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The Los Alamos nuclear weapons laboratory in New Mexico is missing 67 computers, including 13 that were lost or stolen in the past year. Officials say no classified information has been lost. The watchdog group Project on Government Oversight on Wednesday released a memo dated Feb. 3 from the Energy Department's National Nuclear Security Administration outlining the loss of the computers. Kevin Roark, a spokesman for Los Alamos, on Wednesday confirmed the computers were missing and said the lab was initiating a monthlong inventory to account for every computer. He said the computers were a cybersecurity issue because they may contain personal information like names and addresses, but they did not contain any classified information.

The Los Alamos nuclear weapons laboratory in New Mexico is missing 69 computers, including at least a dozen that were stolen last year, a lab spokesman said. No classified information has been lost, spokesman Kevin Roark said. The watchdog group Project on Government Oversight on Wednesday released a memo dated Feb. 3 from the Energy Department's National Nuclear Security Administration that said 67 computers were missing, including 13 that were lost or stolen in past 12 months. Roark initially confirmed those figures, but later updated them. He said a total of 80 computers were lost or stolen in 2008, but 11 were recovered.

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. says the presence of the fault was discovered using new computer programming that maps epicenters Pacific Gas & Electric Co. officials announced today that they have discovered a new earthquake fault offshore of Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant. The presence of the fault was discovered using new computer programming that allows geologists to better map the epicenters of the many small magnitude earthquakes in the area, said Lloyd Cluff, head of PG&E's earthquake risk management program, in a summary sent to the California Energy Commission earlier this week.

With echoes of that fantastic/horrifying nuclear thriller Edge Of Darkness (don't wait for the film, see the original TV series), energy giant EDF has been busted for spying on our colleagues at the Greenpeace in France. Five people have been indicted by the French courts, including two EDF security executives, a computer expert and the head of a private investigation firm. The charge: attempting to hack into Greenpeace computer systems in France.

New Mexico-based Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) , the nation's leading nuclear weapons lab, once again finds itself the focus of concerns about potentially serious cybersecurity lapses. The Project on Government Oversight (POGO) , a watchdog group, Wednesday released a memo from the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) expressing concern over the theft of three computers from the home of an employee at Los Alamos National Security LLC (LANS) in January. LANS is a limited liability company comprising the University of California at Oakland, Bechtel National Inc. and two other firms that have been managing LANL since 2006.

"Egypt will not enjoy its sovereignty unless it has the strength to implement a just peace, and therefore developing a nuclear program is part of national security," says Dr. Rashad Al-Qubaisi, the former head of the International Center for Nuclear Weapons at the United Nations and the person responsible for preparing a report on establishing a nuclear reactor in Egypt. "I am of the opinion that possessing an atom bomb is essential if you want to enjoy power and sovereignty. I will not forget what the Indian ambassador said to me when we discovered that India was holding nuclear experiments in 1997 - 'Our national security is more important to us than water or food.'" Qubaisi, who criticizes the Egyptian government for not approving nuclear supervision in its territory, says no country in the region, including Israel, has conducted nuclear experiments because they are so simple to trace. "Israel conducts its experiments via computer simulations - impossible to detect," he says.

"Egypt will not enjoy its sovereignty unless it has the strength to implement a just peace, and therefore developing a nuclear program is part of national security," says Dr. Rashad Al-Qubaisi, the former head of the International Center for Nuclear Weapons at the United Nations and the person responsible for preparing a report on establishing a nuclear reactor in Egypt. "I am of the opinion that possessing an atom bomb is essential if you want to enjoy power and sovereignty. I will not forget what the Indian ambassador said to me when we discovered that India was holding nuclear experiments in 1997 - 'Our national security is more important to us than water or food.'" Qubaisi, who criticizes the Egyptian government for not approving nuclear supervision in its territory, says no country in the region, including Israel, has conducted nuclear experiments because they are so simple to trace. "Israel conducts its experiments via computer simulations - impossible to detect," he says.

The Tarapur Atomic Power Station - which has since long been on the radar of terrorist organisations - has been shaken by a security breach. Two contract workers managed to steal two computers from the site, and even got them past the first security point of the nuclear plant, which is guarded by over 300 Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel. The accused, Prashant More and Amit Shelke, were nabbed when they failed to give a satisfactory reply at the second security post. More and Shelke worked for Sharma Engineering, a company that has been awarded a maintenance contract for the piping in the core area of the 320 Mw thermal power plant.

