Science on Saturday (Audio)

When a killer infection spreads in the movies, the doctors triage and isolate the patients while a medical biologist races to diagnose the illness and find a cure. Inevitably a national emergency follows as the virus or bacteria wipe out an unsuspecting population. While this may be Hollywood's vision, Reg Beer, the Medical Diagnostics Initiative Leader at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, explains the Lab-on-Chip technologies he develops for time-critical Molecular Diagnostics applications. Series: "Lawrence Livermore National Lab Science on Saturday" [Science] [Show ID: 25750]

After traveling through the inner solar system for seven years, NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft reached Mercury in March 2011 and became the first ever mission to orbit this mysterious planet. Since then MESSENGER has been making measurements with its suite of scientific instruments including gamma-ray, neutron and x-ray spectrometers, magnetometer, laser altimeter, cameras and other instruments. Join Morgan Burks, a physicist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, to explore the mysteries surrounding Mercury's formation and composition and the instruments that need to work at cryogenic temperatures in one of the hottest places in the solar system. Series: "Lawrence Livermore National Lab Science on Saturday" [Science] [Show ID: 24905]

The probability of a magnitude 6.7 or greater earthquake in the Greater Bay Area during the next 30 years is 63 percent, or about two out of three. Lawrence Livermore National Lab scientist Sean Ford and teacher Ken Wedel discuss what an earthquake of that size in the Bay Area would look like and explain its effects. Just like an earthquake, a nuclear test can cause seismic disturbances that are recorded at monitoring stations around the world. Learn how seismologists tell the difference between these two sources by sleuthing seismic signals. Series: "Lawrence Livermore National Lab Science on Saturday" [Science] [Show ID: 24772]

Paul Jackson, Division Leader of the Biosciences and Biotechnology Division at Lawrence Livermore National Lab, presents a brief history of antibiotic use and discusses the medical and public policy factors that are, in part, responsible for increased antibiotic resistance in pathogenic microbes. He and biology teacher Frankie Tate then introduce a new generation of antimicrobial compounds that are derived from the bacteria's own genes that may be clinically useful to treat infections caused by antibiotic resistant pathogens.

Series: "Lawrence Livermore National Lab Science on Saturday" [Science] [Show ID: 24518]

Space junk - thousands of debris objects are hurtling around the earth with the potential of crashing into one another. As we launch more satellites, the risk of a satellite colliding with another satellite or a piece of space junk increases, threatening those satellite services we depend on. John Henderson, remote sensing scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory reviews the many ways we use satellites, how space collisions happen, how much of a danger space collisions are, and what can be done to prevent space collisions. Series: "Lawrence Livermore National Lab Science on Saturday" [Science] [Show ID: 24517]

Millions of people worldwide suffer from ocular diseases that degrade the retina, the light-processing component of the eye, causing blindness. A team from Lawrence Livermore National labs describes how the nervous system works and how neurons communicate then discuss the first long-term retinal prosthesis that can function for years inside the harsh biological environment of the eye. Series: "Lawrence Livermore National Lab Science on Saturday" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 24516]

George Caporaso, LLNL scientist, explores the role radiation plays in the treatment of cancer, and in particular, how the use of energetic proton beams could improve cancer treatment. Unfortunately, this type of treatment has limited availability due to the large size and cost of current proton therapy systems. A new type of particle accelerator that holds promise of greatly miniaturizing proton treatment systems and making this treatment more widely available will be described. Series: "Lawrence Livermore National Lab Science on Saturday" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 22011]

Can we produce much of the energy we need from clean, renewable sources? Jeff Mirocha, atmospheric scientist and the technical leader of LLNL's wind energy research group, and Sonia Wharton, post-doctorate scholar in the Climate/Carbon Science Group, argue that wind energy can lead the way. Learn why the wind blows, where the winds blow the best, how energy can be generated from the wind, and how science and engineering can ensure a reliable and abundant supply of green, renewable energy to power our future. Series: "Lawrence Livermore National Lab Science on Saturday" [Science] [Show ID: 22010]

The periodic table is on the wall of most science classrooms, but it is changing. Ken Moody, Chief Scientist for Radiochemistry, explains that recent discoveries of new elements have extended the periodic table beyond what was thought was possible, and demonstrates the existence of a collection of Superheavy Elements with unusual nuclear properties at the limits of stability. Explore the relationship between atoms and elements, and between nuclei and isotopes. Discover how new elements are produced and identified, and how this leads to experiments that tell us about the extreme limits of chemical behavior, the possible breakdown of periodicity, and the ultimate end of the periodic table. Series: "Lawrence Livermore National Lab Science on Saturday" [Science] [Show ID: 22009]

LLNL scientist Dean Williams explores the evolution of climate models with from the mid 1970's to the present. Methods for testing climate models against a variety of benchmarks such as historical climate changes or seasonal changes are explained. Several key issues arising from global climate change are highlighted followed by suggestions for actions that will help limit carbon dioxide emissions. Series: "Lawrence Livermore National Lab Science on Saturday" [Science] [Show ID: 22008]