ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Division Spotlight
Mathematics & Computation
Division members promote the advancement of mathematical and computational methods for solving problems arising in all disciplines encompassed by the Society. They place particular emphasis on numerical techniques for efficient computer applications to aid in the dissemination, integration, and proper use of computer codes, including preparation of computational benchmark and development of standards for computing practices, and to encourage the development on new computer codes and broaden their use.
Meeting Spotlight
2023 ANS Winter Conference and Expo
November 12–15, 2023
Washington, D.C.|Washington Hilton
Standards Program
The Standards Committee is responsible for the development and maintenance of voluntary consensus standards that address the design, analysis, and operation of components, systems, and facilities related to the application of nuclear science and technology. Find out What’s New, check out the Standards Store, or Get Involved today!
Latest Magazine Issues
Sep 2023
Jul 2023
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
October 2023
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
National Museum of Nuclear Science and History explores “atomic” culture
For many of us, the toys of our childhood leave indelible marks on our consciousness, affecting our long-term perceptions and attitudes about certain things. Hot Wheels may inspire a lifelong fascination with fast, flashy automobiles, while Barbies might shape ideas about beauty and self-image. For the generation who grew up during the Atomic Age—the post–World War II era from roughly the mid-1940s to the early 1960s—the toys, games, and entertainment of their childhoods might have included things like atomic pistols, atomic trains, rings with tiny amounts of radioactive elements, and comic books, puzzles, and music about nuclear weapons.
John W. Landis was a charter member of the American Nuclear Society (ANS), joining in 1955. In 1971, he was elected as the 17th president of ANS. He was a Fellow of ANS. In 1996, he was named an “international nuclear statesman” when he received the American Nuclear Society’s Henry DeWolf Smyth (’18 *21) Award.
Dr. Landis was born on October 10, 1917. In 1950, Landis joined the Atomic Energy Commission and helped design nuclear power plants. In 1953, he began working for the Atomic Energy Division of the Babcock & Wilcox Co., and became head of its center for nuclear research. He contributed to the design of the Indian Point, N.Y., nuclear power station. In 1968, he began working with Gulf General Atomic Co. of San Diego, and in 1971 became the president.
From 1975 until he retired in 1993, Landis was a senior vice president and director of Stone & Webster Engineering Corp. in Boston. He was also president of Stone & Webster International.
Landis worked for many years in voluntary standards development for the energy industry. He served the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) as in a number of capacities and was chair of its Board from 1975 to 1977. During his career, he also served as chair of the Public Safety Standards Group and as a member of the National Academy of Engineering. He was a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. He has also served on 27 government advisory committees.
The recipient of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Exceptional Public Service Award, and of numerous other accolades, John W. Landis was awarded ANSI’s Howard Coonley Medal in 1991 in recognition of his service to the nation as the driving force behind the development of consensus standards for the application and regulation of nuclear power. Landis was deeply committed to the peaceful uses of the atom.
The Landis Challenge, a fundraising campaign he sponsored, helped ANS propel its public education program to a new level. He was always committed to increasing the public’s understanding of nuclear science and technology. Later, although he may not have known then, his work on the Special Committee for Development helped to lay the foundation for ANS’ Center for Nuclear Science and Technology Information.
Landis graduated summa cum laude in 1939 from Lafayette. After serving in the Navy he studied physics at Princeton University at the graduate level, but did not complete a degree.
Dr. John W. Landis passed away on March 16, 2013.
Read Nuclear News from July 1971 for more on John Landis.
Last modified January 20, 2021, 12:17pm CST