The Tarapur Atomic Power Station - which has since long been on the radar of terrorist organisations - has been shaken by a security breach. Two contract workers managed to steal two computers from the site, and even got them past the first security point of the nuclear plant, which is guarded by over 300 Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel. The accused, Prashant More and Amit Shelke, were nabbed when they failed to give a satisfactory reply at the second security post. More and Shelke worked for Sharma Engineering, a company that has been awarded a maintenance contract for the piping in the core area of the 320 Mw thermal power plant.

CHRONOLOGY (CONTEXT) FOR UNDERSTANDING HOW MORE MONEY WILL BE TRANSFERRED FROM THE GOVERNMENT TO THE NUCLEAR/URANIUM INDUSTRY. THE UNIVERSITY IS THE MIDDLE MAN. The following chronology is an aid to understanding the November 30th decision of the "Expert Review Panel". It creates CONTEXT. It is just a sampling of evidence from the public record. Some of you will add your own information to it. I want to get this chronology out prior to the announcement of the decision of the panel, in case it might be useful. Please consider forwarding it to media people you might know, as background. I will send supporting news reports for the chronology later; don't want to overload you with email today! If you don't hear from me it will be because of computer troubles.

CHRONOLOGY (CONTEXT) FOR UNDERSTANDING HOW MORE MONEY WILL BE TRANSFERRED FROM THE GOVERNMENT TO THE NUCLEAR/URANIUM INDUSTRY. THE UNIVERSITY IS THE MIDDLE MAN. The following chronology is an aid to understanding the November 30th decision of the "Expert Review Panel". It creates CONTEXT. It is just a sampling of evidence from the public record. Some of you will add your own information to it. I want to get this chronology out prior to the announcement of the decision of the panel, in case it might be useful. Please consider forwarding it to media people you might know, as background. I will send supporting news reports for the chronology later; don't want to overload you with email today! If you don't hear from me it will be because of computer troubles.

Now that more people are attuned to the ticking clock of climate change, there is no shortage of theories for how the next act will play out. Though scientists, activists and theorists have been wildly off the mark so far, they continue to guess at what will be the solutions - and pitfalls - for getting the planet back on track. Stewart Brand first made his mark not by imagining the future, but by making it happen. His Whole Earth Catalog of 1968 (published through the early 1970s), changed publishing, kick-started the computer revolution, the green movement, organic farming and the whole concept of living off the grid.

Now that more people are attuned to the ticking clock of climate change, there is no shortage of theories for how the next act will play out. Though scientists, activists and theorists have been wildly off the mark so far, they continue to guess at what will be the solutions - and pitfalls - for getting the planet back on track. Stewart Brand first made his mark not by imagining the future, but by making it happen. His Whole Earth Catalog of 1968 (published through the early 1970s), changed publishing, kick-started the computer revolution, the green movement, organic farming and the whole concept of living off the grid.

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Hospital officials say a computer-resetting error caused radiation overdoses for 206 patients who underwent CT scans at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. In a written statement Monday, hospital officials said "a misunderstanding about an embedded default setting applied by the machine" resulted in a higher than expected amount of radiation. Officials say the 206 patients received eight times the normal dose of radiation - an error that went undetected for 18 months. A hospital spokesman says about 40 percent of the patients lost patches of hair as a result. The scanners' manufacturer, General Electric, says the machine was not defective. As a result of the discovery, the FDA issued an alert Thursday urging hospitals nationwide to review their safety protocols for CT scans.

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Hospital officials say a computer-resetting error caused radiation overdoses for 206 patients who underwent CT scans at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. In a written statement Monday, hospital officials said "a misunderstanding about an embedded default setting applied by the machine" resulted in a higher than expected amount of radiation. Officials say the 206 patients received eight times the normal dose of radiation - an error that went undetected for 18 months. A hospital spokesman says about 40 percent of the patients lost patches of hair as a result. The scanners' manufacturer, General Electric, says the machine was not defective. As a result of the discovery, the FDA issued an alert Thursday urging hospitals nationwide to review their safety protocols for CT scans.

A mathematical model constructed by researchers at Imperial College London predicts the risk of cardiovascular disease (heart attacks, stroke) associated with low background levels of radiation. The model shows that the risk would vary almost in proportion with dose. Results, published October 23 in the open-access journal PLoS Computational Biology, are consistent with risk levels reported in previous studies involving nuclear workers. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death and one of the leading causes of disability in developed countries, as reported in the paper and also by the World Health Organization (http://www.who.int/whosis/en/). For some time, scientists have understood how high-dose radiotherapy (RT) causes inflammation in the heart and large arteries and how this results in the increased levels of cardiovascular disease observed in many groups of patients who receive RT. However, in the last few years, studies have shown that there may also be cardiovascular risks associated with the much lower fractionated doses of radiation received by groups such as nuclear workers, but it is not clear what biological mechanisms are responsible.

