31
May2012
DOE program managers are routinely called upon to identify peer reviewer candidates for grant and field work proposals. Each proposal requires a minimum of three reviewers and often more to cover separate aspects of the proposal. To generate reviewer candidates, program managers draw upon their subject matter expertise and manually scour journal literature. Although this process is facilitated by the availability of electronic journals, it is labor intensive and represents a major cost.
24
May2012
The coolest people are found on OSTI’s .EDUconnections Spotlights. Penn State’s Dr. Prabhu and Dr. Paulsonresearch different fields but discovered a possible cure for leukemia over a pizza faculty lunch.
17
May2012
The Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI) plays an integral role in ensuring transparency and access to the results of the Department of Energy’s scientific efforts – and such transparency and access help assure DOE’s scientific integrity, according to a policy statement recently issued by Secretary of Energy Steven Chu.
“Science and technology are the foundation of all Department of Energy activities…,” the Secretarial Policy Statement on Scientific Integrity opens. “The Department’s mission relies on objective, reliable, accurate, and accessible scientific and technical information.” And OSTI addresses the agency’s responsibilities to collect, preserve and disseminate scientific and technical information emanating from the Department’s research and development activities.
24
Apr2012
Preservation Week was created in 2010 because there are over 630 million items in collecting institutions such as libraries that require immediate attention and care.
Preserving books, articles and other important information is no easy task because as many as 80% of these institutions have no paid staff dedicated to carry out these activities, and 22% operate without any collections care personnel. Complicating matters, it is estimated that 2.6 billion items are not protected by an emergency plan, which means these resources are in jeopardy should a disaster strike. One way to protect and preserve these resources, as well as make them more readily available to a wider audience, is digital preservation.
16
Apr2012
April 22, 2012 is the 42nd celebration of Earth Day, a day that is intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth's natural environment. The first Earth Day focused on the United States, but it has grown over the years and is now celebrated in more than 175 countries every year. The U.S. Department of Energy will be celebrating Earth Week April 16-20 in the Forrestal Building and April 23-29 in Germantown.
Many of the program offices, including the Office of Scientific and Technical Information(OSTI) will have displays, plus there will be activities such as environmental films, green bag lunches, nature walks and talks, children’s activities, free recycling of personal electronics, a farmers marketand community activity days. The Earth Week activities are sure to be fun, and it is a great opportunity to see how the Department is “Changing Behavior to Reduce DOE’s Carbon Footprint.”
