Fire danger: Very high
LDRD funding discussed
at town-hall meeting
Gerry Wilhelmy of CST-11 suggests that a different accounting method for LDRD funds might keep "an accounting problem" from becoming a fiscal one. Photo by LeRoy N. Sanchez
Basic research will remain fundamental to the Laboratory's mission despite Congressional cuts that reduced the Laboratory Directed Research and Development program by 40 percent, Director John Browne said at a Laboratory town-hall meeting on Wednesday.
"We have not changed our view of science as fundamental to our mission," Browne said.
Browne; Bill Press, deputy Laboratory director for science, technology and programs; and Jas Mercer-Smith, deputy associate Laboratory director for nuclear weapons, explained how the Laboratory responded to last month's decision by Congress to reduce LDRD funding from 6 to 4 percent of the Laboratory's budget, and the related decision by Congress to exempt Environmental Management funds from any LDRD tax reduced the program even further.
The effect of the cuts and how the Laboratory dealt with them were outlined in a Nov. 10 Newsbulletin article, available online at http://www.lanl.gov/orgs/pa/News/111099.html#anchor4.
The trio asked for and received a variety of suggestions from Laboratory staff members.
Browne stressed the importance of enlisting the broad scientific community, the Department of Energy and others in getting out the message of the importance of LDRD, and to identify alternative ways to pay for basic research.
Although House budget authorization called for LDRD funding at 6 percent, an amount backed by the Senate and equivalent to some $75 million, House appropriators sought to reduce not only LDRD, but the budget for Science-Based Stockpile Stewardship.
"There was a backlash against the Department of Energy in some parts of Congress ... They hit us in places where we were vulnerable," Browne explained.
Press said Laboratory management did the best it could to apportion the overall impact of the LDRD cuts, and pointed out that none of the money left the Laboratory, so some displaced scientists could be moved into other programs.
But he emphasized that everyone at the Laboratory must think strategically to identify new ways to pay for research that will prove valuable for the "far horizon," as well as work that solves immediate problems.
Press said two key bits of "legal fine print" must govern any suggestions for changing how the Laboratory and DOE fund basic research. Those are
Mercer-Smith pointed out that the ability to capitalize on basic research to solve unforeseen problems always has been a characteristic of Los Alamos.
"Basic research often has saved us in our programmatic work," Mercer-Smith said, pointing to the need in the Manhattan Project to shift from gun-assembled to implosion bombs on short notice.
"That tends to drive how you act through your entire history," he said.
The cuts affected the Theoretical (T), Physics (P) and Materials Science and Technology (MST) divisions the most, so the Nuclear Weapons program is paying particular attention to them, he said.
Mercer-Smith said he and T.J. Trapp of Materials Management (NW-MM) have been working closely with division directors in the past few weeks to move displaced LDRD researchers into surveillance and other nuclear weapons projects and programs.
"Some LDRDs are mature enough that we can move them into the program fairly easily," he said.
Laboratory Fellow Jerry Wilhelmy of Nuclear and Radiochemistry (CST-11) drew applause when he proposed eliminating division and group taxes on LDRD funds. Under the current accounting system, less than two-thirds of LDRD money actually reaches the researchers, Wilhelmy said.
David Watkins (STB-LDRD), who heads the LDRD program, said Los Alamos and Sandia already are examining what accounting changes are possible. However, any changes would require DOE approval, he said.
Bill Priedhorsky of Nonproliferation and International Security Division (NIS-DO) asked for guidance in planning next year's round of LDRD proposals.
Press said the peer-review panels will assume that LDRD will be restored to 6 percent funding, but also will plan for a 4-percent scenario. Press said that new programs might receive priority over continuing programs if the budget stays at 4 percent, so it's important for those proposing continued funding to show strong results.
Shao-Ping Chen of Condensed Matter and Statistical Physics (T-11) asked Browne how the Laboratory was planning to fend off possible Congressional attempts to eliminate LDRD next year. Browne replied that the Laboratory is working on several strategies, including a direct appeal to the head of the new National Nuclear Security Agency, and looking for proposals that would create tighter integration between division and program activities so program sponsors will see more directly the need to support basic research.
Fred Cooper of Elementary Particles and Field Theory (T-8) said his group counts on LDRD for 75 percent of its funding. He proposed stronger efforts by Laboratory researchers and managers to explain the importance of LDRD to Los Alamos' mission. Cooper and Browne pointed out the need for clearly written explanations of the LDRD program, how it works and why it's important.
The Laboratory in August published a special issue of "Dateline: Los Alamos" that described LDRD in detail and summarized dozens of successful LDRD projects. That issue is available online at http://www.lanl.gov/worldview/news/dateline/.
Ed Arthur of Industrial Business Development (IBD) suggested the Laboratory identify and form specialized research teams committed to solving specific national and industrial needs that may not match current DOE program requirements in nuclear weapons and threat reduction, then seek direct funding for these nontraditional program areas.
Steen Rasmussen of Geoanalysis (EES-5) pointed out that so-called "mission creep" has enormous potential for filling the research voids that other institutions can't fund.
"Why can't management be more aggressively visionary and see this as an opportunity?" Rasmussen asked. "There are so many problems to solve in so many other areas."
Steve Love of Space and Remote Sensing Sciences (NIS-2) argued that if Congressional support for such research is not forthcoming, perhaps program sponsors should be asked to contribute the basic necessary research funds upfront.
"On new projects, why can't we put in a line item for basic research?" Love asked. "I would suggest as a backup plan that all new project proposals include money for these kinds of contingencies."
Press said that program managers should aggressively seek more funding from sponsors and identify funding sources to advance basic research agendas for those projects.
