Securing our future as science, security leader

(Knoxville News Sentinel) Have you seen the recent transformation at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, our nation's principal resource for computing, energy and materials science research? It is not easy to access for most of us, but they do host public tours...11/6

PRESIDENT HONORS OUTSTANDING EARLY-CAREER SCIENTISTS

(WhiteHouse.gov) President Obama today named 85 researchers as recipients of the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers, the highest honor bestowed by the United States government on science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their independent research careers...
Jeremy T. Busby, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
De-en Jiang, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Sergei V. Kalinin, Oak Ridge National Laboratory...11/5

Profiles of 9 TVA board members

(Washington Examiner) Profiles of Tennessee Valley Authority directors, leading with three new appointees and reappointed member...Marilyn A. Brown of Atlanta, Ga., professor of energy policy at Georgia Tech's School of Public Policy and a distinguished visiting scientist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. She was a co-recipient of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for work on climate change. Her term expires May 18, 2012...11/4

DOE says ORNL's central stack not coming down anytime soon

(Knoxville News Sentinel) Last week I posted a heads-up on the Nov. 10 meeting of the Oak Ridge Site Specific Advisory Board. The meeting notice indicated that DOE's David Adler would be speaking about taking down the central stack at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and addressing potential concerns about airborne emissions...11/7

Previous ORNL Stories

DOE

Secretary Chu To Travel to China and Japan

(DOE Press Release) U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu will travel to China and Japan November 14 - 19 to meet with government officials, business leaders and others to discuss the Department's ongoing clean energy and scientific collaboration with both countries...11/5

Univ. of Vt. hoping to attract new energy lab

(Business week) The University of Vermont and the Sandia National Laboratories are hoping to launch a new research partnership with some of the state's utilities and alternative energy companies...11/5

State & Regional

Despite GOP majority, Tenn. influence up in air

(Knoxville News Sentinel) In theory, Tennessee Republicans should have a lot more power when the new Congress gets down to business in early January. The tidal wave of voter anger that swept the GOP back into the majority in the U.S. House in Tuesday's elections washed over Tennessee as well, enabling state Republicans to pick up three congressional seats that had been held by Democrats...11/6

National

Obama pledges to strengthen anti-terror efforts with India, but stays clear of issue of Kashmir

(Washington Post) President Obama pledged Monday to strengthen U.S.-India efforts to fight and prevent terrorism and to work with all South Asian nations to deny safe havens to terrorists...11/8

Battles Loom Over Tax Breaks, Spending Cuts

(Wall Street Journal) Newly empowered Republicans pushed Sunday to extend Bush-era tax levels for as long as possible and pledged significant cuts in spending, as President Barack Obama sought to maintain his footing in an escalating budget battle...11/8

East Tennessee

Big Ed's Pizza of Oak Ridge on USA list

(Oak Ridger) A popular pizza restaurant in Oak Ridge has been recognized as one of America’s 51 great pizza parlors. Big Ed’s Pizza features a dimly lit-but-friendly dining room, and it is described as “a no-frills kind of place” on a USA TODAY travel list of great pizza parlors...11/5

energy & science policy

Obama drops plan to limit global warming gases

(USA Today) Environmental groups and industry seem headed for another battle over regulation of greenhouse gases, as President Barack Obama said he will look for ways to control global warming pollution other than Congress placing a ceiling on it...11/4

Corporations, Universities, Associations, and Organizations Urge Senate Leaders to Pass COMPETES Legislation

(AIP) One of the most important congressional agenda items for the science community is the enactment of a reauthorization bill for the America COMPETES Act. Today approximately 250 signatories and endorsing organizations sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) urging “the Senate to pass the reauthorization of the America COMPETES Act in time to work with the House to make it possible for the President to sign this important legislation into law before the end of this Congress.”...11/5

Inside Energy Extra

11/5/10 A daily report on U.S. energy policy
[ORNL users only]

Obama aides question loan program
NEI wants lame-duck action on loan aid
Wind lobby sees ongoing Hill support
Chu plans China-Japan swing
Johnson follows others out of DOE

science & technology

Shuttle launch off until end of month to fix leak

(Phys.Org) It's the fourth delay in a week for Discovery's mission to the International Space Station with six veteran astronauts and the first humanoid robot bound for orbit. NASA tried to launch Discovery on Friday, but a potentially dangerous hydrogen gas leak cropped up midway through the fueling process and the countdown was halted.

Scientists find dead, dying corals near BP well

(WBIR) Federal scientists say they have found damage to deep sea corals and other marine life several miles from where BP's blown-out well spewed millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico...11/5

Fermilab is Building a 'Holometer' to Determine Once and For All Whether Reality Is Just an Illusion

(Popular Science) Researchers at Fermilab are building a “holometer” so they can disprove everything you thought you knew about the universe. More specifically, they are trying to either prove or disprove the somewhat mind-bending notion that the third dimension doesn’t exist at all, and that the 3-D universe we think we live in is nothing more than a hologram. To do so, they are building the most precise clock ever created...10/21