Smoot, left, and Reid

Smoot Carries Message
Of Science to Congress

Berkeley Lab physicist George Smoot joined four of his 2006 Nobel Prize-winning colleagues in delivering a strong message to the House and Senate in Washington, D.C. last week on the importance of science and scientific achievement to America's health and vitality. They were guests of Congress at the annual Nobel Laureates Capitol Hill day. In the photo above, Smoot is shown engaged in a conversation with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-NV. (Photo courtesy of Kara Delahunt)

Smoot Co-Nobelist Mather Talks on Campus Today

Mather

NASA senior astrophysicist John Mather, who shared the 2006 Nobel Prize with Berkeley Lab physicist George Smoot for their collaborative work on understanding the Big Bang, will discuss "From The Big Bang To COBE, The Nobel Prize, And James Webb Space Telescope" in an appearance at UC Berkeley this afternoon. The colloquium, sponsored by the Physics Department, begins at 4:30 p.m. in 1 LeConte Hall. He will describe the Cosmic Background Explorer satellite, which grew from work begun at UC Berkeley, and the technical challenges he faces in his current space telescope project.

Help Stem Skin Cancer
With Screening at Lab

Lab staff are encouraged to attend a free skin screening session at Health Services (Bldg. 26) on Wednesday between 8 a.m. and noon. Early detection is key in the fight against skin cancer. By some estimates, more than 1 million new cases of skin cancer are diagnosed each year, with an approximate 10,000 deaths as a result. Prizes will be given to all participants who bring in their favorite sun hat. Appointments are recommended (call x6266), but walk-ins will be accommodated.

Climate Modeler Featured
On Local News Broadcast

Internationally recognized climate model expert Bill Collins of Berkeley Lab's Earth Sciences Division was featured in an interview with KGO-TV reporter Wayne Freedman that aired on Channel 7 last Friday. Collins told Freedman, "We have taken the planet to a place it has not been in recorded history. And we're going to take it...if we're not careful, to a place it has not been in 20 million years." See Collins' comments on tracking the progress of climate change in a videocast here.

		Climate Change Roadmap Released

Sathaye

Drug Discovery Tools Replicated in Nanoscience
By Vance McCarthy

Ron Zuckermann, lead scientist for Berkeley Lab’s Biological Nanostructures Facility at the Molecular Foundry, is taking the same techniques drug companies use to discover drugs to help nanoscientists cut the cost and shorten the time for their hunt for useful nano-compounds. Zuckermann helped invent the combinatorial chemistry process more than a decade ago, whereby researchers create and test thousands (and in some cases millions) of compounds for just the right properties. Full story.