Fire danger: Moderate to high
Deputy directors named for BUS Division
Dennis Roybal and Jim Herring have been named new deputy directors in the Laboratory's Business Operations (BUS) Division.
"Dennis and Jim are longtime Laboratory employees with a wealth of experience and I look forward to having them on my division office staff to oversee the critical areas of accounting, budget operations, procurement, property and materials management," BUS Division Director Allan Johnston said Thursday in announcing the appointments.
A native of the Española Valley,
Roybal will oversee procurement, property and materials management.
"I'm excited. It's a big job and I feel like I can contribute to moving our organization into being the most valued support organization within the Laboratory," said Roybal.
He has worked at Los Alamos for 22 years. Recently, Roybal has worn two hats, that of risk manager and acting Small Business Office program manager.
Roybal graduated from Española Valley High School and has a bachelor's degree in political science and a master's degree in public administration, both from New Mexico State University.
Roybal also oversaw the recompetition of subcontracts with Johnson Controls Northern New Mexico, the Lab's largest support services contractor, and Protection Technology Los Alamos, which provides security force services to the Lab. Those contracts are valued at about $150 million annually, Roybal said.
Roybal joined the Laboratory in 1978 in the former Materials Management (MAT) Division. He has been group leader and deputy group leader of the former Research and Development Subcontracting (MAT-7) Group.
Herring has been group leader for Business
Planning and Budgeting (BUS-3) since 1997. He joined the Laboratory
in 1982 in the former National Security Programs Test Operations
Office at Los Alamos where he worked four years.
Herring then moved to the former Weapons Test (J) Division for five years. He became a group leader in the former Financial (FIN) Division in 1991 and was responsible for nuclear weapons program budgeting and resource management.
In 1994, Herring began a three-year assignment with the Department of Energy Office of the Chief Financial Officer in Washington, D.C.
"I am honored to be selected as the deputy division director for finance," said Herring. "I see this as a tremendous opportunity to work with BUS Division and Lab technical staff to make sure Los Alamos has first-rate financial services that meet or exceed all customer needs."
He has a bachelor's degree in chemistry from the University of New Mexico and master's degree in business administration from the University of Oklahoma.
A military veteran, Herring spent three years in the U.S. Air Force where he was honorably discharged in 1972.
Born in Albuquerque, Herring graduated from Fort Sumner High School in Fort Sumner. He also earned an associate's degree from New Mexico Military Institute in 1966.
--Steve Sandoval
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Director to present 'State of the Laboratory' address Wednesday Director John Browne will present his annual "State of the Laboratory" address to employees at 1:10 p.m. Wednesday in the Administration Building Auditorium. The talk is open to all Laboratory badgeholders and will be shown live on LABNET. |
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Melanie Mitchell, a staff member in Biophysics (P-21), will speak at the Bradbury Science Museum Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. Mitchell's talk, "Life and Evolution in Computers," discusses the possibility that computers can be built that are alive and evolve. The lecture is sponsored by the Bradbury Science Museum and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. IEEE is a nonprofit scientific and educational organization directed toward the advancement of the theory and practice of electrical engineering, electronics, radio and the allied branches of engineering, and related arts and science. The Bradbury Science Museum is located at 15th and Central in downtown Los Alamos. There is no admission fee. Call 505-667-4444 for information or see the Feb. 4 Newsbulletin. |
Student of the month
The Newsbulletin starts a new feature today called Student of the Month. Each month we will highlight a student who is doing great things for the Lab. When more students arrive in May and throughout the summer months, we will highlight a student of the week. If you would like a student highlighted in this spot, please send e-mail to newsbulletin@lanl.gov or call Kathy DeLucas at 7-1455 or Denise Bjarke at 7-6103.
