From the Director: The Visit of the Scientific Policy Committee

(Photo by Harvey Lynch.)

by Persis Drell

It is early May. Roses are blooming and the Scientific Policy Committee has just made its semi-annual visit. Their external look at our science is incredibly valuable. These meetings have greatly helped us shape and evolve our scientific programs.

This SPC meeting was perhaps a bit low key compared to some recent ones. We didn't have Fermi Telescope launch or Linac Coherent Light Source first lasing to report. However there were in-depth discussions in areas of great strategic importance to the lab. I'll just mention a few.

We had a lot of focus on our accelerator research strategy with a pre-meeting the day before the SPC to ensure an in-depth examination of where we are going. The SPC members endorsed the strategy they heard, recognizing some of the challenges but also expressing a lot of enthusiasm about the opportunities, especially in free electron laser accelerator R&D.

Name that System!

from the Office of the Chief Financial Officer

As we hope you've heard, SLAC will be moving to an online time and effort reporting system this summer for all those who currently submit paper timesheets. The system, relying on WorkForce Software's "EmpCenter," needs a name. For example, UC Santa Cruz calls their WorkForce solution "CruzPay." Have you ever wanted to leave your mark on the plethora of SLAC acronyms and system names? Now is your chance!

Please submit your suggestion for a name (acronym or not) to Angelica Burdios by noon, Wednesday May 18. Our Extended Business Team will decide on the winning name and the person who suggested it will receive a $50 SPOT Award. In case of duplicate suggestions, the first person to suggest the name will win!

In the News:
Best-yet View of Extreme Universe

by Jason Palmer, BBC News

The full sky is seen in the map from the Fermi telescope; gamma-ray sources abound along the galactic plane (central bar) but are scattered throughout the cosmos. (Image: NASA/DOE/International Fermi LAT Collaboration.)

The Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope has yielded the most detailed gamma ray map of the sky—representing the Universe's most violent and extreme processes.

The telescope's newest results, as well as the map, were described at the Third Fermi Symposium in Rome this week.

Events

May 16 (4:15 p.m.) SLAC Colloquium: Laser Plasma Accelerators--From Dream Toward Reality

Access

Announcements

Lab Announcements

New Supervisory and Managerial Skill Development Series

Community Bulletin Board

Training

Lab Training

Calendar
Registration

Today (8:00 a.m.)
CPR/First Aid- Recertification

Upcoming Workshops & Classes

May 16 and 17 (1:00 p.m.)
eShop Training

News

Counteracting Biofuel Toxicity in Microbes LBNL news release
Science Shot: A Moon on Fire ScienceNOW
Improving the Science of Teaching Science New York Times

<% 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/.

From the Director: The Visit of the Scientific Policy Committee (Photo by Harvey Lynch.) by Persis Drell It is early May. Roses are blooming and the Scientific Policy Committee has just made its semi-annual visit. Their external look at our science is incredibly valuable. These meetings have greatly helped us shape and evolve our scientific programs. This SPC meeting was perhaps a bit low key compared to some recent ones. We didn't have Fermi Telescope launch or Linac Coherent Light Source first lasing to report. However there were in-depth discussions in areas of great strategic importance to the lab. I'll just mention a few. We had a lot of focus on our accelerator research strategy with a pre-meeting the day before the SPC to ensure an in-depth examination of where we are going. The SPC members endorsed the strategy they heard, recognizing some of the challenges but also expressing a lot of enthusiasm about the opportunities, especially in free electron laser accelerator R&D. Read more... Name that System! from the Office of the Chief Financial Officer As we hope you've heard, SLAC will be moving to an online time and effort reporting system this summer for all those who currently submit paper timesheets. The system, relying on WorkForce Software's "EmpCenter," needs a name. For example, UC Santa Cruz calls their WorkForce solution "CruzPay." Have you ever wanted to leave your mark on the plethora of SLAC acronyms and system names? Now is your chance! Please submit your suggestion for a name (acronym or not) to Angelica Burdios by noon, Wednesday May 18. Our Extended Business Team will decide on the winning name and the person who suggested it will receive a $50 SPOT Award. In case of duplicate suggestions, the first person to suggest the name will win! In the News: Best-yet View of Extreme Universe by Jason Palmer, BBC News The full sky is seen in the map from the Fermi telescope; gamma-ray sources abound along the galactic plane (central bar) but are scattered throughout the cosmos. (Image: NASA/DOE/International Fermi LAT Collaboration.) The Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope has yielded the most detailed gamma ray map of the sky—representing the Universe's most violent and extreme processes. The telescope's newest results, as well as the map, were described at the Third Fermi Symposium in Rome this week. Read more from BBC News...	Events May 16 (4:15 p.m.) SLAC Colloquium: Laser Plasma Accelerators--From Dream Toward Reality Access Bldg. 24, 27 Utility Work Bldg. 28 Fencing & Traffic RSB Project Info and Updates Announcements Lab Announcements New Supervisory and Managerial Skill Development Series Community Bulletin Board BeWell in May: Cardinal Walk Today Upcoming BeWell Workshops Training Lab Training Calendar Registration Today (8:00 a.m.) CPR/First Aid- Recertification Upcoming Workshops & Classes May 16 and 17 (1:00 p.m.) eShop Training News Counteracting Biofuel Toxicity in Microbes LBNL news release Science Shot: A Moon on Fire ScienceNOW Improving the Science of Teaching Science New York Times
	Flea Market Linear Café Menu Employee Milestones Search the Archives Subscribe non-SLAC e-mail Send Us Your Feedback

<% 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/.


	Friday - May 13, 2011