NEWS AND EVENTS 2008
04/08/08 • view photographs »
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After two million hours of science a British world first bids farewell
Cleaner fuel, safer aircraft and new medicines, not to mention a Nobel prize, great tasting chocolate and iPods - all of these things have been influenced or made possible by world leading scientific research carried out on the Synchrotron Radiation Source at the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s Daresbury Laboratory in Warrington, which closes today, 4th August 2008, after 28 years of operation and two million hours of science.
The SRS was a genuine world first, pioneering the way for the development of 60 similar machines around the world. Since 1980 it has played a key role in enabling and performing cutting edge research in many areas of UK and international science. The SRS produces beams of light so intense that they can reveal the structure of atoms and molecules inside materials. It produces this light by generating beams of high energy electrons travelling close to the speed of light. Over the last 28 years, synchrotron light has supported cutting-edge research in physics, chemistry and materials science and opened up many new areas of research in fields such as medicine, geological and environmental studies, structural genomics and archaeology.
The SRS has improved the quality of our lives in a remarkable number of ways that we take for granted. As examples, it has helped develop new medicines by studying the atomic structure of proteins; it has enabled the production of new materials for use in electronics and clothing; it has led to the development of new detergents. It has even played a role in improving the taste of chocolate and the safety of aircraft by looking at the crystal formations in chocolate and metal. Even the huge magnetic memory of the iPod is due to research carried out on the SRS. However, its most famous achievement by far is the critical role it played towards a share of a Nobel prize in chemistry to Sir John Walker in 1997, for solving a structure of an enzyme that opened the way for new insights into metabolic and regenerative disease.
During its lifetime, the SRS has collaborated with almost every country active in scientific research. It has hosted over 11,000 users from academia, government laboratories and industry worldwide, leading to the publication of more than 5000 research papers in leading journals. It has resulted in numerous patents and has solved over 1200 protein structures.
The formal closing ceremony, which takes place at STFC Daresbury Laboratory today, will be attended by leading figures from the machine’s history, including Professor Ian Munro, one of the original founders of the concept that synchrotron light could be used to perform science, and who was responsible for the plans for building the SRS and its operation. Of the closure Ian said: “It is with immense pride and a great sense of achievement that I look back and contemplate the success of the SRS not to mention the teamwork and expertise at Daresbury that went into building, maintaining and operating this great British scientific facility. Of course this is a sad occasion for me, but since the day the SRS was first switched on it has always been subject to a fixed life span and this day was always going to come. The SRS has kept the UK at the forefront of scientific research and now passes its baton onto the new Diamond Light Source in Oxfordshire, the UK’s direct successor to the SRS. Diamond will continue to build on the positive legacy of Synchrotron light research in this country.”
Professor Colin Whitehouse, STFC’s Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Campus Strategy said: “The SRS was one of the world’s most pioneering scientific inventions and Daresbury can be very proud of its outstanding achievements.” He added: “Though the SRS has gone, Daresbury Laboratory is growing. It is part of a burgeoning national Science and Innovation Campus and the home of the Cockcroft Institute, a national centre for Accelerator Science and Technology, amongst other world-class research facilities. The Government’s recent announcement of £65M earmarked for Daresbury will provide two new additional Science and Technology Gateway Centres for computational science and engineering and detector systems. Daresbury will also continue its state-of-the-art accelerator science and technology research programmes based on the continuing operation of the Energy Recovery Linac Prototype known as ALICE, a technology which already offers important prospects for new cancer treatments.”
STFC recently announced the launch of the New Light Source Project (NLS). Building on the considerable expertise across the STFC’s Daresbury and Rutherford Appleton Laboratories, Diamond Light Source Limited and collaborating universities, the NLS aims to develop the world’s next most advanced light source technology that will succeed the current generation of international machines so that the UK can continue to sustain world leading capabilities in key areas of research and technology.
Links: STFC | BBC
 02/08/08
Last Multi-User Beam at 00:19 on August 2nd 2008
Pictured below are some of the experimentalists who were using the last official multi-user beam on 2nd August. The photograph was taken in the main control room in early hours of the morning. The beam quality was very high, some 140mA with 46 hours of beam lifetime. It was no surprise that some 23 users were on a variety of stations coming from as far away as Uppsala, Sweden.
24/07/08
SRS host SESAME fellow Dr. Wael Salah for 4 months
who is supported by the IAEA
Left to right: Dr. Wael Salah, Dr. Pat Ridey, Dr. Tracy Turner and Mr. Paul Quinn
www.sesame.org.jo/
07/05/08
Fungi have a hand in depleted uranium's environmental fate
Fungi may have an important role to play in the fate of potentially dangerous depleted uranium left in the environment after recent war campaigns, according to a new report in the May 6th issue of Current Biology, a publication of Cell Press.
The researchers found evidence that fungi can “lock” depleted uranium into a mineral form that may be less likely to find its way into plants, animals, or the water supply.
“This work provides yet another example of the incredible properties of microorganisms in effecting transformations of metals and minerals in the natural environment,” said Geoffrey Gadd of the University of Dundee in Scotland. “Because fungi are perfectly suited as biogeochemical agents, often dominate the biota in polluted soils, and play a major role in the establishment and survival of plants through their association with roots, fungal-based approaches should not be neglected in remediation attempts for metal-polluted soils.”