A mathematical model constructed by researchers at Imperial College London predicts the risk of cardiovascular disease (heart attacks, stroke) associated with low background levels of radiation. The model shows that the risk would vary almost in proportion with dose. Results, published October 23 in the open-access journal PLoS Computational Biology, are consistent with risk levels reported in previous studies involving nuclear workers. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death and one of the leading causes of disability in developed countries, as reported in the paper and also by the World Health Organization (http://www.who.int/whosis/en/). For some time, scientists have understood how high-dose radiotherapy (RT) causes inflammation in the heart and large arteries and how this results in the increased levels of cardiovascular disease observed in many groups of patients who receive RT. However, in the last few years, studies have shown that there may also be cardiovascular risks associated with the much lower fractionated doses of radiation received by groups such as nuclear workers, but it is not clear what biological mechanisms are responsible.

How careful do patients have to be following nuclear diagnostic tests, or after radiation for the treatment of cancer? How long do these nuclear materials remain in the body? And how long will this radiation remain detectable and transmissible to others? A report from Johns Hopkins University says that patients, following radiation, must be made aware that they can pass along radiation to others. But unlike cholesterol, this subject is rarely, if ever, discussed at the dinner table. The problem is that nuclear diagnostic tests are not going to go away or decrease. Rather, unless we develop other means of diagnosis, these tests will increase in the years ahead. During scans to detect thyroid disease, coronary troubles and cancer, radioactive drugs are either injected, taken orally or inhaled. Gamma cameras or positron emission tomography (PET) scanners can then detect this energy and use it to produce images of the body on a computer.

How careful do patients have to be following nuclear diagnostic tests, or after radiation for the treatment of cancer? How long do these nuclear materials remain in the body? And how long will this radiation remain detectable and transmissible to others? A report from Johns Hopkins University says that patients, following radiation, must be made aware that they can pass along radiation to others. But unlike cholesterol, this subject is rarely, if ever, discussed at the dinner table. The problem is that nuclear diagnostic tests are not going to go away or decrease. Rather, unless we develop other means of diagnosis, these tests will increase in the years ahead. During scans to detect thyroid disease, coronary troubles and cancer, radioactive drugs are either injected, taken orally or inhaled. Gamma cameras or positron emission tomography (PET) scanners can then detect this energy and use it to produce images of the body on a computer.

Quarrels remain as the Northern California community and the federal government search for an affordable and environmental solution. Reporting from Livermore, Calif. - The Energy Department is spending $328 million to clean up two separate areas of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory -- the agency's largest nuclear-weapons cleanup project in California. The cleanup is relatively minor compared with others in the U.S., but it still has led to conflicts between the local community and the federal government as both search for a solution that is affordable and environmentally acceptable. Livermore is one of two U.S. labs that designed nuclear weapons. It continues to conduct research into plutonium behavior, high-powered lasers, computer-simulated nuclear reactions and other areas.

Quarrels remain as the Northern California community and the federal government search for an affordable and environmental solution. Reporting from Livermore, Calif. - The Energy Department is spending $328 million to clean up two separate areas of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory -- the agency's largest nuclear-weapons cleanup project in California. The cleanup is relatively minor compared with others in the U.S., but it still has led to conflicts between the local community and the federal government as both search for a solution that is affordable and environmentally acceptable. Livermore is one of two U.S. labs that designed nuclear weapons. It continues to conduct research into plutonium behavior, high-powered lasers, computer-simulated nuclear reactions and other areas.

The much-hyped "Renaissance" of atomic power has taken three devastating hits with potentially fatal consequences. The usually supine Nuclear Regulatory Commission has told Toshiba's Westinghouse Corporation that its "standardized" AP-1000 design might not withstand hurricanes, tornadoes or earthquakes. Regulators in France, Finland and the UK have raised safety concerns about AREVA's flagship EPR reactor. The front group for France's national nuclear power industry, AREVA's vanguard project in Finland is at least three years behind schedule and at least $3 billion over budget. And the Obama Administration indicates it will end efforts to license the proposed radioactive waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. After more than fifty years of trying, the nuclear industry has not a single prospective central dump site. "If history repeats itself as farce, then the nuclear power industry represents the most incompetent jester of all time," says Michael Mariotte of the Nuclear Information & Resource Service. It "seems intent on repeating every possible mistake of its failed past-from promoting inadequate, ever-changing reactor designs to blowing through even the largest imaginable budgets. If the computer industry followed the practices of the nuclear industry, we'd still be waiting for the first digital device that could fit in a space smaller than a warehouse and cost less than a family's annual income."

