattiz will begin a new 12-year term on the 26-member board. Following approval by the Senate Rules Committee, the full Senate voted 25-5 to confirm the appointments made by Gov. Gray Davis. Full story.

As reported in Friday’s Today at Berkeley Lab, Windows NT, 2000 and XP system users must install a security patch as soon as possible. All computers that have not installed this patch will have their network access blocked tomorrow. The patch and more information are available here. For Novell clients, ITSD will run the installer during login for the latest Windows patch to protect machines from future Blaster type attacks. The process starts at 6 a.m. today and will run until 6 p.m. tomorrow. It will only execute once for each machine. The installer will not install a patch on machines that already have it installed. For help, contact the Help Desk at [email protected] or x4357.

Based largely on recent survey results from about 600 laboratory employees, the Berkeley Lab cafeteria will be serving dinner each weekday evening from 5 to 7 p.m., beginning tonight. Almost all of those 600 respondents to the survey favored a dinner service. Food items will be available for in-hall dining or for take-out.