News By Location

Even before Sept. 11, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory researchers were thinking of ways to combat terrorism. PNNL now contributes to the U.S. State Department's Diplomatic Security Service training program, teaching foreign firefighters, police and emergency medical personnel how to deal with weapons of mass destruction--chemical, biological and radiological--that may be used by terrorists. The training is offered to first responders in partner nations, generally in the capital, where the U.S. has an embassy or consulate.

New visualization techniques developed by scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory allow researchers to compare and analyze genomes using a powerful tool that computers cannot replace--the human brain.

We live in the age of information. Analysts are among those inundated with data. But with the aid of powerful computing techniques, analysts can make sense of volumes of data that come in many forms--text, numbers, images, video, audio.

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is building a systems biology program to unlock the mysteries of living systems. This new approach to biological research may lead to revolutionary solutions to challenges such as global warming, energy generation and treatment of diseases.

He developed a new Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) technique that resulted in Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's first million-dollar royalty license. He holds 13 U.S. patents and has numerous foreign patents and patents pending. And, now PNNL's Steve Miller has been named Battelle's Inventor of the Year for 2002.

A field of study that is only about five years old is beginning to blossom at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Proteomics is the systematic study of patterns of proteins expressed in living organisms.

The Federal Laboratory Consortium honored Pacific Northwest National Laboratory with three 2002 Excellence in Technology Transfer Awards. The FLC annually recognizes federal laboratories and their employees who have made significant contributions in transferring important federally funded technology into the private sector. With 51 awards, PNNL has been honored by the FLC more than any other federal laboratory since the recognition program began in 1984.

Steve Colson of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory uses a quote from Aristotle to describe the role of PNNL's Cellular Observatory. Colson leads the Cellular Observatory, the Laboratory's effort to provide advances in imaging tools needed for a systems biology approach to molecular and cellular biology. Eventually, these tools could help enable biological solutions to challenges in energy production and use, carbon management, bioremediation and bioterrorism.

Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the Savannah River Technology Center have developed a more efficient formula for vitrifying radioactive waste. Vitrification is a process that combines concentrated radioactive waste with glass-forming materials.

Snail mail may be an anachronism, but enough people still use traditional mail to make it a convenient tool for terrorists using bio-weapons that can be lethal in small quantities. And mail is an international affair.