ANL-West raises $7,000 for families

Argonne-West employees helped a record 13 families, with 48 children, have a bright Christmas this year by raising $7,000 for the "Christmas For Families Program."

Argonne-West employees had three different methods of giving to the needy families. One was a tree in the lobby of Building 752; ornaments on the tree were printed with the names of the children in need. Employees also gave $1,800 directly to area representatives. Some departments adopted a family; this effort raised $5,400.

Industry Week names 3 as 'R&D stars to watch'

Argonne has three representatives among Industry Week magazine's "50 R&D Stars to Watch," more than any institution except the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and General Electric.

In the annual feature, part of the magazine's technology and innovation awards, the magazine's editors select 50 persons "whose achievements are shaping the future of our industrial culture and America's technology policy."

Named in the article are:

n Yoon Chang, Associate Laboratory Director for Engineering Research. The magazine cited Chang's nuclear reactor analysis, design and trade-off studies, and his leadership in the design of the Integral Fast Reactor.

n Sunil K. Sinha, XFD associate director. Sinha was recognized for developing new techniques for using X-rays and neutron scattering to learn details about material structure. "A leader in the field, he has paved the way for better material surfaces and thin films for technologies ranging from semiconductors and magnetic recording devices to coatings and adhesives," according to Industry Week.

n Steven C. Pieper (PHY), nuclear physicist. Industry Week noted Pieper's research using quantum Monte Carlo calculations, a statistical technique, to probe the properties of atomic nuclei, and other computational techniques for addressing nuclear physics problems.

Nominations are sought for
Distinguished Performance Awards

Nominations are being sought for the 1998 University of Chicago Awards for Distinguished Performance at Argonne.

The awards recognize outstanding technical or scientific achievement or a distinguished record of achievements by a member of the lab's technical and scientific staff.

Statements of 250 words or less citing the achievement or record of the nominee should be submitted to the laboratory director. Fifteen copies are required.

Deadline for initial nominations is Monday, Feb. 9.

After internal review, the laboratory director will notify nominators of the acceptance of the nominations for submission to the University of Chicago, and additional support materials will be requested.

Van Leuven represents Idaho at convention

The Americans With Disability Act Idaho Task Force recently chose Argonne-West's Jay Van Leuven (RPS-CCS) to represent the state at the Independent Living Convention for Region X, which includes Alaska, Oregon, Washington and Idaho.

The task force was organized by the governor of Idaho to help counsel those in the state affected by the Americans With Disability Act. The Independent Living Convention, held in Anchorage, Alaska, was aimed at helping persons with disabilities overcome physical, communication and attitudinal barriers, and achieve their goals.

"I took a session on the Americans with Disabilities Act which was passed and signed by U.S. President Bush," Van Leuven said. "The purpose of this session was to help deaf people in our community learn how to cooperate with other people better."

Van Leuven has been actively involved in community service as a representative for Community Awareness for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, and is a member of Idaho Association for the Deaf.

Van Leuven has been an employee of Argonne-West's copy center for 20 years, and is currently group leader. Van Leuven was instrumental in the center's acquisition of new, up-to-date equipment, which involved elimination of old machines and obsolete technology and discontinuing use of hazardous chemicals in printing operations.

'On-line mentors' sought to help science teachers

Argonne employees are being sought to be "on-line mentors" for science teachers under the U.S. Department of Energy's "National Education Strategy to Prepare the Next Generation of Scientists."

The program will rely upon parents, teachers and professionals working together to bring science and technology to U.S. classrooms. The National Science Teachers Association will recruit mentors to work directly with students and teachers in grades K-12 through the Internet.

"We need to get our children excited and motivated about science and math so they can compete in a world where technology is at the forefront of the global marketplace," said Energy Secretary Federico Peña.

The department's partnership with the National Science Teachers Association has set an ambitious goal of recruiting 1,000 scientists, engineers and technicians from the department and its national laboratories and facilities by the year 2000 to act as on-line mentors. Mentors will answer questions science teachers might have about basic science and technology, energy use and efficiency, environmental studies, engineering, computer science and mathematics.

