This week at AAAS, PNNL scientists discuss phenomics and the factors that influence DNA instructions to bring about the world around us.

The Pacific Northwest Association of Toxicologists (PANWAT) presented its annual Toxicology Achievement Award to Katrina Waters at the Society of Toxicology Pacific Northwest Chapter Meeting, held in Lynnwood, Washington, on September 30th.

PNNL biodefense experts seek to identify, understand and mitigate the risks of biological pathogens—whether naturally occurring or intentionally created—so steps can be taken to prepare and respond.

Early life exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), found in smoke, has been linked to developmental problems. To study the impacts of these pollutants, PAH metabolism in infants and adults were compared.

PNNL has developed a decision tool that provides contractors and installers with the information they need to properly select and install cold climate heat pumps, which are a key technology for achieving decarbonization.

PMedIC, the PNNL and OHSU joint research collaboration, contributes to student success and impact in biomedicine.

Andrew White goes back to his alma mater, Georgia Tech, as young alumni keynote speaker for the Sustainability Showcase, part of the university’s larger Sustainable Development Goals Action & Awareness Week.

Tennessee State University received Department of Energy funding to establish an academy focused on preparing students and professionals to work in an emerging field: clean energy systems. PNNL is helping with that effort and others.

Researchers from PNNL have been assessing installation and use of electric heat pumps in an Alaskan community that relies on fuel oil for heat. The resulting information could advance electrification in cold rural areas across the nation.

PNNL helps deliver efficiency-related rules and requirements that steadily improve performance of America’s buildings, saving energy and costs and reducing carbon emissions.

Mandy Mahoney, director of the DOE Building Technologies Office, visited PNNL in late November. One key agenda item involved meeting with staff for a discussion of effective equity and justice integration in buildings-related research.

A larger HVAC workforce with training on modern heat pump technology will be pivotal to achieving the mass-scale electrification of household HVAC systems needed to meet building decarbonization goals.

Leaders from the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy visited PNNL October 19–20 for a firsthand look at capabilities and research progress.

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Launch Point CDC, Inc. are developing a framework to empower disadvantaged communities with clean energy technology—along with a set of resources to give other community organizations a head start.

PNNL’s Andrea Mengual co-chaired a working group that produced Building Performance Standards: A Technical Resource Guide. PNNL’s Kim Cheslak, Bing Liu, and Jian Zhang contributed to the effort.

PNNL is at the midpoint of a study focused on the installation of electric heat pump water heaters in New Orleans homes. The efficient water heaters offer a unique capability that could help speed the transition from fossil fuels.

Scientists screen for nanobodies that recognize wild type and mutant functional proteins to develop a framework to disrupt protein interactions that can cause disease.

Lauren Charles, a chief data scientist at PNNL, joined the editorial board of the largest open access journal published by Nature Research.

Joshua Adkins and Jamie Lo will lead PMedIC, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Oregon Health & Science University’s joint research institute.

PNNL’s extensive portfolio of buildings-grid research included three projects that helped answer some of the technical questions related to leveraging energy consumption in buildings to enhance grid operations.