The much-hyped "Renaissance" of atomic power has taken three devastating hits with potentially fatal consequences. The usually supine Nuclear Regulatory Commission has told Toshiba's Westinghouse Corporation that its "standardized" AP-1000 design might not withstand hurricanes, tornadoes or earthquakes. Regulators in France, Finland and the UK have raised safety concerns about AREVA's flagship EPR reactor. The front group for France's national nuclear power industry, AREVA's vanguard project in Finland is at least three years behind schedule and at least $3 billion over budget. And the Obama Administration indicates it will end efforts to license the proposed radioactive waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. After more than fifty years of trying, the nuclear industry has not a single prospective central dump site. "If history repeats itself as farce, then the nuclear power industry represents the most incompetent jester of all time," says Michael Mariotte of the Nuclear Information & Resource Service. It "seems intent on repeating every possible mistake of its failed past-from promoting inadequate, ever-changing reactor designs to blowing through even the largest imaginable budgets. If the computer industry followed the practices of the nuclear industry, we'd still be waiting for the first digital device that could fit in a space smaller than a warehouse and cost less than a family's annual income."

"Mike Carlson was at his desk when he noticed his chair starting to move. The computer monitor on his desk at Central Vermont Public Service Corp. in Rutland shuddered, too, Wednesday afternoon moving from side to side, thanks to a magnitude-5.0 earthquake in Canada at abount 2:30 p.m. that shook a region stretching as far west as Michigan and into New England. Vermont Yankee nuclear plant in Vernon reported an "unusual event," the lowest of four levels of emergency classification. U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission spokesman Neil Sheehan says the earthquake wasn't felt in the control room but was in other parts of the site. Yankee officials say there's no evidence of damage to the plant. Vermont Emergency Management spokesman Mark Bosma said no reports of damage have been reported. Advertisement "

A case initially cast as a potential threat to national security ended Tuesday with a 15-month prison term for a former Palo Verde engineer who took nuclear-plant software to Iran. Mohammad Alavi, 51, was sentenced on charges of illegally accessing a computer and transporting stolen property as part of a plea agreement with federal prosecutors. The U.S. Attorney's Office originally sought to put Alavi behind bars for as long as 10 years for multiple charges, including violating a U.S. trade embargo with Iran.

Following Nevada's lead, Clark County and a nonprofit Timbisha Shoshone corporation filed petitions Monday challenging the Department of Energy's license application for a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. "In a nutshell, we're challenging DOE's capacity to construct and operate a safe repository," said Irene Navis, Clark County's nuclear waste planning manager. The county submitted 15 contentions to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, she said. All but three deal with safety issues related to DOE's performance assessment of the planned repository and the validity of computer models for the site, 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

Long-term reliability and long-range thinking are the keys to develop a new type of nuclear power that today's keynoter sees on the horizon. "The U.S. electrical grid is known for brownouts and blackouts. And it'll get worse before it gets better," said today's keynoter and Rimbach lecturer, David J. Nagel, Ph.D., research professor in applications of micro- and nano-technologies in the department of electrical and computer engineering at the School of Engineering and Applied Science at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. Nagel's main point is how instrumentation for low energy nuclear reactions can change the way we look at nuclear production of the future.

The president of Switzerland stepped to a podium in Bern last May and read a statement confirming rumors that had swirled through the capital for months. The government, he acknowledged, had indeed destroyed a huge trove of computer files and other material documenting the business dealings of a family of Swiss engineers suspected of helping smuggle nuclear technology to Libya and Iran.

NRC's review of Oyster Creek's license renewal request has been extended by an August 21 commission order referring one technical issue back to an Atomic Safety and Licensing Board panel. In its order, the commission directed the panel to resolve "as expeditiously as is practicable" issues related to operator AmerGen's plans to create a 3-D computer model of corrosion in Oyster Creek's steel drywell containment shell. Nuclear Information and Resource Service and five other groups, who contend that the corrosion could jeopardize future safe operation of the plant, appealed those issues to the commission after the ASLB panel rejected their challenges earlier this year.