--Jim Danneskiold and Kay Roybal
|
ARAMARK Corp. is serving its traditional Thanksgiving holiday meal today in the Otowi Cafeteria at Technical Area 3 and cafeterias at TA-55 and the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) at TA-53. The meal cost $6.95 and includes roast turkey, a choice of three side dishes, dinner roll, cranberry sauce, pie and a 16 ounce fountain drink or ice tea. Pre-packaged sandwiches and the salad bar also will be open. The cafeterias, which are run by ARAMARK Corp., are open for lunch from 11 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. ARAMARK Corp. catering trucks will serve the holiday meal Friday. The cost is $7, excluding a drink. For more information, go to http://www.lanl.gov/labview/services/CafeteriaMenu/thanksgiving.htm online. Or call 7-3591. --Steve Sandoval |
Speaker to talk about how technology is helping to spread weapons of mass destruction
Paul Bracken of Yale University's School of Management will talk about how technology is helping to spread weapons of mass destruction in mainland Asia at a Director's Colloquium next Tuesday at the Laboratory.
The colloquium begins at 1:10 p.m. in the Physics Building Auditorium at Technical Area 3. The talk is open to the public and will be aired on LABNET Channel 9. It will be rebroadcast on LABNET Channel 10.
Bracken's talk, "The Second Nuclear Age," argues against the conventional notion that the spread of weapons of mass destruction, ballistic missiles and other technologies to Asia is simply a military/technical issue.
Instead, Bracken puts forth a fundamentally different model: that technically adept military powers are emerging in mainland Asia due to industrialization and globalization, and thereby accelerating the spread of these weapons.
Bracken's book, "Fire in the East: The Rise of Asian Military Power and the Second Nuclear Age," describes how disruptive technologies are changing the world technical and military balance of power and how nationalistic regimes shape the politics of military interaction in Asia.
Bracken is a member of the Chief Naval Operations executive panel and is involved in other national security advisory groups. He previously worked at the Hudson Institute, a New York-based think tank. He is the author of "The Command and Control of Nuclear Forces," and his article "The Military After Next," appeared in Washington Quarterly.
Another article, "The Second Nuclear Age," is scheduled to be published in the January issue of Foreign Affairs magazine.
Bracken has a doctoral degree in operations research from Yale and a bachelor's degree in engineering from Columbia University.
--Steve Sandoval
Commuter-van-pool service may be offered by spring
The state Highway and Transportation Department hopes to award a contract to a company that would offer commuter-van-pool and or park-and-ride service between Los Alamos, Santa Fe, Española and Pojoaque.
The van-pool service would be similar to an existing private van-pool service now offered by the nonprofit State Employees' Commuters Association in Albuquerque, said Pat Oliver-Wright, a management analyst supervisor in the department's Public Transportation Programs Bureau.
A commuter-van-pool service would reduce the number of vehicles on U.S. 84-285 between Santa Fe and Pojoaque, the so-called Pojoaque Corridor, where a number of construction projects are underway or are scheduled to begin soon. And fewer vehicles coming to Los Alamos also might ease perceived parking shortages in and around Technical Area 3.
The state road agency plans to issue a request for proposal early next year for the commuter-van-pool service, said Oliver-Wright, noting that highway Secretary Pete Rahn has given the go-ahead for the bureau to proceed with the plan.
If the state contracts with a company to offer a van-pool service, Laboratory employees who commute from Santa Fe, Pojoaque and Española could begin using the service as early as next spring, said Oliver-Wright. The state would use Federal Highway Administration funds to pay a contractor to operate the service, she said. "It's kind of a stop-gap measure," she said of the van-pool service, noting that the state road agency still hopes to revive the once promising Northern New Mexico Park and Ride Express bus service that was shut down last March.
A contract with BusRide of New Mexico was cancelled after a Shuttlejack Corp. bus returning home from a ski outing to Santa Fe Ski Area crashed, killing one youth and one adult chaperone and hospitalizing numerous children with injuries.
BusRide of New Mexico was a separate company formed by Shuttlejack Corp. owners to operate the Northern New Mexico Park and Ride Express.
The commuter-bus service was well received by Laboratory employees. The Department of Energy had provided $100,000 to the state road agency for the park-and-ride program, while the Los Alamos County Council, the Santa Fe City Council and the Santa Fe County Commission provided a similar amount to the highway department.
Under the highway proposal, commuters would sign up in advance for a particular van and pay a monthly fee to ride to and from work. Details, such as where riders would be picked up and dropped off, would be worked out by the van-pool participants, she said. The contract company essentially would act as the administrator of the commuter-van-pool service, said Oliver-Wright, arranging vehicle leases, insurance and maintenance contracts, collecting fares, training drivers and advertising the service.
"There is a lot more flexibility with this than with a park-and-ride service," Oliver-Wright noted, recalling scheduling and pickup/drop-off issues with the park-and-ride service.
In the meantime, the state road agency still has other funding issues to resolve before a park-and-ride service is reinstituted. Lack of funding support from local governments who previously chipped in money for the service is one stumbling block, said Oliver-Wright.
The highway department has some $5.5 million in federal grant funds and about $410,000 in local funds available for a park-and-ride program, Oliver-Wright said.
--Steve Sandoval
|
A three-dimensional model representing Technical Area 3 as it will look if the current multiphase revitalization plan becomes a reality is now on display in the first floor lobby of the Otowi Building. The model shows the phase one changes to TA-3 including the new Strategic Computing Complex and the new NISC Building. Construction of the SCC currently is underway on the site of the large parking lot adjacent to the Johnson Controls Northern New Mexico shops. Future phases of the revitalization plan include several new administrative buildings surrounding the SCC, replacing the current administration building and creating a large green space and a more campus-like atmosphere. Also included in the plan are several new roadways and a large parking garage that would be situated on the site of the JCNNM shops. Photo by LeRoy N. Sanchez |
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