The Book on B Factories

(Photo - B factory book key editors at SLAC)

The B-factory book key editors held their first working meeting at SLAC last Friday and Saturday. From left: Adrian Bevan, Thomas Mannel, Bostjan Golob, Soeren Prell, Bruce Yabsley (Photo by Brad Plummer.)

by Calla Cofield

The BaBar Collaboration and the Belle Collaboration are moving forward with plans for a book documenting the history of B-factory physics revolutionized by the sister PEP-II and KEK B research facilities in the USA and Japan. The book, tentatively titled The B-factories Book, will bring together all of the work done by both collaborations into a very detailed and comprehensive collection, while also examining the ways that B-factory physics has impacted the physics field at large.

"With this book we aim to record the story of the scientific journey that BaBar and Belle have traveled on over the past decade," said Adrian Bevan, co-editor from the BaBar collaboration.

"This book will document the sophisticated tools and techniques used at Belle and BaBar and will be an essential reference for physicists at the next generation Super B factories," said co-editor from Belle Bostjan Golob of the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia. Read more...

BaBar Collaboration Caps Meeting Week with 400th Scientific Publication

by Lauren Knoche

(Photo by Brad Plummer.)

The BaBar Collaboration reached another milestone Tuesday—just in time for celebration during the group's meeting, which ends today at SLAC. The collaboration published its 400th paper Tuesday, less than nine years after publishing its first in 2001. That's an average of one publication per week, every week, for nearly nine years straight.

"I do not know of any other collaboration that has achieved such a production rate of outstanding quality science in particle physics, it is really something rare," said BaBar spokesperson Francois Le Diberder.

The milestone paper was published online Tuesday and appears in the November 1, 2009 issue of Physical Review D (Volume 80, Number 9). The study examines differences in the rates at which subatomic particles called B+ mesons and their antiparticle partners, B- mesons, decay to related particles called "charm" and "strange" quarks. Differences in this decay provide an example of matter-antimatter asymmetry. The researchers used the full BaBar dataset to report likely values of a parameter "gamma," which is related to other measurements of particle-antiparticle asymmetries. The goal is to test the behavior of matter and antimatter against the established "CKM" theory, the subject of the 2008 Nobel Prize in Physics. So far, experimental data including this new paper have upheld the theory. Read more...

Two LCLS Construction Projects Celebrate '100 Safe Days' Milestones

by Nicholas Bock

Safety sign at the entrance to the Far Experimental Hall. (Photo by Nicholas Bock.)

Construction workers at the Linac Coherent Light Source Far Experimental Hall reached their 100th consecutive safe day yesterday, November 4, meaning that there have been no accidents, mishaps or injuries since the project started in June. The crews have been working toward getting the Linac Coherent Light Source's Far Experimental Hall ready for science next year.

For the 50 or so Rudolph & Sletten subcontractor employees working on the project, the task so far has meant more than 9,000 work hours partitioning the cavernous spaces of the LCLS into experimental hutches 4, 5 and 6. The space is located more than 300 feet from daylight access with some locations 100 feet below ground level. The crew celebrated with a few formalities, including a lunchtime celebration and congratulatory words from supervisors. A special token of appreciation was provided to one of the subcontractor workers (Nick Costa of Daley's Drywall) to acknowledge his extra effort regarding the safety of others.

September 29 barbeque luncheon in celebration of 100 safe work days on the LCLS office building. (Photo courtesy Jess Albino.)

In September, the contractor and SLAC colleagues celebrated a similar safe 100 days milestone for construction work on the new LCLS office building, with a barbeque lunch. According to LCLS Conventional Facilities Systems Manager David Saenz, being able to reach such safety milestones is a result of the combined efforts of SLAC, Rudolph & Sletten, and the subcontractor workers.

"Rudolph & Sletten's safety program very closely mirrors SLAC's and in some areas even exceeds our requirements," Saenz said. "It's phenomenal what these guys have been able to do.”

The work in the FEH is expected to continue through mid January, with the first experimental instruments being moved into the hall in 2010.

SLAC Green Note: What Does Your Electricity Really Cost?

by Shawne Workman

Want to know how much of your home electrical power comes from relatively green sources—such as solar and wind power—and how much of that wall juice flows from particulate and CO₂-belching fossil fuels? You can check online using the Environmental Protection Agency's Power Profiler.

Just enter your ZIP code and this online tool will determine your power grid region, to show your region's:

Fuel mix: how much of your electricity comes from renewable, hydroelectric, nuclear, oil, gas and coal power plants
Air emissions rates: how much of the example pollutants nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide and carbon dioxide are produced per unit of power

The Power Profiler shows comparisons to national averages, so you can see how your region is doing. Next, it provides options to estimate your home's electricity-related emissions footprint, steps to conserve electricity, and local listings for purchasing green power.

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Nov 6 (12:30 p.m.) Theory Seminar: Boosting Higgs Discovery at LHC
Nov 10 (12:30 p.m.) Experimental Particle Physics Seminar: Thermodynamics of Magnetized Superconducting Films

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Universal Equation Describes How Materials Behave at Nanoscale Physicsworld
Quantum Gas Microscope Offers Glimpse of Quirky Ultracold Atoms Physorg
New Digital 'Electronics' Concept May Continue Moore's Law Physorg

<% Response.AddHeader "Last-modified", getArticleDate() 'Response.AddHeader "Last-modified","Mon, 01 Sep 1997 01:03:33 GMT" 'Monday, December 06, 2010 %>

