National Laboratory

Heinrich Fights For New Mexico In Annual Defense Bill

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U.S. SENATE News:

WASHINGTON, D.C. U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, voted to advance the committee’s fiscal year 2016 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

The bill includes key provisions Senator Heinrich worked to include that benefit New Mexico’s men and women in uniform, military installations, private industry, national laboratories, and the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP).

The bill, which sets the Department of Defense spending levels and policies for the upcoming fiscal year, was reported out of committee Read More

LANL: New Issue Of 1663 Magazine Available

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LANL News:

In this issue:

  • New observatory explores the hidden depths of the high-energy universe
  • Forecasting global disease outbreaks with Wikipedia page-request data
  • Major breakthrough in the production of low-cost solar cells
  • Better antibodies for better biomedical research and better biomolecular detection
  • How interface misalignments shape the properties of layered nanocomposites

…and more

Click here to get your science and technology fix from Los Alamos! Read More

LANL: Better Predicting Flu Outbreaks With Wikipedia

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From left, Kyle Hickmann, Nick Generous, Alina Deshpande, Geoffrey Fairchild, Sara Del Valle and Reid Preidhorshy. Courtesy/LANL

LANL News:

Scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory have the ability to forecast the upcoming flu season and other infectious diseases by analyzing views of Wikipedia articles.

“The ability to more accurately forecast the flu season and other infectious diseases will transform the way health departments prepare for and respond to epidemics, ultimately saving lives,” scientist Sara Del Valle said.

Del Valle and her team recently published “Forecasting Read More

Donation Site Opens For Worker Injured At TA-53

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IBEW News:
 
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local Union 611 has set up an emergency fundraising site for Julian Trujillo, who was critically injured at Los Alamos National Laboratory May 3 while performing maintenance on an electrical substation at TA-53. 
 
Trujillo remains hospitalized in critical but stable condition and faces “a long and difficult recovery,” as noted on the fundraising site. 
 
If you would like to help support Trujillo and his family during this very difficult time, please donate online to the Julian
Read More

NMED Secretary: A Safer New Mexico

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A Safer New Mexico

By Cabinet Secretary Ryan Flynn
New Mexico Environment Department

A little more than a year ago, a drum of transuranic waste packed with incompatible materials ruptured after being transported 300 miles through New Mexico from Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad. When the drum ruptured and released radiation into the atmosphere, Gov. Susana Martinez and her administration moved quickly and decisively.

Immediately after being notified of the release, the New Mexico Environment Department was on the ground in Read More

WIPP: Initial Closure Of Panel 6 Complete With Work In Panel 7, Room 7 In Process

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A steel bulkhead seals the entrance to Panel 7, Room 7 at WIPP. Courtesy/WIPP

WIPP News:

Workers at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) completed the initial closure of Panel 6, safely and successfully isolating about 85 percent of the nitrate salt bearing waste containers associated with the breached drum from the Los Alamos National Laboratory that are in the WIPP underground facility.

Workers completed installation of the substantial barrier (chain link, brattice cloth and mined salt) and steel bulkheads on both the intake and exhaust sides of Panel 6. As an added precaution, continuous Read More

US And China Mark 10th Anniversary Of Peaceful Uses Of Nuclear Technology Joint Coordination Meetings

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NNSA News:

CHENGDU, CHINA – The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Deputy Administrator for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Anne Harrington and China National Energy Administration (NEA) Director General Liu Baohua co-chaired the 10th Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Technology (PUNT) Joint Coordinating Committee (JCC) meeting May 6-7 in Chengdu, China.

Since 2002, the United States and China have held periodic joint meetings on their cooperative activities under the U.S.-China PUNT Agreement. The agreement is a formal government-to-government Read More

LANL Guards Reach Out To SOC-LA To Restart Talks

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IGUA News:

International Guards Union of America Local 69 (IGUA) just announced that they had reached out to SOC-LA, the company that provides security services at Los Alamos National Laboratory, to resume labor talks.

IGUA said they are reaching out despite the company’s threatening to withhold paychecks from negotiators as part of the contentious talks that the union walked out of last week, due to SOC-LA’s acting in bad faith, and continuing its demands for disproportionate increases in health care costs for union members while offering only a nominal increase in retirement benefits. Read More

LANB Donates $50K To Los Alamos Historical Society

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Los Alamos National Bank’s Senior Administrative Officer Rod Pittman, left, presents a check for $50,000 to the Los Alamos Historical Society, which is accepted by Board President Ron Wilkins during the organization’s annual meeting Tuesday evening at Fuller Lodge. Wilkins commended LANB for its generosity and the many good works it does throughout the community. Executive Director Heather McClenahan, standing, and Historical Society board member Wendy Hoffman look on at right. Photo by Carol A. Clark/ladailypost.com

Audience members applaud as Senior Administrative Read More

State Environment Secretary Discusses $73 Million WIPP Settlement With DOE

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NMED Secretary Ryan Flynn

 

By ROGER SNODGRASS
Los Alamos Daily Post

“Liability was a major issue,” said New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) Secretary Ryan Flynn during a telephone interview Tuesday, discussing the state’s $73 million settlement on April 30 of claims for violations and liabilities related to a major contamination accident at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Carlsbad in southern New Mexico. “We felt strongly that the weight of the evidence on our side was so overwhelming, we were able to get past that issue early on,” he said.

The WIPP facility has been closed Read More