Alyssa Olson, left, a graduate research assistant in Geoanalysis (EES-5), and Olson's mentor, Andrew Wolfsberg, also of EES-5, discuss aspects of a computer model of ground-water flow. Olson, who is is working toward her master's degree in hydrology from the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology in Socorro won an Outstanding Student Paper Award from the American Geophysical Union's Hydrology Section. The award is for a presentation she gave at the AGU's annual Fall Meeting in December. Photo by James E. Rickman
Olson to receive Outstanding Student Paper Award from AGU
Alyssa Olson of Geoanalysis (EES-5) has won an Outstanding Student Paper Award from the American Geophysical Union's Hydrology Section.
Olson presented the outstanding paper -- "Convective Transport in a Cavity/Chimney System After an Underground Nuclear Test" -- at the AGU 1999 Fall Meeting in San Francisco last December. The paper's co-authors are Lee Glascoe and Andrew Wolfsberg, also of EES-5.
Wolfsberg, Olson's mentor, had high praise for Olson's accomplishment:
"Alyssa is one of the best students I have ever had the pleasure of working with," he said. "This is truly an honor for the Laboratory to have Alyssa working here and bringing home such a distinguished award."
Olson is a graduate research assistant at the Laboratory who is working toward her master's degree in hydrology from the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology in Socorro with professor Fred Phillips. She worked briefly at the Laboratory in 1998 and returned during the summer of 1999. Olson's award-winning work at Los Alamos involves the development of computer models that simulate ground-water flow and the transport of chemicals in ground water. Her thesis work at New Mexico Tech involves the analysis of carbon and oxygen isotopes in lake sediments to determine ancient climate records for mid-continental regions.
Olson is one of the Laboratory's "Pipeline" students. The Pipeline Student Program is an initiative to help talented and motivated secondary and post-secondary students identify and secure placement in progressively more challenging educational, student employment and career opportunities in science, mathematics, engineering, technology or other fields crucial to the Laboratory. Fewer than 50 Pipeline students are chosen each year from participants in science education and special employment programs at the Laboratory.
When Olson isn't working on computer models, she gives some of her time and talent to the Northern New Mexico community by serving as a tutor at Santa Clara Pueblo. She also is a member of the Geological Society of America, the Geochemical Society and AGU.
The AGU's hydrology section recognizes between 12 and 15 presentations as Outstanding Student Papers each year out of the hundreds presented at the organization's fall and spring meetings. A panel of judges evaluates student presentations at the appropriate annual meeting. The award gives student recipients recognition by their peers, colleagues and instructors.
The American Geophysical Union is an international scientific society with more than 35,000 members, primarily research scientists, dedicated to advancing the understanding of Earth and solar system and making the results of its research available to the public.
--James E. Rickman
Heart disease prevention to be discussed
Thursday
Heart disease prevention, risk factors and symptoms are some of the subjects that will be discussed during a panel discussion Thursday in the Materials Science Laboratory Auditorium at Technical Area 3.
The Women's Diversity Working Group and the Laboratory's Positive Health Directions program are sponsoring the panel discussion, which is from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The panel discussion is free and open to the public.
Panelists also will talk about typical and atypical symptoms of heart disease, treatment options and rehabilitation. The audience will hear stories from several Laboratory employees who have dealt with heart disease.
In addition, there will be handout information on heart disease. Staff from Occupational Medicine (ESH-2) will conduct free blood pressure checks, and check home equipment against calibrated equipment from ESH-2 in the lobby of the MSL Auditorium before and after the panel discussion. Light refreshments will be served.
The panel discussion is dedicated to the memory of former Laboratory employee Louisa Lujan-Pacheco, who died last summer, and in conjunction with American Heart Month in February, said Ruth Holt of Communication Arts and Services (CIC-1) and a member of the Women's Diversity Working Group. Holt will moderate the panel discussion.
"Heart attacks kill more females than stroke, lung cancer and breast cancer combined," said Holt. "Also, the members of the WDWG were saddened by the recent loss of one of our members, Louisa Lujan-Pacheco, who died of an undiagnosed heart condition while training for a marathon.
"We have been looking for ways to honor her memory and her many contributions to our group."
