Pick up any dictionary and you will see a laboratory defined as a building or room designed for scientific experimentation, research and analysis. Although that may be true enough for Messrs. Merriam and Webster, this section demonstrates it is far too flatland a meaning for something that clearly inhabits a multidimensional universe. One can only marvel at how researchers have been able to map the soft afterglow of the Big Bang across the sky and plan to take stop-motion pictures of atoms and molecules. Nuclear technology developed in our nation’s labs is being used to combat cancer, while supercomputers are providing breakthroughs in the study of debilitating diseases such as Alzheimer’s. New and remarkable forms of matter created in ion colliders are opening new doors on the nature of matter, providing insights into the creation of the universe. The National Laboratories truly surpass what their names imply: not just a collection of rooms but a place and a state of mind, where “what-ifs” become possibilities, and perhaps actualities.

	World Record for Laser Wakefield Acceleration: Zero to One Billion Electron Volts in Three Centimeters—For 30 years, high-energy physicists have wondered about the possibility of building a laser electron accelerator that could reveal the secrets of the universe.
	Targeting Cancer Using Nuclear Technology—Technology that was originally designed to test nuclear weapons is now being used to kill cancer cells with minimal damage to surrounding tissues.
	The Nano Film Festival: Atoms at the Movies—Ultrafast X-ray pulses will enable scientists to take stop-motion pictures of individual atoms and molecules, revealing the frenetic action of the atomic world.
	The Supercomputing Fast Lane—Cray’s XT Jaguar has raced ahead of its competitors and promises to accelerate the pace open scientific research.
	A Perfect Liquid—The Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider at Brookhaven National Laboratory has revealed evidence of a remarkable new state of hot, dense matter that behaves more like a viscous-free liquid than gas.
	Hope for Parkinson’s Victims—For the first time, scientists are closing in on the molecular mechanism that causes Parkinson’s disease, giving sufferers of that debilitating disease new hope.
	Take the Nano-Train—Brookhaven National Laboratory’s Center for Functional Nanomaterials is attracting researchers from around the world who like to think small…very small.
	Zooming in on Atomic Structure With Neutrons—Neutrons not only reveal the nanostructure of ordinary materials, they can also reveal secrets about the early universe.
	Quantum Secrets of Photosynthesis Revealed—At the quantum level, plants are no longer plants. They are physics laboratories.
	Fermilab Experiments Decode Mysteries of the Universe—Redefining our knowledge of the nature of the universe is job one at Fermilab.
	Strange Quarks Could Reveal Mysteries of the Universe—To understand the nature of stars and galaxies, scientists must delve into the subparticle universe in search of strange quarks.
	To the Ends of the Universe and Back—By reflecting back to the Big Bang, astronomers have a better understanding how the young universe evolved to the one we see today.
	Looking for Answers in a Mouse’s Brain—Hope for future cures of several debilitating diseases may be found in the brain of an ordinary mouse.
	Molecular Analysis in the Fast Lane—“Multiplexed capillary electrophoresis” may sound like a mouthful, but it is rapidly revolutionizing the field of chemical analysis.
	Electroneedle to the Rescue!—Is it Sci-Fi? New diagnostic tool may soon eliminate guesswork and save lives.