Monday, Feb. 2, 2015
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Have a safe day!

Monday, Feb. 2

2 p.m.
Particle Astrophysics Seminar - Curia II
Speaker: Alvaro Chavarria, University of Chicago
Title: Status of DAMIC at SNOLAB

3:30 p.m.
Director's Coffee Break - WH2XO

4 p.m.
All Experimenters' Meeting - Curia II

Tuesday, Feb. 3

3:30 p.m.
Director's Coffee Break - WH2XO

THERE WILL BE NO ACCELERATOR AND PHYSICS TECHNOLOGY SEMINAR THIS WEEK

Visit the labwide calendar to view Fermilab events

Weather
Weather Mostly sunny
14°/8°

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Weather at Fermilab

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Flags at full staff

Wilson Hall Cafe

Monday, Feb. 2

- Breakfast: eggs benedict
- Breakfast: sausage, egg and cheese croissant
- Sloppy joe
- Teriyaki pork stir-fry
- Chicken makhani
- Oven-roasted veggie wrap
- General Tso's chicken
- Texas-style chili
- Vegetarian cream of spinach
- Assorted pizza by the slice

Wilson Hall Cafe menu

Chez Leon

Wednesday, Feb. 4
Lunch
- Cornish hen with garlic and rosemary
- Parsley potatoes
- Brussels sprouts
- Pumpkin pie

Friday, Feb. 6
Dinner
Closed

Chez Leon menu
Call x3524 to make your reservation.

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From symmetry

Cosmic inflation remains undiscovered

A new study puts earlier discovery claims by the BICEP2 collaboration into perspective. Image: Andy Freeberg, SLAC

A previous study claiming the discovery of gravitational waves as cosmic inflation’s fingerprint has most likely been over-interpreted, scientists found in a joint analysis between the Planck and BICEP2 experiments.

The new study, whose key results were released today in statements from the European Space Agency and the National Science Foundation, did not find conclusive evidence of cosmic inflation. Cosmic inflation is the exponential growth of the universe within the first few fractions of a second after the big bang almost 14 billion years ago.

“This joint work has shown that [the earlier claims are] no longer robust once the emission from galactic dust is removed,” says Jean-Loup Puget, principal investigator of Planck’s High Frequency Instrument at the Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale in Orsay, France, in the statements. “So, unfortunately, we have not been able to confirm that the signal is an imprint of cosmic inflation.”

“These results have important consequences for the entire research field,” says Planck project scientist Jan Tauber from ESA. “They will impact how future experiments searching for cosmic inflation will be designed.”

Controversial cosmic pattern
In the 1980s, physicists Alan Guth and Andrei Linde developed the theory of cosmic inflation. This rapid expansion would have left its mark in the form of a pattern in the cosmic microwave background — faint light left behind from just after the big bang. The BICEP2 experiment was designed to search for this pattern.

Last March, BICEP2 scientists announced that they had found the characteristic pattern, and that it was even more pronounced than expected. If this interpretation turned out to be confirmed, it would be direct evidence of cosmic inflation.

However, scientists began to raise the concern that the pattern found by the BICEP2 study could have been caused by something else, such as dust in our own galaxy.

The BICEP2 researchers were aware that dust might give them a false signal. To minimize this possibility, they located their experiment at the South Pole and pointed their telescope at a part of the sky that was considered particularly “clean.” Then, in their analysis, the researchers carefully subtracted possible dust signals based on various theoretical models and earlier dust measurements.

Read more

Manuel Gnida

In Brief

Art@CMS exhibit opens with talk and reception Feb. 4

If you think something looks different in the Wilson Hall atrium on Wednesday, you're not imagining it.

The Fermilab Art Gallery is set to host the Art@CMS exhibit from Feb. 4 to April 22. It will feature the work of professional artists inspired by the CMS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. The exhibit includes a life-size 2-D reproduction of the CMS detector hanging from the crossovers in the atrium. The image will be on display for the duration of the exhibit.

The exhibit kicks off with a Colloquium talk on Wednesday, Feb. 4, at 4 p.m. in One West, followed by an artist reception from 5-7 p.m. in the Art Gallery. The exhibit will be in place for the Family Open House on Sunday, Feb. 8, from 1-5 p.m.

