Tev revs up, operators troubleshoot, fight raccoons Operators in the Main Control Room prepare to inject a batch of protons into the Tevatron, their fourth store since shutdown ended the first week of June. (Click on image for larger version.) "At 1:24 a.m., Operations reported a raccoon attack in the Linac gallery. It seemed to be a coordinated effort. Fortunately, by 1:53 AM, a joint force of operators and Pbar experts managed to drive the raccoons out of their hastily made fortifications. Then at 4:18 p.m., the raccoons made what some thought to be a counterattack on the Division Headquarters, but others believed it to be only a simple reconnaissance incursion. No raccoons were either injured or captured during these encounters. Operator losses were low." So read the annals of the accelerator update for the last week of May 2006. It's been an exciting time here at the lab as the shutdown phase comes to a close. A trip to the Main Control Room will show you operators and physicists bustling from one wall of computer monitors to another, leaning over each others' work, answering phones, speaking animatedly. "The machine has to work so precisely," said Roger Dixon, Head of Accelerator Division. "One hundred thousand things have to go right." A hundred thousand is just about the number of devices that work together to make the Tevatron run. It's not quite as bad as it sounds, though, Dixon added. There have already been four stores of protons since June 9. The latest one, on Thursday, reached twice the maximum luminosity recorded when Dixon came to the division three and a half years ago, although it wasn't up to the level of storage just before shutdown last March. Eventually the Tevatron is expected to deliver luminosities about fifty percent greater than it was delivering last year. "We want to make more collisions for those detectors. So we try to put as much beam in there as possible," Dixon said. "It's not a complicated plan--it's just difficult to execute it."

--Jennifer Lauren Lee Fermilab Employees gathered for a hotdog lunch after last Thursday's volunteer cleanup. (Click image for larger version.)

National Public Radio Broadcast, June 16, 2006:

Fermilab in Race for Discovery BATAVIA (2006-06-16) Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in west suburban Batavia operates the most powerful machine for smashing particles in the world. But that's about to change. A new collider is being built in Europe that's more than four times as big. So Fermilab scientists have spent the past several years upgrading their accelerator to operate at peak efficiency. They say the study of particles can answer questions about the ultimate structure of space and time and the birth of the universe. But if they're going to find any of these answers at Fermilab, time is running out.

Hear Broadcast

West Nile Virus The mosquito culex pipiens is the primary carrier of West Nile Virus from birds to humans. In North America, West Nile Virus has become a reappearing disease of the summer and fall months. This year it has already appeared in mosquitoes collected from five Illinois counties including Cook and Dupage. Fortunately, about 80 percent of people infected with WNV have no symptoms at all. Most of the rest experience a flu-like condition with fever, headache, body aches, nausea and vomiting that lasts a few days to a few weeks. An unfortunate 0.7 percent gets really sick with high fever, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, vision loss, numbness and paralysis. This severe form is more common in people over 50 and can continue for several weeks. Neurological effects can be permanent and even death can result. The best way to protect yourself against WNV is to reduce the mosquito threat through measures such as the following: Eliminate sources of standing water that could breed mosquitoes, such as water in empty cans, tops of 55 gallon drums, old tires or any other receptacles. Avoid the outdoors when mosquitoes are active, especially between dusk and dawn. Wear shoes and socks and long pants and a long-sleeved shirt. Apply DEET-containing insect repellent that according to label instructions. Confirm the integrity of your building. Repair or replace screens or other routes that mosquitoes can get inside. Safety Tip of the Week Archive

June 15 - 16

- One store provided 18 hours and 53 minutes of luminosity

- Linac RF station holds off all beam

- Vacuum problem halts NuMI beam

- Machine Reports Read the Current Accelerator Update

Read the Early Bird Report

View the Tevatron Luminosity Charts Temporary Closing of Wilson Hall North Atrium

Due to window washing on Wednesday, June 21, the Wilson Hall atrium will be closed from 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Mentors available

Some mentor pairings are still available for DASTOW on Thursday, June 22. Girls 12 years old and older can spend the morning with a woman scientist or engineer. You must sign up in advance. For information, email mikep@fnal.gov. Lecture on Particle Accelerators and Sub-Nuclear Physics

CDF's Giorgio Bellettini will present a lecture on Particle Accelerators and Sub-Nuclear Physics at 6 pm on June 20 at the Istituto Italiano di Cultura. For more information, visit this website. Housing Assignments for Fall 2006 and Spring 2007

The Fermilab Housing Office is now taking requests for houses, apartments, and dormitory rooms for Fall 2006 and Spring 2007. Since there will be a large influx of experimenters, and requests are anticipated to be in excess of our available facilities, you are urged to submit your request for reservations to the Housing Office by Monday, July 3, 2006. Requests can be made for any period and need not commence on any particular date. Individual housing requests can be made by using our online housing request form, but requests for multiple housing units are best handled by direct email to housing@fnal.gov. For further information, please contact the Housing Office at: (630) 840-3777 or email housing@fnal.gov. Dicount Tickets

Discount Tickets Discount tickets are available for "110 IN The Shade" at the Cahn Auditorium, August 19 - 27; Disney on Ice, "Monsters, Inc." at the Allstate Arena, September 21 - 24; and Disney Live, Mickey's Magic Show at the Rosemont Horizon, October 12 - 15. Tickets are ordered directly. Registration forms can be found in the Recreation Office or on the Recreation web page. Upcoming Activities