In the News:

(9/23/07)

Researchers at UC Berkeley are launching an ambitious new effort to find better methods of detecting nuclear material. (Continue ...)

(9/14/07)

A pair of federal grants will help researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, improve domestic security by developing better methods of detecting nuclear material. (Continue ...)

(9/07/07)

UC Berkeley researchers will be working on a new project to improve nuclear defense technology, using a $1.4 million grant the campus received from the Department of Homeland Security and the National Science Foundation last month. (Continue ...)

(9/04/07)

What do a terrorist nuke and kitty litter have in common?

They can look the same to a radiation-detector. So can a bunch of bananas.

All of them give off gamma rays and thereby highlight a critical problem in efforts to protect the nation from smuggled nuclear materials: How can screeners find the bad stuff without slowing the inspection of imported goods to an economy-crippling crawl? (Continue ...)

The DONUTS(Domestic NUclear Threat Security) Initiative uses a four-pronged approach towards its goal of enabling the detection of nuclear weapon materials at ports of entry into the United States. These areas are development of new detector materials, development of imaging algorithms and data mining for informed decisionmaking, expanding the nuclear physics data base, and development of improved signal processing and networks for detectors.

DoNuTS Technical Biweekly Meeting

Time: 1600 Wednesday, 2 April 2008

Place: NE Conference Room, 4101 Etcheverry

Speaker: Erik Swanberg, UCB Nuclear Engineering

Subject: Radionuclide Monitoring for Nuclear Weapons Tests

Abstract:

Atmospheric radionuclide monitoring is part of the verification system of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). The four components of the system, radionuclide, seismic, hydroacoustic, and infrasound, combine to give very sensitive detection of clandestine nuclear tests. This presentation will look first at the CTBT and the verification regime, focusing on the radionuclide components. Next the RASA particulate monitoring system and the ARSA radioxenon monitoring system will be discussed. There will be a brief overview of radionuclide generation and transport. Lastly will be a discussion of using atmospheric modeling and isotopic ratios to determine where the source might be located, and if the source was a reactor or nuclear weapon.

Note: Donuts will be served!

Hochbaum's Weekly Seminar

Time: 1530 to 1730 Thursdays

Place: IEOR Conference Room

Subject: Methodology for Data Mining and Image Analysis

Note: Check Agenda to see if the meeting will be held or not.