1. ENERGY EFFICIENCY:
National labs try to cut energy bills while missions expand
When your business involves particle accelerators shooting electrons out at nearly the speed of light, gigantic supercomputer models of thermonuclear explosions and light sources a billion times brighter than the sun, reducing greenhouse gas emissions might rank low on your list of priorities. But the U.S. Department of Energy's national laboratories have long pursued energy efficiency projects alongside their energy and defense missions. The idea is to blend resource conservation into developing cutting-edge science. The approach has been to refine how they use their fundamental resources -- indoor space, warm air, cold water and electrons. The goal is to do more with less.
