Established in 1947 on Long Island, New York, on the site of the former army Camp Upton, BNL is a multidisciplinary laboratory that carries out basic and applied research in the physical, biomedical and environmental sciences and in selected energy technologies. The Laboratory is managed by Associated Universities, Inc., under contract to the US Department of Energy. BNL`s annual budget is about $400 million, and the Laboratory`s facilities are valued at replacements cost in excess of over $2.8 billion. Employees number around 3,300,and over 4,000 guests, collaborators and students come each year to use the Laboratory`s facilities and work with the staff. Scientific and technical achievements at BNL have made their way into daily life in areas as varied as health care, construction materials and video games. The backbone of these developments is fundamental research, which is and always will be an investment in the future.