LANL News Roundup For Week Of June 20, 2022
Science – Understanding plants could make firefighting and prescribed burns safer:
Recent advances in remote sensing and modeling have opened the door to taking a deeper look at how the physical makeup of various plant species, particularly their carbon and water content, interact with fire. Accounting for these dynamic vegetation characteristics will improve not only the ability to better understand fire behavior but also fire effects and fire’s role in healthy ecosystem dynamics. Read the full article here. Courtesy/LANL
LANL News:
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) shares a Read More
Fr. Glenn: Back And Forth
By Fr. Glenn Jones:
Let’s see … did anything notable happen this week? Hmmm … let’s think.
Ah, yes … the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health/Roe v. Wade overturn by the Supreme Court—celebration for some, infuriating for others. But, no matter which side one falls on, we know one thing for certain: it is not the last we’ll hear of the debate; quite the contrary. Because of the extreme polarity of the division, it will be a battle that will likely go on—as it already has—for decades (centuries?) to come.
The Dobbs decision is an interesting (rather long) read as it goes through the reasoning of the court. Read More
Tales Of Our Times: Wildland Firefighting Enjoys Potent Aids To Better Decisions
Tales of our Times
By JOHN BARTLIT
New Mexico Citizens
for Clean Air & Water
The Cerro Pelado Fire recently threatened nearby mountains, canyons, and their resident assets in Northern New Mexico.
Over 45,000 acres burned. For three straight weeks, wildland firefighters averaged two one-hour meetings a week in town, which gave town dwellers a close look at the ins and outs of wildland firefighting.
Wildland fires have much the look and feel of war zones, with one epic difference: Mother Nature is in charge. Though she can be harsh, nature is not a source of fake clues. Diversionary ploys are Read More
Martinez: Small Businesses In Los Alamos Are Integral To Our Town’s Foundation
By LIDDIE MARTINEZ
President, Los Alamos Region
Enterprise Bank & Trust, Member FDIC
One of my favorite parts about working in Los Alamos is visiting and supporting the small businesses that are integral to our town’s foundation.
The past few years have proven to be challenging for every industry, especially local small businesses.
Ongoing market instability has made it increasingly difficult for business owners to attract and retain employees. According to a 2022 Alignable Small Business Labor Poll, 60 percent of the 6,367 small businesses surveyed said that the labor shortage is Read More
McQuiston: To File Or Not, That’s The Financial Question
By ALLEN MCQUISTON
Jemez Agency
Serving Los Alamos Since 1963
There are many types of coverage offered on a typical homeowner’s policy, but the question of whether or not to file a claim versus footing the bill yourself for any damage often arises.
This may seem contradictory – purchasing insurance but then not filing a claim – but there are actually good reasons not to file. Many carriers offer loss free credits or provide a better pricing tier for customers with no claims history.
Claim frequency and claim payout amounts are often used to help determine whether or not an insurance carrier will Read More
Los Alamos County Council Chair Ryti: Diversity
By RANDALL RYTI
Chair
Los Alamos County Council
During the Council Work Session on June 21, 2022, we had an in-depth presentation on the options for future electric generation for the County and Los Alamos National Laboratory. Among the seven factors considered for rating portfolio assets like wind, solar, storage, advanced nuclear, and others was diversification.
The point was made that having a mixture of assets was inherently more resilient and less susceptible to price variations compared to the County selecting only one or two options. The principle of promoting diversity in electric Read More
Reilly: LANL, Why Didn’t Oppie Win A Nobel Prize?
By DOUG REILLY
Los Alamos
I enjoyed this article in last Thursday’s Daily Post printed edition (link). However, I think it left off the principal reason he was never awarded the prize.
Alfred Nobel, inventor of dynamite, was distressed by its military uses. He stipulated in the Nobel Prize instructions that it must never be given for anything that had military applications.
While Oppie had scientific work outside nuclear weapons, especially the paper co-written after the Manhattan Project that described what we now call Black Holes; he was so connected to Los Alamos and the atomic bomb, I believe Read More
