12 GeV Upgrade

The Request for Proposal (RFP) solicitation for the Central Helium Liquefier (CHL) Building Addition construction contract was issued by procurement on Sept. 30. Thirty-six contractor personnel attended the pre-proposal conference and site visit held on Oct. 17. The closing date for proposals is Oct. 30. The award will be based on lowest price and technical capability. Capability will be determined based on the offerors' technical proposals of their experience with similar work, past performance and safety & health programs.

Physics

In Hall A, the installation of the polarized helium-3 target is proceeding smoothly. The assembly of the polarized target is in its final stages, as is that of the laser table above the target. The calibrations with the water cell have been completed. Both High Resolution Spectrometers are now cold.

L'Oreal USA Fellowships For Women in Science
Now in its sixth year, the L'Oreal USA Fellowships For Women in Science program has announced the 2009 call for applications. This year, L'Oreal USA will award five women with grants of up to $60,000 each. Applicants are welcome from a variety of fields, including the life and physical/material sciences, computer science, engineering and mathematics. The deadline for applications is Oct. 31. For more information and to apply, visit the L'Oreal USA Fellowships For Women in Science website.

The AIP State Department Science Fellowship Program
This fellowship is intended to enhance the S&T capacity of the State Department by enabling at least one scientist annually to work at the Department’s Washington, D.C. headquarters for a one-year term. This is a unique opportunity for a scientist to contribute scientific and technical expertise to the department and raise awareness of the value of scientific input. In turn, scientists broaden their experience by interacting with policymakers in the federal government and learning about the foreign policy process. The deadline for applications is Nov. 1. For more information and to apply, visit the AIP website.

Accelerator

Comprehensive measurements of accelerator cavity Qs, which indicates how much heat each cavity is producing during operations, continued for several days. Characterizing each cavity's Q allows operators to better manage the total heat load on the CHL during operations. After radiofrequency (RF) optimization, pulsed beam was gradually steered around the accelerator into the Beam Switchyard. The Optics Restoration and Finalization Plan (ORFP) was started; this is a major step in preparing the beam for delivery to the halls. ORFP was completed and RF optimization continued while the experimental halls began final preparations for beam operations.

Free-Electron Laser (FEL)

There was major progress in getting the FEL gun operational. Carlos Hernandez-Garcia developed a new krypton processing procedure that was successful in breaking through an emission whisker barrier that had been limiting the gun to below 270 Kilovolts. The procedure also has the advantage of quickly processing the gas emission from the gun, saving many hours of conditioning time.  The gun was processed to 374 kV in preparation for operation at 350 kV. In addition, a high quantum efficiency cathode was made on Friday.

Theory Center

In arxiv:0810.3588 [hep-lat], members of the Theory Center presented the first lattice QCD calculation of the light-hadron spectrum using two light and one strange flavor of dynamical fermions formulated on an anisotropic lattice (different lattice spacings in the time and space directions). These ensembles are essential for the next stage of lattice calculations of such quantities as masses and form factors of excited nucleon resonances and the spectrum of (exotic) mesons, which is to be measured in the future GlueX experimen at JLab.

JLab's Safety Numbers

42 Days since Last Recordable Accident (JLab record: 331)
42 Days since Last Lost Workday Accident (JLab record: 676)

JLab Calendar of Events

Oct. 24: JLab Adopt-A-Spot litter pickup
Oct. 29: JLab Fall Festival
Nov. 2: Fall Back - Daylight Saving Time ends
Nov. 18: Science Series Lecture: NextGen
Nov. 21-22: Lattice QCD and Experiment: Revealing the Structure of Hadrons
Nov. 27-28: Thanksgiving holiday - JLab closed

Environment, Safety, Health & Quality

As many of you know, JLab has begun implementing various quality assurance policies and procedures throughout the site. The Quality Assurance and Continuous Improvement (QA/CI) department has established a prioritized implementation plan and is working with process owners to establish robust systems that will not only meet the DOE guidelines but also improve JLab's overall performance.

