February 22, 2012
Gang Ren of the Molecular Foundry led a study that has provided new evidence to explain how cholesteral ester transfer protein (CETP) mediates the transfer of cholesterol from “good” high-density lipoproteins (HDLs) to “bad” low-density lipoproteins (LDLs). These findings point the way to the design of safer, more effective next generation CETP inhibitors that could help prevent the development of heart disease. Also working on this study were Lei Zhang, Feng Yan, Shengli Zhang, Dongsheng Lei, M. Arthur Charles, Giorgio Cavigiolio, Michael Oda, Ronald Krauss, Karl Weisgraber, Kerry-Anne Rye, Henry Powna and Xiayang Qiu. More>
Tags: Molecular Foundry, Science/Research
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February 22, 2012
The Senate passed a bill last Friday to keep the Social Security payroll tax at its lower 4.2 percent rate through the rest of the year. The Senate’s decision was not made in a timely enough manner to match of all the Lab’s payroll cycles. As a result all monthly employees will be paid one day in advance on Wednesday, Feb. 29, instead of March 1.
Tags: Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Payroll
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February 22, 2012
Susanna Jacobson, a Lab employee for 21 years, passed away on Feb. 8 after battling breast cancer. She started with the Engineering Division in 1991, matrixed to the Data Acquisition Software group in the Nuclear Sciences Division. In 1998 she was matrixed to the Advanced Light Source Controls Group. She belonged to the Lab’s Knitting Club and enjoyed singing Karaoke with her ALS co-workers. A memorial service will be held Saturday, Feb. 25, from 4-6 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Kensington. Go here to read an obituary written by her colleagues, including memorial and donation details.
Tags: Advanced Light Source, Engineering Division, In Memoriam, Nuclear Science Division
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February 22, 2012
The Lab’s Molecular Foundry will host a two-day summit on peptoids on August 8-9 in the Building 66 Auditorium. The event will offer presentations on the chemistry, biology, and nanoscience aspects of peptoids, as well as a poster session. Students and postdocs are encouraged to participate. More>
Tags: Conference, Molecular Foundry
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February 22, 2012
If you submitted a LOI for the UCOP Commercialization Gap Grants and it was approved, contact the Lab’s Technology Transfer office at innovation@lbl.gov with the title and case number of your intended project. The Tech Transfer office will need to complete the grant application’s Technology Licensing Comment form describing marketing efforts and industry feedback for your technology. This is a key area in which projects will be evaluated for commercialization potential.
Tags: Funding, Tech Transfer
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February 22, 2012
Did you know that you have the same online journal access as UC Berkeley faculty? Or that you can make and receive Lab calls on your smartphone or computer? Using data from a recent customer survey, IT identified nine services and features that Lab employees find very important, but may not know are available. We’ve worked to make these services more visible and easier to access. More>
Tags: IT Division
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February 21, 2012
A small mountain lion sighting was confirmed below Building 77 on Sunday (Feb. 19). Mountain lions generally exist where deer are found. Warning signs have been placed at all Lab gates. As a precaution, the use of the stairs below 77 at dusk, night, or dawn is discouraged, and a sign has been posted. To limit an interaction with a mountain lion, avoid hiking or jogging in the undeveloped areas of the Lab alone or at dawn, dusk or night. If you see a mountain lion, immediately call 7-911 from any Lab phone or 911 from any cell phone. Go here for more safety information from the California Department of Fish and Game.
Tags: Environment Health and Safety, safe
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February 21, 2012
James Sethian and Robert Saye, mathematicians with Berkeley Lab’s Computational Research Division have won the 2011 Cozzarelli Prize for the best scientific paper in the category of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Their winning paper was titled “The Voronoi Implicit Interface Method for computing multiphase physics.” Sponsored by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science to acknowledge papers published during the year that demonstrate the highest scientific excellence and originality, the Cozzarelli Prize is awarded in the six broadly defined classes under which the National Academy of Sciences is organized. More>
Tags: Awards, Computational Research Division
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February 21, 2012
Deputy Director Horst Simon has announced the awards for the first Innovation Grant initiative, which funds inventions showing strong commercial promise, yet needing specific development to demonstrate its competitive value. The awards went to Delia Milliron (Materials Sciences) for “Spectrally Selective Dynamic Window Coatings Based on Nanocrystrals,” George Pau, Stefan Finsterle and Eric Sonnenthal (Earth Sciences) for “Parallel Software Framework for TOUGH Suite of Codes,” Michal Commer, Greg Newman and Petr Petrov (Earth Sciences) for “Integrated Geophysical Electromagnetic Seismic Subsurface Imaging,” and Daojing Wang (Life Sciences) and Rafael Gomez-Sjoberg (Engineering) for “iMEA-Chip Prototyping and Optimization.” More>
Tags: Directorate, Funding, Tech Transfer
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February 21, 2012
The ALS User Support Building has earned a LEED gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. Its “green” features include the ability to capture natural light, reducing lighting loads; sensors that, when a window is opened, turn off the ventilation system; extensive metering; and a heat-recovery system. More than 10 percent of the building material and 75 percent of construction waste was recycled. The toilets have a dual-flush option for greater water savings. Overall, the building has been designed to be 56 percent more efficient than a normal, baseline building, according to project director Joe Harkins. This is the second Lab building to receive LEED Gold, the first being the Molecular Foundry.
Tags: Awards, Facilities
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