Following a previous study that revealed the structure of dynein’s microtubule binding domain, a new study from ALS Beamline 8.3.1 now shows details of dynein’s motor domain. In addition to defining a large, ring-shaped motor, researchers found an intriguing and unanticipated feature called the buttress which may be critical in coupling ATP hydrolysis to dynein’s movement along microtubule tracks. Read more…
Three research groups joined forces to show that high- temperature (high-Tc) cuprate superconductors undergo two phase transitions: one to the superconducting phase, and another at a higher temperature, below which electrons, instead of pairing up, organize themselves in a drastically different, yet still elusive, way. Read more…
The User Office is accepting new proposals and beam time requests for the next six-month General User Proposal cycle for both Structural Biology and General Sciences beamlines. For the first time, structural biologists with long term programs at the ALS also have the option of applying through the regular six-month proposal cycle which has the advantage of providing beam time for up to two years. Read more…
Proposals due as follows:
General Sciences and Structural Biology beamlines: Six-month proposal cycle (July-December 2012) — Deadline: January 15, 2012
BEAM TIME REQUESTS on ACTIVE PROPOSALS — PI’s and experimental leaders of active proposals will receive an email with instructions on requesting time in the July-December 2012 cycle.
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Paul Adams has been appointed the new ALS Division Deputy for Biosciences and chair of the ALS Biosciences Council, in addition to his ongoing duties as Deputy Division Director of Berkeley Lab’s Physical Biosciences Division. He is stepping down after seven years as Head of the Berkeley Center for Structural Biology (BCSB).
The BCSB operates five macromolecular crystallography beamlines at the ALS and hosts over 100 industrial and academic research groups each year. During his tenure as head of the BCSB, Adams oversaw performance upgrades to all of the BCSB beamlines, resulting in greatly improved x-ray flux for the beamlines and automated hardware and software that have enabled remote access for many BCSB users.
Nicholas Sauter, a computer staff scientist at Berkeley Lab, has been appointed as acting head of the BCSB by Physical Biosciences Division Director Adam Arkin. Read more…
NUFO represents the interests of all users who conduct research at U.S. national scientific facilities and scientists from U.S. institutions who use facilities outside the United States. NUFO provides a unified voice to emphasize the critical role that user facilities like the ALS play in economic competitiveness and the education of the next generation of scientists.
Congressman Garamendi, Manufacturing Advisory Group Visit the ALS
U.S. Congressman John Garamendi (center) and a meeting of his Manufacturing Advisory Committee (MAC) were hosted at the ALS User Support Building on November 10. The MAC is made up of business and labor leaders from throughout California’s 10th Congressional District and the East Bay. The meeting opened with a welcome by Director Paul Alivisatos, and ALS Director Roger Falcone (right) was also on hand.
UEC Corner
New UEC Members for the New Year!
I am pleased to announce the five new members elected to the Users Executive Committee in 2011, who will serve terms beginning in 2012. Your new representatives are:
Chris Cappa, Civil and Environmental Engineering, UC Davis
Adam Hitchcock, Department of Chemistry, McMaster University
Jian Liu, University of Arkansas and LBNL Doctoral Fellow (student member)
Peter Nico, Earth Sciences Division, LBNL
Yuri Suzuki, Materials Science and Engineering, UC Berkeley and LBNL
I also want to congratulate Brandy Toner (University of Minnesota) who has been elected chair of the UEC for 2012.
On behalf of all users I want to thank retiring UEC members Yayoi Takamura and Chris Jacobsen for their three years of service on the committee. I have had the pleasure of serving two years as chair of the UEC, working with talented individuals on the committee and in ALS management, and with many other users. Despite the challenging environment for science in the United States, I am heartened by the enthusiasm and optimism that pervade the ALS. It remains an exciting place to work and a unique resource for global science, with a host of improvements coming in the next few years.
The UEC will continue to advocate for your interests; please let us know how we can help you. All users are welcome to contact their UEC representatives to raise issues of concern relating to their own research, or to alert us to issues facing our whole community.
For the user runs from October 21 to November 14, 2011, the beam reliability [(time scheduled – time lost)/time scheduled)] was 94.1%. For this period, the mean time between failures (MTBF) was 33.2 hours, and the mean time to recovery (MTTR) was 131 minutes. On Nov. 2, 18.2 hours of beam time were lost troubleshooting a control system network problem. Of these 18.2 hours, 8 hours were lost from a “Special Operations” shift.
More detailed information on reliability is available on the ALS reliability bulletin board, which is located in the hallway between the ALS and the control room in Building 80. Questions about beam reliability should be directed to Dave Richardson (DBRichardson@lbl.gov, x4376).
Deputy Division Director for Operations There are many aspects to operating the ALS, from balancing finances to overseeing personnel to scheduling repairs, upgrades, and maintenance. Michael Banda tells about his experiences at the ALS, and how he keeps the ALS running. Read the Article
Announcements
Science Café TODAY! Come to the ALS Science Café today at noon in the User Support Building’s main conference room. Featured speakers and topics are:
Sabyasachi Sen, U.C. Davis (Beamline 12.2.2): Materials with their Memories for our Memories
Yanika Schneider, U.C. Berkeley (Beamline 7.3.3): Self-Assembly of Proton Conducting Block Copolymers for Solar Fuels Applications
Bob Schoenlein, Materials Sciences Division: Seeking Enlightenment: A Next Generation Light Source at Berkeley Lab.
If you are interested in presenting in a future Science Café, please go to the ALS Science Café Web page.
NGLS @ Noon
The first of a series of lunch time talks focusing on new areas of science enabled by a next generation light source at Berkeley Lab will kick off Tuesday, December 13, at 12 noon in the User Support Building room 15-253 with speaker Bob Schoenlein. His talk, “The Next Generation Light Source: Science Drivers and Opportunities,” will be followed by discussion. All are invited to attend.
Save the Date!
The 2012 ALS User Meeting will be held October 8-10, 2012 – Save the Date!
Ade Named AAAS Fellow
Congratulations to ALS User Harald Ade, who was named as a 2011 AAAS Fellow.
Paul Adams has been appointed the new ALS Division Deputy for Biosciences and chair of the ALS Biosciences Council, in addition to his ongoing duties as Deputy Division Director of Berkeley Lab’s Physical Biosciences Division. He is stepping down after seven years as Head of the Berkeley Center for Structural Biology (BCSB).
resulting in greatly improved x-ray flux for the beamlines and automated hardware and software that have enabled remote access for many BCSB users.
U.S. Congressman John Garamendi (center) and a meeting of his Manufacturing Advisory Committee (MAC) were hosted at the ALS User Support Building on November 10. The MAC is made up of business and labor leaders from throughout California’s 10th Congressional District and the East Bay. The meeting opened with a welcome by Director Paul Alivisatos, and ALS Director Roger Falcone (right) was also on hand.
I also want to congratulate Brandy Toner (University of Minnesota) who has been elected chair of the UEC for 2012. 
Congratulations to ALS User Harald Ade, who was named as a 2011 AAAS Fellow. 
