2018’s Top Stories from the Office of Science
Capturing carbon dioxide, understanding dark matter, and revealing the causes of battery failure are just a few of the scientific challenges that institutions supported by the Department of Energy's Office of Science delved into in 2018. Over the course of the year, the Office of Science shared more than 1300 articles describing research we supported.
Our stories fall into four categories, each focusing on a different aspect of our work: original features, laboratory articles, university articles, and research highlights. We've compiled the five most popular articles of each type published in 2018.
Original Feature Articles
The Office of Science's Communications and Public Affairs team's original feature articles provide perspectives on our work that readers will find nowhere else. Longform feature articles provide big picture views of major research topics, from earth systems modeling to high energy physics. Profiles of user facility directors and National Science Bowl alumni put a personal spin on some of our nation's greatest resources.
Top five original feature articles:
- How does the Ocean's Saltiness Affect Tropical Storms?
- Capturing a Snapshot of a Complex Catalyst
- The Journey of Actinium-225: How Scientists Discovered a New Way to Produce a Rare Medical Radioisotope
- Meet the Director: Mark Palmer, Accelerator Test Facility
- How to Fit a Planet Inside a Computer: Developing the Energy Exascale Earth System Model
National Laboratory Articles
The Office of Science's 10 national laboratories report on their latest research news with timely press releases and features. They also profile scientists to highlight the passion and commitment behind the research.
Top five national laboratory articles:
- X-rays Uncover a Hidden Property that Leads to Failure in a Lithium-ion Battery Material (SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)
- Diamond 'Spin-off' Tech Could Lead to Low-cost Medical Imaging and Drug Discovery Tools (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)
- Chemists Demonstrate Sustainable Approach to Carbon Dioxide Capture from Air (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
- Neutrons Produce First Direct 3D Maps of Water During Cell Membrane Fusion (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
- Cannibalistic Materials Feed on Themselves to Grow New Nanostructures (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
University Articles
The Office of Science supports scientists, engineers, and students at nearly 300 academic institutions across the United States. These universities tell the stories of the discoveries that emerge from this research.
Top five university articles:
- MSU hosts U.S. Particle Accelerator School (Michigan State University)
- UCLA-led Physics-Chemistry Team Wins $2.7 Million Award for Quantum Computing (UCLA)
- Novel Methods of Synthesizing Quantum Dot Materials (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
- Chasing Dark Matter with the Oldest Stars in the Milky Way (Princeton University)
- Double Awards for Grad Student Sean Burcher (University of Tennessee Knoxville)
Research Highlights
Research highlights summarize published journal articles at national laboratories and universities based on work supported by the Office of Science. These articles feature findings that the Office of Science programs themselves choose to amplify.
Top five research highlights:
- Carbon Nanotubes Give Two Excitons for the Price of One
- Tuning Terahertz Beams with Nanoparticles
- New Electron Glasses Sharpen Our View of Atomic Scale Features
- Tiny Titanium Barrier Halts Big Problem in Fuel-Producing Solar Cells
- Very Heavy Elements Deliver More Electrons
The Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic energy research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information please visit https://science.energy.gov.
