Oak Ridge Today

Alexander: President failed to lead on spending cuts; ORNL, UPF should be shielded

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U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander

Lamar Alexander

U.S. Senator Bob Corker

Bob Corker

U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander on Thursday said the automatic federal spending cuts going into effect today demonstrate a failure of presidential leadership.

The senator also said he would like to minimize the impact of the cuts on important government institutions such as the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, student loans, and the proposed Uranium Processing Facility at the Y-12 Security Complex.

Congress and the White House approved the automatic, across-the-board cuts in discretionary and defense spending— known as sequestration—about 18 months ago in the Budget Control Act of 2011. Considered unpalatable by many, the cuts were meant to encourage Democrats and Republicans to compromise on deficit reduction efforts.

That hasn’t worked.

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Pic: ORNL Black History Month

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Black History Month at ORNL

Pictured above are, standing, Avon Rollins, director of the Beck Cultural Exchange Center, and Jim Little, participant in the 1963 March; and, seated, are Helen Ashe, Love Kitchen director and founder, and Ellen Turner, Love Kitchen manager. They shared their thoughts on the 1963 March on Washington at ORNL’s Black History Month celebration event. (Photographer: Curtis Boles)

The theme of this year’s Black History Month activities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is “At the Crossroads of Freedom and Equality: The Emancipation Proclamation and the March on Washington.”

The lab had a Black History Month speaker event last week.

Proceeds from this year’s activities, including a soul food tasting, are being donated to the Love Kitchen. The committee presented a check for $3,000 to the Love Kitchen, and donations are still coming in, ORNL said.

Y-12 has second annual ‘Introduce a Girl to Engineering’ event

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Ultrasonic Detector Demonstrator

Natalie Layne, a Coalfield High sophomore, listens to an ultrasonic detector pointed at her eyes during the “Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day” at the New Hope Center on Thursday. (Submitted photos)

About 400 girls from East Tennessee schools were encouraged to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics during the second annual “Introduce a Girl to Engineering” event at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge.

The girls, who are in grades 9-12, interacted with women working in the engineering field, and they experienced hands-on activities at various exhibits hosted by Y-12, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the University of Tennessee, and various engineering organizations, a press release said.

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Pics: Former governor tours ORNL

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Don Sundquist and Leadership Knoxville at ORNL

Former Tennessee Governor Don Sundquist speaks to representatives from Leadership Knoxville at Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Conference Center. (Jason Richards/ORNL)

Former Tennessee Gov. Don Sundquist visited Oak Ridge National Laboratory on Thursday with Leadership Knoxville.

The group toured ORNL’s supercomputing facilities as part of the visit.

Here are two pictures from the tour, submitted by ORNL and photographer Jason Richards.

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Veterans Business Association honors ORNL small business programs

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Keith Joy

Keith Joy

The Tennessee Veterans Business Association awarded the 2013 “Veterans Work” Award to Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Keith Joy, ORNL Small Business Programs director.

The award was presented during a recent banquet at the Knoxville Convention Center.

The annual award honors a company that works with and hires veterans. ORNL works to consistently meet or exceed its small business goals for veteran-owned small businesses, as well as those in all socioeconomic categories, a press release said.

Free Science Saturdays offered in Oak Ridge

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ORAU Science Saturdays

Oak Ridge Associated Universities has partnered with Oak Ridge National Laboratory to bring students and scientists together through a weekly program called Science Saturdays. (Image courtesy of ORAU)

Oak Ridge Associated Universities has partnered with Oak Ridge National Laboratory to bring students and scientists together through a weekly program called Science Saturdays.

Students in grades 8-12, along with their parents, are invited for six Saturday morning presentations in February and March where they will learn about a variety of engaging science topics through interactive presentations and hands-on activities.

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Spending cuts could lead to Y-12 furloughs, ORNL reactor shutdown

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Y-12 National Security Complex

Y-12 National Security Complex (Submitted photo)

A report released Wednesday said the automatic federal spending cuts set for March 1 would require furloughs at the Y-12 National Security Complex and a shutdown of the High Flux Isotope Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The report was issued by Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee.

It said Y-12 would have to furlough 700-1,000 of its 4,500 employees for up to six months, and there would be hundreds of layoffs at national laboratories, universities, research facilities, and private sector companies that rely on grant funding from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science for energy research, the report said.

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Department of Labor has meetings Wednesday for nuclear weapons workers

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The U.S. Department of Labor will host three town hall meetings on Wednesday in Oak Ridge to provide information about the medical benefits provided under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act.

The EEOICPA provides compensation and medical benefits to employees who became ill as a result of working in the nuclear weapons industry. At the meetings, specific information will be discussed concerning home health care services, the Privacy Act, and how to better serve EEOICPA claimants.

The meetings are scheduled for 9:30 a.m., 4 p.m., and 6 p.m. Wednesday.

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ORNL scientists solve mercury mystery, Science reports

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By identifying two genes required for transforming inorganic into organic mercury, which is far more toxic, scientists today have taken a significant step toward protecting human health.

The question of how methylmercury, an organic form of mercury, is produced by natural processes in the environment has stumped scientists for decades, but a team led by researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory has solved the puzzle. Results of the study, published in the journal Science, provide the genetic basis for this process, known as microbial mercury methylation, and have far-reaching implications.

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‘Bridging the Gap’ conference invites business community to ORNL

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Bridging the Gap

Oak Ridge National Laboratory will host its annual “Bridging the Gap” conference March 5-6. (Image courtesy of ORNL)

Several of Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s most promising applied research and development capabilities will be in the spotlight March 5-6 as dozens of entrepreneurs, investors, and scientists gather at the lab’s third annual “Bridging the Gap” conference.

“This is a great opportunity for the region’s business community to receive capability briefings from some of the lab’s most dynamic researchers and to explore commercialization and collaboration opportunities,” said Tom Rogers, ORNL’s director of Industrial Partnerships and Economic Development.

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Tennessee Valley Summit returns to Oak Ridge; energy, manufacturing on agenda

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U.S. Representative Chuck Fleischmann

Chuck Fleischmann

Third District Rep. Chuck Fleischmann has announced the Tennessee Valley Corridor National Summit will be held the last week of May and return to the site where it started 18 years ago—Oak Ridge. The exact dates are being determined based on the schedules of several anticipated national speakers, including U.S. House of Representatives Majority Leader Eric Cantor.

Senior decision-makers representing academia, government, and industry from Tennessee, Alabama, Virginia, Kentucky, and North Carolina will convene in the New Hope Center at Oak Ridge’s Y-12 National Security Complex for the two-day meeting. Fleischmann will serve as host and be joined by of members of the TVC congressional delegation.

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B&W Y-12 historian assists in LMU display design

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Ray Smith and Pete DeBusk

B&W Y-12 historian Ray Smith, left, joins Lincoln Memorial University board of trustees chairman Pete DeBusk in front of the “Scientists Who Changed the World” exhibit in the university’s Math and Science Building. (Submitted photo)

Sharing information related to the early years of Oak Ridge is all in a day’s work for Y-12 National Security Complex historian Ray Smith.

Recently, Smith’s flair for historical detail was incorporated in a permanent display on the main campus of Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tenn. Located in LMU’s new Math and Science Building, the display pays tribute to nuclear energy research and the subsequent creation of what is now the U.S. Department of Energy.

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