Los Alamos Press Highlights

Top honors bestowed on 2 area scientists

Siegfried Hecker

Former Los Alamos National Laboratory director Siegfried Hecker, now a Stanford University Professor, shared with University of Texas Professor John Goodenough the prestigious Enrico Fermi Award, one of the top honors awarded by the U.S. government. Read the Chronicle story here, and see the Department of Energy news release here.




Sandia and LANL to build supercomputer

Sandia and Los Alamos labs will collaborate on a massive new supercomputer to be built at Los Alamos next year, officials announced Thursday. The computer, dubbed "Mesa," will be one of the world's fastest computers. Its primary purpose will be nuclear weapon simulations. See the Journal story here - The Albuquerque Journal requires you to view an ad or have subscription.



LANL researchers hold 'adult science fair'
on projects that could change the world

Participants present their scientific proposals during the Los Alamos National Laboratory’s first public research and development presentation. New Mexican photo.

The scientists are researching ways to make materials last longer, deter nuclear attacks, make solar panels more efficient and understand the spread of avian flu - among a host of other projects.

The event was an adult version of a school science fair. Scientists stood by their posters ready to explain their research. There were no trophies or blue ribbons handed out, but organizers did ask people to vote on their favorite research poster. Read the New Mexican story here.



Best-ever ultraviolet portrait of Andromeda Galaxy

This mosaic of M31 merges 330 individual images taken by the Ultraviolet/Optical Telescope aboard NASA's Swift spacecraft. NASA image.

NASA's Swift satellite has acquired the highest-resolution view of a neighboring spiral galaxy ever attained in the ultraviolet. Swift is managed by NASA Goddard. It was built and is being operated in collaboration with Pennsylvania State University, the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, and General Dynamics of Gilbert, Ariz., in the United States. See the story here.



As the neutron spins

Michelle Whitehead and Kaitrin Higbee traveled with Professor Alex Komives to Los Alamos to investigate a curiosity of the sub-atomic world. DePauw photo.

For a second consecutive summer, Associate Professor of Physics and Astronomy Alexander K. Komives traveled with DePauw students to Los Alamos National Laboratory's Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) in New Mexico. They are collaborating with a team of international researchers to investigate what physicists call the weak interaction, one of the four fundamental forces in the universe. Full story here.



The power of pond scum


Greg Goddard, Los Alamos National Laboratory bioscientist, works to coax oil from algae. LANL photo.

Solix Biofuels Inc., headquartered in Fort Collins, signed a cooperative research and development agreement with LANL to further develop the technology and test it at Solix’s two algae-to-oil facilities at Fort Collins and at the Southern Ute Indian Reservation in southwest Colorado near Durango. Read the whole story here.



Federal labs step up biofuel research

LANL is studying the conversion of cellulosic feedstocks - nonedible materials such as corn husks - into biofuels. It's also researching innovative processes to improve algae growth, lipid production and the extraction of oil, said José Olivares, deputy division leader of LANL's Bioscience Division. See the story here.




UA professors conduct research
on alternative fuel sources

David Dixon and Anthony Arduengo, professors in the University [of Alabama] chemistry department, are leading on-campus research to find practical ways to store and transport hydrogen-based fuels for automobiles. They are working in conjunction with the Los Alamos National Laboratory, a New Mexico-based research institution engaged in developing alternative fuels and energies. See the whole story here.




UNM site to make isotopes
Markus Lusser, a Siemens vice president said the company was also attracted by the [UNM] Cancer Center's research capabilities and its relationship with Los Alamos National Laboratory, which does medical isotope research. "This allows us to do more than at an average site," Lusser said. See the full story here.



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