Top Stories:

Bubbles Help Break Energy Storage
Record for Lithium Air-Batteries

Using supercomputers at NERSC and electron microscopy, a team of researchers from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Princeton University recently built a novel graphene membrane that could produce a lithium-air battery with the highest-energy capacity to date. More>

The Great Gas Hydrate Escape

For some time, researchers have explored flammable ice for low-carbon or alternative fuel or as a place to store carbon dioxide. Now, a computer analysis of the ice and gas compound, known as a gas hydrate, reveals key details of its structure. This work could enlighten alternative fuel production and carbon dioxide storage. More>

Can Cloud Computing Address the Scientific Computing Requirements for
DOE Researchers? Well, Yes, No and Maybe

After a two-year study of the feasibility of cloud computing systems for meeting the ever-increasing computational needs of scientists, Department of Energy researchers have issued a report stating that the cloud computing model is useful, but should not replace the centralized supercomputing centers operated by DOE national laboratories. More>

A Precision Model of the Cosmos

Using NERSC systems, Berkeley Lab scientists and their Sloan Digital Sky Survey colleagues have produced the biggest 3D color map of the universe ever. The team also achieved the most accurate calculation yet of how matter clumps together – from a time when the universe was only half its present age until now. More>

ASCR Discovery:
Computing the Steps to Catching and Keeping Carbon Underground

Many of the ideas underlying carbon capture and sequestration are either in laboratory tests or pilot studies. Using traditional scale-up processes to commercialize new research ideas in the power industry has historically taken 20 to 30 years. DOE supports several computational projects to accelerate this process. Several researchers at Berkeley Lab use supercomputers to speed designs for new materials that sponge up carbon dioxide and systems that facilitate its large-scale capture, while their colleagues use computation to better understand the geological and physical processes and lay the groundwork for approaches that will sequester gas underground. More>

NewsBytes:

ESnet Staff Share Expertise, 100G Experiences at Joint Techs Meeting

Twice a year, staff from ESnet and Internet, two of the leading research and education networks, meet to exchange information and experiences on topics of mutual interest. The meetings, known at the Joint Techs, also draw an international crowd of networking experts. The Winter 2012 meeting was held Jan. 22-26 in Baton Rouge, La., where ESnet staff gave a series presentations. More>

Berkeley Lab Inspires Careers in Science Research

In an effort to expose high school students to careers in science research, the Berkeley Lab's Computing Sciences Diversity Outreach Program partnered with San Francisco’s Lowell High School research program to bring 32 Lowell students out to Oakland, Calif. for a tour of NERSC. Here, the students got to see Hopper—the world's eighth most powerful supercomputer—and talk to the center's system administrators, user consultants and supercomputer analysts, about their day-to-day work. More>

A Piece of "Pi" with Berkeley Lab's David Bailey

On Friday, Jan. 20, David Bailey, who leads the the Computational Research Division’s Complex Systems Group, discussed the latest developments in the theory of pi with a general public crowd at the Chabot Space and Science Center’s monthly NightSchool event, "Recess!" Chabot's NighSchool encourages adults, a.k.a "students of life" to explore, imagine, create and mingle. Themes and activities typically reflect current events in science, favorite pastimes and playful experiences, each celebrating the unique, resourceful and exciting community of San Francisco's East Bay.

In the News:

Science News: Diet of a Dying Star

Scientists are beginning to sort out the stellar ingredients that produce a type 1a supernova, a type of cosmic explosion that has been used to measure the universe’s accelerating expansion. Two teams of researchers presented new data about these supernovas at the American Astronomical Society meeting on January 11. One team confirmed a long-held suspicion about the kind of star that explodes, and the second provided new evidence for what feeds that star until it bursts. The supernova was first spotted last summer by Berkeley Lab's Peter Nugent. More>

HPC Admin: Co-Design Approach to Supercomputing

Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, UC Berkeley, and elsewhere are investigating the concept of co-design for supercomputers. Specifically, they have looked at applying the technique to computationally complex climate models, such as those used for studying clouds. To find out more about this climate computer concept design, reporter Amber Ankerholz interviews Berkeley Lab's Michael Wehner and John Shalf. More>

Forbes: Cloud Computing Not Quite Ready for the Lab: US Government Report

The economics of cloud computing may be compelling for many front-line and transactional applications, but the costs and performance issues in applying cloud to specialized, deep analytical, or scientific environments may still be too prohibitive in many cases. That's the conclusion drawn in a recently issued report from the U.S. Department of Energy's Magellan project ("a cloud for science"), initiated two years ago to investigate the potential role of cloud computing in addressing the data-intensive computing needs of the DOE's Office of Science. More>

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