Letter from the Regional Coordinator Spring is just around the corner—if it hasn't already arrived by the time you read this—and we've been busy in the Midwest Region over the winter. New brochures have been printed, a three-disc DVD based on the presentations given at our last regional meeting is going to press, and the planning for the next regional meeting is forging ahead. Read more Government Agencies Work to Improve Supply Chain Management The U.S. Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM), the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), and the General Services Administration (GSA) have established a formal partnership designed to improve supply chain management for U.S. armed forces. Read more Crystal Bells Stay Silent as Physicists Look for Dark Matter Scientists of the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) experiment announced that they have regained the lead in the worldwide race to find the particles that make up dark matter. The CDMS experiment, conducted a half-mile underground in a mine in Soudan, Minnesota, again sets the world's best constraints on the properties of dark matter candidates. Read more
Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) researchers have a long history of successful partnerships with a vast array of organizations, from industry to academia, non-government to government organizations, and tribes to trade associations. Combining ideas, skills, expertise, lab facilities, and equipment with various partners has expanded its capabilities—and those of its partners—to everyone's benefit. Here is one example of a longstanding, productive partnership between FPL and academia. Read more
CERL Develops Robotic Inspection Technology for USTs The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates underground storage tanks (USTs) in order to prevent soil and groundwater pollution caused by leaks or spills. In the late-1990s, the EPA announced new regulations for USTs. In addition to setting new standards for UST operation and performance, these regulations required that all existing USTs be upgraded to meet the new standards, upgraded to include cathodic protection, upgraded with an internal lining, or closed. Read more NASA Team Demonstrates Robot Technology for Moon Exploration During the 3rd Space Exploration Conference Feb. 26-28 in Denver, NASA will exhibit a robot rover equipped with a drill designed to find water and oxygen-rich soil on the moon. "Resources are the key to sustainable outposts on the moon and Mars," said Bill Larson, deputy manager of the In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) project. "It's too expensive to bring everything from Earth. This is the first step toward understanding the potential for lunar resources and developing the knowledge needed to extract them economically." Read more Argonne Breakthrough May Revolutionize Ethylene Production A new environmentally friendly technology created by scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory may revolutionize the production of the world's most commonly produced organic compound, ethylene. Read more New X-ray Technique May Lead to Better, Cleaner Fuel Injectors for Automobiles Standard microscopy and visible light imaging techniques cannot peer into the dark and murky centers of dense-liquid jets, which has hindered scientists in their quest for a full understanding of liquid breakup in devices such as automobile fuel injectors. Read more
Threat Ensemble Vulnerability Assessment: CANARY, Event Detection Software Anomalous water quality results can indicate the onset of a contamination incident. For this reason, water utilities must be able to rapidly and accurately identify such results in water distribution systems. Unfortunately, this is a difficult task because water quality varies significantly from location to location and over time. Software that can interpret water quality data in real time can greatly enhance detection. Hence, the EPA has partnered with Sandia National Laboratories to develop CANARY data analysis software to assist water utilities with detecting contamination. Read more NIOSH Partners with Industry to Protect Commercial Fishermen Research by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), commercial fishermen, and the commercial fishing industry has resulted in the development of a critical safety device for commercial use. In November 2007, NIOSH entered into a partnership with Emerald Marine Products, Seattle, Washington, to develop the "e-stop"—an emergency device that can be used to quickly stop a deck winch if a fisherman becomes entangled or is about to become entangled in the winch. The e-stop can be retrofitted onto any winch, and has been installed and tested on three fishing vessels in Washington and Alaska. Details about the e-stop are available from Emerald Marine at http://www.go2marine.com/product.do?no=162904F. For additional information, contact Jennifer Lincoln, NIOSH, at JLincoln@cdc.gov or Robert McKibbin, NIOSH, at RMcKibbin@cdc.gov. Mention of a company name does not imply commercial endorsement by NIOSH. Successful Technologies for Removing Arsenic from Drinking Water When the federal rule limiting arsenic in drinking water was revised in 2001 to 10 parts per billion, it challenged nearly all small U.S. water systems (those serving 10,000 or fewer people) to find cost-effective ways to meet the new standards. Recognizing the potential economic and technical burdens of compliance, the EPA proposed a number of assistance programs. Read more Global Climate Effects on Projected Water Needs Predicting and adapting to the long-term effects of global climate change on U.S. water resources in the 21st century is a monumental challenge. But the Water Resource Adaptation Program (WRAP), developed by a water research team in the EPA's National Risk Management Research Laboratory (NRMRL), provides broad-based computer database and prediction methodologies while adaptation methodologies are being developed to take on the challenge. Read more
Illinois Boosts TBED Strategy with New Entrepreneurship Initiatives With rumors of recession building, several of the nation's governors are announcing new TBED-focused initiatives in 2008—many of which will be presented to lawmakers for funding in the coming months. In Illinois, Gov. Rod Blagojevich unveiled two new initiatives encouraging entrepreneurship to grow high-technology businesses throughout the state. Read more Illinois Governor Proposes Own Economic Stimulus Plan, Yet Cuts Funding for TBED Programs Gov. Rod Blagojevich unveiled a $25-billion capital plan supporting, in small part, several energy and technology projects, while at the same time eliminating funding in his fiscal year 2009 operating budget for several TBED-related programs within the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO). Read more Proposed Michigan Budget Offers New Incentives for Job Creation Gov. Jennifer Granholm unveiled her fiscal year 2009 budget last week, proposing to refinance a portion of the state's general obligation and taxable tobacco bonds and reduce spending across nearly all state departments in order to finance new proposals without raising taxes. Read more Ohio Governor Counters Recession with $1.7B Economic Stimulus Proposal Responding to a statewide economic downturn, Gov. Ted Strickland announced two major TBED initiatives, injecting more than $1 billion into job creation and offering a free year of tuition at Ohio public universities for high school seniors. Read more Two New Initiatives Aim to 'Innovate' and 'Accelerate' Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle announced two new initiatives focusing on investments in manufacturing R&D and increasing angel and venture capital investment to grow new businesses. Read more Upcoming T² Conferences and Events
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