ORNL in the News

November 2009 story tips from the US Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(EurekAlert) TRANSPORTATION -- Gone hybrid...Fuel economy ratings for the new 2010 model year automobiles are now posted at the www.fueleconomy.gov web site, which Oak Ridge National Laboratory developed and maintains for the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency...MATERIALS ??? Ferroelectric fury...By discovering a technique to guide the ferroelectric switching process in bismuth ferrite, a team led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Nina Balke has moved one step closer to developing more rugged memory and logic devices...MANUFACTURING -- Holey truck frames . . . Heavy trucks are a little less heavy but just as safe and rugged because of steel rail frames provided by Metalsa Roanoke, which enlisted the help of Cam Hubbard and the High Temperature Materials Laboratory User Program at Oak Ridge National Laboratory...NANOSCIENCE -- Using neural networks...A new approach to crunching massive volumes of data uses neural networks, an architecture of multiple elements that is figuratively taught to pool imbedded information into results, like an artificial brain...11/5

9 of Top 10 Most Fuel Efficient Cars Are Hybrids

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(Live Science) The latest fuel economy ratings for 2010 models have been published, and nine of the top 10 are hybrid electric cars...This list proves that hybrids have gone mainstream, said Bo Saulsbury, who heads up the ratings project from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Environmental Sciences Division. There's now a hybrid for everyone. The 32 hybrid models available in 2010 offer car buyers the choice of an SUV, passenger car, economy or luxury model, from almost every major automobile maker....11/5

House panel takes fresh look at fusion

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(Electricity Forum) The House Science subcommittee on energy and environment hosted a hearing on fusion research. It attracted attention to a future energy source that tends to take a backseat these days to wind and solar and just about anything else with a green connotation. It was reportedly the first congressional hearing on fusion in 13 years, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory Director Thom Mason was among the witnesses...Mason discussed ORNL's decades-long involvement in fusion research, as well as its current role heading the U.S. contribution to the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor being built in France. The international experiment - expected to be twice the size of any previous experiment - is supposed to demonstrate the scientific and technological feasibility of fusion energy...11/5

National Geographic Traveler puts Smokies in 'Places with Troubles' category

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(Knoxville News Sentinel) The Great Smoky Mountains aren't so great after all, according to National Geographic Traveler magazine.The online version of the publication's sixth annual rating of 133 worldwide travel destinations characterized the Great Smoky Mountains National Park as a national treasure surrounded by a bathtub ring of ugly, unplanned development....11/6

K-33 demolition next stimulus project

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(Knoxville News Sentinel) Department of Energy spokesman John Shewairy Thursday confirmed that discussions are under way about demolishing the K-33 building - a massive, 2.8 million-square-foot structure that was decommissioned and cleaned up by BNFL in the 1990s as part of a three-building DD project...10/6

Symposium on ???Accelerators for America???s Future???

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(AIP) There was a large turnout last week on the first day of a three-day symposium entitled ???Accelerators for America???s Future.??? The attendance, as well as the presentations from a diverse range of speakers, demonstrated the great interest there is in the potential of accelerators in areas such as medicine, industrial applications, and energy, as well as in new accelerator technologies...11/5

Carbon Atmosphere Discovered On Neutron Star

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(Science Daily) Evidence for a thin veil of carbon has been found on the neutron star in the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant. This discovery, made with NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, resolves a ten-year mystery surrounding this object...11/5

www.fueleconomy.gov

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(Live Science) The latest fuel economy ratings for 2010 models have been published, and nine of the top 10 are hybrid electric cars...This list proves that hybrids have gone mainstream, said Bo Saulsbury, who heads up the ratings project from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Environmental Sciences Division. There's now a hybrid for everyone. The 32 hybrid models available in 2010 offer car buyers the choice of an SUV, passenger car, economy or luxury model, from almost every major automobile maker....11/5

Bredesen calls biofuel criticism 'outrageous'

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(Knoxville News Sentinel) Gov. Phil Bredesen branded a legislative attack on the BioFuels Initiative he launched two years ago as ridiculous and outrageous Thursday and said it endangers an unannounced very large investment in East Tennessee....11/6

Secretary Chu Highlights Support for Clean Energy and Energy Efficiency Projects in Indian Country

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(DOE Press Release) Today at the White House Tribal Nations Conference, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu highlighted the Department of Energy???s continued commitment to partnering with Native Americans to support the development of clean energy projects on tribal lands that will help reduce energy use, limit carbon pollution, and create new jobs for tribal communities across the country...11/5

Livermore Lab hires national security expert

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(San Francisco Business Times) Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory hired Penrose Albright to oversee work on security research...He replaces John Doesburg, who left the lab in October to work at Oak Ridge National Laboratory...11/5

First lady praises employees at Energy Department

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(AP) On a visit to the Energy Department on Thursday, first lady Michelle Obama quizzed middle-school students about red blood cells and nanotechnology during a practice science quiz competition...11/5

Agreement on climate change looks unlikely ahead of Copenhagen

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(CS Monitor) The world is moving toward December climate change talks that have been described in some quarters as pivotal. But a European Union agreement, signed last week, sheds light on how tenuous the prospects are for a comprehensive deal any time soon...11/5

Will a Shortage of Nuclear Isotopes Mean Less Effective Medical Tests?

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(Popular Science) The Chalk River nuclear reactor in Ontario doesn???t sell a watt of electricity. Never has. But when it sprang a leak and shut down this spring, it threw a multibillion-dollar industry into crisis...11/5

After Setbacks, Small Successes for Gene Therapy

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(NY Times) Not long ago, gene therapy seemed troubled by insurmountable difficulties. After decades of hype and dashed hopes, many who once embraced the idea of correcting genetic disorders by giving people new genes all but gave up the idea...11/6

Powerful Afghan Governor Challenges President

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(Wall Street Journal) An escalating quarrel between Afghan President Hamid Karzai and a powerful governor is stoking fears of bloodshed in one of the country's more peaceful and prosperous provinces...11/6

Philippines targets $2.5 billion geothermal development

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 04:15:00 EDT

(Reuters) The Philippine government aims to approve contracts to explore and develop the country's massive geothermal energy resources, which could attract more than $2.5 billion in private investment, an official said...11/5

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