LCLS Construction Photo Update

The freshly epoxied Head House, which connects the linac to the Beam Transport Hall, looking west toward the wall at the Beam Switch Yard.

by Brad Plummer

Progress on the Linac Coherent Light Source conventional facilities continues at a rapid pace, and has reached a point where hardware installation is set to begin in the next few weeks. Inside the tunnels, survey crews have installed alignment monuments, and last week workers applied the final epoxy finish to the floors. The Central Utilities Plant now has two chillers and a boiler installed, and electrical and sewer connections are underway. The Near Experimental Hall is taking shape with workers putting the final touches to the experimental and office areas, while technicians install elevator hardware and make final utility connections. Outside, earth movers have covered the Front End Enclosure and Beam Dump with soil, and are now putting the final grade to the parking lots at the Near Experimental Hall and outside the Collider Hall. See more photos...

Autonomy From
the Heavens Down
to the Sea

by Kanna Rajan

(Colloquium poster)
Poster courtesy of SLAC InfoMedia.

With global climate change in the news, there is an increasing focus of robotics research in the ocean sciences where deep ocean robots are few and substantially less capable than those built for terrestrial and space research. Energy and communications (or lack thereof) are two drivers of how robotic devices in the sea are challenged compared to their terrestrial and space cousins. These constraints, coupled with a lack of detailed understanding of ocean processes within the water column as well as the benthos, have made ocean exploration an extremely challenging domain for robotics research. Yet recent shifts in ocean exploration have only pushed for the use of robotic platforms with substantial onboard intelligence so as to enable a cost-effective way to observe, characterize, map and sample what lies under 70% of the Earth's surface.

To date, substantial effort in autonomous systems research has focused on other domains. In particular, NASA made sustained investments in autonomy and AI research in general over the last two decades which have had sizable impact on its missions. Read more...

Changes to SLAC Medical Office

by Craig Ferguson

Due to this year's budget issues, SLAC's management has had to make the difficult decision to implement reduced staffing within the SLAC Medical Department. By staggering the schedules of the medical staff, the office will continue to be able to maintain its current office hours: Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m. As always, the department will accept walk-in patients on a first-come, first-served basis.

The Medical Office will need to modify the frequency of periodic physical examinations to once every five years for all employees, regardless of age. However, there will be no change in service for any work-related medical surveillance programs (e.g., monitoring and physical exams for employees potentially exposed to chemical and physical hazards). Examples of work-related medical surveillance include lead monitoring and hearing conservation. Supervisors of employees who may need these types of examinations are asked to assign the appropriate medical surveillance using the employee's SLAC Training Assessment (STA) (e.g., Course #222ME Hearing Conservation or Course #240ME Lead Safety Medical Exam). Specific details about medical surveillance requirements can be found on the Environment, Safety and Health Medical Department webpage.

Events (see all | submit)

March 17: (4:15 p.m.) SLAC Colloquium: Autonomy from the Heavens down to the Sea
March 18: (12:30 p.m.) Experimental Seminar: Precision Muon Physics:New Results & Future Prospects

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Glimpses Of A New (Mathematical) World Science Daily
The World's Smallest Diamond Ring AIP FYI

View online at http://today.slac.stanford.edu/.

LCLS Construction Photo Update The freshly epoxied Head House, which connects the linac to the Beam Transport Hall, looking west toward the wall at the Beam Switch Yard. by Brad Plummer Progress on the Linac Coherent Light Source conventional facilities continues at a rapid pace, and has reached a point where hardware installation is set to begin in the next few weeks. Inside the tunnels, survey crews have installed alignment monuments, and last week workers applied the final epoxy finish to the floors. The Central Utilities Plant now has two chillers and a boiler installed, and electrical and sewer connections are underway. The Near Experimental Hall is taking shape with workers putting the final touches to the experimental and office areas, while technicians install elevator hardware and make final utility connections. Outside, earth movers have covered the Front End Enclosure and Beam Dump with soil, and are now putting the final grade to the parking lots at the Near Experimental Hall and outside the Collider Hall. See more photos...

Autonomy From the Heavens Down to the Sea by Kanna Rajan Poster courtesy of SLAC InfoMedia. With global climate change in the news, there is an increasing focus of robotics research in the ocean sciences where deep ocean robots are few and substantially less capable than those built for terrestrial and space research. Energy and communications (or lack thereof) are two drivers of how robotic devices in the sea are challenged compared to their terrestrial and space cousins. These constraints, coupled with a lack of detailed understanding of ocean processes within the water column as well as the benthos, have made ocean exploration an extremely challenging domain for robotics research. Yet recent shifts in ocean exploration have only pushed for the use of robotic platforms with substantial onboard intelligence so as to enable a cost-effective way to observe, characterize, map and sample what lies under 70% of the Earth's surface. To date, substantial effort in autonomous systems research has focused on other domains. In particular, NASA made sustained investments in autonomy and AI research in general over the last two decades which have had sizable impact on its missions. Read more...	Changes to SLAC Medical Office by Craig Ferguson Due to this year's budget issues, SLAC's management has had to make the difficult decision to implement reduced staffing within the SLAC Medical Department. By staggering the schedules of the medical staff, the office will continue to be able to maintain its current office hours: Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m. As always, the department will accept walk-in patients on a first-come, first-served basis. The Medical Office will need to modify the frequency of periodic physical examinations to once every five years for all employees, regardless of age. However, there will be no change in service for any work-related medical surveillance programs (e.g., monitoring and physical exams for employees potentially exposed to chemical and physical hazards). Examples of work-related medical surveillance include lead monitoring and hearing conservation. Supervisors of employees who may need these types of examinations are asked to assign the appropriate medical surveillance using the employee's SLAC Training Assessment (STA) (e.g., Course #222ME Hearing Conservation or Course #240ME Lead Safety Medical Exam). Specific details about medical surveillance requirements can be found on the Environment, Safety and Health Medical Department webpage.	Events (see all \| submit) March 17: (4:15 p.m.) SLAC Colloquium: Autonomy from the Heavens down to the Sea March 18: (12:30 p.m.) Experimental Seminar: Precision Muon Physics:New Results & Future Prospects Access (see all) Alpine Gate & PEP Ring Road closed Gates 17 & 30 open 24-7 Research Yard bisected Announcements (see all \| submit) Lab Announcements SLAC Workshop - Retirement Savings Plans: A Refresher Learning & Development Class Offerings - Stanford Campus Symposium to Celebrate Pief Panofsky Community Bulletin Board History Channel to Feature LHC - Update Stanford University Faculty and Staff Help Center News (see all \| submit) Glimpses Of A New (Mathematical) World Science Daily The World's Smallest Diamond Ring AIP FYI
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	Monday - March 17, 2008