Fermilab Today Monday, December 12, 2005  
Calendar
Monday, December 12
2:30 p.m. Particle Astrophysics Seminar
- Curia II
Speaker: I. Moskalenko, Stanford University
Title: Challenges in the Astrophysics of Cosmic Rays and Diffuse Gamma-Rays
3:30 p.m. Director's Coffee Break -
2nd Flr X-Over
4:00 p.m. All Experimenters' Meeting -
Curia II
Special Topic: Proton Source Shutdown Plans

Tuesday, December 13
11:00 a.m. Academic Lecture Series -
1 West
Speaker: P. Langacker, Fermilab/University of Pennsylvania
Title: Tests of the Electroweak Theory - Lecture 5
3:30 p.m. Director's Coffee Break -
2nd Flr X-Over
4:00 p.m. Accelerator Physics and Technology Seminar - 1 West
Speaker: R. Dixon, Fermilab
Title: Fermilab Accelerator Division: Issues, Observations, and Maintaining Integrity of de Sitter Space in My Office and the Hallway Outside

Weather
Weather Chance of Snow  25º/18º

Extended Forecast

Weather at Fermilab

Security

Secon Level 3

Cafeteria
Monday, December 12
- Minestroni
- Chicken & Mushroom Cheese Steak
- Baked Chicken Enchiladas
- Pot Roast
- BLT Ranch Wrap
- Assorted Slice Pizza
- Chicken Stir Fry

The Wilson Hall Cafe accepts Visa, Master Card, Discover and American Express at Cash Register #1.

Wilson Hall Cafe Menu

Cafeteria

Wednesday, December 14
Christmas Lunch
-Spinach & Salmon Wellington w/White Wine Sauce
-Asparagus w/Lemon Zest
-Chocolate Raspberry Napoleon

Thursday, December 15
Christmas Dinner
-Chestnut Soup w/Cognac Cream
-Lobster Medallions w/Champagne Sauce
-Sauteed Pea Pods
-Spaghetti Squash w/Green Onions
-Spinach & Pomegranate Salad
-Raspberry Parfaits w/Christmas Cookies

Chez Leon Menu
Call x4512 to make your reservation.

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A Q1 Installed Thursday, Q2 and Q3 to Follow This Week
Q1
A Q1 magnet finds a home in the Large Hadron Collider at CERN. (Click image for larger version.)
As part of the US-LHC Accelerator Project, Fermilab is producing sets of superconducting quadrupole magnets for the Large Hadron Collider at CERN. The magnets will provide the final focus for the proton beams at the four interaction points around the LHC ring. The first Q1 quadrupole assembly, including a KEK quadrupole, correctors from European Industry, and the a cryostat and final assembly process completed at Fermilab, was transported and installed in IP8 last Thursday, December 8. A Q2, including Fermilab quadrupoles, will be installed today, and a Q3 will be installed on Wednesday, December 14. Another component, the DFBX, a feedbox made at Meyer Tool, will be installed on the December 16. "It's great to see our equipment going down in the tunnel," said Jim Kerby of Fermilab's Technical Division. "It's a very exciting time."

Doing the Numbers: Save Energy at Work, Home
As we head into the depths of winter, electric bills are a bigger financial burden at home and at work. We spoke with Steve Krstulovich, Fermilab's energy conservation expert and Rod Walton, environmental consultant and director of the Fermi National Environmental Research Park, to get a breakdown of energy use.
Powerlines

28: Percent of total home energy usage devoted to personal appliances and lighting.

66: Percent less energy used by flourecent bulbs compared to regular incandescent bulbs.

40: Percent less energy it takes to heat food in a microwave oven than in a regular oven.

16: Average percent of home energy use from the water heater alone.

120: Temperature (in Farenheit) you should set your water heater to in order to cut down on 10-15 percent of your home energy use.

155: Average dollars saved per year for each employee who shuts down their computer before they leave work.

