APS User News-at-a-Glance
Issue 15; June 14, 2002

Contents:

1.

1.

First APS/User Strategic Planning Meeting: A Success!
(Contact: jmgibson@aps.anl.gov)

An atmosphere of collegial interaction characterized the first APS/User Strategic Planning meeting as 115 APS staff members and users gathered to discuss the future. Plenary sessions focused on the APS mission and goals, the future of the Collaborative Access Team System, future innovations with third-generation sources, and operational funding for beamlines were interspersed with break-out sessions on technical issues, user support, Independent Investigator access, publicity/public relations, communication, advocacy, and compliance with mandates. Serious discussions, innovative suggestions, and thoughtful analyses, as well as humorous interchanges, created a mood that fostered the building of consensus about future directions. For a detailed look at specific recommendations and action items, go to the following Web link for a preliminary response from APS Director Murray Gibson to the APS user community and staff: http://www.aps.anl.gov/xfd/communicator/prelim_response.pdf

Dates Set for the Twelfth APS User Meeting
(contact: strasser@aps.anl.gov)

Mark your calendars now for the week of April 28 through May 2, 2003, for the Twelfth User Meeting for the APS. APS Users Organization (APSUO) Vice-Chair Steve Durbin is the General Program Chair, and he and the APSUO Steering Committee have already begun to plan for this exciting event. Included in the festivities will be the presentation of the sixth Arthur H. Compton Award, science talks, a poster session, a vendor exhibit, and several social events. A series of topical workshops will be held in conjunction with the meeting, and at the general business meeting, six new members will be elected to the APSUO Steering Committee

Next Independent Investigator Proposals Due July 1, 2002
(Contact: strasser@aps.anl.gov)

Independent Investigator (II) proposals for the last user run of calendar year 2002 (October 9 - December 19, 2002) are due on July 1, 2002. Beginning with the run, four more CATs will be accepting II proposals (Bio-, IMM-, MHATT-, and MU-CATs), which brings the number of CATs that provide II time to 13. Further information, instructions on proposal submission, and a link to the Web submission form can be found at http://www.aps.anl.gov/ii.

4.

Research Highlight: "Edema Factor: Revealing the Structure of an Anthrax Toxin"
(Contact: wtang@midway.uchicago.edu)

Edema factor (EF) is one of three toxins that make anthrax a deadly biohazard. Researchers using the BioCARS and Structural Biology Center beamlines at the Advanced Photon Source and beamlines X25 and X4 at the National Synchrotron Light Source have determined the three-dimensional structure of EF. This discovery provides important new information that may lead to the design of pharmaceuticals to counteract the effects of bacterial toxins such as anthrax. Details of the research were published in the January 24, 2002, issue of Nature. Further details can be found on the following

Web page:

http://www.aps.anl.gov/apsimage/anthraxmain.html

5.

Invitation to Submit Research Highlights
(Contact: fenner@aps.anl.gov)

Highlights of research carried out at the APS are posted prominently on the APS Web home page. They are also useful in many ways, in particular when the APS is asked to inform the DOE and ANL management about current APS science.

If you would like to submit published research for consideration as an APS highlight, we will be delighted to make use of the material you send. For examples of current highlights, go to http://www.aps.anl.gov/highlights/hilitesarchive.html.

In your submission, we need the following:
Your name and e-mail address
The title and complete citation for the principal publication
The text (in Microsoft Word or pdf format) and at least one graphic file
A link to any relevant online material
A brief sentence underscoring the impact of the work

Send this information to apsinfo@aps.anl.gov, or if you prefer to use conventional mail, the address is:
APS Info
Bldg. 401/ Room A4128
Argonne National Laboratory
9700 S. Cass Ave.
Argonne, IL 60439 USA

When a highlight is ready for posting, you will receive a draft version for review/comment/changes.

6.

Coming Events
(Contact: strasser@aps.anl.gov)

A number of informative and enjoyable events will take place in the coming weeks:

The annual APS summer picnic for APS employees, APS users, and their families will be held on Friday, June 28th at Argonne Park. While the children enjoy such events as a water-balloon toss, face painting, application of temporary tattoos, and a moonwalk, the adults can enjoy live music from "The Storm." Just as the variety in entertainment is suited to please all, the food is as well: Athenian-style chicken, pasta with plum-tomato or meat sauce, Italian sausage, baked ham, hot dogs, garden and village salads, fresh fruit, and sandwich rolls. With the picnic running from 5:00 pm until dusk, there should be plenty of time to enjoy and taste everything. Tickets are $8.00 for those 13 and older ($12.00 after June 25), $3.00 for children 6-12 years ($5.00 after June 25), with free admission for children 5 years and younger. Tickets can be purchased in the APS User Office or from the following APS Spectrum Club members: Barb Dalton, Cathy Eyeberger, Jill Fredericks, Cheri Giacomi, Marvin Kirshenbaum, Laura Morisco, Anne Owens, Jane Pransky , Cyndi Salbego, and Marcia Wood.

On July 10, 2002, at 3:00 pm, you'll find Dr. Thomas Russell, University of Massachusetts Amherst, at the Advanced Photon Source giving the July APS Colloquium Lecture. Entitled "Direct Assembly of Polymers from the Nanoscopic to Microscopic," Dr. Russell's talk will provide an overview of the mechanisms that govern the spatial assembly of polymers in thin films. A listing of future talks in this series can be found at the following Web page: http://www.aps.anl.gov/conferences/APSColloquium/aps_colloquium.html.

The Structural Biology Center (SBC-CAT), in conjunction with the Midwest Center for Structural Genomics at Argonne National Laboratory, is sponsoring a four-day hands-on workshop from November 20-24, 2002. This workshop is intended to demonstrate experimentally the unique capabilities available at third-generation synchrotron source beamlines through hands-on data collection, analysis and structure determination. The experiments will be complemented by short seminars and discussions with experts. Further information can be found at the following Web site: http://www.sbc.anl.gov.

7.

Operations Update
(Contact: avr@aps.anl.gov)

The second run of calendar year 2002 has begun and will continue through early September. As in the last run, a machine studies shift has been set aside, on June 24, to study beamline operation under increased flux conditions. The storage ring will operate for a time at 130 mA to allow beamline personnel to analyze the impact on beamline elements. Additional machine studies are planned to further investigate potential improvements in beam stability and other stored beam characteristics.

The first run of the calendar year was completed on April 28. This was the longest single user run in APS history (providing 1872 hours of user beam time), while simultaneously establishing a new user run record for availability of 97.1%. As a result, records were also broken in the maximum integrated current delivered (182.2 A-hrs) and due to the reliability of top-up operation, a record was achieved in the average current for the run (97.4 mA). The success of this run sets a new standard for future operation at the APS.

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