Wednesday Lecture
On Climate Modeling

Collins

Leading climate modeler Bill Collins joined the Earth Sciences Division in April to form a new department dedicated to atmospheric and climate science, called the Department of Climate Science. On Wednesday at noon in the Building 50 auditorium, he'll discuss how observations show that the Earth is warming at a rate unprecedented in recent history, and that human-induced changes in atmospheric chemistry are probably the main culprits. Climate models suggest that patterns of global warming will amplify over the 21st century, impacting plants, animals, and society. Go here for a complete schedule of this summer's lectures.

Eucalyptus Next Tree
Genome to be Sequenced

Eucalyptus

An ambitious international effort has been launched to decode the genome of Eucalyptus, one of the world’s most valuable fiber and paper-producing trees — with the goal to maximize its potential in the burgeoning bioenergy market and for capturing excess atmospheric carbon. The DNA sequence of the 600-million-nucleotide tree genome will be generated under the auspices of the Joint Genome Institute Community Sequencing Program, and the information will be made freely available online. Full story.

Governor's Energy Plan
Benefits State, Planet

This editorial appeared in Friday's edition of the Mercury News.

It's well known in Silicon Valley that you have to invest seed money to get a shot at a big breakthrough. It's no different in the drive to develop clean energy technologies that can help the environment and the economy. That's why state legislators should make every effort to fund a worthy $95 million initiative for research that will be a smart investment for the future of the state - and the planet. The Strategic Research and Innovation Initiative proposed by Gov. Schwarzenegger would help finance University of California facilities and research — including a Helios building at Berkeley Lab — on biofuels, solar energy and other technologies. Full editorial.

First Look at Helios Building From Project Planners

Illustration of proposed Helios Building

Reporter Richard Brenneman of the Berkeley Daily Planet wrote a story last Friday that offered readers their first look at plans for the proposed Helios building that will house researchers in the Energy Biosciences Institute.He took his information from a briefing that Berkeley Lab project director Joe Harkins gave for prospective contractors on June 28. Go here to read Brenneman's report, and here to view Harkins’ powerpoint slides.