Science

U.S. House Assistant Speaker Ben Ray Luján: 2020 Congressional App Challenge To Promote STEM Education

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U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján

From the Office of U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján:

NAMBÉ – U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), the U.S. House Assistant Speaker, announced the launch of the 2020 Congressional App Challenge to promote STEM involvement for New Mexico students.

Through participation in this challenge, students create their own computer applications. Winning students receive recognition by their Member of Congress, and the computer applications are eligible to be featured in the U.S. Capitol Building and online.

The Congressional App Challenge is open to middle and high school students in New Read More

NOAA, Schmidt Ocean Institute Team To Explore; Map Ocean

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ROV SuBastian returning to R/V Falkor from a dive on the Rawaki seamount in the Phoenix Islands Protected Area. Schmidt Ocean Institute partnered with NOAA on a mission from 2015-2017 to explore deepwater areas of U.S. marine protected areas in the central and western Pacific. Courtesy/Schmidt Ocean Institute

NOAA News:

NOAA today announced it will formalize and expand its longstanding partnership with Schmidt Ocean Institute to explore, characterize and map the deep ocean and boost public understanding of the global ocean.

“We are living through a technological revolution that has opened Read More

LANL – Artificial Brains May Need Sleep, Too

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Intelligent machines of the future may need to sleep as much as we do. Courtesy/LANL

LANL News:

No one can say whether androids will dream of electric sheep, but they will almost certainly need periods of rest that offer benefits similar to those that sleep provides to living brains, according to new research from Los Alamos National Laboratory.

“We study spiking neural networks, which are systems that learn much as living brains do,” LANL computer scientist Yijing Watkins said. “We were fascinated by the prospect of training a neuromorphic processor in a manner analogous to how humans and other Read More

Peter Lyons Selected For Eisenhower Medal

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Peter B. Lyons

ANS News:

Peter B. Lyons, an American Nuclear Society (ANS) Fellow and member since 2003, is set to receive the Dwight D. Eisenhower Medal in a virtual award ceremony presentation Monday, June 8 during the 2020 ANS Virtual Annual Meeting.

Lyons is being recognized for his influential leadership in nuclear technology policy over five decades and for the vital role he played in the nuclear renaissance of the early 21st century.

A distinguished career:

During his career, Lyons worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory, as a commissioner of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and Read More

Summer 2020 STEM Camps Going Virtual!

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STEM Santa Fe News:

STEM Santa Fe is hosting the Summer 2020 Camps Monday through Friday during the months of June and July.

Camps meet virtually on Zoom with parents picking up materials in Santa Fe/Española by arrangement. These camps are tailored for students rising into 6th to 12th grade.

Registration is now open but space is limited. This camp is open to Northern New Mexico students in Los Alamos, Santa Fe, Taos, San Miguel, Mora, Sandoval and Rio Arriba. There is a $25 fee, but waived upon request.

Camps range from a beginner course in 3D Design to a high school level Engineering project building Read More

AGU: Ocean Uptake Of CO2 Could Drop As Carbon Emissions Are Cut

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In recent decades, the oceans have been soaking up greater and greater amounts of carbon dioxide each year. We can’t count on that trend to continue forever, says a new study. Courtesy/Caleb Jones/Unsplash

AGU News:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Volcanic eruptions and human-caused changes to the atmosphere strongly influence the rate at which the ocean absorbs carbon dioxide, according to a new study published this week in the journal AGU Advances.

The ocean is so sensitive to changes such as declining greenhouse gas emissions that it immediately responds by taking up less carbon dioxide.

The authors Read More

Governor Appoints Spaceport Authority Members

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Spaceport America is a FAA-licensed spaceport on 18,000 acres of State Trust Land in the Jornada del Muerto desert basin adjacent to White Sands Missile Range. Courtesy photo

STATE News:

SANTA FE — Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has appointed three new members to the New Mexico Spaceport Authority and re-appointed three other members, Cabinet Secretary Alicia J. Keyes announced Tuesday.

The Spaceport Authority is administratively attached to the New Mexico Economic Development Department. It consists of nine members; six are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the State Senate.

The Read More

Former LANL Mathematician Mark B. Wells Receives Special Services Award From U.S. Chess Federation

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Mark Wells playing a game of chess with a young opponent. Courtesy photo

An example of Mark Well’s hand-written algorithm for ‘Knight’ moves of his 6×6 chess game (1957). Well’s early computer chess algorithms, including the one shown here, are now housed in the Computer History Museum in Palo Alto, Calif. Courtesy photo

By MARCELLA WELLS
Fort Collins, Colo.

Mark Wells, long-time resident of Los Alamos will receive a posthumous award from the U.S. Chess Federation based on his pioneering efforts in computer chess (c.1950s) and his lifelong love of the game.

His surviving daughters were Read More

Los Alamos Faith And Science Forum Announces Seventh Annual Summer Series – This Year Via Zoom Starting June 3

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Scene from a Wednesday evening session during the 2019 LAFSF summer series at which Gerry Wood is delivering the after-dinner lecture at the Unitarian Church in Los Alamos. Courtesy/LAFSF

LAFSF News:

The Los Alamos Faith and Science Forum invites the community to its seventh annual summer program – this year via Zooming through cyberspace.

The lecture series begins at 6:30 p.m., every Wednesday starting June 3 and running for seven weeks through July 15. These sessions will be available on the internet via Zoom.

Registration information has already been sent to members and previous years’ Read More

Registration Opens For Los Alamos ScienceFest 20×20 Art Challenge With Theme ‘20/20: Eyes On The Future’

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Los Alamos Creative District News:

Registration is now open for the Los Alamos ScienceFest 20×20 Art Challenge.

The Los Alamos Creative District, Fuller Lodge Art Center, and the Los Alamos Arts Council are sponsoring this art competition designed to inspire and share creativity in the Los Alamos downtown area during this year’s ScienceFest, which will primarily be held virtually July 7–12.

The art challenge also will serve as a fundraiser for the Los Alamos Arts Council.

The challenge is limited to the first 20 artists to register, costs $20 per entry, and spots are expected to fill quickly. Read More