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Monday, Dec. 10
12 p.m.
Special Particle Astrophysics Seminar - The Dark Side, WH-6NW (NOTE TIME & LOCATION)
Speaker: A. Upadhye, University of Chicago
Title: Chameleon Scalar Fields and the GammeV Experiment
2:30 p.m.
Particle Astrophysics Seminar - Curia II
Speaker: E. Coccia, Gran Sasso National Laboratory
Title: Present and Future of the Gran Sasso Underground Laboratories
3:30 p.m.
DIRECTOR'S COFFEE BREAK - 2nd Flr X-Over
4 p.m.
All Experimenters' Meeting
Special Topic: Antiproton Production Since the Shutdown - Curia II
Tuesday, Dec. 11
3:30 p.m.
DIRECTOR'S COFFEE BREAK - 2nd Flr X-Over
THERE WILL BE NO ACCELERATOR PHYSICS AND TECHNOLOGY SEMINAR TODAY
4 p.m.
Special Joint Experimental-Theoretical Physics Seminar - One West (NOTE DATE)
Speakers: Z. Pavlovic, University of Texas, Austin;
Z. Djurcic, Columbia University
Title: Analysis of Muon and Electron Neutrino Events from the
NuMI Beamline at MiniBooNE
Click here for NALCAL,
a weekly calendar with links to additional information. |
Monday, December 10
- Minestrone
- Italian sausage quesadilla
- Baked chicken enchiladas
- Pot roast
- Upscale Bologna sandwich
- Assorted slice pizza
- Szechwan green beans w/chicken
Wilson Hall Cafe Menu |
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Wednesday, Dec. 12
Lunch
- Stuffed pork loin w/lingonberry sauce
- Braised red cabbage
- Dilled new potatoes
- Danish apple cake
Thursday, Dec. 13
Dinner
- Closed
Chez Leon Menu
Call x4598 to make your reservation. |
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Listen to the lights:
holiday gets new twist
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| CD's Joe Klemencic programs his 17,000 light outdoor Christmas decorations to coordinate with Christmas music. Click on the photo to see the coordinated musical display. |
When Joe Klemencic was a child, Christmas lacked a certain glimmer.
"Growing up we just had one strand of lights on the roof all year and in winter you just changed the bulbs," he said.
Today, it takes the Fermilab computer security technician seven days to string 17,000 lights and more than 70 extension cords on his Pingree Grove home in western Kane County. It takes three months to coordinate a musically synchronized display.
Has Klemencic finally realized the glowing Christmas of his boyhood dreams?
"I want it bigger," he said as a grin spread across his face. "I have aspirations."
Using a computer to program the display offers limitless song and light patterns, something smaller retail systems lack." I wouldn't be happy if things just flashed on and off. I want to show some effort went into it," Klemencic said.
Eight to 30 hours worth of programming effort for each song, to be exact. Each 1/10 of a second of music coordinates with the lighting of a specific portion of the home or yard.
Fermilab engineers advised him on how to build conduit evergreen trees with tops and bottoms that spin in opposite directions. They also advised on building an FM transmitter so passing cars can tune into 99.7 FM to hear the rhythmic songs.
Santa arrives for one night, 7 p.m. Dec. 15, at the house, but the lights dance from 7 to 9 p.m. from Thanksgiving through Christmas. The Pingree Grove Fire Protection District will bring Santa aboard a fire truck as a thank you for last year's display, which raised $2,500 for them. Santa stays until 9 p.m., and Klemencic makes an appearance dressed as the Grinch in a fur suit he sewed himself.
Dozens of cars wind daily past the house, even during the recent ice storm. Klemencic often finds cars waiting when he gets home from work.
"They are always smiling. I don't know if they like it or just think I'm crazy. But I enjoy going around to look at other people's lights so I'm just giving back to the community. I told my wife not to get me anything. This is my Christmas present," he said pointing to the smiling people watching the lights dance.
See the light show and directions at http://www.twinkleclaus.com/
--Tona Kunz
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Mr. Freeze wins 2007 Director's Award
PPD's Jerry Zimmerman received the 2007 Director's Award.
Jerry Zimmerman, Fermilab's "Mr. Freeze" often wins acolades from children and their parents, but on Dec. 6 the thanks came from his peers. Zimmerman was honored for his contribution to science education, through his educational cryogenics show, with the 2007 Director's Award.
