Newsmakers
Advancing scientific frontiers. If your work is truly influential, you'll be viewed as an expert in the science world and beyond. One measure of impact is when others seek out your insights.
Our Newsmakers page features experts from PNNL's Fundamental & Computational Sciences Directorate who've been recently quoted, asked to speak to influential organizations, or taken on national or international appointments.
Jim Dooley on carbon dioxide capture and storage
Jim Dooley was among the panelists speaking about carbon dioxide capture and storage in a roundtable hosted by Energy Policy TV in July 2008. The televised panel discussion, "Carbon Sequestration: Promise and Reality," focused on the technical and commercial state of carbon dioxide capture and storage, or CCS, and its deployment. Dooley is a widely recognized expert on CCS issues, including serving on the editorial board for the International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, the first peer-reviewed journal to focus on CCS technologies.
Chuck Peden on catalysis
The Interim Director of PNNL's Institute for Interfacial Catalysis was quoted in Chemical and Engineering News on the work done to enhance catalysts. The research was done by the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics in China.
Tom Autrey and hydrogen storage
In July 2008, Chemical Science ran an article on hydrogen storage materials, quoting PNNL's Tom Autrey on ammonia borane as one of three sources.
Blaine Metting on producing algae for fuel
Dr. Blaine Metting was quoted in the June 30, 2008 Wall Street Journal article "Scum Power," which discussed the status of turning algae into fuel. Metting is Chair of the International Energy Agency International Network on Biofixation of CO2 and Greenhouse Gas Abatement with Microalgae. Network members collaborate on laboratory and demonstration projects with microalgae aimed at overcoming the biological and engineering challenges associated with truly large-scale production of algal biomass. Past and current projects at PNNL have been supported by DOE-Fossil Energy and the Office of Biological and Environmental Research's Genomics: GTL program.
Tony Janetos on climate change impacts
Dr. Tony Janetos gave testimony on climate change impacts to the U.S. House of Representative Committee on Energy and Commerce in Washington, D.C. on June 26, 2008. He spoke to the Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality on the subject, "Climate Change: Costs of Inaction," drawing from a recent national assessment that he and others led. Janetos directs the Joint Global Change Research Institute, a partnership of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of Maryland. View a webcast or a PDF of the printed testimony from Janetos and the other panelists.
Lai-Sheng Wang on golden superatoms
Research by Dr. Lai-Sheng Wang, a physical chemist at Washington State University and PNNL, and his collaborators on gold buckyballs, a form of superatoms, were featured in Science News on June 6, 2008.
Tony Janetos and Cesar Izaurralde on climate change—
U.S. ecosystems
In May 2008, Dr. Tony Janetos spoke at Congressional briefings and was widely quoted in national and regional media about a new national report on the impacts of climate change on US ecosystems. Janetos was a convening lead author for the report, to which Dr. Cesar Izaurralde, and Allison Thomson also contributed. The report found climate change is already affecting agriculture, water resources, biodiversity, and forests in the US. Among the media sources that interviewed or quoted Janetos were the PBS TV show Lehrer Newshour, The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, National Public Radio, Science News, and New Scientist. Izaurralde did interviews in Spanish-language media such as Univision Radio in San Francisco.
James Cowin on chemical transformations in ice
Research by Dr. James Cowin and his team from PNNL and Pennsylvania State University on the pyroelectricity of ice was featured as a brief in the May 1, 2008, issue of Nature. Unlocking the molecular mechanisms responsible for ice generating a voltage in response to changing temperatures provides further insights into the universal solvent: water.
Dan Cziczo on cloud bacteria and weather
Dr. Dan Cziczo, an expert in cloud microphysics, was quoted in a story on atmospheric science and climate in the April 18, 2008, issue of Chemical & Engineering News. The story, "Bacteria in the Clouds," describes how airborne microbes might influence weather.
Jim Dooley on carbon capture and storage
Jim Dooley testified for the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Advisory committee in a March 31, 2008, briefing on Making Carbon Capture & Sequestration Work: Economics and Critical Issues. See his presentation on issues associated with large-scale deployment of carbon capture and sequestration. Dooley, an expert on carbon-capture issues, was one of 17 Pacific Northwest National Laboratory staff who contributed to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore.
