The nuclear industry has embraced the risk-informed and performance-based (RIPB) decision-making process over the past two decades. Still, it remains a complex concept to explain in lay terms.

With that in mind, the American Nuclear Society will be kicking off an RIPB awareness social media campaign as part of Nuclear Science Week 2020, which begins today and runs through Friday. The campaign will link decision making to everyday events in a person's life and feature a series of images and seemingly easy questions requiring a choice to be made. For example, ANS asks, “Would you get rid of your car if the radio didn’t work?” or “Would you toss a lamp if the shade was dirty?”

Rahnema

Farzad Rahnema, a professor of nuclear engineering and director of the Computational Reactor and Medical Physics Laboratory at the Georgia Institute of Technology, has been appointed editor-designate of the American Nuclear Society’s Nuclear Science and Engineering journal. Rahnema, an ANS Fellow and member since 1989, was named editor-designate on September 8 by ANS President Mary Lou Dunzik-Gougar, and he will begin his duties on October 1. He succeeds current editor Michael Corradini, who has been serving on an interim basis since Dan Cacuci retired from the role in November 2019.

The American Nuclear Society will include a representative from the Young Members Group on its Board of Directors after ANS members voted this week overwhelmingly in favor of amending Article B6 of the ANS bylaws. The change was mandated by Objective Outcome 5 of the ANS Change Plan 2020.

To keep the number of directors at 16, the approved amendment decreased the number of non–U.S. resident directors from three to two.

Levenson

Thanks to a generous donation from Margaret S. Y. Chu, a member of the American Nuclear Society since 2000, the ANS Distinguished Service Award will now honor Milton Levenson, ANS past president (1983–1984) and Fellow who died in 2018. Chu’s career path intersected with Levenson many times over a 13-year span through their work as consultants. Following his death, Chu wanted a way to honor the man she described as “an extraordinary scientist who dedicated over 70 years of his life to nuclear energy.”

Registration is open for the American Nuclear Society’s first Virtual Career Fair, to be held September 22-23. The online event will provide early career professionals and students in the nuclear science, engineering, and technology fields an opportunity to meet with representatives from utilities, vendors, suppliers, national laboratories, government agencies, consulting firms, and universities. Attendees will learn about co-ops, internships, and full-time employment opportunities in a one-stop shop, online setting.

For more information, visit here or contact Catherine Prat, chair of the ANS Young Members Group.