WASHINGTON, Feb. 17 -- The Energy Inspector General issued the following audit report (No. DOE-OIG-21-13) on Feb. 1, 2021, entitled "The Department of Energy's Wildland Fire Prevention Efforts at the Los Alamos National Laboratory": Here are excerpts: MEMORANDUM FOR THE ACTING ADMINISTRATOR, NATIONAL NUCLEAR SECURITY ADMINISTRATION MANAGER, LOS ALAMOS FIELD OFFICE FROM: John E. McCoy II, Deputy Assistant Inspector General for Audits, Office of Inspector General SUBJECT: INFORMATION: Audit Re  more

LIVERMORE, California, Feb. 17 (TNSJou) -- The U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory issued the following news release: On Aug. 4, 2020, a massive explosion rocked Lebanon's capital of Beirut, sending shockwaves through the city and shattering windows, reducing some buildings to rubble and killing at least 200 people. Officials have since traced the blast to a stockpile of more than 2,500 tons of confiscated ammonium nitrate stored in a port warehouse. While the of  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 20 -- The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board's Resident Inspector in Los Alamos National Laboratory issued the following weekly report: MEMORANDUM FOR: Christopher J. Roscetti, Technical Director FROM: J.W. Plaue and D. Gutowski, Resident Inspectors SUBJECT: Los Alamos Activity Report for Week Ending January 29, 2021 DNFSB Staff Activity: On Monday, members of the Board's staff held a call with N3B and EM Field Office personnel to discuss their current approach to addre  more

NEW YORK, Feb. 18 (TNSJou) -- New York University issued the following news release: A mutation in the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2--one of several genetic mutations in the concerning variants that have emerged in the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Brazil--makes the virus up to eight times more infectious in human cells than the initial virus that originated in China, according to research published in the journal eLife. The study, led by researchers at New York University, the New York Geno  more

MONACA, Pennsylvania, Feb. 19 (TNSRes) -- Pennsylvania State University's Beaver campus issued the following news: The reintroduction of 32 bobcats to an island off the coast of Georgia more than three decades ago created an ideal experiment to examine the accuracy of a genetic-modeling technique that predicts extinction of isolated wildlife populations. That's the conclusion of Penn State researchers who continue to monitor the bobcat population on Cumberland Island National Seashore, and who  more

BOZEMAN, Montana, Feb. 20 -- Montana State University issued the following news: Culminating years of work, a small satellite designed and built by Montana State University students is set to launch Saturday aboard a cargo resupply rocket bound for the International Space Station. The bread loaf-sized satellite, called by the acronym IT-SPINS, will dock at the space station until later this spring, then be propelled into orbit and commence a more than six-month mission of measuring the propert  more

LAS VEGAS, Nevada, Feb. 19 (TNSRes) -- The University of Nevada Las Vegas campus issued the following news release: UNLV's radiochemistry program is partnering with the University of California, Berkeley and a consortium of universities and national laboratories for research and development in nuclear science, engineering, and security. The consortium is supported by a five-year, $25 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). UNLV's radi  more