Employees interested in being a mentor should send name, title, organization, phone number and e-mail address to DOE's Cindy Musick by fax at (202) 586-0019 or by e-mail to cindy.musick@oer.doe.gov.

Ski night set for Jan. 31

Argonne-West's Family Ski Night will be held Saturday, Jan. 31, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Kelly Canyon Ski Resort.

Tickets are $10 per person. The price includes lift and meal tickets. Tickets may be purchased from area representatives through Jan. 30.

Santagato honored for leadership

Roger Santagato (OTD) has been honored with the Leadership Award of the Center for Internal Auditing Studies and the Accounting and Auditing Club of National-Louis University.

The award recognizes Santagato's contributions to the auditing profession and to the university for the 1996-1997 academic year.

Santagato, a member of the center's advisory board, is a supervising senior internal auditor in the Internal Audit Group of the Office of the Director. He is responsible for conducting and supervising internal audits at the laboratory. He is also Argonne's representative on peer review teams that conduct quality assurance reviews of internal audit departments at other DOE laboratories.

Retirement plans release current interest rates

Current rates for fixed interest accounts in Argonne's retirement plans are:

Fund	Contributions made from:	Rate Earned, Through
TIAA Regular	1/1/98 -- 2/28/98	6.5%, 2/28/98
TIAA Supplemental	1/1/98 -- 2/28/98	6%, 2/28/98
Prudential Fixed Interest Account*	7/1/97 --6/30/98	6.86%, 6/30/98
Prudential Guaranteed Interest Account	1/1/98 -- 3/31/98	5.85%, 12/31/99
Lincoln Life (Old Account)	1/1/98 -- 12/31/98	3.5%, 12/31/98
Lincoln Life "No Load"**	1/1/98 -- 12/31/98	5.65%, 12/31/98

*Non-staff retirement plan only.

** The minimum guaranteed interest rate for 1998 is 5.4 percent for this account.

Q&A

Q. What happens to sick or injured deer at Argonne-East?

A. Little can be done for individual deer, said Dage Blixt, a wildlife biologist assigned to Argonne by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services. "It's a wild population," he said. "Attempting to treat them usually does more harm than good."

Disease among deer at Argonne-East is currently much lower than in past years, due to the recent thinning of the herd. Reports of extremely sick deer used to average about 20 per year. The one sick deer found over the last two years, victim of a parasitic infection, was humanely dispatched with a .22 caliber pistol.

Several times each year, especially in winter, deer get tangled in snow fencing, wire or rope, Blixt said. "The fallow deer have a real affinity for that sort of thing, and they end up getting caught in it. One got wrapped up in more than 40 feet of that orange snow fencing."

Recently, two fallow deer bucks managed to get hopelessly tangled by the antlers in the same length of thick rope. The larger of the two was nearly dead from exhaustion; the smaller was also near death, having been battered during the larger animal's efforts to get free. Two USDA Wildlife services experts determined that it would be too dangerous to try to cut the rope. Both deer had to be euthanized.

Blixt said an attempt is usually made to untangle the deer if possible -- "needless to say, it can be dangerous," he added. Many deer can be freed and go on to recover.

Q&A will attempt to answer employees' questions about the laboratory, its policies, operations, history -- any question of wide interest will be considered. Fax, mail or e-mail questions to Argonne News editor Dave Jacqué, OPA-201. The fax number is ext. 2-5274; send e-mail to info@anl.gov.

Restaurant won't serve lunch Jan. 22

The Argonne Guest House restaurant will not serve lunch on Thursday, Jan. 22, due to the Guest House dedication ceremony.

4-week program to help smokers kick the habit

"Kick the Habit," a four-week smoking cessation program, will begin Wednesday, Jan. 21 at Argonne-East's Building 200, Room J183.

Conducted by Hinsdale Hospital, the program has a 90 percent success rate for those who complete the program. The program includes support groups and specially trained counselors who will provide instruction on nutrition, exercise and behavior modification.

Meetings will be held Jan. 21, 26 and 28 and Feb. 2, 4 and 9 from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Participants will be refunded the $20 fee if they remain non-smokers after nine months.

The program is sponsored by Argonne's Preventive Health and Wellness Program.

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