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

The Book on B Factories The B-factory book key editors held their first working meeting at SLAC last Friday and Saturday. From left: Adrian Bevan, Thomas Mannel, Bostjan Golob, Soeren Prell, Bruce Yabsley (Photo by Brad Plummer.) by Calla Cofield The BaBar Collaboration and the Belle Collaboration are moving forward with plans for a book documenting the history of B-factory physics revolutionized by the sister PEP-II and KEK B research facilities in the USA and Japan. The book, tentatively titled The B-factories Book, will bring together all of the work done by both collaborations into a very detailed and comprehensive collection, while also examining the ways that B-factory physics has impacted the physics field at large. "With this book we aim to record the story of the scientific journey that BaBar and Belle have traveled on over the past decade," said Adrian Bevan, co-editor from the BaBar collaboration. "This book will document the sophisticated tools and techniques used at Belle and BaBar and will be an essential reference for physicists at the next generation Super B factories," said co-editor from Belle Bostjan Golob of the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia. Read more... BaBar Collaboration Caps Meeting Week with 400th Scientific Publication by Lauren Knoche (Photo by Brad Plummer.) The BaBar Collaboration reached another milestone Tuesday—just in time for celebration during the group's meeting, which ends today at SLAC. The collaboration published its 400th paper Tuesday, less than nine years after publishing its first in 2001. That's an average of one publication per week, every week, for nearly nine years straight. "I do not know of any other collaboration that has achieved such a production rate of outstanding quality science in particle physics, it is really something rare," said BaBar spokesperson Francois Le Diberder. The milestone paper was published online Tuesday and appears in the November 1, 2009 issue of Physical Review D (Volume 80, Number 9). The study examines differences in the rates at which subatomic particles called B+ mesons and their antiparticle partners, B- mesons, decay to related particles called "charm" and "strange" quarks. Differences in this decay provide an example of matter-antimatter asymmetry. The researchers used the full BaBar dataset to report likely values of a parameter "gamma," which is related to other measurements of particle-antiparticle asymmetries. The goal is to test the behavior of matter and antimatter against the established "CKM" theory, the subject of the 2008 Nobel Prize in Physics. So far, experimental data including this new paper have upheld the theory. Read more... Two LCLS Construction Projects Celebrate '100 Safe Days' Milestones by Nicholas Bock Safety sign at the entrance to the Far Experimental Hall. (Photo by Nicholas Bock.) Construction workers at the Linac Coherent Light Source Far Experimental Hall reached their 100th consecutive safe day yesterday, November 4, meaning that there have been no accidents, mishaps or injuries since the project started in June. The crews have been working toward getting the Linac Coherent Light Source's Far Experimental Hall ready for science next year. For the 50 or so Rudolph & Sletten subcontractor employees working on the project, the task so far has meant more than 9,000 work hours partitioning the cavernous spaces of the LCLS into experimental hutches 4, 5 and 6. The space is located more than 300 feet from daylight access with some locations 100 feet below ground level. The crew celebrated with a few formalities, including a lunchtime celebration and congratulatory words from supervisors. A special token of appreciation was provided to one of the subcontractor workers (Nick Costa of Daley's Drywall) to acknowledge his extra effort regarding the safety of others. September 29 barbeque luncheon in celebration of 100 safe work days on the LCLS office building. (Photo courtesy Jess Albino.) In September, the contractor and SLAC colleagues celebrated a similar safe 100 days milestone for construction work on the new LCLS office building, with a barbeque lunch. According to LCLS Conventional Facilities Systems Manager David Saenz, being able to reach such safety milestones is a result of the combined efforts of SLAC, Rudolph & Sletten, and the subcontractor workers. "Rudolph & Sletten's safety program very closely mirrors SLAC's and in some areas even exceeds our requirements," Saenz said. "It's phenomenal what these guys have been able to do.” The work in the FEH is expected to continue through mid January, with the first experimental instruments being moved into the hall in 2010. SLAC Green Note: What Does Your Electricity Really Cost? by Shawne Workman Want to know how much of your home electrical power comes from relatively green sources—such as solar and wind power—and how much of that wall juice flows from particulate and CO₂-belching fossil fuels? You can check online using the Environmental Protection Agency's Power Profiler. Just enter your ZIP code and this online tool will determine your power grid region, to show your region's: Fuel mix: how much of your electricity comes from renewable, hydroelectric, nuclear, oil, gas and coal power plants Air emissions rates: how much of the example pollutants nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide and carbon dioxide are produced per unit of power The Power Profiler shows comparisons to national averages, so you can see how your region is doing. Next, it provides options to estimate your home's electricity-related emissions footprint, steps to conserve electricity, and local listings for purchasing green power.	Events Nov 6 (12:30 p.m.) Theory Seminar: Boosting Higgs Discovery at LHC Nov 10 (12:30 p.m.) Experimental Particle Physics Seminar: Thermodynamics of Magnetized Superconducting Films Access (see all) Bldg. 34 Drive Closed South Linac Road Closure Oct 28–Nov 11 North Linac Access Road Closure Parking Lot Between Bldgs. 23 and 44 Closed Announcements (see all \| submit) Lab Announcements PeopleSoft Financials Update Community Bulletin Board Open Enrollment Information Online Benefits Changes for FY2010 Training Lab Training Calendar Registration Today (8:00 a.m.) New Employee Orientation Today (10:00 a.m.) Rad Worker Practical Upcoming Workshops & Classes Microsoft Office 2007 Classes Online Tech Training Opportunities News (submit) Universal Equation Describes How Materials Behave at Nanoscale Physicsworld Quantum Gas Microscope Offers Glimpse of Quirky Ultracold Atoms Physorg New Digital 'Electronics' Concept May Continue Moore's Law Physorg
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<% Response.AddHeader "Last-modified", getArticleDate() 'Response.AddHeader "Last-modified","Mon, 01 Sep 1997 01:03:33 GMT" 'Monday, December 06, 2010 %> View online at http://today.slac.stanford.edu/.