Archived Story Tips for 2008
For more information on ORNL and its research and development activities, please refer to the resources listed below or to one of our Media Contacts. If you have a general media-related question or comment, you can send it to news@ornl.gov.
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Transportation—New data available . . .
The Department of Energy has just released the 27th edition of the Transportation Energy Data Book.
Energy—Microturbine magic . . .
Specialized skills and instruments at Oak Ridge National Laboratory are helping the world's leading manufacturer of microturbines make products expected to set new standards for performance and reliability.
Geology—Compelling evidence . . .
Fragments of tektites, natural glass objects, discovered by a team of geologists and geochemists help support a theory that a meteorite may be responsible for the sudden climate change that devastated large mammals in North America 11,000 years ago.
Physics—Quadrupole DNA sequencing . . .
Research at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is exploring how a system of nanotubes, magnets and electrically charged particles could lead to a quicker, cheaper way to conduct DNA sequencing.
Bioenergy—Natural selection . . .
By examining natural variation among cottonwood trees in nature, scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory hope to develop a strategy to maximize production of ethanol from cellulosic biomass.
Electricity—Grid watchdog . . .
Utilities have a new tool that provides them with a clearer picture of the wide-area electricity transmission system and enables decision-makers to respond swiftly to major power disruptions.
Environment—A better assessment . . .
Ecological risk assessments are vital for ensuring product safety, managing contaminated sites, protecting natural resources and other applications.
Energy—Solar City USA . . .
Oak Ridge National Laboratory is providing technical expertise and assistance in the installation of solar energy systems and related educational materials in nearby Knoxville, Tenn., which has been selected as one of 12 Solar America Cities designated by DOE.
Energy—Spent fuel pellets . . .
Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have made the first
mixed-oxide pellets from recycled spent nuclear fuel in a
process that doesn't produce a separate plutonium stream.
Materials—Simplifying complexity . . .
Tiny changes at the nanometer scale can have a colossal effect
on the properties of a material, and for the first time researchers
may have a method to see and even predict those changes.
Preparedness—Battling terrorists . . .
People living in small towns and big cities alike will be a lot safer
from the risk of improvised explosive devices because of an
ongoing effort being coordinated by Oak Ridge National
Laboratory for the Department of Homeland Security.
Materials—Under the microscope . . .
A new generation electron microscope at Oak Ridge National
Laboratory is helping scientists examine materials for fuel-
efficient cars, superconductors, solar cells and other
applications.
Navigation—Micro gyro . . .
Airplanes, submarines and even automobiles of tomorrow may be equipped with arrays of inexpensive high-performance micro-mechanical gyroscopes for navigation and other purposes.
Electronics—Zinc oxide LEDs . . .
Efficient yet inexpensive light-emitting diodes made of zinc oxide could one day replace today's state-of-the-art gallium nitride-based devices.
Biology—Soil sleuths . . .
By applying new DNA chip technology, scientists are for the first time able to study the diversity of the thousands of microbial species present in soil over an entire forest stand.
Energy—Cheaper, efficient power . . .
A second generation high-temperature superconducting wire measuring 935 meters developed through the combined efforts of Oak Ridge National Laboratory's superconductivity technology group and SuperPower of Schenectady, N.Y., recently transmitted a record 158,950 amps-per-meter of current.
Accelerators—Paving the way . . .
A new test facility recently installed at the Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory could pay dividends for "big science" projects down the road, including the proposed International Linear Collider.
Energy—Rubber hits the road . . .
Tractor-trailers operating with single wider tires recorded improved fuel efficiency numbers between 7.2 and 10 percent when compared to rigs operating on standard-sized dual tires.
Forensics—New weapon . . .
Fingerprints that used to escape detection could soon help point to the killer.
Solar—More potent photovoltaics . . .
Using pulsed thermal processing, low-cost thin-film solar cells could see efficiency gains of up to 50 percent, increasing from their current level of about 8 percent to 12 percent.
Communications—Bird’s eye view . . .
Emergency management officials miles from the scene of an event will see exactly what first responders are up against with a system being tested at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
Information—Quantum leap . . .
Super-secret encryption systems, personal identification data that cannot be stolen and enhanced sensors are just a few of the applications for a quantum optical chip being developed by Warren Grice and colleagues in the Computing and Computational Sciences Directorate.
Energy—Gas cooled fuel . . .
Advanced gas reactors offer more efficient operation, less waste disposal and other benefits over water-cooled reactor designs used in U.S.
Bioscience—Protein pairs feel the heat . . .
Computer simulations published in April in Physical Review Letters have shown that pairs of proteins bound to each other undergo a profound change in their relative motion as they heat up, a phenomenon that could provide clues to how proteins interact to govern living cells.
Homeland Security—Protecting ports . . .
Knowing beforehand whether a system for detecting weapons of mass destruction at U.S.
Industry—Wireless sleuths . . .
Wireless systems able to monitor and perform diagnostics on motors used in industrial processes could improve production efficiency by 10 percent to 20 percent, according to Wayne Manges of Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Industrial Technologies Program.
Bioscience—Genomic forensics for plants . . .
Want to sleuth out the secrets to plant behavior? You need a genomic signature, of course.
Neutron Science—Spallation neutron record . . .
The Department of Energy's Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory has been confirmed by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's most powerful pulsed neutron spallation source.
Ecology—Nature’s way . . .
Small streams disrupted by military training activities or commercial development can be restored with simple and inexpensive measures, according to findings of a group headed by Pat Mulholland of Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
Microbiology—A gut feeling . . .
Bacteria cells outnumber human cells in the average healthy human body by a factor of almost ten.
Nanoscience—Atom-scale switch . . .
ORNL researchers have discovered a carbon nanotube-based system that functions like an atom-scale switch.
Fusion—Lassoing turbulence . . .
Fusion power is a holy grail of our energy future, promising eventually to provide cheap, plentiful electricity with a minimum of environmental concerns and no greenhouse gases.
Climate—Improving projections . . .
A new data mining tool developed by Forrest Hoffman and colleagues could lead to a better understanding of Earth's climate systems and to more accurate models.
Emergencies—Keeping Fido safe . . .
Knowing what to do with your pet in an emergency can make the difference between survival and a journey to the happy hunting ground.
Transportation—Truckin’ data . . .
A year-long nationwide highway test of six instrumented heavy trucks and 10 instrumented trailers hauling freight over three quarters of a million miles has moved into the data assessment phase.
Bioenergy—Gutting termites . . .
Scientists, long fascinated by the humble termite's ability to turn wood into energy for life, are examining the hundreds of species of microbes within its gut to learn how the process is carried out.
Environment—CO2 sleuth . . .
Knowing with precision the source of fossil fuel carbon dioxide emissions worldwide is the goal of a project proposed by a group of scientists that includes Robert Andres and T.J.
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