1-Jan-2001
Study of ice leads to cool new research
Scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory who studied how ice on comets can store large quantities of gas and release them as the comets near the sun are applying the same approach to new research. They're learning more about how nano-structures could be used to control and enhance chemical reactivity.

31-Dec-2000
Random acts of brightness
Costas Soukoulis, an Ames Laboratory senior physicis and former Iowa State University graduate student Xunya Jiang, now working at DiCon Fiberoptics, Inc., near Berkeley, Calif., have developed a theoretical model that simulates the phenomenon of random lasing, in which photons that follow random paths create a multiple-light-scattering laser.

31-Dec-2000
The stuff that came in from the cold
Despite the best efforts of particle physicists and astrophysicists, most of the Universe is still missing. We know where it is, but we don't know what it is. It is all around us, but we can only see it by looking far, far away. That is the challenge for the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS).

31-Dec-1999
Evaluating vehicle emissions controls
ORNL researchers are developing software tools for supercomputers that will simulate engine exhaust from various lean-burn diesel and gasoline engines as it flows through envisioned catalytic converters designed to chemically transform pollutants into harmless emissions.

31-Dec-1999
Polymers plus quasicrystals — A puzzling interaction
Sometimes trying something that really shouldn't work can lead to an amazing discovery. That's what happened to Valerie Sheares, an Ames Laboratory associate and Iowa State University assistant professor of chemistry. The discovery, a polymer-quasicrystal composite, has the best characteristics of each of the constituent parts. It's opened the door for a variety of innovative uses. Why it works, however, remains a puzzle—one that Sheares is eager to solve.