Insurance Industry Risk
From Climate Change

Mills

The insured share of the world's total economic losses from weather- related catastrophes is rising, says Evan Mills, with Berkeley Lab's Environmental Energy Technologies Division. It has increased from a negligible fraction in the 1950s to 25 percent in the last decade. The ratio has climbed more quickly in the U.S., with more than 40 percent of the total losses insured in the 1990s. An article on Mill's findings was published today in the "Viewpoint" section of Science. Full story. Mills will be a guest on the National Public radio program Talk of the Nation today at 12:40 p.m. (KQED-FM 88.5).

Intern Poster Session
At Potter St. Biocenter

Berkeley Lab and Bayer HealthCare are hosting a poster session next Friday (Aug. 19) at the Berkeley West Biocenter, located at 717 Potter St. in Berkeley, from 5 to 7 p.m. The posters were created by Berkeley Biotechnology Education, Inc. interns. The program seeks to connect high school students to the world of biotechnology through hands-on, science-based education and job training. To RSVP, send e-mail here by Aug. 16.

Students view 3D images of Mars

Students Learn About
Computing Careers

On Wednesday, 22 high school students from around the state visited the Lab to learn about careers in computing from staff in the Computational Research Division. The visit, arranged through the Berkeley Foundation for Opportunities in Information Technology, featured a scientific computing overview by Juan Meza, a talk by Kathy Yelick about choosing a career path, and a demonstration by Chip Smith of how visualization technology is used to present scientific information, such as 3D images of Mars.

High School Research
Presentations Today

Students in the High School Research Participation Program today will be giving Power Point presentations on what they've learned over the past seven weeks here at the Lab. The event runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Building 50 Auditorium. Sponsored by the Center for Science and Engineering Education, the program places students in research and technical support groups under the direction of mentors. The 36 students in this year's program hail from Albany, Berkeley, Oakland and other Bay Area communities.