SLANTS & TRENDS.

DOE REORGANIZATION is a go with President Clinton's Oct. 5 signing of the fiscal year 2000 Defense Authorization Act with its provisions creating a semi-autonomous National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) within the department to manage the U.S. nuclear weapons complex.

The National Ignition Facility  (NIF) and much of the inertial confinement fusion program will come under the new administration. DOE officials still are not sure what this will mean for management of the programs and accessibility of research and experimental data.

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BUDGET BONUS. The U.S. civilian fusion energy sciences program is inching up in the federal budget. House and Senate conferees gave the program $250 million, $27.4 million more than the administration's request (see story p. 54).

This brings the program closer to the intermediate budget scenario of $260 million suggested by DOE's Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee (FESAC). In its report on fusion program priorities and balances, FESAC used three annual funding scenarios for planning purposes: $222 million, the $260 million intermediate scenario and the recommended funding level of $300 million. In each funding scenario, FESAC called for a slightly higher proportion of civilian fusion research funds to be devoted to inertial fusion energy work (see story p. 55).

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FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES. The President's Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) has come down firmly in favor of international collaboration on high-technology energy alternatives for the future, including fusion. The panel also called for the federal government to double its investment in energy research and development between now and 2005.

Future fusion collaboration should not be restricted to construction of a single device, but should cover a broad range of collaborative activities in all aspects of fusion energy development, PCAST urged. This effort should selectively enhance U.S. participation in existing fusion experiments abroad and invite increased foreign participation in new and continuing smaller fusion experiments in the United States (see story p. 57).

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NIF WOES. The National Ignition Facility (NIF) has been hit with a one-two punch with revelations that the cost of the program will exceed estimates by 20 percent to 30 percent and revelations that Michael Campbell, Livermore associate director for lasers, did not finish the last portion of work on his Ph.D. 22 years ago at Princeton University. Both issues appear headed for resolution. Livermore scientists have found a way to increase laser power while finishing installation of the lasers. Livermore Director Bruce Tartar pledged Campbell will stay at the lab and Princeton has offered to allow him to finish his Ph.D. work (see stories pp. 57 and 63)..

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