Daily Business Report: Monday, Dec. 19, 2022
The Science of Nuclear Fusion
Visual Capitalist
U.S. scientists at the National Ignition Facility, part of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), announced a major breakthrough in nuclear fusion on Dec. 5. For the first time ever, scientists successfully produced more energy from a nuclear fusion experiment than the laser energy used to power it.
Nuclear fusion powers the Sun and the stars, where immense forces compress and heat hydrogen plasma to about 100 million degrees Celsius. At this temperature, the lighter particles fuse into helium, releasing enormous amounts of energy.
Nuclear fusion is a fairly clean energy source as it does not produce harmful atmospheric emissions and only produces a small amount of short-lived radioactive waste.
Scientists have been trying to replicate it on Earth for almost 70 years, using isotopes of hydrogen—deuterium and tritium—to power fusion plants.
Since deuterium is found in seawater and tritium is attained through irradiating lithium (a common element used in batteries), the accessibility of these isotopes means that fusion could become a major source of energy in the future.
The amount of deuterium present in one liter of water, for example, could produce as much fusion energy as the combustion of 300 liters of oil.
Top Photo: General Atomics, which operates the D111-D National Fusion Facility on behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy, announced plans last October for a fusion pilot plant (rendering above) to deliver clean, safe and economically viable fusion energy.
Northrop Grumman RQ-4 RangeHawk
supports NASA’s Artemis mission
Northrop Grumman Corporation’s RQ-4 RangeHawk supported the first flight of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket during the recent Artemis I mission. RangeHawk is part of SkyRange, the Department of Defense Test Resource Management Center’s uncrewed high-altitude, long-endurance, responsive mobile flight test initiative.
Shortly after the Artemis l launch and perigee raise maneuver, the uncrewed SLS rocket performed the Trans-Lunar Injection burn, which accelerated the Orion spacecraft from 17,500 mph to 22,600 mph to escape Earth’s orbit and head toward the moon. This burn occurred over the Pacific Ocean outside the field of view of NASA’s ground stations.
Researchers find missing piece of the asthma puzzle
By Madeline McCurry-Schmidt
An inflammatory molecule called LIGHT, appears to be the cause of life-threatening airway damage in patients with severe asthma. According to the new research from scientists at La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI), therapeutics to stop LIGHT (which is related to tumor necrosis factor) could reverse airway and lung damage in patients—and potentially offer a long-term treatment for asthma.
“This is a very, very significant finding,” says LJI Professor Michael Croft, senior author of the new study and member of the LJI Center for Autoimmunity and Inflammation. “This research gives us a better understanding of the potential of therapeutic targeting of LIGHT and what we might do to relieve some of the symptoms and some of the inflammatory features seen in patients who have severe asthma.”
This research was published recently in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. The study included experiments with both mouse and human tissues and was spearheaded by LJI instructor Haruka Miki, M.D.
Aerospace engineering faculty ranked
in top 2 percent of authors worldwide
By Melinda Sevilla
Four San Diego State University aerospace engineering faculty members have been listed in a 2022 Stanford study’s top 2 percent of authors in the subfield of Aerospace & Aeronautics out of a total of nearly 50,000 authors worldwide in the subfield.
The study lists SDSU professors Ping Lu (No. 9), Luciano Demasi (No. 306), Josef Katz(No. 465), and Gustaaf Jacobs (No. 1053), accounting for four of 11 SDSU aerospace engineering faculty in the department.
“To have 36 percent of the faculty in the aerospace engineering department earn such a high distinction speaks volumes to the research prowess and high-quality scholarship in Aerospace Engineering and the College of Engineering at SDSU,” said Lu, department chair.
The study, which is conducted annually at Stanford University, creates a publicly available comprehensive database of 100,000 top scientists in 22 scientific fields and 176 subfields. To accomplish this, the team of researchers analyze a number of factors in the impact of authors using a composite indicator, an index to measure multiple variables at once, that accounts for a number of citations, co-authorships, the productivity and citation impact of a given publication, and more.
San Diego County Bar Association acquires
Downtown office building for $6.83 million
CBRE arranged the $6.83 million sale of 330 A Street, a single-story office building in Downtown San Diego, to the San Diego County Bar Association. The seller was 330 A Street LLC.
The 9,000-square-foot, single-tenant building was initially constructed in 1962 and completely renovated in 2011 into its current creative office design, adding a rooftop terrace. The building is situated on a 10,000-square-foot parcel on the northwest corner of Fourth Avenue and A Street.
Jeff Oesterblad and Marc Frederick of CBRE’s San Diego office represented the seller Street in the transaction. Tom Nicholas and Jack Blumenfeld of Colliers represented the buyer.