The researchers include Marina Fomina of University of Dundee in Dundee, Scotland; John M. Charnock of Synchrotron Radiation Source (SRS) Daresbury Laboratory in Daresbury, Warrington, Cheshire; Stephen Hillier of Macaulay Institute in Craigiebuckler, Aberdeen, Scotland; Rebeca Alvarez and Francis Livens of University of Manchester in Manchester, UK; and Geoffrey M. Gadd of University of Dundee in Dundee, Scotland.
15/04/08
Miniaturising Electronics to the Nanoscale
An Mp3 player with a one million gigabyte memory capacity could soon be a reality. A team of scientists led by the University of Glasgow, working alongside colleagues at the STFC Daresbury Laboratory in Warrington, have successfully created a new type of molecular device that has the potential to dramatically increase the storage capacity in electronic devices. The full paper on this research has been published (30th March) in the scientific publication, Nature nanotechnology.
As the demand for the miniaturisation of gadgets meets with the quest for infinitely larger memories, the critical limitations are those posed by the traditional silicon chip. Using X-rays at the Daresbury Laboratory’s synchrotron light source (SRS), this team of scientists have formed a totally new type of molecular switch using nanoparticles, paving the way for a new generation of devices and applications.
…read more »
14/04/08
Sharing Learning from Safety, Health & Environment Incidents at Daresbury
Download safety information posters here.
27/03/08
Dr J. G. Grossmann elected a
Fellow of the Institute of Physics
Dr J. G. Grossmann has recently been elected a Fellow of the Institute of Physics in recognition of his contributions to biophysics research and in particular to the development of small angle x-ray scattering in the biomolecular field over many years, where he has established an international reputation both for himself and for Daresbury Laboratory. Guenter’s election means that the Molecular Biophysics Group now counts three Fellows of the Institute of Physics among its members.
11/03/08
Launch of NLS Project and the Research Institute for Photon Science
STFC is pleased to announce that the NLS (New Light Source) Project will be launched with a Town Meeting in London on April 11th 2008. The purpose of this project is to examine the case for a New Light Source Facility in the UK with unique and world leading capabilities.
…more »
11/03/08
Summer School on Applications of Synchrotron Radiation Techniques in
Earth and Environmental Science
The school will be held from the 12th-15th August 2008, based at St Hilda’s College, Oxford.
…more »
07/03/08
STFC consultation exercise on the recent programmatic review exercise
http://www.scitech.ac.uk/stfcconsultation/comment.aspx.
Additional information has now been placed on the website to provide a brief explanation about what was considered under each heading on the PALS prioritisation list. You are would encouraged to read this document prior to submitting a response. If you have already submitted a response please feel free to send in another response if this additional information changes your opinion.
04/03/08
X-rays Shed Light on Magnetic Bacteria to Improve Cancer Therapy
A team of scientists from the University of Edinburgh, working alongside colleagues at the STFC Daresbury Laboratory in Warrington, have identified that certain naturally occurring bacteria are able to create tiny magnets that could be intensified and developed for use in cancer treatments. Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, this research has been published online in the scientific publication, Nature Nanotechnology.
For many years scientists have been trying to take advantage of the natural ability that certain bacteria have for creating these chains of tiny magnets that are less than 1/1000th of the size of a human hair. Known as ‘bio-nanomagnets’, they could hold the key to creating effective, targeted anti-cancer therapies. Guided magnetically, they could be used as miniature shuttles for moving drugs around the human body to specific sites, particularly to cancer tumours. The heat generated from another external magnet to make the nanomagnets vibrate very rapidly would then also destroy the surrounding diseased cells without affecting healthy tissue.
…read more »
25/02/08
STFC Science Board Town Meeting
Sir Peter Knight and Prof Jenny Thomas (Chair and Deputy Chair of STFC’s Science Board) will make a presentation to our research communities and answer questions. They will outline the current status of the programmatic review, the next steps, and STFC’s plans for community consultation.
The Town Meeting will be held in the Ocean Suite at The Cumberland Hotel, Marble Arch, London W1A 4RF on the 3rd March at 14:30 hours.
Places at the meeting will be allocated on a strictly first come, first served basis. To register your attendance please email Susan Ketels.
25/02/08
The UK Light Source Review
A review of the UK`s Light Source strategy is nearing completion. An independent, international Panel of experts has been formed to consider the scientific capabilities and opportunities currently available to UK researchers, and to make recommendations on an overall strategy which will inform decisions on the development of current and new facilities
.…read more »
15/02/2008
AP 50 TRAVEL and CONSUMABLES CLAIMS
In the past Universities have been given up to six months after the end of the relevant beam time allocation period to submit travel claims associated with SRS beam time awards. In the light of staff reductions, administration procedures are now being reviewed as we approach the wind up of the SRS and final Travel and Consumable claims for AP 50 must be submitted to the User Liaison Office no later than 30th AUGUST 2008.
Similarly, as those of you with outstanding Consumables claims have already been notified (by e-mail 5/12/2007), all consumables claims associated with AP49 awards should be submitted to the ULO by June 2008 at the latest.
There are still a number of unclaimed consumables awards associated with Allocation Periods 47(where beam time was carried forward into AP48) and 48 and this message serves also as a reminder that the deadline for those claims will be March 2008.
15/01/2008
Daresbury Laboratory’s high energy light source paves way for ground breaking research into cancer and life threatening diseases
 A multinational team of scientists, led by the Department of Biological Sciences at Lancaster University, have confirmed that research carried out at the STFC Daresbury Laboratory in Warrington has provided a much deeper understanding of human stem cells, paving the way for ground breaking research into life threatening diseases, such as cancer, and the treatment of injuries. The full paper on this research has been published today (14th January) in the scientific publication, Stem Cells.
…read more »
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