Photo of the Day

A sign of winter's strength

If a groundhog sees ice on a doorway's interior, what does it mean for spring's arrival? Fortunately, this picture was taken not recently but in the bitter cold of early January. Photo: Jeanette Olah, FESS
In the News

Physicists hoping to see exotic stuff when the Large Hadron Collider wakes up from slumber

From The Economic Times, Jan. 31, 2015

The centre of the sun is a hot 27 million degree centigrade, but human beings have bettered that too. In 2012, inside the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) under the Alps Mountains, physicists raised the temperature to 5.5 trillion degrees centigrade by smashing together protons and lead ions.

Read more

Tip of the Week: Safety

What to do when it's c-c-cold

Tread carefully in winter conditions.

For many people, working or playing in cold weather can be a positive experience. You may feel invigorated by the bracing air and like you do your work with more physical energy than usual. But when you work or play outdoors or in unheated structures during the winter months, you are at risk for serious health problems, including trench foot, frostbite and hypothermia. In extreme cases, exposure can lead to death.

Some of the danger signs include uncontrolled shivering, slurred speech, clumsy movements, fatigue and confused behavior.

Reduced traction is the fallout from winter weather that has the greatest impact on Fermilab's accident rates. Although we haven't had many serious winter injuries thus far, and despite the laboratory's aggressive snow and ice removal program, a day with falling snow could mean one or two people showing up in the medical office with injuries caused from slipping. Most injuries are minor, but fractures and dislocations sometimes occur. Let's stay safe and healthy by keeping these safety precautions in mind during the winter season:

  • Use footwear that provides warmth, insulation and traction for snow, slush and ice.
  • Wear proper clothing, including layers that can be adjusted to changing winter conditions.
  • Eat regularly when out in the cold to maintain energy.
  • Analyze the surface before you start out.
  • If you must walk on ice, take short steps or shuffle your feet. Bend slightly and walk flat-footed with your center of gravity over your feet (see this two-minute video on snow safety).
  • Avoid unshoveled or ice-covered areas (walk through buildings when possible).
  • Take short breaks in a warm, dry shelter to allow yourself to warm up.
  • Try to schedule outside work or play activities for the warmest part of the day.
  • Try to keep moving while in the cold. This keeps the blood circulating.
  • Drink warm, sweet beverages (sugar water, sports-type drinks) and try to avoid drinks with caffeine (coffee, tea, sodas or hot chocolate). Avoid alcohol.
  • If you think you are experiencing symptoms of hypothermia or frostbite, get to a shelter right away and seek medical help.

Many building managers actively help with snow removal efforts in their areas, so if you see icy or snowy patches that need treatment here at Fermilab, please contact your building manager or Roads and Grounds at x3303.

Working or playing in cold weather can be a positive experience if you dress warmly and take precautions to protect yourself.

J.B. Dawson, ESH&Q communication

In Brief

Core Computing Division offers briefing for MS Office 2013/365 - Feb. 17

Fermilab is upgrading its Microsoft suite applications to MS Office 2013/365, and the Core Computing Division is rolling out this new version to lab users with Windows computers.

In a special briefing set for Feb. 17 from 9-11:30 a.m. in Curia II, you can learn about the new look of MS Office 2013, explore common features and learn about the exciting new enhancements in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.

Enroll in the course.

Announcements

Today's New Announcements

Fermilab Arts Series presents Cirque Zuma Zuma - Feb. 7

Fermilab Chamber Series presents Callipygian Players - Baroque Trio - Feb. 15

School's Day Out: Feb. 16 and 27

Core Computing Division briefs on MS Office 2013/365 - Feb. 17

New ebook on cryogenic engineering

Vaughan Athletic Center membership rates effective Feb. 3

Artist reception - Feb. 4

Barnstormers Delta Dart Night - Feb. 11

Writing for Results: Email and More - Feb. 27

English country dancing at Kuhn Barn - March 1

Fermilab Functions - March 3, 5, 11

Interpersonal Communication Skills course - March 10

URA Thesis Award competition deadline - March 20

Managing Conflict course - March 24

2015 FRA scholarship applications accepted until April 1

Microsoft Office 2013 ebooks

Windows 8.1 approved for use

GSA updates mileage rate to 57.5 cents for 2015

Fermi Singers seek new members in New Year

The Take Five challenge and poster winter 2014/2015

Scottish country dancing Tuesday evenings at Kuhn Barn

Indoor soccer