UC Takes Step Toward Bid for Lab Contract

In response to last week's Department of Energy solicitation for expressions of interest for the management and operating contract for Berkeley Lab, the University of California responded by expressing its interest. While the response does not commit or restrict UC in future participation in the competition, the University is continuing to prepare as if it will compete. The UC Board of Regents will make a decision regarding participation following the release and review of the formal Request for Proposals, due in June. Go here to read the DOE solicitation, and here for UC updates on lab competition.

From to left to right, Sali, Voigt, Dill, and Anthony Hunt

Some people see a future populated by billions of mechanical micromachines, robots no bigger than a speck of dust that are programmed to do our bidding. UC San Francisco School of Pharmacy and Berkeley Lab researcher Christopher Voigt sees a different future. He sees living micromachines that can be engineered into a new kind of pharmaceutical. His micromachines are bacteria. In collaboration with colleagues at UCSF and Berkeley Lab - Andrej Sali and Ken Dill -- Voigt is making bacteria that are modified genetically to perform a variety of jobs. Read the UCSF news story here.

Do you ever wonder about the people, places, programs and policies that make up the complex world that is Berkeley Lab? A new feature in "Today at Berkeley Lab" will try to answer questions that readers might have about the laboratory, in particular those of broad general interest to the lab community. Just send your inquiry to [email protected]. Space and time constraints will not permit an answer to every question, but those with the greatest relevance to readers will be addressed in either "Today..." or the View . So what do you want to know?

Retirement Planning Workshop Next Week

Lab employees retiring within the next five years are encouraged to attend the "Planning Your Retirement Income" workshop, presented by Fidelity Investments at 10 a.m. next Monday in the Building 66 Auditorium. The workshop will help staff determine if their portfolio is appropriately invested to generate sufficient income during retirement, which sources of income they may want to use first, and help identify distribution options that will meet lifestyle needs. Call 800-642-7131 to reserve a space in the workshop.

Regrets if You Received A Second Survey

Randomly selected recipients of a reader opinion survey for "Today at Berkeley Lab" may have inadvertently received two copies of the e-mail and survey link last week. Only one should be completed; the second was an electronic error. The "Today..." staff apologizes for any inconvenience this may have caused.

Campus Releases Its Long Range Development Plan

UC Berkeley has released its draft Long Range Development Plan and environmental impact report, vital documents that could direct the development of the campus for the next 15 years. Formally called the draft UC Berkeley 2020 Long Range Development Plan and Chang-Lin Tien Center for East Asian Studies Environmental Impact Report, this bound set of documents consists of a land use plan followed by an environmental analysis of that plan and of the Tien Center, the first project proposed under the plan. The campus plan precedes Berkeley Lab's draft LRDP, which should be released this summer. Go here to read the news release, and here to read the UC Berkeley plan.