Policies and procedures should be considered training supplements. Often they are viewed as required documentation; however, their best use is as comprehensive, ready references that ensure standardized work processes. This standard-process approach helps to minimize variation, which in turn improves safety and efficiency, mitigating the risk for mistake or injury.
 
A good policy provides a set of principles, along with a justification for the principles and an explanation of who is responsible for their implementation. A good procedure describes the process by which the policy is implemented. Generally these include:

• A description of when to initiate the procedure
• Responsibilities assigned for each step
• Tollgates within the process steps to proceed
• Documentation of results and/or the completion of the process

QA/CI will be conducting meetings with individual departments to familiarize everyone with the QA implementation plan, dates and where they fit within the overall plan. Contact Mary Jo Bailey, x7277, or Bruce Lenzer, x7586, with any questions or comments.

Computing and Networking Infrastructure (CNI)

The network in the EEL Building will be unavailable for several hours on Tuesday, Oct. 28, starting at 5 p.m. The network switches are being upgraded to support automatic VLan assignment. Please visit http://reggie.jlab.org to ensure that your networked equipment is registered. If you are still offline on Wednesday, Oct. 29, contact the HelpDesk at x7155.

Announcements

Adopt-A-Spot Litter Pickup
Volunteers are needed to help pick up litter along Jefferson Avenue from 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 24. Participants will meet in the CEBAF Center lobby at 11:15 a.m. for a short safety briefing, to get necessary gear and to get route assignments. Participants will pick up litter along the sidewalk and grassy areas from Onnes Drive to the corner of Jefferson Avenue and Oyster Point Road. Volunteers are asked to sign up electronically. Signing up helps event planners have adequate supplies available. For more information regarding this event, visit the Jefferson the Adopt-A-Spot website.

New Plotter in Document Control
The newest plotter is up and running, and although there are some issues with it, the Document Control group encourages all users to use the DCG printers as needed. Cadplot-10 produces bond prints and Cadplot-11 produces C-, D- and E-size vellum prints (C-size prints require trimming). In addition, a software update is coming soon. Notify Terrie Fuell, x7471, or Bridget Paul, x7306, if you are experiencing difficulties printing to Document Control printers.

Oktoberfest!
JLab employees, immediate family members and Users are invited to the annual Jefferson Lab Activities Group/JSA Oktoberfest on Wednesday, Oct. 29, from 3-6 p.m. in the field behind the Residence Facility. Come early to enjoy the Brunswick stew, chili, grilled foods and beverages. Stay for the adults’ costume contest and the children’s costume parade, a hobby vehicle show and a long list of activities.

Got a cool ride? Register today to feature your ride in the JLab in Motion Hobby Vehicle Show. The poster has complete details.

Volunteers make this event possible. A number of volunteer positions need filling, especially food tent assistants; field games assistants, kids’ arts/crafts/tattoos attendants; popcorn and snow-cone machine attendants and a treasure-in-the-haystack attendant. If you haven’t yet signed up to help, visit the JAG Oktoberfest volunteer page and sign up today. Just one hour of your time helps immensely.

United Way Raffle
Raffle tickets for the 42-inch LCD/HD TV will continue to be sold from 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. in the CEBAF Center lobby each day this month until the Oktoberfest. Tickets are $1.00 and all proceeds go to the United Way. The winning ticket will be drawn and announced at Oktoberfest and the winning ticket number also will be sent out via e-mail.

TIAA-CREF Retirement Counseling Sessions
The November and December dates for individual counseling sessions are set for Thursday, Nov. 13 and Thursday, Dec. 11. This is an opportunity to discuss the current status of your account, investment strategy and retirement goals. To sign up for an appointment go to the TIAA-CREF website, click on Meetings & Counseling and follow the menu. The sessions will be held in VARC 42.

Physics Nobel Laureate Speaks
John C. Mather will be the featured speaker for Old Dominion University's Nobel Laureate Public Lecture Series at 10 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 13, at the Ted Constant Convocation Center. Mather 's lecture "From the Big Bang to the Nobel Prize and on to the James Webb Space Telescope and the Discovery of Alien Life," will explore the history of the universe, the birth of planets and stars and the existence of other Earth-like planets capable of sustaining life.