Big Data at the Atomic Scale: New Detector Reaches New Frontier in Speed
February 21st, 2019A superfast detector installed on an electron microscope at Berkeley Lab’s Molecular Foundry will reveal atomic-scale details across a larger sample area than could be seen before, and produce movies showing chemistry in action and changes in materials.
New Molecular Blueprint Advances Our Understanding of Photosynthesis
February 14th, 2019Researchers at Berkeley Lab have used one of the most advanced microscopes in the world to reveal the structure of a large protein complex crucial to photosynthesis, the process by which plants convert sunlight into cellular energy. The finding, published in the journal Nature, will allow scientists to explore, for the first time, how the complex functions and could have implications for the production of a variety of bioproducts, including plastic alternatives and biofuels.
Preparing for a New Tool to Study the ‘Glue That Binds Us All’
February 8th, 2019For several decades, the nuclear science community has been calling for a new type of particle collider to pursue – in the words of one report – “a new experimental quest to study the glue that binds us all.” This glue is responsible for most of the visible universe’s matter and mass. To learn about this glue, scientists are proposing a unique, high-energy collider that smashes accelerated electrons, which carry a negative charge, into charged atomic nuclei or protons, which carry a positive charge.
New Measurements of Exotic Form of Magnesium Suggest a Surprising Shape-Shift
February 7th, 2019A team led by Berkeley Lab scientists has gleaned new and surprising clues about the nuclear structure of an exotic form of magnesium – Mg-40.
Dark Fiber Lays Groundwork for Long-Distance Earthquake Detection and Groundwater Mapping
February 5th, 2019Researchers at Berkeley Lab have turned parts of a 13,000-mile-long testbed of “dark fiber,” unused fiber-optic cable, owned by the DOE Energy Sciences Network (ESnet) into a highly sensitive seismic activity sensor that could potentially augment the performance of earthquake early warning systems currently being developed in the western United States.
16 Elements: Berkeley Lab’s Contributions to the Periodic Table
January 28th, 2019Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory is credited with discovering more elements on the periodic table than any other institution. In celebration of its 150th anniversary, we look at how far it’s come and where it’s headed.
Berkeley Lab Researcher Wins Machine-Learning Competition With Code That Sorts Through Simulated Telescope Data
January 25th, 2019To help solve a big data program for a new telescope that will conduct a major sky survey of the from the high desert of Chile, a scientific collaboration launched a competition to find the best way to train computers to identify the many types of objects it will be imaging.