"I'm really pleased," Zimmerman said. "A lot of people do a lot for education, and it is great to be recognized for what we do."
Zimmerman, an engineer in PPD, has been performing his cryogenics show as "Mr. Freeze" for students, families and at events for 10 years.
"He's entertained thousands of students," said Fermilab Director Pier Oddone. "He's helped to enhance the laboratory's reputation both in science and education and research."
Five candidates were nominated for the award, which was made possible by an anonymous donation to the Fermilab Friends for Science Education. The winner was panel-selected. Finalists included AD's Peter Garbincius, for his contributions to the Ask-A-Scientist program; PPD's Terry Kiper, for his contributions to Quarknet; PPD Conference Office employee Suzanne Weber for her contributions to Saturday morning physics; and PPD's Ron Miksa for the exhibits he builds and repairs in the Lederman Science Center.
"One of the things that is really special about this laboratory is the level of activity from our volunteers," Oddone said. "The civic spirit in this place goes back to the beginning. I am not aware of other institutions where this kind of thing exists the way it exists here."
--Rhianna Wisniewski
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Walk and work carefully on slick winter surfaces
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| Winter weather can make sidewalks, roads and floors slick and dangerous. |
Many safety problems that occur during the winter months are due to ice or snow-covered surfaces. Mike Becker, head of FESS's Roads and Grounds Department, notes that refreezing is an ongoing problem at Fermilab. Stay alert: Ice and snow that melt during the day can refreeze at night. If you are aware of an area where water is accumulating on walking or driving surfaces, please contact Roads and Grounds at x3303. Becker also reminds you to be patient, especially when the temperature falls below the freezing point. Even the laboratory's lowest temperature de-icers stop working below 10 degrees F.
Here are some other precautions to keep in mind during the winter season:
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A day without yesterday
From Columbia Spectator, Dec. 3, 2007
When Georges LeMaitre first proposed the Big Bang theory in 1927, everyone thought he was crazy. Few other scientists at the time conceived of the universe as changing at all, let alone beginning as a single point in space-time. It was nearly impossible for them to believe that something as big as the universe started out as something smaller than an atom. Even the term "Big Bang" was coined as a sarcastic jab at the theory's ridiculousness.
But in the 80 years since, evidence confirming the Big Bang has kept piling up. In 1929, Edwin Hubble observed that galaxies and other visible matter in the universe seemed to be rushing away from Earth, supporting LeMaitre's idea of an expanding universe powered by the explosion of a "primeval atom" that brought the universe into being on what he called "a day without yesterday."
Read more
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Have a safe day!
Ground floor maintenance begins today
Ground floor maintenance work will begin Monday, Dec. 10, at 4 p.m. Painting, patching and re-carpeting of selected high-traffic public areas will be performed through Friday between 4 p.m. and midnight. Please do not disturb the repairs or equipment.
EAP Office hours
The EAP office will be open on Tuesday, Dec. 11, and Thursday, Dec. 13, instead of Wednesday, Dec. 12, and Friday, Dec. 14, as usual. Regular office hours will resume the week of Dec. 17. The EAP is available 24/7 by calling 1-800-843-1327 or online at www.vmceap.com.
New IT job descriptions
Open meetings for questions and answers will be held in WH One West for employees affected by this process:
Wednesday, Dec. 12, 1:30 -3 p.m.
Thursday, Dec. 13, 9 - 10:30 a.m.
Friday, Dec. 14, 10:30 a.m.- noon
Monday, Dec. 17, 1:30 - 3 p.m.
Tuesday, Dec. 18, 9 - 10:30 a.m.
Wednesday, Dec. 19, 9 - 10:30 a.m.
Before attending, please review the presentation
Blood Drive Dec. 18, 19
Mark your calendars. Heartland Blood Centers will be here for the Fermilab Blood Drive on Dec. 18 and 19 from 8 a.m to 2 p.m. in the
Wilson Hall Ground Floor NE Training Room. Appointments can be scheduled on
the Web or by calling Diana at x3771 or Margie at
x5680. More information can be found here.
Dec. 14 deadline for The University of Chicago Tuition Remission Program
The deadline for applying for the tuition remission program at The University of Chicago for the Winter 2008 quarter is Dec. 14. More information and enrollment forms. Contact Nicole Gee at x3697 with any questions.
Additional Activities
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Freezing drizzle 29°/25°
