Information Systems Group

Advancing Science Through Communication of Cutting-Edge Research Strategies

The Biological and Environmental Research Information System (BERIS) Group at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) seeks to inform the scientific community and public about the cutting-edge fundamental research supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Biological and Environmental Research (BER) program. BERIS develops targeted technical communications that span various research areas and reach many audiences. By effectively communicating cutting-edge research strategies and findings, the group fosters collaboration, innovation, and accelerated discovery across multiple disciplines.

The ORNL BERIS Group is supported by DOE’s Office of Science and has been the primary technical communication resource supporting the genomic science area of BER since 1989. The group’s scope expanded to include BER’s research program more broadly in 2009.

Integrating the many facets of biological and environmental research is critical for spurring innovation at the most rapid pace and at the lowest cost. 

Effective technical communication products facilitate meaningful interactions among scientists from different disciplines, promoting productive discourse and collaboration that ensures the timely fulfillment of pressing DOE energy missions. Moreover, by clearly conveying complex scientific concepts and findings, these communication efforts help stimulate growth in the U.S. bioeconomy.

The group works with DOE staff and the scientific community to write and disseminate information about biological and environmental science challenges and research results to help stimulate advances at interdisciplinary interfaces; facilitate programmatic planning, research, and communication; democratize access to the growing bounty of resources and data; and to help drive more-informed scientific and societal discourse.

Researchers

Publications

  • Apr, 2021

    Journal

    Green Hydrogen from Microalgal Liquefaction Byproducts with Ammonia Recovery and Effluent Recycle for Developing Circular Processes

    Hydrothermal liquefaction is a promising technology for microalgae-based biofuel production. However, hydrothermal liquefaction’s aqueous wastes have little established reuse, and contain significant fractions of toxic ammoniacal nitrogen. Careful reuse of this waste can assure microalgae-based biofuels are produced with less environmental impact and larger energy efficien…

  • Oct, 2020

    Journal

    Microbial Electrolysis Cell Recovery after Inducing Operational Failure Conditions

    Microbial Electrolysis Cells (MECs) are often documented for their ability to produce hydrogen through new sources and new configurations. However, few studies attempt to document the recovery of the bioanode after being exposed to operational failure conditions. This study attempted to compare the behavior and recovery of MECs after being exposed to four operational failu…

  • Sep, 2018

    Journal

    KBase: The United States Department of Energy Systems Biology Knowledgebase

    The U.S. Department of Energy Systems Biology Knowledgebase (KBase, http://kbase.us) is an open-source software and data platform designed to tackle the grand challenge of systems biology—predicting and designing biological function at scales ranging from the biomolecular to the ecological. KBase is available for anyone to use, and enables researchers to collaboratively ge…

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Contact

Holly L Haun

Group Lead

[email protected]