KB Home stages grand opening
of new townhome community
KB Home announced the grand opening of The Terraces, a new townhome community located in Lemon Grove. The new homes at The Terraces showcase desirable design characteristics like spacious kitchens overlooking large great rooms, expansive bedroom suites with walk-in closets, and ample storage space. The community’s floor plans feature four bedrooms and three-and-a-half baths, and range in size from approximately 1,200 to 1,700 square feet. Pricing begins from the low $500,000s.
SD County Commission on the Status of Women
elect Parisa Ijadi-Maghsoodi, Esq. as chair
The San Diego County Commission on the Status of Women and Girls announced that Parisa Ijadi-Maghsoodi, Esq., has been elected as its new chairperson.
Ijadi-Maghsoodi has chaired the Commission’s UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) Committee since 2019, is a founding member of the statewide CEDAW Challenge Team, and served as lead in drafting the county’s recently passed CEDAW ordinance.
She also serves on cities for CEDAW’s National Advisory Committee.
Vistage Worldwide acquires Denmark’s EGN
Vistage Worldwide Inc., a San Diego-based coaching and peer advisory organization for CEOs and key executives, announced that it has acquired Denmark-based EGN, which offers peer groups to CEOs, leaders and specialists worldwide across 70 functional areas. Since 1957, Vistage has been bringing together groups of high-performing CEOs through a proven leadership experience that delivers results both personally and professionally. More than 29,000 Vistage members in 26 countries also have access to expert speakers, personalized coaching sessions, and international networking.
North Dakota Air National Guard 178th Attack
Squadron honored by General Atomics
The North Dakota Air National Guard’s 178th Attack Squadron (ATKS) was recognized as the General Atomics Remotely Piloted Aircraft Squadron of the Year at an event hosted by the Mitchell Institute on Dec. 9, 2022, at the Fargo Air Museum in Fargo, N.D. The award is given annually to the squadron that distinguishes itself through its deployment of Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) in meritorious service. The 178th was selected from a field of more than 30 RPA squadrons and it’s the first time an ANG Squadron has received the award.
Chris George joins Neology
as a senior solutions architect
Neology, a global innovator that is re-imagining mobility for smart cities and safer communities, continues to strengthen its leadership team by adding Chris George as a senior solutions architect for its U.S. Tolling Business. George has more than 30 years of experience in system engineering and technology management, including 16 years in the tolling industry. George was most recently with Texas Department of Transportation as deputy director of the Toll Operations Division.
Hart Winery becomes Halter Ranch Temecula
Hart Winery in Temecula is set to become Halter Ranch Temecula, officially opening on Jan. 2, 2023. Purchased by Halter Ranch in May 2022, the Halter Ranch Temecula Tasting Room and eight-acre vineyard are located in the spirited Temecula Valley, approximately 60 minutes from the coastline of San Diego, Orange County, and Palm Springs. Halter Ranch will continue the tradition set forth by Hart Winery of sourcing the highest quality and organically grown grapes from the historic Cazas Vineyard.
Home buyers see first signs
of affordability relief in months
After months of watching the cost of a new mortgage rise higher and higher, home buyers finally saw some relief in November. A combination of declining home values and lower mortgage rates brought the monthly mortgage payment on a typical U.S. home down by about $100, according to the latest Zillow Market Report. Still, monthly mortgage costs are up $720, or 66.1 percent, over the past year. The typical U.S. home is worth $357,733, 0.2 percent less than in October and down 0.5 percent from a peak in June. Higher mortgage rates shoulder much of the responsibility for today’s chilled market.
Nuvve Holding Corp. adds lithium ion batteries in Japan
Nuvve Holding Corp., a global cleantech company based in San Diego, and Japan’s Chubu Electric Power Miraiz Company, a high-tech demand response company, are strengthening an existing commercial agreement with the addition of three stationary, vehicle-to-grid (or V2G) capable lithium-ion batteries in two new locations in Japan to enhance grid service capabilities. The batteries are expected to serve both as a power source and to provide a variety of balancing and demand response services to the grid.
Avidity Biosciences announces pricing
of public offering of common stock
Avidity Biosciences Inc., a biopharmaceutical company in San Diego delivering a new class of RNA therapeutics called Antibody Oligonucleotide Conjugates, announced the pricing of an underwritten public offering of 12,000,000 shares of its common stock at a price to the public of $17.25 per share. All of the shares to be sold in the offering are to be sold by Avidity. The gross proceeds to Avidity from the offering, before deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses, are expected to be $207 million. The offering is expected to close on or about Dec. 20, 2022. Avidity has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 1,800,000 shares of common stock.