Panelists include cardiologist Dr. Anthony Sandoval; Dr. Keeley Powers, a doctor of internal medicine; Barbara Blair, exercise physiologist with Los Alamos Medical Center; Marta Gentry Munger, a registered dietitian with ESH-2; and Lezlie Morris, a registered nurse, of ESH-2.
Also on the panel are heart disease survivors Carol Algire of the Pit Manufacturing Project Office (NW-PMPO), Ruth Barks of Communication Arts and Services (CIC-1) and Terry Phillips of Energy and Process Engineering (ESA-EPE).
More information on the panel discussion can be found at http://www.lanl.gov/orgs/dvo/wdwg/2000heart.html online.
--Steve Sandoval
DOE nominates two Lab projects for Pollution
Prevention Awards
The Department of Energy has submitted two Laboratory pollution prevention projects for consideration in the White House 2000 Closing the Circle Awards.
The program, now in its fifth year, recognizes federal employees and their facilities for efforts that result in significant positive impacts on the environment in waste prevention, recycling, affirmative procurement (purchasing recycled products), environmental preferability, model facility demonstrations and sowing the seeds for change (click here for a description of each category).
DOE submitted the Electrolytic Decontamination of Gloveboxes Project, winner of a DOE 2000 Pollution Prevention Award for waste prevention earlier this month, and the Mail Stop A1000 Junk Mail Recycling Program for consideration.
Although plutonium-processing glove boxes are considered transuranic waste, only their inside surfaces truly are transuranic. The EDGP utilizes a recyclable, electrolytic solution that precipitates the transuranic waste portion, so the glove boxes become low-level waste that can be disposed of onsite rather than at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in Carlsbad, greatly reducing disposal costs and waste. By decontaminating glove boxes at the source, researchers reduce exposure risks to workers, the public and environment. This method has been used effectively for treating 11 glove boxes Labwide the past couple of years.
The Mail Stop A1000 Junkmail Recycling Program began in early 1998. The program collects junk mail in two ways. First, Mail Room staff in Materials Managemet (BUS-4) can pick up junk mail while making their normal daily deliveries, later sorting it at the mail room for recycling. Or Lab employees can send their unwanted mail to Mail Stop A1000. The program has resulted in more than 10 tons of junk mail being recycled each month, helping the Lab meet waste reduction and recycling requirements specified in the DOE/University of California management contract. More info about Mail Stop A1000 is available at http://emeso.lanl.gov/info/recycling/list.htm#MSA1000.
The White House will announce this year's Closing the Circle Award winners in May.
--Ternel N. Martinez
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Editor's note: The Wellness Center is sponsoring a Celebrate Health 2000 Incentive Campaign through the end of February. During this campaign, the Daily Newsbulletin will publish a weekly health-incentive tip. For more information, call the Wellness Center at 7-7166.
"Dear diary" has been replaced with people "journaling through their lives." Keeping a journal or diary does have benefits, though, aside from entertaining nosy siblings. If you want to improve a part of your life, it's a great way to clarify your thoughts. Nutritionists say those trying to lose weight have greater success if they keep a journal through increasing awareness of their actions by recording them and shifting emotional choices to well thought out decisions. Or try tracking your progress in an exercise program, or your thoughts as you resolve a problem -- along with any goals and priorities. To be successful in keeping an effective journal is to be honest with yourself and diligent. Is there anything you'd like to work on, change, or improve? Documenting the process and your ideas can help. --Health Enhancement Systems Inc. |
Call For Laboratory Fellow nominations
The Laboratory is making a formal call for Laboratory Fellow nominations. The Laboratory established the Fellows Program as a means of recognizing sustained outstanding scientific and technical contributions by technical staff members. The Fellows are a unique resource for the Lab in that their collective competency spans the technical breadth of the Laboratory. The Fellows consider issues of importance to the Laboratory, organize special colloquia and symposia, and sponsor annual prizes for outstanding research achievements by members of the Laboratory's technical staff. The deadline for submission of nominations is 5 p.m. April 10. For more information and the package guidelines, see the master-management memo.
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'Life and the Evolution in Computers'
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