90: Percent energy used by your computer that would be saved if kept in "sleep" mode (screen grows dark, rather than staying illuminated, when not in use).

In the News
From The Beacon News,
December 10, 2005:

Fermilab: No cause for alarm. Small amounts of tritium found in Indian Creek

BATAVIA — Staff members from Fermilab trudged through the falling snow Thursday, delivering letters to every home in the Savannah subdivision on Aurora's northeast side, alerting residents to the presence of radioactive materials in Indian Creek.

But don't be alarmed, officials say. There's really nothing to worry about.

Small amounts of tritium, a radioactive isotope of hydrogen, were discovered in the creek by lab staff performing routine environmental tests, said Judy Jackson, Fermilab public relations director. Indian Creek starts on Fermilab property and runs southwest into a pond at the center of the Savannah subdivision, at the corner of Kirk and Butterfield roads.

"Never in 30 years of testing the creek have we seen any sign of tritium," Jackson said. "We immediately retested to confirm what we were seeing. "

Tritium forms naturally in the upper layers of the atmosphere and is usually only harmful if ingested in large quantities, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. In large amounts, it increases the risk of cancer, but the EPA Web site calls tritium one of the least dangerous of radioactive materials, since it emits weak radiation and leaves the body quickly.
Read More

Safety Tip
Deaths Rise During Holidays
maintenance
The graph above shows a dramatic rise in the number of deaths due to heart disease during the holidays. (Click image for larger version.)
Phillips, et al used the National Center for Health Statistics database to review 53 million U.S. death certificates. The investigators were primarily interested in cardiac fatalities, but also looked at deaths from all natural causes over the period 1973 through 2001. The graph shows their results for cardiac deaths by the day of year (10 days/large tick mark).

It can be seen that the cardiac deaths are lowest in August and highest during the winter holidays. Spikes are also apparent on Christmas and New Year's Day. In addition, the investigators found that the holiday spikes are gradually increasing in size from year-to-year. The results for non-cardiac deaths were very similar.

The overall summer-winter variation is likely the result of emotional factors associated with changes in hours of daylight and weather. The increased deaths during the holiday season may be due to patients' reluctance to seek medical care. Another possible explanation is holiday staffing changes, including schedule changes for doctors, nurses, pharmacists and even health insurance personnel.

Consider the following actions to help deal with the stresses of winter and winter holidays.

  • If the short hours of winter daylight are disruptive to your life, you may have SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder). If so, you may benefit from daily exposure to bright full-spectrum lighting.

  • If you're having a health problem, get help. Fermilab's Medical Department is available to assist. Importantly, don't postpone getting medical care just because it's a holiday.

  • If you travel during the holiday season, investigate the medical resources available at your destination before leaving home.

Safety Tip of the Week Archive

Accelerator Update
December 7 - 9

- TeV has VCB problem.
- Pbar Debuncher has power supply problem.
- Switchyard has power supply problem.
- First store may go into the TeV late on Sunday.

Read the Current Accelerator Update
Read the Early Bird Report
View the Tevatron Luminosity Charts

Announcements
Science Center Sale--Not Too Late!
The items that were on sale from the Lederman Science Center in the Atrium this past week are available at the Center from 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Monday - Friday and from 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. on Saturday. If anyone has any questions, please call x8258 or e-mail cbenson@fnal.gov

Movie Tickets
AMC movie tickets make great stocking stuffers. Tickets are only $5.75. Save up to $3.75 per ticket. Tickets do not expire until March 2007. Tickets are not valid for shows stipulating no passes. Purchase up to 10 tickets at a time. Cash, check, Visa or MasterCard is accepted.

Fermilab Folk Club Barn Dance
Fermilab Folk Club Barn Dance will be held on Sunday, December 11 at 6:30 p.m. with music by Superstring Theory and calling by Paul Watkins. More info.

Missing Box
Dan Snee of Accelerator Division is looking for a box from Medco, p.o. #566077, that has been delivered to the wrong area. If you see this box, please contact Dan at x2998.

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